Wisdom Teeth

August 30, 2010
I hurt. Today my one and only wisdom tooth was removed and I finally know what it’s like to have a tooth extracted. Painful! Not too bad actually. I think I react a little to Novocain, but even that has mostly disappeared. Now that the numbing is wearing off, I’m starting to feel the trauma one tiny little part of my mouth suffered today. I’ve been watching the pain, gauging carefully so I could pop some Extra Strength Tylenol before the numbing wore off completely and the pain became unbearable. I caught it mostly in time…About the point where I was starting to feel my jaw ache, I grabbed the Tylenol. Trying to get the dang thing open nearly brought me to tears. With each attempt to pop the lid off, the pain in my jaw seemed to escalate and it soon became too much to take (so much for prevention, I thought). I finally gave in and found the ibuprofen. No Tylenol today! It boggles my mind that a twenty-something adult can’t even get past the child safety-lock on a medicine bottle. I usually have Paul to come in and save me, but alas, I was on my own today so I am just lucky to have managed at all, thanks to the easier-to-open ibuprofen.

September 2, 2010
I'm writing from my bed. It's four-forty-something in the morning and my Tylenol is just kicking in. I was just starting to feel better from my extraction til I overdid it at work yesterday (painting a "firelane" on the curb at the daycare) and have been hurting significantly more since. Probably in large part due to the heat, lack of hydration, and the mistake of painting with my head upside-down while doing the bottom edge of the curb (throbbing, anyone?). Well, as long as it goes away and doesn't get worse, mmmm.....the extra strength Tylenol has started working and I am feeling much better! Hopefully it will only continue and I can get some more sleep tonight. I'll probably call my dentist tomorrow, just to make sure everything is okay. I am a bit of a hypochondriac, and after learning about dry socket from pre-mission family and friends as a teenager, have only been paranoid about having my wisdom tooth removed since. Oh well. At least it's gone...and there was only one...

Later...
I read online that the third day is the worst. I’m definitely feeling that right now. Hopefully that at least means that tomorrow will be better… I guess we’ll see.

September 3, 2010
If it’s true what they said about the third day, it would definitely explain the world of difference I feel between yesterday and today! I was lucky enough just to make it through yesterday, and Paul was a saint, putting up with all my whining and complaining. He even made a special trip to the store to bring me more of the foods I could eat (pudding, applesauce, ice cream…) and that really helped. Even dosed out all day on Extra Strength Tylenol and ibuprofen, I was in pain. What fun! Now I am feeling much better, very well rested and only a little sore. I’m on the mend again!! Hopefully for good, now.

*just a side note- we happened to get invited to dinner with Paul’s parents last night and ended up at a little seafood restaurant, “The Fish Whistle”? I was able to enjoy a small cup of soup and then gave in and ordered ice cream (no milkshakes) I also managed a couple of fries and bites of fish from Paul and his mom. Soon this will be over and I can eat REAL food again! I can’t complain though…I really have had it good. ;-)

September 4, 2010
I am feeling much better today and hardly hurting at all. Just a little achiness that will soon go away…I finally got up the courage to face my tooth yesterday! It had been sitting inside a small yellow envelope since the day it was pulled, and I’ll admit that I was nervous to see it. I imagined that it would be larger than expected and would probably startle me, and I was right. It was HUGE!!! I have no idea how that enormous thing fit into the tiny space on the back of my jaw line. Goodness. Well, either way, it’s out, and I feel much better about having it gone. My mother-in-law Dani gave me a tiny porcelain “tooth box” to keep it in that she gives her daycare kids whenever they lose teeth. I think I’ll use it. It’ll be fun to have around as proof that I can survive painful things. ;-)

Sharon

We had the wonderful opportunity of having my little sister Sharon spend a couple of weeks with us while we were in Texas this summer! We did lots of fun things together and made some great memories. Here are some pictures to share the fun....



Here we are all dressed up for church. Sharon was really cute about coming to my ward and sat with me all through Sunday School. We ended up leaving church early though to go home for a nap. After driving back from Utah the night before, it was definitely needed!


Sharon was my little maid. She loved cleaning my kitchen sinks
and left them sparkling every time.

On July 3rd, Sharon and I drove six hours out to Del Rio to pick Paul up from work. He had been out there for three weeks and we were missing each other terribly. We got to stay at a hotel that night, and Sharon was thrilled to have her own little bed! As the youngest of eight children, she is used to sharing hotel beds or camping out on the floor or a chair. Paul was a sweetheart to find a two-bed room! We were so happy to have Paul with us that night and so excited for the 4th of July the next day that we stayed up til three in the morning to watch a movie (National Treasure). Needless to say, we were a pretty tired on the way home Sunday, but we had fun. ;-)


Sunday was somewhat exhausting from the drive back to El Paso, but we were able to join some friends at a park for a barbecue and to run off some of our pent-up energy! After a while though, we returned to our apartment to finish our festivities together. We grilled steaks, sliced up some fresh watermelon, cooked up the corn on the cob and opened up the chips! It was a delicious meal. Sharon was really excited for the snap-its we got to throw off the balcony.

Our 4th of July Feast!!

One night, we surprised Paul with a homemade Banana Cake.




It turned out great and Sharon decorated it beautifully! It was a really yummy cake, too. ;P

I tried to find fun things for Sharon to do while she was here. Sadly, the weather didn't always cooperate with her unquenchable thirst for the pool, but we managed to find things to do inside. This simple wooden trinket box from the dollar store kept her quite happy. :)


Earlier in the week, I had suggested that we find a pinata to surprise Paul with when he came back from Del Rio. Sharon loved the idea, and we found this adorable puppy pinata at Party City. The only thing was, we weren't sure we could handle whacking at the cute little thing with a bat! Obviously, we managed as you will see below...

All in all, it was a very fun two weeks and we LOVED having you with us Sharon!

Another new niece!!!

Welcome Akaiah Encarnacion Jackson, second daughter of my brother Matt and his wife, Eli. She was born on May 26, 2010 at 1:30 a.m. She is just as beautiful as in her picture and such a sweetheart. I got to hold her when I took a short trip to Utah in June and can't wait for Paul to meet her too. She is precious. Her big sister Alai is so proud of her and very helpful. I loved watching her give Akaiah her binkie in the car while I was riding with them. What adorable sisters! We love you, Akaiah!