Dealing w/ Chronic Kidney Disease with Crystal

'Here's to a Rockin' New Year's Eve, everyone. Hope you are ready for a new year and a new beginning. 'Cause I am, and I am going to make this year about giving and loving and being exactly who I am. So, I expect my readers to be who they are and not worry about what others think of you either. You know, I knew that I wanted to wish you all a happy new year. I also want everyone to be safe while bringing in the new year of 2014. Please get a designated driver if you think that you must have alcohol. And also, stay away from difficult situations. The main thing that I really wanted to talk about is about how to bring in your new year with a great vibe. The past several years, I have brought in the new years with my children and my husband. And each year, they would get mad because I had a ritual of having a glass of non-alcoholic juice and watching the ball fall in New York on television on ABC with my family. I have always heard that what you are doing when br...

Good evening, everyone. Is everyone ready for 2013 to end? I can't say that I am and I can't say that I'm not. You know, today has been a really busy and crazy day for me. I had to work for half the day, and then I had my dialysis treatment today. This is one of those weeks that they reschedule our appointments to coincide with the upcoming holiday schedule. But, the only thing is that I have two sick adult daughters at home. I had to go home to take care of them, cook, and then put a load of clothes in the wash. What would happen if I got sick? Who would take care of me? Do I still have to cook for myself? Or do I go without? Questions are always asked. But, do we get to get the answers that we deserve? Nope. I just hope that I have a way better 2014 than I had in 2013. Ciao for now.

I have often wondered where some of my ideas come from. Have you? In the last couple of years, I have had some big ideas. The question is "How often do my ideas pan out, though? Seriously, it all depends on the individual and how much it is needed. Last year, my big idea was to have a fundraiser for myself (since this is what I am required to do with www.helpHopelive.org ) but to be able to enjoy it with everyone that I know. I was able to get Myrtle UMC, Providence Presbeterian on Union Road, Faith in East Gastonia, and Lowell-Smyre UMC in Lowell. Most donated their time for the MusicFest ( www.myrtleumc.org )  to help me in my cause. A few donated money. We raised $2500 on this first fundraiser. Yes, this was my first fundraiser, and it was a huge success. Well, I have just received a great idea for my next fundraiser. I see music, dancing, a sale, and a raffle. This will be the first time that I will be implementing businesses to volunteer a few items. Now you are pro...

Merry Christmas, everyone. This may be a couple of days late, but hey, at least I made it before the end of the year. I am here at home watching the Carolina Panthers play the Atlanta Falcons. I have been a very faithful fan of the Panthers for as long as I can remember them being a football team. But all in all, I can say that my family and I are having a bonding session with the football game. Usually, I am the only one who watches these games.  But, hey, if I can get my daughter, Jessica, to watch a game with me, I am doing great. Lately, I can say that Ashleigh has been watching some with me while playing her Nintendo DS. And I can say that my daughters have been there for me these past two years. They have been my team players, if that is the best way to put it. Along with my daughters, my parents have done wonders for me. They take me back and forth to the UNC Women's Hospital in  Raleigh. They are just there for me, in general. Every one of us that have kidney di...

Good evening, everyone. Well, it is Christmas evening, and everyone has made it through the day. Our day started around 8:00 am this morning when I had to wake my daughters. Can you believe that? I have always had to wake at least one of them every year. I went to the dentist a couple of weeks ago, and they have made me four appointments to get some of my teeth pulled every two weeks starting on February 12 and ending on March 26. I just hope things go well through all of this. I just have to remember that I will be a new person being made for God's purpose. I hope you all have had a great Christmas and hope for you a wonderful new year. Here's to a rockin' New Year to all. Ciao for now.

Good evening, everyone. I hope everyone is having a great day so far. Considering the long day that I had, I have been having a decent day. My mother and I had to take a 3-hour drive to a doctor's appointment for me. We left out at 7:00 am and got back at 4:00 pm. Actually, I had to go to the UNC Women's Hospital in Raleigh this morning to speak to a dentist. Luckily, I had a great dentist for my first visit. I say this because of my past experiences with dentists. This young and newly graduated dentist was very courteous, understanding, and just had a nicer attitude about everything in general. All in all, and unlike others, I am not afraid of the dentist. More or less, I just don't like dentists because they can be intimidating. The few that I have had has often made me feel like a small person being bullied. Has anyone else ever felt this with a doctor or a dentist? I am sure that there are more out there that could say that they have felt this way at least once in t...

Good morning, everyone. I know that it has been about a month since I last wrote. I am sorry for that. I truly am. I say this because I enjoy writing about different things in my life (living with kidney disease, at that). Take for instance, this year at Thanksgiving, no one ever wants to say the prayer for the food blessing. Usually, I hesitate when they call my name. Guess what, this time I didn't. I so wanted to say the blessing over our food and family. And I did.....without any hesitation at all. The giving is another hurdle in itself. I love to give when I can, but this year I am not able to. With a husband that was out of work for 5 months and then out of work for 2 weeks more recently, our money is short. But, I can't say that I am short on giving love and just helping people in general. How many people can say that they give more than they receive? I hope that I can say that at one point or another. That is all I have for today. Gotta go to dialysis. Ciao for now. ...