Strange Facts & Funnies

Found this on a health care site - good for a few chuckles and eyebrow raises... some I knew - and others I had no clue... Enjoy! :)
Kendall
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1. The venom in a Daddy Long-Legs spider is more poisonous than a Black Widow's or a Brown Recluse, but they cannot bite humans because their jaws won't open wide enough.

2. On average, people fear spiders more than they do death.

3. The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.

4. If you toss a penny 10,000 times, it will not be heads 5,000 times, but more like 4950. The heads picture weighs more, so it ends up on the bottom more often.

5. Only one person in two billion will live to be 116 or older.

6. Mel Blanc (the voice of Bugs Bunny) was allergic to carrots.

7. The pop you get when you crack your knuckles is actually a bubble of gas bursting.

8. 101 Dalmatians and Peter Pan (Wendy) are the only two Disney cartoon movies that feature both parents, neither of which dies throughout the movie.

9. The winter of 1932 was so cold that Niagara Falls froze completely solid.

10. There is no Betty Rubble in Flintstones Chewable Vitamins.

11. It is impossible to get water out of a rimless tire.

12. Did you know that you are more likely to be killed by a champagne cork than by a poisonous spider?

13. In Minnesota, it is illegal to cross state lines with a duck on your head.

14. In Indiana, it is illegal to ride public transportation for at least 30 minutes after eating garlic.

15. Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people do.

Progression Etc.

Guess what? I noticed last night that I cannot see my feet anymore looking straight down. Quite the accomplishment, eh? Kurt laughed and said, "You should put that information on your blog." So there you have it - my feet may still be swollen, and my toenail polish less-than-perfect... but I don't have to look at them everyday unless I want to. :)

On a side note, those who are reading the ticker at the top of my page: the baby isn't exactly moving less as much as in a different way. I think he/she had hiccups all day yesterday and is practicing stretching one limb at a time... I am pretty sure I felt a little heel push up my hand this morning... I wonder if I'm going to miss this connection when the baby arrives?

GST Checking

GST stands for 'glucose strip test' (I think - or so I've been told). At the hospital we do it on people who are diabetic... basically punching a hole in their fingers to squeeze a drop of blood onto a test strip, and then inserting that strip into a machine to figure out what their blood glucose level is and whether they need insulin or not.

Think of insulin as a key that 'unlocks' the body's cells to let in the sugar. It is supposed to - when working properly - quickly liquidate the blood of excess sugars after each meal so that the cells get their energy, and the blood and blood vessels don't get overloaded and 'thick'. In a diabetic, their insulin is either: a) not effective, or b) not available in high-enough quantities. So their diets and "sugars" are monitored - some types of diabetes have to give themselves insulin on a daily basis to keep the process drumming-along... and that is the Cole's-Notes anatomy lesson for today. :)

At 27 weeks I had to go for the dreaded glucose tolerance test: drink the orange crush (tastes the same), sit for an hour, and then get my blood drawn to see what it was. Long story short: I didn't exactly pass with flying colors - I was "borderline" high... so my doctor wanted another test.

So then I had to go for the full deal: fast for 12 hours (a feat for this pregnant lady!), get blood drawn, drink a bigger orange crush, wait an hour, get more blood drawn, wait another hour and then get blood drawn again. That is right: 3 blood draws. Ick.

When I saw my doctor at work (checking other patients) I told him to phone me there with the results because I wasn't sure they would tell Kurt on the phone... so about 3 in the afternoon, he called with the news: I'm not diabetic (phew!), but I do have insulin "issues" (drat!). My fasting sugars were great - right where they were supposed to be - but my one hour test had a result of 10.9 - much too high! My third test was also higher than it was supposed to be... so I was referred to a diabetes educator on Thursday-last.

I not only have to count carbohydrates, but I get to (brace yourself) check my blood sugars 4 times per day. Once first thing waking, and after each meal. My body (and the pregnancy hormones contained therein) is messing around with my insulin... rendering it less effective than it is supposed to be - especially at certain times of the day. Carbs are the big guns - the sugar-makers... and the idea is to give my insulin less to handle at a time in order to make sure that I'm not constantly 'high'. I'm getting a pretty good idea of what foods affect my sugars more than others - fruit is a killer... I can have have it but in smaller amounts spaced throughout the day. I also found out this weekend that carrot cake with icing takes a while for my insulin to get out of the system... go figure. (Heh.) I don't have to limit protein or veggies... but milk is also restricted - which is probably the hardest thing for me... but if I plan, I can have a cup with every meal.

"And what", you may ask, "is the big deal if your sugars are constantly high?" I'll make a gigantic baby. Yikes - sugar controlling is cool with me!

They (the diabetes education people) gave me a nifty little kit that contained everything (except the strips I need - picked those up for a tiny 82 dollars at Wal-Mart... sigh) including a cute-little photo album and baby-keepsake box. Small consolation for daily self-mutilation... but it is a nice little perk.

These are not the greatest pictures... but you'll get an idea of the process and see the equipment.
This is the kit - I added the little wet-wipes on the side... anyone who knows me knows how I feel about wet-wipes! :) That is just in case I'm somewhere I can't wash my hands before the poke. The expensive test-strips are in the container on the top right hand side, the meter is on the bottom right and the 'poker-of-doom' is in the middle. So harmless looking for an instrument of torture...
Arrrrghhhh! I've done it - poked myself enough to draw blood. After only 4 days of this, my fingers already look like they have track marks. You can see one of the strips inserted in the bottom of the meter on the right... that white 'dot' at it's bottom connects with my blood and 'voila!' - my glucose-level is being monitored.
A pass! Praise God - sometimes (mainly in the mornings) it is super-high... but in the afternoon it seems to even out. (Which makes sense, because pregnancy hormones really peak in the morning.) By the way: a pass is anything under 7.8... so 6.6 is pretty good... now to repeat the process after supper.

Have I mentioned how hard it is to type with track-marked fingers? (chuckle)

All kidding aside - the poke isn't that bad, and I am thankful that I live in a place where I can have access to these tools... even the poker-of-doom. :-D

Praise God Kind-of News!

We just got home from our 30-week ultrasound. Most people (who have had babies) ask, "Why did you have to do another one?" Good question.... and one that has kept Kurt and I in prayer for the last 12 weeks.

At the 18-week ultrasound they saw an abnormality on the baby's brain - a choroid plexus cyst. The choroid plexus is the part of the brain that hydrates the rest of the brain. The reason that this can be an issue is that a CPC can also be an indication of Trisomy-18... a fatal condition also known as Edwards Syndrome (click the name to read about it). That said, it is a correlation not a causation... the cyst doesn't guarantee the condition... just that when babies have the condition, they also have the cysts.

Our doctor - when he told us about it - was fairly confident that it wasn't that condition... but offered us the maternal serum screen anyway. After a lot of thought, we turned that down with the logic of "What would we do with the information anyway?" We were also able to give a brief testimony to our doctor that we were going to trust God and pray about it.

When a CPC shows up, they (the medical professionals that be) check again at 30 weeks to make sure the cyst has resolved. But that was 12 more weeks of waiting, praying, and reminding ourselves that God is in control. For a long time, even feeling the baby move, we both had to stop and ask the Lord that our baby would be okay.

And today was 30 weeks. Kurt and I spent some time in prayer this morning, asking the Lord to comfort us no matter the results and to give us His peace - interestingly enough I'm still in Hebrews and it talks a lot about how being a Christian gives a peace to "anchor" on.
Providence is amazing - God knew I would need those words right now to get me through without being overtaken by anxiety.

The lady who did our ultrasound was awesome - answered all our questions and showed us all the little parts of our baby (no, not that part... some things have to be kept secret!). The difference between an 18-weeker and a 30-weeker was stunning! There is now a lot more baby in there!

It actually looked like a baby this time - and the little stinker was moving all over the place. Legs, arms, head, back, heart, future belly-button - we even got to see him/her practice breathing... everything was SO easy to distinguish! We saw the baby yawn, hide it's head, kick, curl up... and the ultrasound tech zoomed up on it's face enough for us to see that Baby Manz (even in ultrasound vision) definitely has mommy's lips and nose. Kurt says it has my cheeks as well, but that remains to be seen. :)

The radiologist came in after to talk to us about the results: the cyst is gone - praise God! The baby is only measuring 6-days bigger (as opposed to 14), the due date is staying the same, the amniotic fluid level is normal, and although my sugar levels have been higher, the baby isn't showing any ill-effects. :)

Furthermore, the baby's head is down, and the placenta is not too close to the cervix... and we're (excluding a massive position change on the part of the baby) set to go for delivery whenever that happens. So not only were our fears resolved, but we were able to throughly enjoy watching our little miracle on the screen. Now when I feel kicks and see bumps, I have a better idea of what part of the baby is giving all the action! Praise God all-around!

Here is a picture (courtesy of Kurt's amazing computer/scanner skills) of Baby Manz's face... enjoy!

Slide Show

Saw this feature on Julie's blog... thought it would be a neat addition. But it is staying at the bottom of the blog! :) So there!

Sick Day

Feeling tired? Sick? Burnt out physically, emotionally and spiritually?

Me too. (sigh.)

Today was a "sick day"... after 3 straight shifts, very little sleep, a trip to visit Kurt's folks, and a day at the lake (happy 84th Grandpa E!), my throat was aching, my body tired (lower girdle pain has finally hit and matches the lower rib pain in intensity) and I needed to sleep as though deceased.

After a lot of discussion with Kurt, I decided to phone in ill - and I'm glad I did... 'cause although my throat still hurts, it isn't nearly as bad after some much needed sleep. I should be able to work the rest of my scheduled shifts until the baby comes without much problem. And there are other benefits to staying home for a "sick day"...

There isn't another book of the bible that speaks as well to me in that last state (spiritually burnt out) as the book of Hebrews. The writer (who remains nameless) is exceedingly gentle as he reminds the readers how to respond when (not if) troubles happen... and he gives encouragement and reminders that speak to a weary soul.

So often I fall back into that "old covenant" mindset - where God rewards and punishes me based upon my efforts - or (gasp!) lack thereof. I understand intellectually, of course, that my right-standing with God is based upon Christ's work, and his righteousness being counted to me... but when things aren't going well, the temptation is to hide from God - like Adam and Eve - until I can figure out a solution to my 'sin-problem'.

I am reluctant to open my bible thinking, "I wouldn't even know where to start!" and tell myself that I have to get into the "right" mindset before coming to the Lord to ask for forgiveness. I want to pull up my bootstraps and bring myself to God 'appropriately' humbled and soft - so that then he may do a work in my heart... and the obvious end to that sad tale is that I flounder around in my own efforts (uninspired), my own sin (unconvicted) and falling further and further away from the joy of knowing and being known by Christ.

Anyone else know what that is like?

Enter the beloved book of Hebrews. It starts by re-introducing Christ - not a baby in a manger, not a bleeding man on a tree, but the God who "upholds the universe by the word of His power" (1:3) It goes on to say that if this Jesus has said something, we had better listen - and keep on listening lest we "drift away from it" (2:1) and "neglect such a great salvation" (2:3) In my state this morning, warning bells were going off... Chapter 3 has no less conviction as the writer states, "Take care - lest you have an evil, unbelieving heart leading you to fall away from the living God" (3:12). My soul gulps as I realize that although I am hardened, and have neglected the word, and given little thought to Christ - I don't want to do it anymore. I am appropriately salted - bring on the refreshment!

What can I say? Is this a God who casts blame? Does he resent me for my days and weeks of dullness? Does he want me to do penance to show that I am really sorry? Nope. Chapter 4 shouts the answer triumphantly:

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect was tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

In the wonderful freedom and depth of the New Covenant there are these compound truths: as a believer my sin is paid in full - cast away as far as the east is from the west (praise God it isn't north from south!). Christ is my intercessor - and I am covered in His righteousness so thoroughly that before God, it is as though I have never sinned. There is 'no condemnation' in Christ Jesus... and He bids me to come to him full of flaws and weary with the burden of sin with the exhortation, "I will give you rest". Then, as if that weren't enough, he tells me, "My Abba is your Abba." and promises to help me endure to the end by His Spirit who teaches me and even helps me to pray - since I don't do that (among other things) so well.

Wow.

Praise God for sick days. :)

Momentary Hiatus...

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to put it out there that we're visiting the farm until tonight... Kurt has a soccer game to win in Saskatoon - so we'll head back after he's done work in the barn. ;) Today he's a farrowing assistant. Neat, huh?

It was sure warm to sleep last night, but had cooled off by morning - praise our God! :)

Talk to you soon! I'll try to attach a picture to show the "view" - hope it takes!