birthday.

thanks friends, dad, and lynette!

birthdays are my absolute favorite. it isn't even just my birthday. i love them all. 

i love the anticipation of the day, spending time with all the people that are important to you, hearing from the ones who are far away.. i love the way you can justify eating unhealthily. i love beautifully wrapped presents, thoughtful presents, singing cards..hah. 

i love how, on your birthday, you know how important and loved you are.

and i really love how birthday celebrations last for like 5 days. even when you're in college!

thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday yesterday! you made my day so special!

people.

the people i love have really been on my heart today. maybe it's because i'm overwhelmed and tired, and want them not to be? also, i just love them. and am so thankful for them!

my wonderful, silly, little [big] brothers...

my twin, andrew.

my hilarious kent.

my beautiful, loving sisters...

my trustworthy, lovely mads.

my wise, adventurous, beautiful mer.

my sassy, sweet emmy.

my faithful, forever irvine friends....

my beautiful, godly em and kim.

my fun, outdoorsey, tan alis.

my life apu friends....

my happy, energetic, social, christina, crystal, and jess.

my hardcore, loving elise. and brianna!

school.

school is honestly the most time consuming job ever. i am in awe of the people who are able to constantly be going to school. i think i'll be more than done after getting my graduate degree. and i'm doing it all in one fell swoop and finishing my undergrad early. 


sometimes it's just so frustrating. i mean, there are so many things that i could be doing with my time that are more important than working on worksheets, or one page responses to books i've kind of skimmed. like feeding hungry people. building them houses. raising money for them. working in south africa. hanging out with jerry in zimbabwe. you know. those things where you make a difference every time you do something? and they're realistic. people actually do things like leave for a year and hang out in africa. or i could just hang out with people here. in camden. or even make my roommate's lives easier. i try to do that each day, but it would be so much better with extra time!


anyway. this was just a quick homework break. now back to tolstoy's the death of ivan ilyitch.


on the plus side..i really am so thankful that i have the opportunity for an education and am constantly praying for the ability to appreciate it. 

we did it. we found the best pancake mix. i love my roommates for letting me take up the kitchen for an hour, and helping make 3 different batches of pancakes. 
based on color, texture, taste, and consistency, this mix was by far the winner.

additionally, today i got an app for my iphone that searches for places to eat that have a gluten free menu, in the area surrounding you. so great! i learned that they even have a few choices in edmond. oklahoma, here i come! its called the gluten free registry. it was $1.99 (the first app i've paid for in my two years of being an iphone owner) but so, so worth it. i feel better just knowing i will always be able to eat something.


my body is still so swollen. its kind of funny, but mostly sad. i'm going to my primary care doctor friday morning. i'm going to take a picture with him. facebook profile pic? he is definitely my hero right now!

oh life.

over the past few weeks, i've been inundated with homework, doctors appointments, and chapel. also. blogging still seems slightly ridiculous to me. 
anyway...
today i went to take pictures with my brother for formal. it was so cute. and funny. i miss those dress up, grown up days. 

on the doctor front....the pulmonologist told me he was throwing up his hands, he just didn't know what else could be wrong. so he ordered a new ct scan, and a stress test for my heart, which is working too hard for some reason. i had the ct scan on wednesday. they injected radioactive gas into me for a while, and also had me breathe it. nothing hurt (except putting the iv in because i have really small veins). it was actually kind of cool. i felt like superman. monday morning i have the stress test. its making me nervous because i can't take my inhaler, so i know i'll be having at least an asthma attack, if not another whatever problem i have attack.


also, with all my allergies, my foods are super limited. however, my body is still constantly swollen which is ridiculous.


but i got to see my maddy today, which was lovely.