For the first five months, my baby has been an easygoing, dream baby. He has slept 12 hours straight through the night almost every night since he was six weeks old. In fact, he slept so well that from week eight to 12 my husband had to wake him up at night to ensure he consumed enough milk overall (a newborn shouldn’t sleep for more than around four hours without eating). He is one of the happiest and sweetest babies […]
This post on blood pressure is sponsored by Aeroflow in collaboration with Chronic Illness Bloggers. As always, all opinions remain my own and were not influenced by the sponsor. Do you know what your blood pressure is? When was the last time it was measured? The first time that someone told me I had high blood pressure, or hypertension, was about three years ago. I was at my OBGYN’s office getting checked in for my annual exam, and the woman […]
It turned out to be true for me that the second trimester was the sweet spot of pregnancy. A lot of my first trimester symptoms faded or disappeared entirely and I didn’t experience many new or intense pregnancy woes until the second trimester was nearing its end. Being pregnant with lupus meant that it wasn’t completely smooth sailing, of course. I had more doctor’s appointments, medications, and potential complications compared to the average pregnant woman, and I’ll share them all here along […]
At the beginning of 2017 Mr. Meena and I had been back in the USA, after living in Germany, for less than 100 days. We were living in an apartment of our own choosing for the first time and generally feeling very conflicted about the direction of our lives. I guess repatriation tends to do that to you. Now, 12 months later, we are settling into our first house, preparing to have a baby (!!), and feeling much more certain about […]
Have you ever wondered what life with lupus might be like? As one of the 1.5 million people in the U.S. and about five million people worldwide with lupus, I want to share a day in my life with you. In case you aren’t familiar with lupus, I’ll give you a brief introduction. Lupus is an autoimmune disease that makes your body self-destruct. Normal, healthy people have an immune system that works properly and kicks into gear when there is […]
Visiting the Outer Banks Lighthouses was my favorite part of our trip to the North Carolina coast this past summer. Even though I’m a North Carolina native, I’ve spent very little time in the Outer Banks and I had never actually set foot inside a lighthouse before this trip. I found the five Outer Banks Lighthouses so delightful that I’ve caught lighthouse fever – I’ve set a goal to see 90% of the lighthouses on the eastern coast of the […]
Allow me to introduce Koopa, my four year old pet budgie, emotional support animal, and pint-sized travel companion. She is named after Koopa Troopa, a turtle-like character from the Super Mario series. She loves to eat corn and climb in my hair. Koopa also loves to fly laps around our home and requires constant supervision. I love her so much it hurts. Perhaps the most interesting thing about Koopa is that she travels with us! People, especially dog or cat […]
One of the most difficult things about living with chronic pain and illness is that life must go on no matter how terrible you feel. We must eat, drink, and have shelter – these things are fundamental requirements for living. (Along with coffee, yes?) Yet, those of us that are chronically ill know that cooking with chronic pain can be extraordinarily difficult, especially if you also have dietary restrictions, suffer from appetite loss, or are trying to feed a family. For […]
We were supposed to have an adventure today. I had it all planned – the directions, the hike, even the post-trip burger indulgence. Lupus had a different plan for today. One that included a 24 hour headache, extreme fatigue, and a nearly non-functional body. So I’m sitting at home – probably giving myself a first degree burn with my heating pad – instead of going for a hike. And I’m thinking about the sudden, inevitable, disappointing side of chronic illness. I […]
PortAventura World is an entertainment resort located along the eastern coast of Spain next to the Balearic Sea. In fact, you can see the blue water from many rides. The resort is comprised of five hotels, two golf courses, and three parks: PortAventura Caribe Aquatic Park, Ferrari Land (opening April 2017), and PortAventura Park (which we visited). The colossal PortAventura Park has six themed areas within, and each is inundated with warm Spanish culture. It is certainly one of Europe’s most […]