2012 Resolutions

I finally achieved my previous years resolutions. Remember those? When I was pregnant and cranky and not too interested in self improvement?

Here they are:

1. I will gain 20 pounds this year.
2. I will have a baby in the Spring.
3. I will attempt to lose 30+ pounds and probably quit about ten pounds from my goal.
4. I will begin an exercise program.
5. I will try to accept that my life might not be perfect now, but it is still really damn good.
6. I will not try to stop swearing.


Yup, I did them all. I exercised great for about two months and then it got cold and I quit. But, my resolution said I would start an exercise program, not that I would continue to exercise. And I tried to lose 30 pounds, and then quit 30 pounds from my goal. See? I totally nailed it.

So, this year I am setting some actual goals. This is what I've come up with so far:
1. Read scriptures and pray as a family EVERY NIGHT. Because we are awful at this.
2. Lose weight... I'm not picking a number like I normally do, because this year is going to sort of turn my life on its head and I don't know how I will be feeling. But, lose as much weight as I can, exercise as often as I feel able, and stop eating sugar. For the tenth time.
3. If I feel capable, run in some sort of a race. It can be a 5K, even. Eventually, I would like to run a half marathon, but I don't know if I will get that far this year.
4. Have Lizzy and Bennet start doing their own laundry.
5. Say "You're welcome." instead of "No problem!". I've learned that "no problem" bugs people, and I do it without even thinking. So, this is my attempt to be less annoying, I guess.
6. Practice the piano 30 minutes a day (if possible) and learn to play at least 100 hymns in the hymnal.
7. Be cured.*

*More on this later. This would be the Life Changer. I believe (and am waiting to confirm the diagnosis with blood tests. Should have the results within a month.) that I was misdiagnosed with MS. I am almost positive that I have late stage Lyme Disease, which can be hard to cure, and the treatment can be excruciating. But, it is curable. Sometimes it takes years, though, so I guess we'll see how it goes.

Still, there is a cure. And if any of you have MS or any autoimmune disease, I would strongly encourage you to find a doctor that is well-versed in Lyme disease. Almost everyone with Lyme gets misdiagnosed with something else first. Rheumatoid arthritis, ALS, MS, Parkinson's, lupus, Alzheimers, etc. etc. etc.

Or go here. That site says that a clinical diagnosis for Lyme can be made if the patient has more than 20 of those symptoms. I have 43. Go check it out. Pleeeeease check it out. My neurologists blew off the possibility of Lyme. "There is no Lyme disease in Washington state." First of all, yeah there is. And even after they learned I lived in Pennsylvania 16 years ago, they still told me it wasn't Lyme.

EVEN if you have had a negative blood test, you might still have Lyme. There is no accurate blood test for it yet. Patients that have been bitten by a tick and then got a bullseye rash have still tested negative for Lyme. (And in case you don't know, if you get a bullseye rash, you have Lyme disease... end of story.)

Anyway, sorry for the Lyme disease rant. I have been reading about it nonstop and it is freakin' me completely out. People are dying from this disease because doctors have diagnosed them with other neurological disorders. Most doctors don't know enough about Lyme. Nobody should have to die from this. Watch "Under Our Skin" on Netflix to learn more.

Okay, okay... I will shut up now. If you have any questions, leave a comment or email me at maryspemberley at gmail.com.

Here's to the New Year!