Life Currently V4. | July 2019
I can’t believe I haven’t posted on HTC in over a month. It honestly makes me sad, because I’ve worked so hard and so long to create this site and I’m bummed it’s been neglected so much this year. I mean, in my defense, things have been a little crazy this year - between deciding to sell our house and move, a lot of travel, and a surgery, I’ve been doing the bare minimum to keep HTC afloat, especially with the landscape of “influencer marketing” and “blogging” changing so much. I’ve been unsure about what to do, what to write, and honestly wondering if putting the effort forth was even worth it anymore.
But I love this space too much to give it up. And if anything, the community we have here is too important to me to throw away. I can’t even express how amazed I’ve been to see you all rise up and lift me up, support me, and be true friends to me in such a stressful and chaotic time in my life. So, I’m resolving to do better and show up for you all. Even though there are only 5 months left in the year, I’m going to finish the year out strong and make it as best as I can.
So what’s been going on in the last couple of months? If you’re following me on IG, chances are you know that I’ve been going through some rather scary/stressful health issues, which led up to surgery last week. It was really hard to talk about it at first, because its a health issue that makes me feel so vulnerable, but you know I always try my hardest to be honest and keep it as real online as it is in life. Basically, starting at the beginning of the year, I noticed my periods starting to change and become abnormal. In April, I experienced my first truly abnormal period to the point that I was concerned about the length and heaviness of my flow, along with a bunch of other strange symptoms. My periods didn’t get any better and after two more extremely abnormal periods, we decided to see my OB. I typically always jump to worst-case scenario when something feels off in my body (that’s the PTSD for ya) and I have to talk myself off the ledge and convince myself that everything is okay, but this time around was different. I just knew something was off, but I was still nervous to be told that nothing was wrong. My doctor ordered a pelvic ultrasound, which showed a small mass/spot in my uterus. As a cancer survivor, that was absolutely terrifying to hear, but I was also SO relieved that I had trusted my intuition and saw the doctor. I was right! There was something wrong! I felt so validated!
I had surgery last Tuesday to remove the spot from my uterus and have it sent to pathology. My doctor said it looked like a fibroid and he isn’t worried about it being cancerous, but with my history, wanted it tested just to be sure. I’ve been laying low for the week, resting and taking it easy and recovering and doing my best to be hopeful that the pathology report comes back clean in the next few days. The rest has been good for me, and the quiet space I’ve been forced to occupy has forced me to think and find some clarity.
It’s been hard to be handed yet another health trial, especially when I feel like I’ve done my time. The last few weeks have been especially hard and that’s made it even harder for me to get on and write here because I haven’t been doing my best at being a good example of living a vibrant life. I’ve been bitter and negative and just downright salty about everything and I let myself stay in that space for longer than I’d care to admit. But I don’t want to stay in that space anymore. I don’t want to look back at this period of time in my life where we’re in limbo as I heal and think “man, I totally wasted that time.” And if I had some major complication during my surgery and didn’t wake up…I’d be pretty pissed that I spent the last three weeks of my life throwing one massive pity party for myself. Sounds morbid, but it’s the truth.
So. I’m ready to move forward, as best as I can. It’s time to stop complaining about the cards that were dealt to me and just play the hand as best I can. I’m good at that. I have a good poker face, and I have reaped amazing jackpots on absolutely nothing in my hand before. These cards are not ideal, but then again, when are they? I’m learning that it’s not about what cards I have, but it’s what I do with them and I’m going to play these cards as best as I damn well can. That’s what living a vibrant life is all about, after all.
So that’s where I’ve been and that’s where I’m at. Thanks for letting me show you my cards and then rooting for me anyway, even though you and I both know that the hand isn’t ideal. It’s not. But don’t count me out just yet.
Currently…
On my calendar: A weekend trip up to Idahome to visit my baby sister and her husband in the town we went to college. Rexburg is my least favorite place in the country 90% of the year, but for a few glorious weeks in August, when the weather is dreamy and the town is empty of college students, it’s the absolute best. We’re taking Rosie with us and we’re excited to go float the river, bbq, and go for walks at the nature park! After that, we plan to stay put for a month or two while we get the Jeep ready for another Moab trip in October! I’m also hoping to squeeze in a girls trip to Philly in October as well to see my best girls, Erica and Taylor.
Wearing: This mustard yellow cropped top from MSC. I didn’t think it would look good on me but tried it on for work and immediately loved it paired with high-waisted jeans. It’s the perfect color to transition from summer to fall and I think it will look awesome layered with long cardigans when the weather starts to get a little cooler! My friends & family discount code for working there is CHELSIE10 for 10% off your order, FYI (not an affiliate code, just a save you money code!)
Obsessing over: Our new Allswell Mattress! We upgraded to a King when we moved into our new home and decided to buy a Tuft & Needle based on recommendations from a lot of our friends. We both knew after the first few nights sleeping on it that it was NOT the right mattress for us. It was way too firm and stiff and made my joint pain worse. Thankfully, Tuft & Needle has a decent return policy, so we brought ours back to Walmart after a couple of months and went back to the drawing board. After doing some more research, we realized we wanted a hybrid mattress with both coils and foam to help with my joint pain and Allswell was on the top of our list to look into because they had a great price point to boot. I decided to reach out to them to ask for more information and they generously sent us a new mattress to try out. The second we unboxed it and climbed into it, we knew we liked it 10X better than the Tuft & Needle. It was much more comfortable and soft and my hips felt so much better on it. We’ve been sleeping on the Allswell mattress for three-ish weeks now and neither Dustin or I have any back or joint pain and we’re sleeping solidly through the night. Plus, there’s plenty of room for Teddy to snuggle between us, so it’s a win-win-win.
Listening to: OBSESSING over Alison Faulkner’s new podcast Business Therapy! It’s PACKED full of amazing information and thought starters for anyone who’s building their own business in the social media space. I signed up to go to her IG4U workshop in September and I am so excited to learn from her! When I’m not listening to podcasts, you can bet your bottom dollar that I’m listening to my Piano Christmas Music playlist. It’s never too early to start getting into the season!
Watching: We’re still making our way through Friends for the first time (we’re in the middle of season 5!) and I just started Mad Men for when I’m at the gym. The jury’s still out on how I feel about it. I did successfully binge the entire 7th season of the Great Food Truck Road Race this week while resting from my surgery, so there’s that. Any recommendations for me?
It feels good to be back. I’m excited to end the year strong and to connect with you all through the HTC community! Let me know how you’ve been in the comments below - I ALWAYS read them and try my best to respond to them!
