What to say?

Forewarning: Today's entry will not be too chipper today. It has been a very difficult day for me. 

So for the first topic today I will be reviewing my Sephora Black Magic eye shadow palette. I have recently been wanting to get new eye shadows considering the newest one I have is all shades of brown (NYC Individual Eyes in Central Park Created for Green Eyes). The ones I wore today were from my "Black Magic" palette and I used beige and bronze to create the look. When I put it on this morning it looked good and actually stayed in place ALL DAY! I have never had a make up do that! It was simply amazing to me. This is what it looked like after 7 hours of working in a photography studio under hot lights.

I can say with confidence that I will be buying more of their make up if all of it works this well. 

Now for the not so happy part of my post... Last night was a very difficult night for me. My husband and I are separated. He left last night for his mother's house and it wasn't a pretty thing. I won't go into details but those of you who need to know already do or should know. This isn't an easy thing for either of us and all I can do is pray for God's will in the situation. I would appreciate any prayer from any of my readers... if there are any out there. 

My First Sephora Experience.

Today was interesting. There has been a Sephora being set up  in JC Penny for about a week. It was pretty cool considering my first time hearing about it was a couple weeks ago from a you tube channel. The girl's screen name is grav3yardgirl. She's pretty cool and out there. She is someone I would hang out with if she lived closer. So here's a shout out to her.

Anyway Sephora was a bit overwhelming. I usually get a bit messed up when I look at make up since I don't usually wear it. The last time I wore make up every day was when I started college in 2007. Back then there was no primer (if there was I never heard of it), make up was powder(well most of it anyway) and all you had to worry about was matching it to your clothes. Now it seems so complicated. I ended up buying a palette of eye shadow and a moisturizing primer. We'll see how they turn out tomorrow since I'll be working again! I'm really looking forward to it. It's amazing how excited I am considering I'm hurting from today's shift.

Think Pink

Yesterday was the Think Pink event at Sundial Bridge. It was a really fun event considering there were venders, lots of people, music, and a giant pink bridge that could be seen from a good distance. Despite the fact that I had surgery only three days before I decided to accompany my family. We had a great time but sadly we missed the pink Jetovator flying near the bridge. It would have been awesome to see though. I think I pushed myself a little bit though. Once I got home I was limping and I had a pretty bad pain in the incision site from my surgery. After about an hour of laying down I was fine though.

ANYWAY... I had a great time with my family and loved seeing the bridge all pink and pretty. I hope you like these pictures.

Ablation Journal Entry 6

 Well, today is the day. I'm sitting in here waiting for my surgery. I'm not nearly as nervous as last time but there is still that anxiousness that comes with being in a hospital. Though I'm glad to be finally be getting this over with I'd rather be outside with a nice picnic and a good book.

Don't I look pretty? lol

Ablation Journal Entry 3

Today is the day. As of last night I feel at peace about the process but that is likely to change when I reach the hospital. As of midnight I wasn't allowed to eat anything or drink anything that wasn't clear. So this morning this is my breakfast.

Well not the sucker. That's for afterward. 

The tension is pretty thick and everyone is nervous. Today is a big day. I am more nervous for my family than I am for me.

Ablation Journal Entry 7

Hey everyone! Just letting you know I had my surgery about 2:30 yesterday. When I went into the operating room things were crazy. They put all sorts of electrodes and leads all over my body. Once they were done with that they laid me back and told me not to move. Soon after it felt like ice water was being pumped into my vein via the IV. Turns out that was the sedative they gave me. I was awake the whole time but I wasn't aware of much. I do remember them putting the catheter in through my groin area (and yes that was very awkward). What felt like seconds later I felt my heart start racing and though that was uncomfortable they couldn't make me produce a delta wave or put me into an arrhythmia. It turns out that they found a small pathway between the upper and lower chamber of my heart but it shouldn't be a big of a problem as they thought. Dr. Challapoli was awesome. He told my family that he couldn't do anything to make it mess up. It made me very happy.

I came out of surgery at about 4 to my family waiting for me in my room. It was great having them there and my parents even bought me flowers. it was so sweet. I'm blessed to have such a great family. Jhai and my mom had to feed me pudding and soup because I couldn't move my head (or any part of my body for that matter). In other words yesterday made me feel very loved and relieved about my condition.

Today I woke up still in a slight haze from the anesthesia but I am able to walk for short distances... like to the bathroom, then I have to rest for a few minutes. I am still really sore but Tylenol seems to be doing the trick keeping me out of pain.

Thanks for all your prayers and love. I'm sure my recovery will go by fast. I'll keep you updated.

Yesterday's Adventure

So yesterday started out normal. Get up, take a shower, get dressed, go to work... Sounds almost boring right? Well once I got to work things started getting busy as usual until a big family came in for pictures. I was assigned to make the sale. As I was going through the pictures I came across a picture of all the women (and girls) of the family. I commented on how beautiful they all looked and they informed me that it was a four generation picture. I immediately had to hold back tears. My mom has been wanting one of those pictures for years and now it will be impossible since my grandmother died in January. My great grandmother is still alive but the picture would be incomplete. I wish I could have gotten this done for my mom.  I managed to keep my composure and get through the sale with a smile, however forced it was.

After my shift was over I remembered that I needed to get my pre-admit done for my surgery on Monday. I rushed to the hospital and sat there for about 45 minutes waiting for the person to get my information. I thought I was going to be late for my second job of the day but luckily they called me in and it took about a half hour.

My second job was babysitting for a couple who are divorcing. Not only were the children upset from that but two of them were sick with the fever. They were very cranky and fussy the whole night. I was there for 6 and a half hours. So in total I worked for 9 and a half hours and I couldn't be more proud of myself. My body isn't happy and is really really sore but it was so worth it.

Ablation Journal Entry 5

Well the countdown starts yet again. I am scheduled for my surgery on October 14th. That's on Monday. this time let's hope that things don't go wrong like last time. If they do I'm so done with this whole surgery thing. It's been a month since it's supposed to have been dealt with. I'm anxious and excited. Surprisingly I'm not as nervous as last time. I think this will be good for me once it's over.

Confession

Today's post will be a confession from me. I have never considered myself a gamer. I don't like technology and it certainly doesn't like me. I have a difficult time even recording things on DVR (Yes it is the truth.) Every time my husband accuses me of liking games or being a gamer I deny it with a passion.

HOWEVER, last night I found myself playing Speed Racer for the Wii and getting into the game to the point I almost thought I was IN the game... I realized that I do the same with Mario Kart and any other racing game. I have since I was a little girl. So I, Darlene, at age 24, finally confess that I am a gamer. As much as it pains me to make this confession I must be honest with myself and those I love. I know this will come as a shock to all of you and I hope you can forgive me for denying this part of myself for so long.

Okay now that I'm done with that I do have something serious to say. My heart surgery will be on October 14th. Keep me in your prayers.

Love ya!

Working Girl

So I don't know how many of you know but I am currently working at JC Penny Photography Studio. I'm having a blast! Today was my first day of no training and I did great!

The day started slowly but I made a few appointments, worked in the photography room with my manager, answered some calls, and did the usual office stuff. It wasn't until about noon that I got a chance to rally shine though. A guest came in for a session with her dog and I ended up getting her to make a sale. I sat her down at the computer and did the enhancements (with some distractions mind you). She was a little over the limit on beer and she ended up spending more than she expected. I ended up making a nearly $300 sale! Needless to say I think I will love this job.

Ablation Journal Entry 4

Well Monday was supposed to be the day I had my Electrophysiology testing and a possible ablation. I showed up at the hospital about 15 minutes before I was supposed to check in. They got me on the fast track and by 11 I was in my room and waiting for the surgery. After getting my IV and other things started I waited until what was supposed to be my surgery time. My dad asked what was going on and apparently it was pushed back a few hours. It was irritating but whatever. At  5 the doctor came into the room and said there was a mechanical malfunction and they would have to reschedule so they didn't put me in any more risk than needed.

I was upset of course but now that I've had time to cool down and I'm not starving I'm okay with the decision but it does make things a little difficult with scheduling for work. My boss seems to understand but you never know. So in about a month I will be getting a call to reschedule my appointment and I will keep everyone updated  and start posting other blogs to hopefully keep you entertained in the mean time.

Ablation Journal Entry 2

Well the worry of the ablation is starting to really get to me. I just had an anxiety attack that felt more like a heart attack. Thankfully Mom reminded me to listen to Enya.  I'm really grateful that I'd had the foresight to make an anxiety playlist of nothing but her.

This is a really scary thing for me to be doing especially journaling about it for others to read. I know I'll have an amazing electro physiologist doing the surgery in one of the top 50 cardiac hospitals in California. It's just nerve wrecking to have my first surgery on my heart. All the research shows that it'll be an easy thing to do but it still makes me anxious. 

Pray for me. 

Ablation Journal Entry 1

I'm two days away from having my ablation and I'm nervous as hell. I suppose I should start at the beginning though. I'm sure it's a bit confusing coming into this blind. 

     I have an arrhythmia called Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome. It's a congenital heart defect where the heart has an extra electrical pathway called the Bundle of Kent. This pathway forces the ventricle chamber of my heart to pump before there is blood in it. Pretty much it makes my heart go all fluttery without the whole love thing. Even though I was born with this condition it wasn't diagnosed until April 1, 2013. It'a actually a pretty funny story.

     I had broken a tooth and was going in to have it fixed. The doctor took my temperature and blood pressure (which I guess is normal now but I'd never had to have that done for someone to look at my teeth before.) My temperature was fine but my blood pressure was really high. They sent me to the Emergency Room where they ran all sorts of tests. During those tests they found a delta wave. The delta wave is a sure fire sign of having WPW. I wish this had been a joke but sadly it wasn't. So immediately I went to a cardiologist. I've been seeing him for the past 3 years and now I'm finally getting the surgery to have this thing fixed.