A Big Day.

This is monumental you guys. I am writing on my not-so-secret blog. CRAZY, right? I seriously started writing this on my other blog, mostly because it is more accessible, but then I thought...there's nothing TOO personal in this--share it with the WORLD! So, here I am, p-p-posting away for your lovely eyes to read.

The past few days have been Killer (capital K intended). I had my wisdom teeth out last Thursday and today was the first day that I felt normal. I still look like I ate way too much and kept a little food stashed in my cheeks for, oh say, a year, but I can actually think for longer than three minutes without zoning out, I can walk around without getting light-headed, I can eat real food, I'm not constantly thinking about the next time I can take pain meds, and I had energy to do my make-up (that probably was this biggest help :) ). Depending on who asks, I give two very different responses on how the surgery went -- if I'm talking to someone who still has their wisdom teeth (and very well might get them removed in the near future), my surgery went great. If I'm talking to someone who has been through this procedure...kind of nearly awful.
NOTE: Feel free to SKIP past the following (tiny) details of my surgery. This is more for my memory's-sake than for your entertainment.
I chose to take a pill the night before and morning of my surgery which was supposed to calm my anxiety and sedate me, and then I would get nitrate gas immediately before and during the surgery. The pill was advertised with the highly probable side effect of amnesia, but I would be semi-conscious during the surgery with the added loopy-ness of the nitrate gas. That's fine, I thought, if I'm awake for it, I won't even remember it. This was the clear choice for me, since I have a semi-irrational fear of going under general anesthesia that I won't wake up. So that's what route we took. I was awake throughout my entire surgery. I felt the needle pierce into my skin. I heard the nasty drilling and breaking of my teeth. I felt the suture string glide past my not numbed lips. I remember the surgeon telling me that my lower left tooth was being exceptionally stubborn and they'd have to break it some more and then hearing the drill return to my mouth. Luckily, I couldn't see what was going on and my mouth was numbed very well, so I was only relying on the gruesome details that my ears could give me, which was limited. So I am grateful for that. As for that amnesia that I was counting on? Yeah. It never came through. Ya little booger. 
It could have been much worse than it was. I only swelled to giant-chipmunk-size on my left side. The right side was baby-chipmunk. And my surgeon was amazing. I'm not sure how long it usually takes for wisdom teeth removal, but I was in and out in under an hour (including the time for checking my vitals and allowing the nitrate and numbing to settle in). She was very concerned about me, she kept asking me if I was okay, if I could feel anything, and I never could. At one point, a stray tear "escaped from my eye" and she stopped working and tended to my emotional state. She was amazing--all things considered ;).

In other news, we went shopping today, and my year-long quest for a chambray shirt has ended. Yes, my friends, that is why there was a Pinterest-bombing of chambray outfits. SORRY! Ha. Really, I'm not. I also picked up a beautifully plain lace top that will be the perfect accent piece. Let's just say it took all my conviction to resist trying on all my clothes and their new styling possibilities tonight.

And the meat of my story, and the best part of my day: I watched Moneyball with my dad tonight. My dad and I are, in many ways, the same person, except for that I'm a girl...duh. But really, I love learning about my parents and seeing myself in them. Tonight, it was that extremely emotional side. You know the one. It's the one where you tear up at telling or hearing a story, a story that has nothing to do with you, but has impacted your life in ways you can't describe. Well that's how it was tonight with the story behind the Oakland A's and Moneyball. Dad spent some time in the Oakland area in his early adult years, and I think that had a little to do with his emotional connection to this story. But more so, I think it was his testimony of the Lord's hand that shone through this emotional reaction to a very improbable story. As this team beat the odds that were stacked against them and turned a losing streak into a record-breaking winning streak, I could faintly hear my dad, sitting three feet from me, sniffling. That sound is one of my favorite memories of my dad. He's an easy cryer and so am I. I will always remember the Firesides that he would speak at and stand before the youth, stopping mid-sentence to choke back tears because he was overwhelmed with the Spirit and because of his testimony. I know that in that moment as he was watching this movie, he was thinking about the blessings of the Lord in the lives of that team and in his own life. There are acts of God all around us, but we just have to be humble enough to open our eyes and see them. Today, I was blessed with an opportunity to connect with my dad. He doesn't know how much this experience means to me, but it has helped me grow closer to him in understanding him and understanding myself through him. I know that the Lord is involved in every aspect of our lives. He loves us. He will always love us. He will guide us through this life, if we but let Him in. Open the door. Find ways to be gracious and find His hand in your life.