GOOD GALLY MISS HOLLY!

*sigh*

Ok, so..........................

My brother, Aaron (Opie to some of you) and his wife, Teri were told by their landlord at the beginning of the month that they needed to be out of their house by Sept 1st so the house could be sold. So....they bought a different house in town. It's an old house that was built in the 1920's but it huge and has all of the original woodwork...and unfortunately for us, all of the original wallpaper and the nasty carpet and just lots of things that have to be dealt with before they can bring their babies in and call it their home. *this is where I come in
All day last Saturday a good chunk of our family spent scraping 9...count them NINE layers of wallpaper all throughout the entire lower level of the home. So, as a way of saying thank you, Aaron and Teri treated us all to the Rockwell American Legion Post 208 steak fry. I was weak, tired and blistery from the scraping and what have you, but i went anyway. What the hey...free food.
*fast forward about 2 1/2 hours later. I was doubled over on the bathroom floor not knowing if I was going to crap my pants or throw up or just lay there and bawl. My guts felt much like there was some sort of clamp attatched to my intestines and every once in awhile it felt like the clamp was being twisted and I was being punched in the stomach at the very same time. In addition, my back felt as though a 400 lb man was using me as a trampoline. Was it food poisoning? My friend Beth had just called me a couple days before to tell me her husband had to go to the ER for kidney stones. Is it that? I didn't know, I layed on the cold tile floor and prayed to God. "God, oh my God. If I'm being punished for something, I'm super sorry....but if you're just thinking that it's my time to go...just do it. I think I'm ready." It was horrif. (that's an abbreviation for horrific).
Somehow I managed to crawl to bed...because that's where my phone was. I tried calling and texting my sister in law, ber, and my brother to tell them I needed to go to the ER. They were all sleeping peacefully upstairs...probably dreaming about hugging sunshine and picking flowers.
Next thing I know, I hear "it starts in my toes and it crinkles my nose...wherever it goes....." my ringtone. *blink *blink The only explaination I have is that I must have passed out from the pain, but when I heard "Bubbly" the next morning...NOTHING. All of the pain was completely gone. I answered the phone and it was my Bif, Erin. She said "are you ok? what's happening?" Apparently I texted her in the night instead of my brother Aaron....i don't know, i'm suprised I could even type a readable sentence to be honest with you.
So, that Sunday was the day my Aunt Dorothea was leaving to go back to crazy town (I think that's where she's from) and my whole family...grandparents, great aunt and great uncle, regular aunts and uncles and cousins and neices and what have you all went to lunch to celebrate her leaving, I guess. I felt beautifully healthy. If I knew how to do a cartwheel, I would have done one right there in the restaurant....all day I felt like a million dollars...the same could be said for Monday.
And then TUESDAY reared it's ugly head. I was experiencing the same pain, only slightly less intense, but the kicker is that I was actually at work being trained on a new process. So, I'm in the training room trying to concentrate and absorb 4 hours worth of material all while feeling like little germans are playing polo in my stomach and elephants are dancing on my back. So, after training I went to the convenient clinic. By this time I had spoken with both my aunt and my grandma (who are nurses) and we had come to the conclusion that I had gall stones.
The Dr. walks in and says "What can I help you with?" I explain (in slightly less detail than whats printed above) my condition and also said "I would like an ultrasound to check for gall stones. "Well", the Dr. says, "I would like to run a few blood tests and if those come back negative, we'll go ahead and schedule an ultrasound on your gall bladder. I'll send someone in to get some blood."
1 hour and 20 minutes later......a nurse comes in. "What is your name?" By this time I had read the April 2005 issue of Good Housekeeping 6 times...so, needless to say, I was somewhat annoyed. "Holly. Petersen." "Oh, ok...we're still waiting on those results." *door slams
That would be great if I had been sitting in there for an hour and twenty minutes waiting on results...but I wasn't. They hadn't drawn a single drop of blood from my body, so I don't know what results they could have possibly been waiting for. I went out to the front desk and a different nurse says to me "Still waiting on those results.....I don't know what could be taking so long." I like to think I'm a pretty patient person, but DAMN. Can a bitch get a break? I'm in pain, all I want is a stupid ultrasound and a pain pill to knock my ass out.....but instead I'm stuck in the Covenant hospital "convenient" care stupid exam room. GOD! So, finally....about three hours after I had checked in to the office, I was on my way to get my blood drawn. The doctor said he would call me in 20 minutes with my results.
2 hours later, the doctor calls. "Yeah...uhh...Holly. This is doctor stupid face calling. I have your test results back and it looks like your liver enzymes are slightly elevated...So, I'm going to go ahead and check you for Hepatitis."
"YIKES! Where could I have gotten that?!?"
"Hepatitis is actually a fairly easy thing to catch".
Yeah................hepa friggin' titis. So, the doc schedule an ultrasound and a stupid hepatits test. Needless to say, 18mm gall stone (about the size of a marble) and another one that is not measurable because it's stuck in my bile duct.....and NO HEPATITIS.
Anyway, I will be having surgery to get this gall bladder out. Not at the devil hospital (don't worry)...on Sept 11th. Yeah. 9-11. So, call me. I'll probably be pretty bored.

Pinch me.....

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!! So, I've been trying to contain myself, and you guys are probably going to get sick of hearing it, but the greatest thing just happened yesterday. My friend, Erin....bought tickets.......to go see......WICKED. Breathe. It's a dream come true. I can barely contain myself. I'll be waiting in wild anticipation for Novemember to rear it's gorgeous head. We are going the day before Thanksgiving. If you haven't heard of it, I suggest you either read the book or google it. :o)

This is actually a road......then there's supposed to be a ditch, then a cemetary there on the left. You can kind of see the headstones.




This pic is looking into the cemetary. It's not the best picture because the weather was what else???? RAINY!!

This is the closest I can get to hwy 218

Holy Floodtown USA

I took these pictures one block away from the house. I don't know if you can see that white car in the distance, but it's definately under water. It's even worse over there now. The second picture is of the house across the street from ours. Amber called today and said it was a lot worse over there now, but I've been at work since around noon, at it's now 9 ish. And the third picture was of me trying to zoom in on the white car, but I think it just ended up being the same picture. This area is concidered moderately flooded compared to that of North Cedar Falls where my friend, Steph and her family live. Downtown Waterloo was also flooded horribly.

It's official. Life has begun.

There's a SPRING in my step!

So, yesterday was the first day of spring....hallelujah! I'm feelin' good. I hear it's supposed to snow tonight in Illinois and Wisconsin. Sucks to be them. I have to say, usually at this time, I have a cold or strep throat or the flu or SOMETHING...but not this year! (knock on wood)

I had yesterday off and went to Snap fitness and signed myself up. I'm the kind of person who really likes to get their money's worth no matter what I buy. So, I'm hoping I won't have to stuff myself into my bridesmaid's dress this August. No one wants to be that girl.

Anyway, I'm super happy it's spring again. I'll be waiting in wild anticipation to see the first daffodil or the first tulip. I can't wait to go for walks with Punkie or to grill out with friends. I can't wait to play boche ball and go camping. YAY! Ok, I'm done with my elations. I better get back to work. Later taters!

ATTENTION BRENDA BOELTER!!!!

Hey, this post is for Brenda Boelter. I don't really know how else to get ahold of you...... but I got your Christmas card and your family is beautiful. I will give you a call as soon as I get ahold of your phone number :o). You don't have to give it to me, I have my ways ;o).

Easter Pics

We had Tayler, Emmy, Hunter and Eastyn this weekend. We took them to Sears to get their pics taken. Thought I'd show them off... :o)

Hello blog, it's me....Holly.

So, I realize it's been awhile, but I'm an extremely busy gal.....with limited computer access. Since I blogged last I have been busy moving, getting a new job, planning a baby shower and planing a bridal shower/ bachelorette party. YAY! All fun things.


I got a new job at Grainger. Today is actually my first day on the phones...by myself. And wouldn't you know it? OUR SYSTEM IS DOWN!! It's fine though, honestly. It's easier having the system down than having it be up and running, but it still kind of sucks since we don't really know what we're doing anyway. I sit in a row of fun girls. I can't even begin to express how much better this job is than my last. I don't even know how to put it into words. More pay, more respect....it's just awesome.

I don't have any fun pictures or anything to share this time....but soon, my friends...soon. The fun thing about this job is they let you load your pictures on their computers. Alas, I better scoot. I've got things to do and learn right now.

Later taters!

Perhaps a little less wise......

So, yesterday was the day. For about 2 months now, one of my wisdom teeth has been scraping and I do mean SCRAPING against the back of my cheek. It hurt when I talked, smiled, laughed, frowned....really anytime I merely moved my mouth it caused great amounts of pain. It didn't stop me, but it still hurt. Everytime my tooth scraped against my tender flesh, my check got a little more and a lot more painful. Finally, I decided I couldn't take it anymore. Despite the cost, i was going to find a dentist that would pull this thing and I mean NOW. The first place I called sounded a little bit skeezy. they wanted payment up front and it was in a pretty janky neighborhood. The second place I called wasn't open on Thursdays (which is my day off) and the third one I called told me the dentist was on vacation. GRRRRRR!!!! So I called my dad and he told me to wait it out until the first of the year (which was three weeks away) so I wouldn't have to pay my insurance deductible twoice. Good call, Carl...but my effing mouth is KILLING ME!
Truth be told, it was probably more out of fear than frugality that I waited. (Carl's pretty intimidating) As time moved on, I started to form a callus in my cheek which softened the jabs a bit, and before I knew it, it was January 8th!! In a sense, I was licky because my tooth was actually out of the gum, so it didn't require a super painful/expensive surgery. BUT....let me just tell you- when the dentist says "you'll feel a little pinch", what he really meant to say was "I'm going to shove this needle into the roof of your mouth. At first it's going to feel like your mouth is going to explode into your face, shortly followed by a strong feeling that you're going to swallow the roof of your mouth." That shot-it brought tears to my eyes. No one warned me about that thing, but once the medicine had time to absorb, it was all good in the hood-the hood of my mouth, I mean.
I guess I'm a little more accustomed to a rougher style of dentistry. I was expecting the good ol' fashioned prop-your-foot-on-the-side-of-the-chair-one-hand-gripping-the-pliars-and-the-other-braced-on-my-shoulder-pull-with-all-your-might-and-let it rip type of a deal. My dentist said "let me just poke around here and see if you're completely numb. Then I heard some crackling. Then a tug here and wiggle and twist there, and next thing I knew, my tooth was skipping towards my esophogus. Luckily, the dentist used his finger and swept it out of my throat where it safely landed between my bottom lip and my teeth. Cute. But, I was officially ME-less one wisdom tooth. VICTORY IS MINE!
This was yesterday and I have no complicatiosn to report (knock on wood). I have a huge holde where my tooth used to be and a little unpleasant throbbing-but it's nothing I can't handle.
The other good news is that juding by the xrays, I"ll never have to get another wisdom tooth pulled since the other ones are jammed tightly where they are and pose no threat of ever moving. NEATO!

That rawked my caucus!

So, at the rist of being heckled and chastised and being thrown into a huge political debate, I'm going to tell you about my grand caucus experience. This was my first caucusing experience and I must admit, I didn't go because I thought that my vote was going to change the world or really even make a difference, but mainly because I wanted to know what the heck the big deal is with the Iowa caucus. Why is everyone so concerned about it? I still don't have an answer to that question, but I did have a rawkin' good time at the caucus.
My only regret is not leaving earlier to get there. The caucus for our district was held at an elementary school. True to form, this chool had almost NO parking. It was absolute hell trying to weave around people in the ice and snow trying to find a spot to park in. Then, once I DID find a spot (8 blocks away), the building was PACKED with people who didn't know where they were supposed to be (myself included). There were HUNDREDS of people and one little guy with a laptop trying to direct groups of people to where they needed to be. We finally got the the basement library and I still needed to register. Registering was easy....but the lines sucked and it was hot down there.
I found the Hillary section (deal with it) and stood there to wait. I looked around me and noticed that everyone had Hillary buttons and shirts and lapel pins and banners. I was jeal. One lady asked me who I was voting for and I said "Hill Dog" and she gave me a high five. Seriously. She was a little old lady too. Cute stuff.
It was fun to see people all giggly and chatty like they were best friends with complete strangers who just happened to be voting for the same person.
There was a lot of counting and hand raising and a little cheering and bantering, but when all was said and done, Hillary, Obama and Edwards each got 4 votes from our district. It was a draw.
After the voting was over, we stayed for some pictures and such and one lady came up to me and gave me her Hillary button. Yay!

Fun disguises...revisited.

Remember back when I thought wax lips were fun. I still do, don't get me wrong. But I've recently come to enjoy a new novelty. That's right, the groucho marx fun glasses. I've only just recently acquired the childrens sizes, but I will, oh yes I will, have adult ones....and all who wish are invited to proudly display them at none other than the Wal*Mart portrait studio. I'll let you know when the time is nye. Until then, Hunter and Eastyn will show you exactly how it's done.

I love Iowa....

and let me tell you why....My Aunts Ruthie and MaryEtta, and Ber and I road tripped to Nebraska for Dad's 50th birthday bash. The first town we went through had this.........

notice there is a guest book for people to sign. You better believe my name is proudly written on that bad boy.

JKATS

It was Erin's birthday on the 21st, so I went up to visit her. Her mom was there and we got to go to one of her shows. We had a blast, per usual. Erin's in a band now. The band is called JKATS (formally known as Jack Knife and the Sharps) I set up a myspace for her for her birthday. YAY!

Eastyn

Eastyn is 3 months old now. She's getting so big and looks more like Opie every time I see her. She's a snuggler, and I'm pretty sure I'm her favorite. She actually told me that she likes me the best, but swore me to secrecy because she didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. Sorry, Eastyn. You should know that I'm not the best secret keeper.

I don't think you can handle this....

OMG!!!!! So, last night I was laying on the air mattress watching "Miami Ink". I was just minding my own business...winding down from a weekend full of magic and wonder when I felt a "thud" on my rib cage. It was a soft and gentle "thud", but I definately knew something was there. I thought, "now, what in the hell." So, I looked down and moved the blanket and a $@&*Q%Q*%@!@^&$&%^&%#*^@!%& BAT flew up friggin' right by my face. I've never moved so fast in my entire life. I ran to the bathroom and sat and contemplated my next move. Should I trap it with a laundry basket? No. That would never work, the bat could squeeze through the holes. Should I catch with a couple of cooking pots? No. That would wake the kids...and probably the neighbors. Then, I wished for a net. When one didn't magically appear out of thin air, I was forced to abandon that idea and go wake up Matt and Steph. Perfect idea. Matt will know just what to do.
I walked upstairs to their door and knocked ever so slightly and just then the bat came swooping down at me. I think I about shat myself at this point. I was shaking and convulsing outside of their door in a crumpled up ball of Holly. I was saying in a talking whisper "Ok, seriously...you guys need to open this &*#$%@#*&% door, there's a *&^%$$&^* bat out here! That didn't work....so I knocked again....the bat swooped again. It felt like this cycle went on for about 12 hours, but in all honesty, it was probably only 10 minutes. Trust me, though....10 minutes of having a bat swooping down at you is PLENTY. Matt finally cracked open the door and just as he did, the bat swooped again and in between Matt trying to not let the bat in and me trying to get into the "bat-free zone". I got squashed between the door and the frame and backed out....leaving me...once again....alone with the bat. I thought, great...Matt's up. He can deal with it. I ran downstairs as quickly as my chubby legs would carry me. But I could still see the shadow of the demon creature circling around the upstairs hallway. the bat finally stopped. At this point, I realized I needed to suck it up and go find the damn thing. I walked ever so gingerly up the steps....and there he was. Sitting on the bookshelf licking his wings. Eff. That's right. Eff, I say. I can't really tell you what happened next. Just know that it involves Matt, a raquetball raquet and a wal*mart bag. EFF, EFF and more EFF.
This may seem like it's not such a big deal...but I want you to think about it...no, really really think about it....I had a BAT land on my freakin' rib cage. WHAT THE HELL?!?!!?!??! I'm sorry...this just happened last night...I'm having a hard time getting over it....I needed to tell you guys.
Bats are gross.
The end.

All for not.

I can't even tell you how many hours we've logged into this stupid apartment....I just needed to show you guys the almost finished product. These are a few pictures of the place when we were a little over halfway done.

You gotta know when to hold em...know when to fold em.

Know when to walk away...when the dealin's done.
Yeah, so.....I moved out of my apartment today.

the end.

It's like treasure....only you don't get rich...you get sick.

So.......on Sunday Stephanie and I were cleaning out the cupboards and came upon a grizzly discovery....that's right. MOLD. Not that either of us were surprised, because along just about every baseboard in the apartment, we had scrubbed and primed and painted mold colonies. Seriously though....it's starting to get a little bit ridiculous. I called the landlord and let him know that the cupboard was moldy and this is what he said to me. And I quote "What do you want me to do about it?" I said, "well, there's mold in my cupboard...and I actually wanted someone to come take a look at it because it can't be healthy to have all of this mold growing everywhere." Then he said "Paint kills mold, don't you know that?" Jackass. First of all, paint does NOT kill mold and if anyone tell you that, they're just trying to get out of actually doing something about it. Anyway, that conversation ended with "Well, it is Sunday, hun, you're going to have to wait until tomorrow." Don't patronize me, ass wipe. That's all I have to say about that. Dont' worry about me though, Stephanie called her sister (who is about to graduate law school) and now my landlord is shakin' in his wranglers.

I'm blue da ba dee da ba die

So, I've been promising to post some pics of my new apartment. This is it when I first "moved in" although, technically I'm not moved in....but this is the day I got the key. Since then, there has been much painting and scrubbing and painting and scraping. I need you to know that every single room in the entire apartment was slathered in blue....poorly. And, as you can clearly see, it's not a pretty blue. Anyway, Stephanie and I have been working on it for over three weeks now, and though the end is in sight, we still have a lot of work to do.