I really don't know... I'm interested to see what others have learned/know about it, though. Scary!!! :-(

First of all, :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:!!! OK - now you're ready to face the music. I've been in dentistry for over 20 years (dental hygienist). I work with MANY nervous patients. Let's face it - dental work IS NOT fun! Even when you feel nothing, who likes lying there with their mouth open for an extended period of time? Not I, said the fly! Lol! Veneers are a simple appointment as far as preparing the tooth goes. You need to only remove a tiny amount of enamel so it goes much faster than say a crown prep. Seeing how your treatment is on your front teeth, I think you're going to be surprised how easy your appointment will be. Front teeth are easier to access, keep dry, work on, etc. For nervousness, try the following: 1. Communicate up front your concerns/worries. Give the assistant and doctor the hand signal that makes you most comfortable for calling a momentary time-out break at any time (I ask my patients to calmly raise their hand at ANY TIME should they need/want a break for any reason). Having a "voice" keeps you in control and that adds up to less anxiety. 2. Take your "pill" as instructed. It WILL take the edge off and help. 3. Bring an iPod with some of your favorite, soothing music. Keep your earbuds in (or only wear one if you like having a feel for what's going on with your treatment) throughout the entire appointment. It's amazing how music can help get your mind off of your worries. 4. Think about how lovely your new veneers will look and the years of confidence they'll give to you and that gorgeous smile!!! You are going to be fine. Keep telling yourself that and stay aware of the minutes that go by while being treated. They will add up fast and before you know it, YOU'LL BE DONE!!!! :D:D:D:D:D Best of luck and congratulations on the new smile you're about to have!!! Shawn

I hope that everything goes smoothly and right on schedule. More importantly, I pray that your nosebleeds will STOP after this surgery. You poor thing! Our son was getting bad nosebleeds everyday. We found out he had Celiac and now they've stopped (we went gluten-free). Hang in there and try not to worry! We'll be praying for you!!!

Wow! What a great idea! I would've never thought of that.... I feel your sadness. Our little sparrow babies are all leaving the nest this week and our Mastiff has killed them all. She doesn't eat them or even really chew on them but she must bite them because we're finding their little bodies (all slobbery) when we get home each day. I want to punish her but I know she's not doing anything wrong. It's just not fair!!!

That is horrible!!! I'm so sorry for your husband (and your family). That just seems so unjust! Does he have any recourse? Can he fight this? After all those years of experience and service, it seems just ridiculous that they would let him go for petty things like that. Stay strong and try not to let this bump in the road bring too much worry and stress into your home. We will pray for you.. :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

Update: OK....OUCH!!!! OUCH! OUCH!!!! :crying: I had no idea a catheter hurt so much....I never want to go thru that again! I met with the gynourologist, had my exam and then consult. Basically, I need the mass biopsied so we're scheduling surgery in the next week or so. She said it's "an old person's cancer", rare for someone my age (43) but it does happen. I asked her what her initial thoughts were of the ultrasound pictures - she said, "I will not comment." I guess she's being safe and professional, although it didn't leave me feeling very good about things. My body is so sore from tensing up during that SUPER FUN exam. I feel like I have the flu. I didn't sleep well last night, either. I need to just let it go and give it to God. I decided to take a field trip today with DS - we went out to lunch and saw a movie! Poor kid isn't getting much schooling this week with all of my appointments. Thank the Lord we're homeschooling and can just go with the flow! :D Thank you for all of the prayers and words of support! I'm so grateful!!

Thanks for all of the advice and shared situations, ladies! I knew I'd get some GREAT support, here. I'll keep you all posted after tomorrow's appointment. I'm so glad I told my gynocologist about the bloating feeling I've been having. If I hadn't mentioned it, this thing would have probably gone unnoticed. Good lesson for this mommy!!!

I just came from my ultrasound appointment for my ovaries (I've had some bloating problems). My uterus and ovaries are just fine but they found a mass in my bladder! Yikes! :eek: I meet with the urogynecologist in the morning for the next step. I was just wondering if anyone had ever had anything like this happen to them and what their prognosis was. I, of course, came right home and started doing my own research, which is NEVER a good idea and am now regretting it!!! I can't find anything positive about a mass in your bladder. I finally gave up and decided to come here for some wisdom! :D

Rejoice!!! Thank you sweet Lord for your sacrifice... We are soooo blessed! Amen!!!

Oh, lucky you! I'm sooo envious! We're getting a glorious rainy day here in SoCal and I'm loving it but snow would be an absolute delight! Enjoy it!

I've learned to NOT read comments on stories like these, anymore. I get too emotional for some reason! :blushing: I feel like I don't have self-control by allowing these negative and often times offensive people and their comments to upset me when I have the power NOT to read this stuff.....so now I don't!

I'm with you - I don't want DS to finish work on time, be a cheerful learner, be a good listener, etc. just to avoid punishment. I desperately want to him to understand the glory of "a job well done" and have that be enough but I'm afraid at this stage of his life, it's not always this way!:banghead: I am just going to do my best to keep being as consistent as possible. I most definitely have room for improvement on my part in the "positive reinforcement" area so I'm going to push for betterment here. Perhaps that will help??? I think it shows tremendous passion on your part as a mother to want integrity and accountability from your kids in every aspect of their lives. Keep up the good work, mom! :D

Tee hee! :lol::lol::lol:

What a blessing for your DS (and new pup)!!! Congratulations!!! Enjoy this difficult, frustrating, exhausting stage and all the WONDER, JOY and LOVE puppyhood brings!!!! I''m smiling with envy.... :001_smile:

I thought it was good! It has some nice moments... It's not superb but certainly a fun way to relax a little with some girl t.v. time! :)

Absolutely! That said, you'd want a meet and greet with your toddler and and the doggie, first. We've adopted quite a few Boxers over my lifetime (both as a child and now as a parent). They are wonderful with children! We've had old and young, abused and not, sick and well as our adoptees and all have been just great with: 1). me and my sister as kids 2). my husband and me as a young married couple 3). our little boy (currently 7 but was exactly 2 1/2 when we adopted our current Boxer). Our only concern was the bounciness that boxers exude when playful and the possibility of knocking DS down...which happened occasionally but always on the grass or carpet so no harm done. In fact, our son was the rough one and our current Boxer just allowed him to pretty much do whatever he wanted. If it got too rough, Vinnie (dog) would just walk away. I can't speak highly enough of the breed AND the many, many rescues we've had the honor of adopting into our family. We will ALWAYS (God-willing) have a Boxer in our family. They are just sweethearts that love so deeply! Best of luck in your decision! I hope it all works out for all of you!!!

Beautiful photos!!! I live in So. Cal., too. Where did you shoot this? I would love to take DS there for photos some time! Her costume is brilliant! Well done! :thumbup:

Sounds wonderful! I would LOVE to see all of that!!! Enjoy!

ANYTHING risotto is o.k. in my book! Yummy!

Yummy! I just read a slow-cooker recipe for artichokes (which I love!!!) and think I'll try it this weekend! Thanks for sharing...

I'm an indoor soul! I go outside, when I have to, and try to get through it, taking in deep breaths, enjoying what part of "outside" I can....BUT I CAN'T WAIT TO GET BACK INTO THE CAR AND GO!!!! :tongue_smilie: We have park playdates, PE classes and some outdoor field trips throughout the year but not too many. We're mostly indoors with all of our extracurriculars (tae kwon do, chess school, violin, art classes, library visits, museums, etc.) so that makes it nice since DS likes indoors, too. We're all different and that's a nice thing! If well all loved the park, hiking, etc., just imagine how crowded the "outdoors" would be? Lol! Stay indoors and stay happy - I know I am (on both accounts)!

Really big, we're talking HUGE sigh of relief over here!!! :001_wub: I'm embarrassed to say that I like him (and admit to his less than perfect acting skills...) A LOT! Lol! DH thinks I'm crazy! Hooray for hoaxes!

These sound like great ideas for our Anchorage visit! Thanks!!! Do you miss living in AK? I know there are pros and cons to everything but it sure seems like a nice life there, even with the severe weather. I love adventure (you'd think I get plenty of it HS'ing our 7 y.o. boy!!!) and cold weather. If this trip was completely up to me, we'd travel when there was snow...I'd love to do some of the winter weather activities AK has to offer (like driving a snow mobile, maybe a mush dog-tour, etc.).

We're staying in Seward and Cooper Landing. We're just having a 1/2 day in Anchorage. Yes, we're renting a car in Anchorage for the whole trip. We've heard good things about the Sea Life Center so I think we'll definitely visit there, thanks for recommendation! Raingear: we live in southern CA and have zero raingear. :lol: Guess we'll be doing some shopping - all of our tours suggest (strongly) raingear and then some (like neoprene gloves for our sea kayaking tour). Let the shopping begin!

We're planning a 9-day trip in June - our 1st trip to Alaska! (I'm already going crazy getting HS materials on Alaska, the Ididarod, Salmon runs, brown and black bear, etc.). DS (7) is absolutely going nuts with excitement! We can't wait!!! :D We'll be staying on the Kenai Peninsula the entire trip so we can take our time and explore. Any advice, recommendations or thoughts would be greatly appreciated! Fun little tidbit: we're taking an Ididarod Tour with the Seavey family in Seward that includes a 35 minute ride with the sled dogs (on a wheeled cart), a kennel tour and "talk" about the Ididarod itself. It turns out that they are a HS family! Can't wait to meet them! Anyway, to those that have been, would LOVE to hear about your adventures and recommendations! Thanks so much!