Have you missed us? We have been insanely busy! Joe has been having interviews about every other weekend, so we have been having fun and doing a little bit of traveling. A few weekends ago he interviewed at a few places in Las Vegas. I am not the type of person that will turn down a trip to Las Vegas, so off we headed and we made a weekend of it!

When I think of Vegas I think SHOPPING! So we headed to Nike and I bought a new outfit to help me work on my fitness. Apparently the bright green appealed to me. I attempted to try running. I was able to jog a block on the strip, before I reached my maximum heart rate. Try to not be super impressed by my jogging skills.
A trip to Las Vegas is never complete without a trip to the Belagio gardens.

A highlight of our trip to Las Vegas is always getting together with one of my favorite friends from high school. Christy and I played on the volleyball team together in high school, she is amazing and has a great husband and two adorable children. Thanks for introducing us to a yummy new restaurant!
Another favorite thing to to in Las Vegas is to be able to go to the temple while we are there. People talk a lot of trash about how much smut is in Las Vegas and they end up avoiding the place. They are missing out because this temple is probably the most peaceful temple I have been to. It is always a highlight for us.

Joe has been super busy sending out resumes and interviewing. I am so proud of his hard work! Hopefully we will soon be able to let you know where we are headed after he graduates.

A little late, but an update

This past month has been awesome as far as my health. I feel like I have a new heart, which is good because it cost a pretty penny. Seriously best Christmas ever!

When I was still in the hospital the doctor told me that I could start walking on the treadmill when I felt up to it, and 3 weeks after the procedure I unfroze my gym membership and headed there to try it out. I was able to do the elliptical for 30 minutes which felt good. My pacemaker was set to go at 80, so the whole time I was on the elliptical machine my heart rate stayed at 80. I did not have that much oxygen in my bloodstream so I would have to take a break every 5 minutes. Seriously the very old lady next to me was totally showing me up.

Last week I got to meet with my amazing doctor for a check up. He was so impressed with my condition! Technology is amazing! He was able to put a little computer mouse looking thing over my heart and it transmits all the information about my heart, and it can tell him how it has been beating for any time since it was put in. The good news is that my heart rate never went crazy fast like it use to, and it never stopped! He was really surprised that it never raced, but he was so happy with it that he started to decrease one of my medications! My other doctor kept coming into the room and asking me if I really felt good, he must not have believed me the 1st, 2nd or 3rd time when I told him I was doing well.

The plan is that in another month I will go back and he will check my pacemaker again. If I still don't have any rapid heart rates where my heart is taking over for the pacemaker then I might be able to get off one of the medications. He said that he would then order an echo of my heart. He is worried that because of the extensive damage in my atrium (the top part of my heart) from all the ablations that the muscle isn't pumping blood through well. He is worried that if it isn't pumping well that blood will pool in the atrium and create a risk for blood clots. But if it is pumping well then I get to go off my blood thinner. If it is not pumping well, then I have to stay on the blood thinner for life. Blood thinners and pregnancy don't mix, so we are really hoping my heart muscle is strong and pumps. That was crappy news to hear. So please keep praying for my heart, we really really really want to have my atrium pumping like it should!

He was able to change the settings on my pacemaker so that I can exercise more. He said my pacemaker is so smart that it can be set to work like your smart heart. It will detect my increase in breathing, and stuff and increase my heart rate so more oxygenated blood can get to my body. Medicine is amazing! He said that when I felt up to it I could try jogging, but no running, and that I can only do short distances. I'm scared and I have not yet tried. Because of my current activity I seem to be running my battery out, and so far it is projected to last 7.5 years. My scar looks awesome, he did a great job stitching me up, but you will have to just take my word on that.