Lisa Having Medical Problems again.

Hi everyone,
Some of you may already know this, but if not, at least now you will. I'm sorry I didn't send something out before, but I didn't see where it would last this long, now that it has, well you know.

Thursday the 13th I got out of bed to go to work and was suddenly very dizzy. The room was spinning at an alarming speed and had I been standing (I was sitting in bed) I would have fallen down. I didn't feel safe driving, so I called out. We thought it might be my blood sugar, but it wasn't. Next we thought I was too tired, but that didn't pan out either. We tried the chiropractor, thinking I was out of joint, but nothing was wrong there either.

Friday we went to the Dr. They did some blood work, it all came back normal, and no, I'm not pregnant. (One of the tests they did). Around 9pm I felt fine and stayed that way until around 9:30AM Monday morning while I was at work. Suddenly I was very dizzy again. I ended up calling Andrew to come and get me.

We went to the ER Monday night because the Dr's office said that if the symptoms persist or get worse to go there. Dad (Merkley) and Andrew gave me a blessing first. They did an EKG and CT Scan, all was fine. More bloodwork, still nothing wrong. The best thing they could tell me was that I had a lot of wax build up in my ear and I probably had something wrong with my inner ear, which they couldn't see or test apparently.

We went back to the Dr. yesterday, the 19th. Still can't drive. They wanted us to go ahead and try to clean out the wax in my ears, but said that's very likely not the problem. So now I can't hear most of the time. They are referring me to a neurologist. I don't know what's going to happen from there, but we are trying to get in sooner than later. Andrew is taking good care of me. I'm doing the best I can.

We'll try to keep you updated. Right now we don't have anything to go on, but are hoping the neurologist can get me in quickly and can figure it out and fix it quickly. The one good thing is that we are fairly sure it's not a brain tumor, since the CT Scan came back fine. We know it's not my heart or a stroke as well, but that's about it. They said it doesn't sound like traditional vertigo either.

Good news is short, but Andrew may have a job. We should know the first of next week.

We appreciate your prayers in our behalf and we know that Heavenly Father is looking out for us, we have faith it will all turn out for the best, whatever that may be.

We love you and pray for you as well.

Lisa M. Smith-Happiness is a good friend

A Year in Review

Andrew's Adventures

This year was very interesting.

At the end of last year I started a new job with Earnhardt Nissan. We were happy to be there. I found that many people worked there that I had worked with before back when I was at Earnhardt Dodge. I was happy to be at a job that looked like I could be there for awhile after 2007 was full of job hopping. Well in August all of that changed. True to Earnhardt style they laid me off because they thought they could bring someone else in that could make the dealership more money than I was making them. About a month later they thought wrong and they also found out that they lost one of their best Service Advisors when it came to customer service. Within a short few weeks several other employees left the dealership as a direct reflection of them laying me off.

Lisa and I took they change in stride. We have been tired of “playing cars” for the last 12 years so figured it time to make a career change.

I have now gone back to school, attending Rio Salado online, getting my AA degree in Computer Technology. I hope to have finished this degree by the spring of 2009 and starting my bachelor degree at ASU East. We are hoping that this new career path will be a little more stable and ample enough to be able to let Lisa go back to school soon.

Being laid off this past 2-3 months have given me ample time to catch up on projects around the home and be able to learn lots of new things to do with emergency preparedness. I have been having fun taking lots of cooking classes and using our year supply. I now make a mean whole wheat bread and whole wheat cinnamon roll. Lisa and I also tried a new corn bread recipe made out of ground popcorn. The other cool thing I have done is change the way I go gardening. I am trying my hand Hydroponic Gardening. So far it is going very well. My plants are growing so much faster, and NO WEEDS. J

Lisa's Life

Well I was hoping for a less eventful year, and I guess in some ways it was, but it really wasn’t when it comes right down to it.

I’m working at Macy’s for those who don’t already know. The job I reported last year ended three days after I began it. The environment was terrible and I couldn’t stand it, so I left.

Megan's Melodrama

I started piano. It’s going great, and I love it. The piano teacher’s name is Sis. Jensen. I’m learning how to play “Silent Night” and “Jingle Bells”. I’m looking forward to my first piano recital. I started learning how to play the flute. It’s going great, and I love it. The flute teacher’s name is Mr. A or Mr. Anderson. I learned how to play “Hot Cross Buns” and I’m learning how to play “Aqua De La Lune”. I also started Porter Pops for my 2^nd time. I’m singing “Surfer Girl”, “Under the Sea”, and “Surfin’ USA” among others.

I got roller blades for the first time. I got them at Big 5. The colors are black, white, gray, blue, dark blue, and light blue. They were only $50. I love them. Sadly, two days after I got them I broke my left wrist (it’s really my arm). I was jumping and turning at the same time.

I also got to ride Jake (a horse up in Strawberry). Also I learned how to do the lope. I rode him with another horse in the same corral (for the first time). I love riding. I also helped give all the horses their carrots.

I got two new teachers. One is Ms. Allred and the other is Ms. Devereux. Ms. Allred teaches me in the afternoon and Ms. Devereux teaches me in the morning. I love 5^th grade.

For Halloween we got to be a 50’s family. I was going to wear my roller blades, but then Mom and Dad told me I couldn’t with my broken arm.

Well that was some of the fun and not so fun things I did this year.