I say it all the time...but the months still seem to go by so fast!
This month (and last) has been full of a lot of doctor appointments. Johnny had an appointment last month with a wonderful ENT and then at the beginning of this month he had surgery to remove a pretty large tumor and a lymph node in his neck. And then he ended up with bronchitis...the day after surgery his chest was hurting more than his neck! The following week he had his follow-up appointment to get his stitches out and get an update on the pathology results. Luckily it was benign, so that's a relief!
Then today was Johnny's last scheduled day off work and we had an appointment with our regular doctor for medication refills and stuff. I got the results from my full spine x-rays, which showed that my curvature is at 18 degrees. I think the last time we had them done it was 15 degrees...so it progressing but very slowly...and it's still considered mild curvature. We also talked about the Ehlers-Danlos genetic testing. Since there's not a geneticist in the area that has knowledge about EDS, we're just going to order a kit that sequences the entire genome along with the rare disease report which includes every EDS variant (except hypermobile, because its genetic origin hasn't been discovered yet). Then we'll know if it's one of the variants tested or if it's hEDs like I suspect. I'm very interested to see the results. I'd already analyzed what little DNA information is in the raw data from genealogical websites, but that very small sample didn't really include anything having to do with Ehlers-Danlos. But I enjoyed going through the results and finding evidence in my DNA of things that I've already known other family members to have...plus some things I already know I have (like scoliosis, sun sensitivity, myopia, blue eyes and blond hair, etc.). I find it interesting to see what things I have an increased or decreased risk for...but I don't worry about any of it. I've always had a very realistic view when it comes to future possibilities that may or may not ever come to fruition. But...I think dealing with chronic health issues--including some that haven't had definitive answers to--helps that. I learned a long time ago that regardless of whether there's a name for it or not, I'm still going to feel the same. However, having a diagnosis does help to prepare for future possibilities if it's something that's progressive. So I'm glad we're moving forward looking into what my DNA specifically says about Ehlers-Danlos.
Other than that, I've just been working on CandiMaker stuff, as always! I got my wholesale and custom text/name stickers added to my Etsy shop. I also have some more funny animal puns to add this week. And the vendor event that my sister is helping her friend with next month is a First Responders festival...so I've created several new designs for that including my very first sticker sheet! :) I definitely plan to make more sticker sheets to put in my Etsy shop as well. The sticker sheets are generally smaller stickers and they're not laminated...so definitely a little different than my normal laminated die-cut stickers that are water-resistant.
Things are slow on Etsy right now for a lot of shops, mine included. I think it's a combination of many things including the state of the economy right now and people are generally spending less. But I still keep working on my shops and products. :) I'm confident that things will pick up in the coming months. And on that note...gonna get a little bit more work done before I go to bed. :)