Wordless Wednesday

Today is my Dad's birthday! He's the big 7-0 this year! 

My Dad is my best friend and is always there for me. This "Daddy's Girl" can't wait to celebrate his special day with him.

It is also my late Aunt Esther's birthday (Dad's twin). I miss her so much and know she's with us in spirit. <3

I hope you all have a great day!

Retail Therapy

To go along with my post on Wednesday about therapy, I thought I'd let you in on some much needed retail therapy that I got done on Tuesday. :)

I am a strong believer in retail therapy. My Mom has always told me when I'm sad to get out of the house and do some shopping! It may not solve all my problems but it sure does give me some sort of happiness and I'll take all the happiness I can get! :)

Because of my injury, I can't do much outside. It hurts to walk or sit for too long and I tend to get a bit anxious as well. On Tuesday, I decided to go out of my comfort zone and head over to Target on my own. This is a big deal because I usually have my husband or my mother-in-law with me whenever I need to run errands. I parked in my handicap spot and grabbed an electric cart and was on my way. The clothing aisles at Target are a bit hard to navigate with the cart and I did get a bit anxious at first, but once I found some cute pieces and headed to the fitting room I felt much better.

I wasn't that interested in anything but what was on the clearance racks. I felt like if I could find a good deal, then this trip would be that much more worth it! After a few racks and a bit frustration from bumping into things with my cart I found two lonesome pairs of pants that happened to be in my size! I was so excited!

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The best part of this find was that they were both marked down to $8.38! I even got the red pair for $7.50 because it didn't have the belt! These ankle pants are really stretchy and perfect for date night with my husband or even great for work once I go back. 

After my great discovery in the clothing section, I headed over to the stationary aisle and picked up the prettiest journal. It has everything I needed in it and was only $2.99! 

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I have a love for cherry blossoms and knew this was the one when I found it. If my journal writing goes as well as I hope it does, I plan on picking up more of these and stock up!

This shopping trip was so needed and I'm so pleased with what I got. I'd like to shop on my own more often but it all depends on my pain levels for the day or even week. For now I'll appreciate these little moments I have and continue moving forward. :)

I hope you have a great weekend!

My Journal

Through this journey I've been on with my injury, I've met some amazing people that are working to get me better and reach my goal of fully recovering. One of those people is my therapist, Estrid. I've been seeing her for a year now and I am so happy at the progress I've made. Suffering from chronic pain comes with many down sides. I'd say one of the biggest ones is depression. I never thought I was a depressed person. I was in denial for a very long time about my emotions. I never addressed how I was feeling usually. I got so good at just pushing things deep down and hiding them away that when I was given the diagnoses of severe depression, I couldn't believe it.

Now that I've accepted it, Estrid has been working with me to establish coping mechanisms to help me deal with the hard stuff. One of the issues I face with my depression is feeling lonely and unsupported. Don't get me wrong, my husband and my family are amazingly supportive. Unfortunately, there is only so much they can do for me. These feelings of loneliness and sadness often surface the most at night when my pain may be more prominent and I wake up at 3AM. Rocky, my pup, is even sleeping that late and doesn't want to be bothered (he's an amazing dog and gives me so much comfort) :).

So with all that said, Estrid and I began talking about things that make me feel less lonely at those really tough times. One thing I mentioned to her is prayer. I've never considered myself a very religious person. My Dad is Jewish and my Mom was raised Christian and I got kind of stuck in between. We celebrated Passover in the spring and Christmas in the winter and it worked for our family. As an adult I can see why it can be confusing but as a child I loved all the times I got to spend with family. It wasn't about religion for me. One thing that has stayed constant is my belief in God. That has never wavered and I feel like I could not get through this trying time in my life without Him. Whenever I pray, especially on those really rough nights, I feel so much better. God is not too busy for me, He is always listening and always there. From there, she recommended that I keep a prayer journal.

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I've written in a journal in the past but never for therapy, never for prayer. This is something new to me and I am so excited to see the benefits that will come from this. There have been studies done that show that writing has an improved affect on ones well being. I hope this is what gets me through those hard times and I know I will continue it even once I'm passed all this. I know I am going to get through this and I know that God will be there for me every step of the way.

Do you keep a journal? Has it helped you get through a hard time in your life? I'd love to hear from you! :)

Happy Wednesday!

*I'm still in the market for a new computer, hence the long breaks in blogging. I try to get things done on my Dad's computer when I visit him but its not much. I hope some of you are still sticking with me! ;)*

Yesterday I had the great opportunity to capture some iPhone pictures of a hummingbird hanging out at my new feeder! It was such a great moment and this little guy let me take as many as I wanted. This was the best shot I got:

The weather here has been so hot! It's well over 100 everyday and with some clouds hanging around it is way too humid for this California girl! I've been spending lots of time inside with my lovely a/c. :)

This past Saturday my husband, his brother and I went to the local American Heroes Air Show. It happened to fall on a very hot day! By the time we got there a lot of the vendors had already left because it was just too hot. We were there maybe 30 minutes before we decided to leave. Hopefully next year will be much better and the new government budget will allow for more military helicopters. There were none this year. :(

On Sunday we headed over to the San Fernando Valley Japanese-American Community Center for their annual Obon Festival. My husband practices Judo there and his Judo Club had a booth. It was much cooler and we all had a great time. I probably ate more then I should have but how can you pass up shaved ice, cold noodles and sushi! It was a lot of fun and I got a picture of my brother-in-law helping out at the booth. 

It was awesome to be so busy this past weekend! As you know, my injury keeps me from doing a lot and I am so proud of myself that I kept up with everything. I'm getting to know my limits a lot better and with medication and my husbands help, this weekend was comfortable and just what my mind and body needed.

I hope you all have a great July 4th! :)