I am a mother of sometimes wonderful kids, a wife to a man who is willing to put up with me, mother/grandma/caretaker of four cats, 6 pond fish and a bearded dragon. I live life the best that I can and deal with what it dishes out in my own special way. I have Sjogren’s Syndrome, love to crochet and garden, spend as much time outdoors as possible, couponing and a little bit of everything in between…
A few years ago my life changed yet again. I went through a divorce and married the man of my dreams. Funny thing is, it all started with a blog. Before my separation I started a blog about my life and concerns with my marriage. I blogged religiously. There wasn’t a day that went by without a new post or several. A few months after I started, my marriage did end. We separated and went our own ways. While blogging I met many wonderful people online. Many who I still talk to today and one that I married.
The first time I saw his blog I felt a strange connection to him. We were both going through similar things so I just wrote it off to that. We commented on each others blogs for a few years and that was it. One day I decided to add one of those chat things on my blog and he decided to chat with me. From there it led to the phone and eventually we met in person. By the time we met in person I already knew he was the one that I was meant to be with.
A few months later I moved to Florida. My son and I were going to live there until Stephan retired from the Air Force. I was supposed to be there a year and a half. I moved there on a Friday. I was excited to start the next phase of my life. It was great! We were three blocks from the beach and starting a new family.
Then Tuesday rolled around… my new husband to be came home with orders to go to Turkey for a year! I ended up living in Florida for three months and moving back to Georgia. We got married on November 25, 2009 and he left for Turkey on November 26, 2009. For the next year we were back to our internet relationship. Only this time instead of a state away we were half a world apart! His daughter moved in with her mom for the year that he was gone and my son and I lived in an apartment in GA.
During that year my health problems were getting worse. I finally went to a Rhuematologist and after a few tests and what not I was diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome. It can take many years to be diagnosed so I was pretty lucky that everything lined up just right. I’ve had symptoms for years, since my teens. I had never thought much of it. It was normal for me. At the time I would have flares, but they would only last for a few weeks or so. I mainly had stomach problems, fatigue, dry eyes, dry mouth, and brain fog. Things have changed a lot since then!
Before Stephan’s year was up in Turkey I got to go and visit for a few weeks. We made that time our honeymoon time! We had a great time. Turkey is beautiful. If you ever get the chance to go then go! There is so much to see. We also took a short trip over to Chios, Greece. We rented a motorcycle and rode around the island for a few days. It was amazing and just so free feeling. We didn’t make reservations we just went and stopped where and when we wanted to.
Stephan finally got to move back to the states and ended up in Alabama. He was four hours away this time. We decide that I would stay in GA since he would be there for less than a year. The time he would be there was also split between two school years. I decided to just stay here and keep my son in school here. His daughter wanted to move back in with him, so she moved from her mom’s to Stephan’s in AL. We all saw each other on the weekends during that time.
Again it was getting close for his retirement. He was figuring out the paper work and what needed to be done. He was waiting for his Top Secret Clearance to be renewed and then he was going to drop his paper work for retirement. Well… that didn’t happen. The Air Force with their super spy network found out and sabotaged our plans yet again! This time he got orders to go to Kosovo for six months. We had just bought a house in preparation for our family all being together. This time his daughter decided to live with me, since she would end up in this school in six months. She didn’t want to have to change schools yet again.
While Stephan was gone I lost my job. This gave me time to do a lot of the improvements on our house before he came home. This time before he came home he had all of his retirement in place. We weren’t going to take the chance of him being sent off again! He got back to the states in May 2010. He had a little more than a month in AL before he could start his terminal leave. In July of 2010, a little more than 2 1/2 years after we got married, we FINALLY got to live together! For the first time in our married life we were living under the same roof!!!
He officially retired from the United States Air Force on September 1, 2010. Due to the job market he is still looking for a job. We are getting by on what we have and he has been able to work for a family friend helping out in her store with the warehouse and of course all of her computer support. Hopefully he will find something soon.
I find myself in pain most of the time and going to so many doctors that I don’t think I could really work. I’d rather use the energy that I do have around the house and with my family. Now that I don’t work the brain fog isn’t as bad, I have time and energy to clean and cook most days, and I have more time with my family.
Well, that’s the low down on the past few years. The reason for this blog is to bring awareness to Sjogren’s and what it can do to a person. It’s not going to be a pity blog. I like to stay positive. I can’t change what my life is. I can only try to make it better. I will talk about my health issues but part of it is so I can remember what is happening and when. I will also be posting about my hobbies. I recently took up crocheting and I love to garden. I enjoy cooking and pretty much anything that is new. I’m not an expert on anything! This will pretty much be a blog of my learning experiences. Come along for the ride or jump off while we are moving cause I’m not stopping!
Jen
