Hernia Surgery

Since Luke and I returned from our honeymoon, we have been anxious for some desperately needed rest and relaxation. Fortunately, this wish came true. Unfortunately, I had to have hernia surgery for this to happen. For those of you who are lucky enough to have never experienced this procedure, I will be the first to let you know that it could quite possibly be considered cruel and unusual punishment! Basic acts like sneezing and urinating make me instantly cry because it hurts so bad.

Since I have been laid up for more than a week, I have had a lot of time on my hands. Many of you know that this has been difficult for me as I can't stand wasting time. I am going completely crazy! I never thought I would be so anxious to go back to work. Unfortunately, I have almost three weeks off.

Luke has been a saint during this time. He has gone out of his way to attempt to make me happy. I am a very lucky girl!

Here are pictures of my incision.

One month later...

It has been a little over a month since Ashley and I married. So far it has been non-stop action with little to no down time. Unfortunately, other than our honeymoon, we haven't had much time to spend together. The following is a snapshot of the things we have been doing since the wedding.

Honeymoon- The absolute best trip of my life.

Basement-With the help of my father-in-law, we are making good progress on the basement. Right now, we are in the painting phase and my family is coming up this weekend to help.

Baby Borrowing-Over the 4th of July weekend, we babysat for the children of one of Ashley's good friends. Suprisingly, I really enjoyed it. Benjamin (8 years) and Eli (7 months) spent four days with us in Columbia. We kept busy by going to the park, Chuck-E-Cheese, the ice-cream shop, bike riding, etc. It was a blast to have the kids around and Ashley quickly learned that kids do not follow her sleep schedule!

Work Trip-Right now I am in Park City for my company's 2009 product/sales meeting. I miss my new wife like crazy and I can't wait to get back home.

Honeymoon: Part 3 (Back to Bangkok)

Luke and I headed back to Bangkok for the last leg of our honeymoon. It was sad to be nearing the end of our trip, but I think we were both ready to get back home. We were definitely ready for a decent meal! For those of you who have had the pleasure of eating with me, you know that I am one of the pickiest eaters in the world! Luckily, I married someone who is almost as picky. Because of this, we ate a very limited diet while in Thailand.

The cake that the hotel made for us. It was really good.

Pictures from our hotel

Luke and I decided to stay across the river from the main downtown area. This ended up being a good idea as there was a lot of political unrest in Bangkok during this time and it was unsafe for foreigners to be out at night. As a result, we spent most of our time shopping. While most of the shopping in Bangkok is very similar to shopping in the United States, there was one major difference: custom made clothing. The clothing alone almost made me want to move to Bangkok. It was absolutely incredible!

Getting measured for my clothes.


A fitting for a jacket.


Hanging out at the pool.


Luke and I were in heaven at the tailor. The shop had hundreds of fabrics to choose from and could create any clothing design in about 24-hours. The best part was the price. Luke and I got three cashmere winter coats, two spring coats, 12 button-up shirts and a pair of cashmere pants. All of this cost less than $800. It was unbelievable!

These are the coats we got made in Bangkok. Mine are the three on the left. I can't wait to be able to wear them!


On our last night in Bangkok, Luke took me to a Benihana Japanese Steak House. It was definitely our best meal of the trip. While the chicken looked slimy, the Kobe beef was excellent!





We left Bangkok at six the following morning to begin our long trip home. Thailand was a vacation of a lifetime. I definitely recommend Thailand to anyone who has the chance to go there. Our expereinces will not be forgotten.

This is a picture of the type of toilet that made my marathon experience much more difficult. It is a female toilet. The bathroom attendent showed me that I was supposed to squat to use it. That is not an easy feat! I didn't have my camera while running so this is a toilet at the Tokyo airport.