Disney Happiest Place on Earth
Birthday's are to be celebrated! House rules: No work or school on one's birthday! As for the arrival of my favorite twins, pre-lupus diagnosis, science and fate allowed the fertilized eggs to grow in the petri dish (shallow dish where cells are cultured named after its inventor, Julius Petri). We were on our fourth round of IVF and we had little hope that it would work. I pretended I was cool with it...until the nurses told me to put my gown on and hop on the gurney. Oh hell! I did create an unnecessary commotion. Security was on alert. Happily, the end result was positive. Healthy Baby Girl and Baby Boy were born via c-section at 40 weeks.
Eleven years later, post-lupus diagnosis, we are going to Disney's Animal Kingdom. The morning of my feet and hands were on a Raynaud's flare-up. My feet are swollen, blue and cold. My hands are purple and cold. They hurt and I am breathing where I would rather be screaming. The twins are keeping my mind off the pain by trying to figure out which ligament is colder and by how much. I see the look in my husband's face...no...no...do not say it...maybe I should not go to Disney. Immediately, I instruct the twins to bring me my usual breakfast of Noka yogurt and protein bar. My husband brought my medication and pot. I sat for a couple of hours and relaxed. After the flare-up passed, I slowly got up from bed. I am already so tired. Damn it, I am considering not going. No, I can not let that thought creep in my mind...the negativity, the loss. I consider what to wear. I have to be cover the majority of my body without feeling like I have a snow suit on. It really is sinful that it is 80 some degrees in sunny Florida in February. I opt for a flowy, flowery dress with long sleeves and sandals. Covered enough so I won't burn from the sun and comfy enough to endure the walking. It was the funnest Disney day for us and the kids. The following two days, as expected, I remained in bed, potted up to lessen the excruciating joint and muscle pain. I did not regret it. “After the rain, the sun will reappear. There is life. After the pain, the joy will still be here.”- Walt Disney