*Your first post

My first blog post was about my physical. Physically, my doctor said I was fine, but he was concerned about my mental and emotional state. He encouraged me to find people my age who were dealing with chronic illness and taking care of their spouses. That physical was a catalyst for my blog.

* A post you enjoyed writing the most

Hmm…this is a tough one. I really enjoy writing them all. I guess 12 Days of Birthday because my family got a big kick out of the redneck presents.

* A post which had a great discussion

This post on The Happy Housewife’s blog about Refrigerating Eggs had very interesting comments. Apparently in England they don’t refrigerate eggs.

* A post on someone else’s blog that you wish you’d written

This post by Kristen at We Are THAT Family is called When Jesus Isn’t Enough. It’s raw and honest, and makes me feel ashamed for whining about petty things.

* Your most helpful post

Others may disagree, but as a good OCD housewife, I think this post on Cleaning Your Keyboard is my most helpful post. Keyboards get so germy! Clean yours!

* A post with a title that you are proud of

I’m afraid I’m going to have to cheat and put two links for this answer. I’m really proud of the Urge to Procreate Rising title, but I Didn’t Kill My Husband kind of grabs people’s attention.

* A post that you wish more people had read

Any post that describes how much pain David is in would suffice. I really wish more people understood how bad his Chronic Illness is.

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Psoriatic arthritis is a form of arthritis that affects some people who have psoriasis, a serious skin condition. Most people develop psoriasis first and are later diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, but arthritis can sometimes develop before skin lesions appear.

It’s interesting to me that on WebMD’s Psoriatic Arthritis Health Center they have tabs for treatment and symptoms of course, but also one for “Emotional Toll”.

There is no cure for Psoriatic Arthritis. Symptoms include inflammation and joint pain. If you asked David what his symptoms were, he’d just say pain. Lots of pain. For David, the psoriasis is extremely mild. He didn’t even know he had psoriasis until he was diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis. We just thought he had dandruff on his scalp. Occasionally he’d get patches in his beard if he let it grow too thick.

For many people, the psoriasis is extremely painful. It’s like having another disease on top of the arthritis. Some people experience patches of raw or bleeding skin. So, we are very grateful that David hasn’t had to deal with anything like that. Once, right before The Weekend from H*** David had patches of psoriasis on his knees, but it was very mild.

The exact cause of Psoriatic Arthitis is still unknown, according to the Arthritis Foundation, but genetics are strongly suspected. It is believed that environmental factors also contribute to the disease.

If you asked me what Psoriatic Arthritis is, I’d say it’s a terrible disease that has changed my life. It’s debilitating and frustrating and taking some Aleve won’t cure it. That’s one of the biggest misconceptions. That David has arthritis like your Grandma got arthritis in her fingers when she was 80 and couldn’t knit any more until the doctor gave her Celebrex and now she’s doing great. It’s not the same kind of arthritis at all.

Psoriatic Arthritis is what drove me to blog and drives me to drink (Diet Coke).

For more information on Psoriatic Arthritis, check out The Arthritis Foundation’s Website.

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We’re still not sure where we’re going to live in New Jersey. We have found a rental property manager for our house here in Dallas. He was such a nice man. Our house is a disaster right now. It’s covered in boxes and we have stuff spread out all over the floor. He said, “This is a clean house. It will show really well.” Bless his heart. Just pray we find renters immediately!

Plans keep changing. First, David was going to fly up on the 28 and then start working on the 29. I would follow by car with Henry. Now, we’re thinking about driving up together the 27 and 28. Basically, all we know is that David starts to work on the 29.

David keeps telling me I’ll have so much to blog about with the move. I keep thinking, “I don’t have time to blog! I’ve got to find new doctors and a pharmacy! I’ve got to select movers and pack! And once we’re up there, how long will it take for us to get the computers unpacked and internet hooked up?” So we’ll see how much blogging I do over the next few weeks.

Poor David did too much this weekend, packing and getting ready to move. He was in a lot of pain Sunday night. I was almost asleep when I realized David should have taken his Humira shot Friday. Oops. That’s probably why he was hurting.

Here’s what’s on our to do list:

Find a place to live in New Jersey
Select movers
Get haircuts
Get oil changed, tired pressure checked
Move stuff to storage (We’re leaving a lot of things here for the time being.)
Cancel internet service
PACK

Am I forgetting something? We’re going so fast, I’m sure I am. I’m also trying to get into see my TMJD specialist before we leave. They’ve got me on a waiting list, so pray that I can see them. I don’t know if I could make it till Thanksgiving or Christmas!

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Different bloggers have different goals for their blogs. Some want to earn money, some want to become popular and some just want to share pictures and stories of their kids with their family.

The best blogging advice I have is to treat blogging like a job. I love blogging. It’s a really fun “job”. Here are a few things that work for me.

*Decide how much time you want to devote to your blog. In my opinion, this time should include time spent promoting your blog on Twitter, Facebook, answering emails, etc. Do you want to blog every day? Once a week? Whatever you decide, be consistent. Readers appreciate knowing how often you post.

*Network. Just like any other job, you need to network. Create a Twitter account. Comment on blogs you like. Participate in Blog Carnivals like Works for Me Wednesday and The 730/365 Declutter Challenge. Join groups like SITS. You’ll meet interesting people and you’ll get a lot of new traffic this way.

*Finally, just like any other job, you need continuing education. Seek advice. Learn about new things, such as My Blog Spark or Google Alerts.

That’s what works for me! Hope it works for you, too.

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1. Wake up to Henry putting his front paws and head on me. He has so much energy in the morning! Get up. Get dressed before going downstairs. Start a load of towels.
2. Let Henry outside. Fill his food and water bowls.
3. Breakfast. Check email, Facebook, Twitter, and bank accounts.
4. Let Henry back in. Straighten the house. Put away books, magazines, clothes, shoes, throw away any trash, make bed, etc.
5. Dust.
6. Clean a bathroom.
7. Move towels to dryer. Start a load of whites.
8. Lunch. Let Henry outside again. Blog and/or read other people’s blogs while eating. I also try to read the Bible online at this time. It’s kind of weird, but I’ve had a hard time figuring out when to have my quiet time since I’ve been married. This seems to work for me. I’m on the computer anyway. Might as well incorporate the Bible in there.
9. Workout.
10. Vacuum the entire house. Literally. All 2200 square feet. The tile, the wood floors. I vacuum it all.
11. Call pharmacy to order refills of David’s meds.
12. Check mail. Stack new medical bills in pile in office. Read an article in a magazine.
13. Start dinner.
14. David comes home. Dinner is ready, but he needs to take a hot bath before he can eat. Read another article and get on Facebook while I wait.
15. We eat dinner and talk. I clean up the kitchen while David plays with Henry.
16. We watch a movie. Yippee!
17. As I’m about to step in the shower. I realize we have no towels. I didn’t hear the dryer buzz because it went off while I was listening to my Ipod while working out. Unload dryer. Put whites in dryer.
18. Get ready for bed. Read a chapter of a book before turning off the lamp.
19. The dryer buzzes just as I’m falling asleep because I forgot to turn the buzzer off.

I love those days where I don’t have to go to the store, the doctor’s office, the vet or the post office. It happens maybe once a week.

Here’s how today went.

1. Wake up late. David informs me that he’s working from home today. “NOOO!!!” I moan. “I’m not going to get anything done today!” He tells me he loves me, too.
2. Take care of Henry.
3. Eat breakfast while listening to Henry bark at himself in the mirrors in our workout room. We tend to keep the door to that room shut.
4. Check email and Facebook before I have to give the office up to David so he can work. (It’s not like I don’t have my own laptop and desk.)
5. Cut coupons. Go through my coupon organizer and get rid of the expired coupons. This took a ridiculous amount of time.
6. Start a load of laundry.
7. We eat lunch. David convinces me to watch a show with him.
8. I finally realize I need to put the washed clothes in the dryer.
9. Clean up the kitchen.
10. Look through the freezer and realize I still have leftovers from David’s birthday party last October. Thow out a lot of food in freezer.
11. Make grocery list.
12. Unload dryer. Start another load.
13. Get on computer. Check four blogs. Read Bible online.
14. Get out ironing board. Iron three shirts.
15. Mother-in-law calls. She and sister-in-law #3 need to come get something from us and want to bring dinner. How can I resist?
16. Unload dryer. Start another load.
17. Make a “quick” run to the grocery store. It wasn’t as quick as I thought it would be. MIL beats me home. David has started eating the delicious Cristina’s food without me, not that I blame him.
18. After hanging out with in-laws, go to ironing board only to discover that iron is no longer working. Decide to watch a movie with David instead.
19. Shower. Pack David’s lunch for tomorrow.
20. Blog. Remember I still need to unload dryer.

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