Burney Falls Happies

I have been fortunate to travel around the country quite a lot during my 27 years of life and have been to many spectacular places. Yesterday, my family and I spent the day at Burney Falls in California and I think it now tops my list of beautiful places. There is nothing more rejuvenating than spending the day taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of nature – especially when it's in a place as beautiful as I was yesterday!

We started the day by driving down to Dusmuir, CA and having brunch at our favorite little café called the Cornerstone Bakery and Café. We have been there twice now and we have really enjoyed both times. If you're ever in the are I highly recommend you stop in for a meal. We then got back in the car and headed for the falls. A local told us to stop at a different falls that was on the way first (I don't remember what they were called) but we did and they were really nice but not nearly as breathtaking as what we would later see. Burney Falls – well, I think I'll just let the photos do the talking. So beautiful!







We did the 1.3 mile "hike" around the falls and even though it was a bit strenuous we had a really lovely time. When you are down at the bottom of the falls you can feel the mist hitting your skin and it is such a wonderful feeling! I wish I lived closer because I would go there every single day to walk around, take in the sights, and get in some exercise.



I don't know why I feel the need to share this story but there was a man who walked by me with a huge cockroach on his shoulder and it was SO creepy! I thought maybe it had fallen on to his shoulder while he was standing under a tree or something but it turns out he had a bag full of them. Who has a pet cockroach that you take to state parks?! LOL!

After spending several hours at the falls we then headed into the town of Burney. We were starving again and nothing was open, since it was Easter, so we had to eat at McDonalds – gag! Do you know how hard it is to eat at McDonalds when you're a vegetarian?

We headed home after lunch and the drive was really nice. On the home way we also stopped in McCloud and drove around for a few minutes. They have a lot of really nice historical buildings. I loved being able to watch Shasta as we drove. I'm so in love with the mountain. Is that a weird thing to say? It's just so beautiful.

I love nothing more than spending time with my family, besides maybe spending time with my family exploring nature. I had a fantastic time and I suggest if you're anywhere near Burney Falls that you go and check them out when you can!

Oh, and just since this is supposed to be a "weekly" recap I'll tell you the other things that I did - on Thursday my Dad and I went to Medford for an appointment and did a little shopping. We got along well and had a fine time. On Friday the family went to see the spring play at the school where my Mom teaches. It was called "Cow Tippin" and it was hilarious! It was a good week for me and I hope it was for you as well!

Here are a few more photos from the day:

Sugar Sensitivity

We made a really interesting discovery about my health recently and it involves sugar. Just so you know, there is no such thing as a sugar allergy but there too much sugar does invoke an inflammatory response similar to what the immune system considers to be an allergen. Sugar suppresses the immune system and creates an imbalanced body chemistry that can lead to confusion, depression, fatigue, and muscle and joint pain.

I believe that I am sugar sensitive and it makes my illnesses worse. It makes a lot of sense because my immune system is already comprised. The sugar just causes spikes and attacks. I have decided to cut sugar out of my life and see how much it helps. I obviously can't cut sugar out entirely because there are a lot of natural sugars found in fruit, and I'm a vegetarian so fruit is important, but I can skip dessert and the treats that I often crave.

This newfound realization came about during my birthday celebration. I was feeling pretty good all day and several minutes after I ate a piece of cake I had a serious "attack" and was no longer coherent or feeling well. I'm going to test the sugar sensitivity theory out and skip sugar for the next 10 days (at least) and see if I start feeling any better. I'll keep you up to date with the results of this experiment.

Psychodiagnosis Disability Appointment

I had my final disability appointment last Saturday morning (at 8 in the morning – gross!) and it was a completely different experience than my physical exam was. This one was the psychodiagnosis, for anxiety. I was honestly terrified for this, especially after the last disability appointment was such an awful thing to go through, and googling this type of appointment did nothing to help calm my fears.

The psychologist was so nice, the total opposite of the last disability doctor I had to deal with, and made me feel totally comfortable. It was a very simple process that lasted about 35 minutes in total. All I had to do was answer some questions about myself and my pain and anxiety as well as some test type of questions. Some of them were a little difficult and I got confused but it was pretty painless overall.

When he was finished asking me all of the questions he told me that he was sorry I was experiencing all of the health problems that I am and it sucks to be so sick at my age. He also told me that no matter what happens as far as the decision I receive back about my disability that I need to keep going with it and appeal it if I am denied. He also suggested that I see someone professionally to learn coping techniques for my anxiety. When I told him about my experience with Cymbalta he told me that I was a smart girl for no longer taking it.

If you ever have to go through a psychodiagnosis like this don't be too scared because it's not the worst thing in the world. I just wanted to put this out on the world wide web because all I found in my google searches were horror stories about what a terrible experience this is. My experience was nothing like that of those that I read online. My physical exam is a different story, but the psychodiagnosis was fine and hopefully I'll find out if my claim is accepted soon!

Birthday Happies

Well, another birthday has come and gone. As I mentioned in my Birthday Blues post I couldn't help but feel down even though I tried my hardest to be in a good place. Don't get me wrong here, I had a really nice birthday but my mind wasn't in the right place. I think the reason is that I just feel so guilty for getting another year older and not being more independent or healthier. This is going to be my Birthday Happies post but I'll be talking about my weird bout of depression later on this week.

My birthday was on Thursday but we decided to wait until Sunday, when we could all be together, to celebrate. I didn't expect anything on Thursday but I woke up to a sweet card and a beautiful African Violet. My Dad also went and got me a caramel latte from Dutch Bros!

On Friday we spent the evening helping out at Mazama's (the high school where my Mom teaches) Spring Carnival where Sparrow Club (the club my Mom advises) has a booth every year. We then chaperoned the Sadie Hawkins dance, which was really very boring.

I had the final appointment for disability at 8:00 in the morning on Saturday. I'm not going to talk much about that now because I want to do an entire post on it, so keep an eye out for that. My Mom and I went out for bagels and coffee afterwards and did some grocery shopping. On Saturday evening we got dressed up and the 3 of us headed out to dinner at Mr. B's Steakhouse and then came home and watched About Time. If you haven't seen About Time you need to ASAP because it's fantastic!

My parents did such a good job of making me feel loved and celebrated on Sunday (although they do a good job of it every day!) and I'm so thankful for them. We just had a nice day at home, spending time together. My Mom made me bruschetta (my favorite!) for lunch and artichokes and fruit salad (my other favorite!) for dinner. My parents also made me a chocolate cake with buttercream frosting. I opened lovely presents and a fun birthday stocking, which is a thing we started doing and it's awesome! We finished the day by playing rummy. I had a nice day.




Did you notice how bad at Pin the Tail on the Donkey I am? I suck!

Here's hoping that 27 will be my best year yet!

27 Random Facts About Me For My 27th Birthday

I have lived in 3 states, 6 cities, 7 houses, and 3 college apartments. I have lived in Klamath Falls (in the same house) for longer than I ever lived anywhere else.

I am an actual tree hugger. When I was little my family and I would go on a walk before bed every single night and I would hug all of the trees on our street good night. I would also carry a bag and pick up all the trash I could find!

Finishing a good book or a TV series makes me really depressed. I miss the characters when they're gone.

I'm an animal person in general and really love cats and dogs but I'm scared of dogs that I don't know, especially big ones even though the only dog to ever attack me was a tiny (but seriously fat) Dachshund that belonged to my Grandparents.

When I was little I got 2nd and 3rd degree burns all over my legs. The first doctors my parents took me to said they couldn't do anything for me and that I would be covered in scars for the rest of my life but my parents thought they were wrong and took me to a specialist. I only have one visible scar remaining on my left foot and I like it. It's a constant reminder that my parents will always fight for me.

I have a lot of scars but my most memorable are the one on my chin from a rollerblading accident when I had to have 7 stitches and my friends and family called me Shaggy (as in Scooby Doo because it looked like I had his goatee) and the other is from a boating accident when I fell off a tube and got wrapped up in the rope and dragged under water for some unknown length of time.

I have a very large personal space bubble. I also don't really like to be touched.

I still have every stuffed animal that meant something to me and I can remember all of their names.

My eyes change colors – blue/green/gray.

I eat muffins and cupcakes upside down because I always have to save the best bite for last.

I'm afraid of spiders so my Dad got me a tarantula when I was younger and I hated it. I'm still afraid of them but I suck them up using my vacuum so I'm the one in control!

I'm terrified of frogs. Long story short, they used to come up through the toilets when I lived in Florida. Creepy.

My house burned down when I was 4.

I had a severe allergic reaction to my 1st MMR shot and almost died. The CDC actually wanted to study me. When I moved to Florida they wouldn't let me start school without getting another. Luckily, I didn't have a reaction to that one.

My favorite color is turquoise.

I've seen the movie Titanic over 50 times.

I was such a ham when I was little that talent scouts approached my parents many times wanting to sign me but they refused since they wanted me to have a normal childhood.

I like most veggies, and I don't eat meat, but I can't stand cauliflower or eggplant.

I have double jointed shoulder blades and arms.

I can't touch my toes.

I'm a big fan of writing lists, about anything and everything.

I've done 2 beauty/scholarship pageants coming in as 1st runner up in one of them.

I have had heart surgery.

I have only ever broken 2 bones – my arm and my tailbone.

I have never been stung by a bee, wasp, or hornet.

Stephen King and Dean Koontz are my favorite authors.

I don't drink alcohol, at all.