Hi friends. The last two nights I have been in bed by 9p but tonight I find myself wanting to get some late evening writing done while the house is quiet. Finn and my mom are asleep upstairs and I have some things to share with y’all.
First, did anyone else find this week a bit much on the socials with Amazon Prime Day madness? I decided to fully opt out of all things Prime Day this year for several reasons and I’m totally at peace with it. Please know there is zero judgement from me if you scored some amazing deals or had yourself organized enough to pre-plan for holiday gifts…but I was just not there this year. I was surprised by how bothered I was by the overwhelming amount of Prime Day content was out there making me feel like I was missing out.
I’ll keep the remainder of this post in a more positive space…my mom has been with us for the last week.
Finn and I made a trip to the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market last Saturday and then scooted over to the airport to pick up my mom. We shopped from Bluebird Farm, Hoffman Heritage and Southern Greens Farm.
We spent the first few days of her visit mostly enjoying downtime at home. We did make it to the pool a couple of times. Finn has been on a kick lately where if we are hanging out at home, he changes into PJs. He likes to mix and match so we end up with quite the combo of pajamas and socks.
The reason for my mom’s visit was clinic visits at Duke. It’s hard to believe that it’s been six months since our last trip and 18 months since her transplant. It was a big deal that they let her go six months between appointments for the first time! We had been on a three month rotation prior.
We were scheduled to be in Durham for three days but our trip got cut short because her team decided to cancel a surgical procedure that she was supposed to have on the final day.
I will offer an abbreviated version of the visit in bullet points…
- Her lungs are doing GREAT! No signs of rejections. Clear x-rays. Highest pulmonary function tests she’s ever had. YAY.
- Her kidneys are NOT doing great. Unfortunately, the drugs you have to take for the rest of your life after a transplant are very hard on the kidneys. Her team is constantly monitoring labs (every two weeks) to keep her at ideal levels of her anti-rejection drugs so her kidneys are as happy and functional as possible. There are frequent adjustments to medication dosing to help with this. She’s currently in stage 3b of chronic kidney disease.
- My mom was supposed to undergo an endoscopy procedure where the surgeon injected Botox into her lower stomach and was possibly going to use a balloon to stretch some muscles in her stomach to help with some weight gain issues she’s been having since transplant. Due to her creatine levels/kidney function during her labs at Duke, the team decided it was best to postpone the procedure since it required her going under general anesthesia. We’re adjusting some medication dosing and will repeat labs again next week. She’ll continue to focus on weight gain and we’ll try the procedure again in three months if she continues to lose instead of gain. If she does gain, we don’t have to go back for another six months!
- We also talked a LOT about managing the neurological side effects that the drugs have. My mom has a lot of bad headaches, memory loss, trouble finding words, etc. It’s hard on her – and hard for us as a family to see her struggling. <3 Unfortunately, there is no simple fix but they’ll continue to vigilantly monitor her levels and make adjustments as needed to make sure her dosing is as ideal as possible.
While we spent 10 hours at the hospital during our 24 hours in Durham, we did get a good dinner in at Bleu Olive.
We also stopped into my favorite cafe/bakery in Durham, Dulce, for lunch before we hit the road back to Charlotte. We both had paninis and then got desserts to bring home. My mom got strawberry cheesecake and I got carrot cake. This is my current favorite carrot cake in all the land.
Back in Charlotte, I was reunited with my boy. I picked him up today from a summer camp program that he’s doing for the next few weeks. I was nice and sweaty from a run. It was my first workout in four days and omg so hard. The summer humidity is crushing me during my runs right now.
We took an afternoon trip to Sam’s Club since my mom is a member and I needed some household stuff. Finn was pumped to get a box of Cheez-Its bigger than his head. But let’s be real here – I’ll likely eat as many of these as he does, haha. I love going to Sam’s or Costco from time-to-time but our trip today reminded me that I definitely do not need my own membership for our two-person household. I looked at 90% of things and either thought 1) I have nowhere to store this or 2) we will never eat all of this! Like, six heads of romaine lettuce for $4? Awesome! But I can barely get through three (which costs the same at the grocery) on my own in a week. There were four gorgeous ahi tuna steaks for $20 but that’s a lot for one person eating ahi tuna. And they probably came frozen so I don’t want to refreeze them.
I fully expect to change my tune on this in the future as Finn continues to get bigger, eats a broader range of foods and has a teenage appetite. 😉
Okay. That brings us up to speed. I’ll leave you with these uplifting words that I screenshotted from We’re Not Really Strangers Instagram.
QUESTIONS
What time do you usually go to bed?
Did you shop Prime Day?
Do you shop regularly at places like Sam’s, Costco or BJs? What about as a small household?
I did shop Prime Day, but we mostly got stuff we needed or had been wanting to buy like supplements, a coffee replacement I like, white strips, and pet supplies. But it definitely felt super hyped up and high pressure.
Re: Costco, it’s just two of us but I do go there every few months or so right now. I mostly get stuff like toilet paper, paper towels, spices we use a lot (garlic powder!), olive oil, coconut oil, frozen fish/items, and snacks.
I felt very overwhelmed by all the Amazon Prime day content as well – I had this constant fear of missing out and I hate how that made me feel. I’m mentally preparing myself for the onslaught of Nordstrom anniversary sale content as well!
Happy to hear your mom is doing well! Cheering your family on as always! <3
I didn’t shop Prime Day with the exception of restocking some socks and I’m skipping out on the Nordstrom sale.
It’s just me but I love Costco for household supplies (garbage bags, paper towels, etc.) and a few items I purchase regularly – egg whites, plain greek yogurt, mashed avocado cups, oatmeal, frozen berries (there’s a blend without strawberries that is amazing), and I like their meats. I freeze these in portions that I will eat using a food saver. Their pork tenderloin and flank steak are amazing deals and much better trimmed than my grocery store’s selection. I like the chicken too; it comes packaged in 6 two breast portions that are easy to freeze. The Mateo’s salsa is my favorite!
I too was put off by all the Prime Day pushing. I found it especially distasteful when “influencers” (I hate that term) made fun of others in one story, then promoted a bunch of stuff in the next. I also find the unbridled consumerism very distressing. So many people promoting this cute top or pair of shoes, which are fast fashion and will end up in a landfill as soon as they’re bored with the items. It’s literally destroying the planet, but hey, as long as they get affiliate clicks and more money, right?
I’m not on social media so I avoided the deluge of Prime Day content but I saw plenty of it on the blogs I follow. In general, I am very turned off by Prime Day/Nordstrom Sales/Holiday wish list kind of content. Yes it can be helpful to sort through the deals but do we have to be so consumption focused? I guess it just feels like, as a society, we are overly materialistic… Do people NEED the things they buy during these sales? I will say things like Prime Day sales are excellent for expecting parents and people who are trying to buy expensive items from a registry. Like the deals on the bob strollers and carseats, etc, are amazing. But if I don’t need anything and am prompted to buy something just because it’s on sale, am I really better off?? I know I sound very judgy with this comment but we just don’t want/need more STUFF!!
I’m so glad your mom is doing well overall and that she has such a great medical team caring for her!
I didn’t do any prime day shopping either! My husband and I were gifted a Costco membership but since it’s only the two of us we don’t go frequently and typically only go for household supplies. It’s always fun to walk through the aisles but also know we’d never get through the food! But there is one food item we always buy if it’s in stock when we go – the chocolate covered dried mangos. I highly recommend if you’re ever there when they have them in stock!
I was also curious where your bag is from in the picture of you and Finn? I love the design on the strap!
I do shop on Amazon regularly out of convenience but have never gotten into Prime day splurging. Even just researching the different deals, I don’t want to take the time to do. I bought a new shower caddy that happened to be on sale, but because I needed it. Highly doubt that was featured on any Prime Day lists, lol.
Glad for the overall positive Duke visit for your mom and time you had to visit with her! <3
Glad to hear your Mom’s progress is overall positive and I hope they can continue to improve the side issues of her kidneys, cognitive function, and weight stabilization.
I bought two things on Prime Day that were already in my cart – a new router and some workout tank tops. Both were things I needed. But I felt the communication was over the top this year as I was getting alerts from the app every 3-4 hours aside from whatever else I came across on the internet.
It’s just two of us living in a small house so a Costco / Sam’s membership has never seemed worth it. Plus the locations are relatively far away and we’d have to make a special trip there. Growing up my parents had a Sam’s membership and it was fun to go, but not something I see as important for my current place in life.
Agree with you, the Prime day pushing is way too much, and the same week as Nordstrom ‘s sale, felt like bombardment. I don’t even subscribe to Amazon Prime, which seems to shock everyone I tell. Of course I occasionally order from them, but watching the vans constantly go up & down my block with tons of cardboard boxes dropped on neighbors’ doorsteps just feels uncomfortable, seems like a lot of stuff. . . .