{ Cleveland National Forest }

The kids wanted to hike at the Santa Rosa Plateau today, but when we got there, it was closed. So, we turned off into the Cleveland National Forest and hiked down the Tenaja trail. What a beautiful hike along a creek. We hiked about a mile in and saw three waterfalls.
Lots of toadstools popped up. I wondered which ones the mushroom hunters grab to eat?

Beautiful lichens on branches all around.

Some petite white flowers are beginning their bloom.

Down by the creek, we saw this sweet little salamander.

We saw this beetle hanging on the bush.

The kids pulled out their Golden Guide of Insects to try to determine what type of beetle it was. They didn't find this one in the book, but we're pretty sure it's a stink beetle.

Later this afternoon, we looked at some samples we collected from the creek. One from standing water, one from moving water and one from the bottom. We saw one little creature swimming around in the standing water sample. We need to find a book to help us identify it.

{ Nephrologist and Polycystic Kidney Disease }

I went to a Nephrologist at Scripps in La Jolla yesterday. He took a lot of time to establish my medical / family history. He did a thorough examination, pinpointed my pain and declared it kidney pain. He said, that is definitely your kidney, and that it is very enlarged. He thought that pregnancy was hard on my kidneys. PKD patients complain of the exact pain I have all the time. Most PKD patients don't know they have it until they start with symptoms typically in their 30's or 40's. I've known since I was 7 years old. Apparently, since I had developed cysts that young, I was destined to have symptomatic PKD. Some people never know they have it. The doctor's advice was to join and become active with the PKD Foundation in San Deigo so I can get to know others with PKD. He said they will tell you this is normal. He also said that I should try yoga and acupuncture to control pain. I will have days where the pain is overwhelming and I need strong medicine but I should try to avoid medicine as much as possible. I should avoid excessive drinking and ibuprofin, but I should stick to a heart healthy diet. He said that PKD patients rarely die of kidney failure, they usually die of heart disease. He also sent me for more blood work to establish my uric acid levels. Out of the five doctors I have taken my pain problem to, he's the only one who wanted to know why I'm forming kidney stones. I'm so glad I found this doctor. I think I'm finally getting somewhere!

{ Medical Update }

So here goes. I had my last procedure at the urologist yesterday. Surgery is scheduled for March 11. It should go pretty smoothly. Urologist is checking me for IC which could cause extra pain after the surgery, but is treatable. I have several symptoms. The surgery only has one 1/2 inch incision and two even smaller ones. The doctor says I should bounce back pretty well. Hopefully I'll be able to live my life more fully after all is said and done.I don't know if it's the saline, or what, but I always have so much pain and nausea after these procedures. Today, on top of that, my eyelids are almost swollen shut. Cold compresses have been helping. Please keep me in your prayers.

{ More News }

Went to the doctor today for a sinus infection. DS and I are both taking augmentin for our ears/sunuses.

While I was there, the PA asked me if I had heard back about my scoliosis study. It turns out I have SEVERE scoliosis. She said that's why I often have difficulty breathing. And that breathing takes more energy for me due to the curvature of my spine. That's also why I feel like I'm dragging all the time. And my back is always sore. I have an appointment with the orthopedic surgeon. I will probably end up going to physical therapy and get a back brace, but there is a chance that he might want to insert a rod in my spine to straighten it. At this point my answer to that is "no way." Try everything else first!

Apparently my lack of excercise during my whole kidney stone crisis caused my back to just get weak and that's why I still have pain. This is just terrible. I can't wait to get this all over with and to feel ok. Maybe I'll feel better than ever when all is said and done. One can only hope.

{ Fallbrook Nature Preserves }

Today we headed to Fallbrook to see some of the many nature preserves there. The day after the rains, it was a beautiful day. Not many people were out, could it have to do with a certain television event that most of the nation was tuned in for? Not us.Dinwiddie Preserve is only about 14 acres. The description says that there is a 1/2 mile loop trail. It was hard to find any kind of trail with all the new grasses growing in the field. We walked along an old road, just two tire tracks along the ground. The kids decided it must look just like the wagon tracks described in Laura Ingalls Wilder's books. We ended at a little creek and then turned back toward the car. I'll bet this place is gorgeous in the fall.The kids found these gigantic California sycamore leaves.

Next, we stopped at Los Jilgueros Preserve. It was park like with several people jogging and walking their dogs. A couple of people were fishing in the pond there, I'm guessing that's not a good idea at a preserve that's meant to protect the native species. You can find many different kinds of birds here. We saw red tailed hawks, a woodpecker, and two osprey while we were here. Part of this preserve must have been farmland at one time in history, there were several old rusty pieces of equipment in a field of grass.

The last preserve of the day was Engel Family Preserve. This is a trail that leads down a hill toward I-15. The view from the top is beautiful. This area is domoinated by coastal sage which all has new growth popping out right now. The kids just loved smelling the fresh sage scent.