Holiday fun

We've been busy with Christmas and visiting with friends and family.  My family came over to our house on Christmas eve and opened presents.  We ate lots of food too haha.  Everyone enjoyed their presents and Chris and I got some good stuff too!

We got my niece, Angel, a Pandora bracelet and she was totally surprised!  She's always liked mine but never thought she would get one.

I'm excited about helping her build it.  She's got a birthday coming up in April and she's already picking out beads that she wants.

We got my mom diamond earrings and she was amazed!  We had already taken her shopping for clothes and she thought that was all she was getting.  I think she almost cried.

I got the silver and gold star Pandora bead that I wanted to complete my bracelet and I got a beautiful Amethyst and diamond ring.

We went to Robby and Stacey's for Christmas day.  We ate tons of food and hung out with them and the kids.  They got me a coffee cup and a $50 gift card!  I'll be posting what I used it for in a few days.  I didn't want to load this post down with too many pictures.  They got Chris a knife that he's been wanting.  He loves it!

We enjoyed the holidays and have been working all this week.  People have been coming in and giving us their Christmas money!  I hope all of you had a great time too!  

New hair and a purple-nosed kitty

It's been a slow day at work for the most part.  We had some bad thunderstorms around lunch time, which set off the tornado sirens.  This town goes into panic mode when those go off.  It's understandable though, that F5 that rolled through in April was a bitch!  So I guess everyone has hunkered down and is getting ready for Christmas.

So I got my hair cut and dyed yesterday.  I went for the usual cut and dark purple (that looks black) and purple highlights.  I'm hoping the dark purple will lighten some but if it doesn't Loran (my wonderful hair lady) will just go a shade lighter next time.  It's hard to get a good pic of purple hair.  It seems blue in some photos.  I've got some for ya though.  I know how you people love pictures.

Well what do you think?  Sorry for the lack of makeup... maybe tomorrow hehe.  So now for the purple -nosed kitty.  That would be Malakai.  He sleeps on my head at night and likes to rub his face in my hair and neck.  Did I mention he's spoiled rotten?  Well this morning Chris brings to my attention his new dye job.  I guess he got a little too excited with the new hair.

Check out that awesome nose fade hahaha.  Sorry for the eye booger.  I would have got it for him if I had seen it before I took the picture.  He seemed to not be bothered by it so I guess it will wear off.

We are taking Zach to ATL tomorrow to meet up with his mom.  That way he can spend Christmas and all that fun stuff with them.  We'll probably stop by Skinworx on our way back and see Jen and James.  

The family is coming on Saturday and I'm excited about everyone getting their presents!  

Well that's all I got for now ... over and out :)

Tongue Split Update Day 7,8 & 9

Hey guys and gals!  Well things have been going really well since the stitches are out.  I'm not going to divide this into days like normal because there hasn't been a whole lot of change.

The thrush is all gone from what I can tell.  There might be a light patch here or there but it's under control now.  I've been really enjoying eating solid food again.  I didn't realize that I had missed it so much haha.  I've been moving my tongue around and trying to regain the strength in the muscles.  I read some where that when you split them that it makes both sides weaker because they were dependent on each other.

The only problem I've noticed is today I saw a bubble like thing on the inside of the left side.  I'm sure that it will clear up on it's own but I don't like it.  The bubble is a little sore also.  My guess is there was a spot that got raw and the bubble formed to heal it.  My speech has improved lots now that the stitches are out but I'm not completely back to my regular voice.  I'm just trying to really pronounce things that I'm having trouble with.

I'm so ready for an alcoholic beverage!  I will probably be making myself a drink tonight or having a glass of wine.  I'm going to stay away from the beer for a little while longer because of the yeast in it.  The last drink I had was the day before I got it done and I usually drink 3 or 4 days out of the week  I know, wino! haha

Here's a picture update from today (If you look close you can see my little bubble):

One last thing...I see that I've been getting lots of blog views but hardly any blog comments :(  This makes for a sad Brenda.  Rachel you know I love you because you always show me comment love :)  So leave me some comments.  Don't be afraid of the forked tongue, embrace it hehe.

Tongue Split Update - Day 4,5, & 6

Howdy!  We've been a little busy but I'm here to tell you more about my awesome tongue hehe.

Day 4 - I stayed home and cleaned most of the day.  I was feeling better physically and there was lots around our house that needed to be done.  I started developing some thrush (it happens when the ph balance in your mouth is thrown off and creates a white film on your tongue) in my mouth on day 3 and more on this day.  I messaged B. about it and he said no sugary drinks or food and eat yogurt.  I haven't been having any sugary drinks but I had eaten some sweet food.  I didn't really see any difference between day 3 and day 4 swelling and speech wise.  So a little frustrating in that aspect.

Day 5 - I went back to work on this day but didn't really work any.  I can't answer the phone sounding as funny as I do.  Stacey has been helping us out by answering the phone and filling in for me while I've been out.  You rock Stacey!  I'm waiting until Tuesday before I start back piercing anyone.  Russell and Lane came to get tattooed so we hung out with them.  It was great seeing them!  On Day 4 and this day I took 400 mg of Aleve to help with the swelling and I could see a difference on this day.  I felt like my tongue was looking shorter.  So that meant some of the swelling was coming out of it.  I felt like I also had some speech improvement due to this.  We had dinner with Lane and Russell and then left for North Carolina.  We were going to pick up Chris' son, Zach.  We drove until about 2 am or so and got a room.

Day 6 - That's today :)  We got up early and finished out trip to NC.  We picked up Zach and headed back to Bama around 2 pm.  I've had even more of a decrease in swelling today and much better speech.  I'm still fighting with the thrush.  It seemed more noticeable today.  I picked up some probiotic cultured milk when we got back in town.  It's kind of like a yogurt smoothie.  I did some research online and it was a suggestion to get rid of the thrush.  When we got to the house I put a good bit of Anbesol on my stitches and I had Chris take the rest of them out!  Boy do I feel soooo much better!!!  My tongue felt like a convict being released from prison haha.  He took out 8 tonight so that was a total of 12 stitches in my tongue.  I can almost speak normally.  I believe that I will be able to eat some solid foods tomorrow also.  Having the stitches out makes me so happy.  I'm hoping this will help with the pain I've feeling in the tips.  Several nights I have been woke up by a stinging pain in the tips of my tongue.  I think it was from the pressure caused by the stitches.

Well here is a pic that I took a few minutes after the stitches came out.  You can see the thrush in this pic some.  Also you can see that there is still some swelling.

Once I get this thrush kicked and the rest of the swelling gone I'll be golden!  Thanks for following along so far :)

Tongue Split update - Day 2 & 3

Hey guys and gals!  Well I'm doing good so far.  Sorry for no post yesterday but I spent most of the day in the wind.  I was pretty tired when we got home.

Day 2 - I had planned on sitting around the house and just being lazy.  Chris called and said that he and Robby were going to head to the Harley shop and pick up their bikes.  He asked did I feel like going.
I decided that I would get ready and go with them.  So I gathered up my meds and some drool paper haha.  My speech got better as the day went on.  Chris, Robby, & Stacey all enjoyed my "accent" !  When we got home last night the plan was to remove the first two stitches on each side.  B. said that I could remove those after two or three days and try to leave the others in for a week.  Well due to swelling and the tongue's fast healing that proved far more difficult than we thought.  The stitches were tight and already had skin growing over them.  We got out one on each side and that was all I could take.  It was pretty rough on Chris too because he hates causing me pain.  I could tell a difference even with just 2 out though.  I felt like I had more flexibility and not so restricted.  Also the booger looking scab on one of the tips came off for the most part.  There is still a tiny piece of it left.

Day 3 - That's today which is also my Birthday!!!  We picked my mom up and took her shopping for Christmas.  I can tell that my speech has been improving each day because my mom could understand almost every thing I said.  I woke up with some sinus trouble and a runny nose this morning.  I won't be surprised if I end up with a cold in this healing process.  I took some claritin, pain meds, and aleve I was ready to face the day.  We did shopping for my mom and I also got some new jeans as a birthday present! Yippee for jeans that fit!!!  When we took my mom home the rest of the family came over the visit with us.  They all wanted to see my tongue haha.  They thought it was cool but gross looking.  They also enjoyed watching the video of the procedure.  We took out another stitch on each side when we got home.  It was still pretty painful but I knew what to expect this time.  I feels really good to have those first four out!  So far lots more movement.  Hopefully with those out and if the swelling will go down some more I can start eating solid foods again.  The most solid thing I've eaten so far is oatmeal and mashed potatoes.

Here is a pic from today.

Tongue Split update - Day 0 and Day 1

I'm alive!  I made it through the procedure and I'm over 24 hours into the healing.  I'm doing pretty good at the moment.  I've waited longer than I wanted to for this update but I just wasn't feeling up to it.  Chris has been a tremendous help so far!  I couldn't have done it without him.  I love you, Babe!

We arrived in Ohio around 7pm est on Saturday night.  It took us about 10 hrs to get there.  The drive was pretty nice.  Chris and I always have a good time on long road trips though.  We stayed in a Bed & Breakfast for the night.  It was our first time staying in a B&B so that was fun!  There was wine and chocolate covered pretzels waiting in the kitchen for all guests when we arrived.  It was nice and cozy, which was good since the temperature was below 30 degrees.  We walked down to a restuarant that was a few blocks away and had dinner.  It was called Level and it was really cool and had great food.  We'll definitely be going back there.  We went back to the room, had some wine and got a good night's sleep.

Day 0 - It was finally here!  I've thought about getting this done on and off for about 12 years and I've had my appt booked for a month.  I actually got a better night's sleep than expected.  I woke up to the smell of bacon, yummy!  We went down and had breakfast with the other guests and then packed our things up.  We had to be out of the room by 11 and my appt wasn't until 5pm.  So we had some time to burn and that made me anxious.  We decided to go see a movie.  We watched New Years Ever and it was much better than I thought it was going to be.

We had lunch, my last meal, and then wandered around until 4.  We got to the workspace where B. was doing the procedure a little early but it was cool.  We waited while another girl got an implant.  I was getting pretty nervous by this point.  When B. got done I asked was he going to numb my tongue in any way because if not I needed to take some pain meds.  He kind of laughed and said yes he would be numbing it.  He said he always does when he's closing it with stitches.  A huge weight was lifted!

We went into the room and began the prep work.  He cleaned my tongue with some gross tasting stuff and marked it.  I told him that I wanted it as far back as he could go.  Tongue splits usually have some regrowth so I was trying to avoid having it re-cut.  The numb stuff was injected and that was pretty painful!  Only took a few seconds and my tongue felt like a foreign piece of meat in my mouth.

He had his stuff ready to go and asked if I was ready.  I was still feeling nervous even though I coudn't feel my tongue.  I said yes, he clamped it and cut it right down the middle.  Chris recorded it from the clamps going on until the cut was complete and it's only 3 minutes long.  He stitched it up on both sides afterwards but we didn't video that part.  I didn't feel any of that either.

This pic was taken right after also:

The feeling started coming back as we were saying our goodbyes.  Chris decided to drive us back that night.  We left there around 6pm est.  The pain that sat in was the worst I've felt so far.  I took some pain meds and got some ice.  There was large amounts of drool mixed with blood.  We got home around 3 am.  I ate a little soup and then went to bed.

Day 1 - I've taken medicine to help with the swelling and I've taken pain meds to keep the pain under control.  I've drank a protein shake, had some chicken soup, mashed potatoes, and oatmeal.  I've been having some nausea from the pain meds but there isn't much I can do about that.  The next pic was taken a few hours ago.  The white thing on one side is where a scab has formed.  That part was bleeding for awhile last night.  Guess it clotted and scabbed in the night.

Kind of gross, I know.

The video below will give you an idea of what my speech sounds like right now.

Well folks that's all I got for now.  I'll try to update tomorrow with more pics and progress.

The journey begins

So we are leaving for Ohio at 7am.  I'm not happy about that time but it's a 10 1/2 hour drive.  We are staying at a Bed and Breakfast that is close to the workspace.  We should get in town around 8 or so and get settled in.  I probably won't get much sleep tomorrow night but I'm going to try.

For those of you following along just a heads up - The videos and pictures will be kind of graphic.  So if you don't like blood and all that gross stuff you might want to check back around the end of next week or so.

Chris went to the Dr the other day for his cold.  He's been taking his meds and he's feeling better.  The medicine makes him really sleep, so he's been going to bed around 10:00 or so.  That's really early for him.  His usually bed time is around 1 or 2.  I'm glad he's feeling better though.  We've been avoiding close contact and kisses so I won't get his cold.  A cold is the last thing I need at a time like this.  There will be kisses tomorrow, cold or not!  I'm guessing it will be a few weeks before I can kiss after Sunday.

Well folks wish me luck!  I'm going to try to squeeze in another post tomorrow night or Sunday.  If that doesn't happen the next time you hear from me I'll have 2 tongues!  Yippee!

Happy Birthday Chris!

As you can tell from the subject line today is Chris' birthday.  We have a rule at the shop that no one works on their birthday so we are off work today.  We started the celebrating a little early last night.  Robby and Stacey took both of us out to Stix in Birmingham.  My birthday is next Wednesday so they just combined the birthday dinner.  It was super tasty and we had a really good time.

I'm not sure what the plan for the day is...  I told Chris we could do what ever he wants to do.  He's fighting off a little bit of a cold at the moment.  He woke up with a sore throat this morning.  I know crappy way to start the birthday.  He's tough so I'm sure he'll pull through.

Less than a week until tongue splitting time.  I'm trying not to think about it a whole lot but that's kind of hard, haha.  I've started taking arnica pills each day as suggested by B.  Arnica is an all natural supplement that helps with swelling and bruising.  So hopefully that will help.

Well I'm off to celebrate Chris' special day!  Catch you kids later :)

I Want Wednesday...

I guess if I'm going to be keeping this blog up I need to keep with my set patterns.

So my "I want Wednesday..." is the silver and gold star Pandora bead.  It's the last bead that I want for this bracelet.  I only have enough room for one more bead and maybe a spacer.  I've wanted this bead for quite awhile but it is one of the more expensive ones.  Hence the Christmas timing (hint hint Chris)  So here's a picture for your enjoyment!

So maybe I'll be getting this for Christmas and then I can start another Pandora bracelet!  I'm thinking of doing a Alabama football bracelet.  

Well you guys have a good night and I'll do my very best to keep this updated :)

I'm crazy, I know...

So I'm going to do something that I've tossed around doing for about 10 years or so.  I'm going to get my tongue split on Dec. 11th!  Yea I know I'm crazy!  We established that years ago haha.  I thought that I would keep track of the progress on here.  I've found the lack of experience and progress blogs/videos a little disappointing.  There will be some info that I have to be vague with to protect people.  Some state's laws are a still a little behind the times on modifications.

I started really thinking about getting this done back in the summer.  I contacted B, who also did my snowflake implant in my hand, to ask what I was looking at price wise.  He got back to me with a few details and a price that I definitely could work with.  I was still a little too nervous to go through with it at the time though.  Also we really didn't have to time.  I have to be able to talk for work and burlesque haha.  So a couple of weeks ago I found out he was going to be doing a guest spot in Ohio and contacted him about an appointment.  December is the ideal time!  The burlesque is on break and we aren't too busy at work.  So Chris and I will be driving up a week from this Saturday and it will be happening on Sunday at 5pm.

I'm so excited and sooo nervous all at the same time.  I know that everything will be fine and it won't be too painful (I hope).  I'm getting mine sutured on the insides to give a more rounded look.  I'm going to be surviving off soup for the first couple days.  I've got to see if I can have a protein shake each day.  If I can then I'll be good.  The only problem might be the dairy that's in it.  I don't know that it will interact well with the fresh split so we'll just have to see.

I'm including a picture so you can see what I hope mine will look like when all healed.  I don't know who the pic is of so if it's you let me know.

So if anyone has any questions hit me with them.  Please leave the rude comments at home though.  This is my decision and I'm fully happy with it.  

Long Time, No See

I haven't blogged on here in a little over a year and I feel terrible about it.  Life just gets in the way sometimes.  Tons of stuff has happened since then but I won't bore you with all that.

Chris and I spend most of our time working but we manage to squeeze in a little fun here and there.

We have a PBB show tomorrow so I'm excited about that.  Show day is always a rollercoaster of emotions but in the end it's all worth it.  Hearing the audience clapping and cheering, you know that you've put on a great show!  Tomorrow's show has a "Christmas in July" theme.  I'm going to be a snowflake and presents just to name a few of the acts.

This is my attempt to keep this blog up.  So we'll see how that works out. :)