So, Amanda Tynes thinks she has it bad....

Ya'll are going to have to forgive me, but I've had a long day, and I'm feeling incredibly snarky right now.

So, this is my apology for any snarkiness or sarcasm in this post.  

I get home from work today and read the news like I always do, and since we're a sports family, I read THIS post also.  I understand that MRSA is a very serious infection.  BUT, seriously, does the pampered NFL wife have to say they're having a hard time with her husband's treatment.  (Here goes my rant.)

This is mostly to Amanda Tynes.

First of all, your husband is an NFL player, I would wager that he's still getting some sort of income through this.  Try going with NO INCOME!!!

Second, you're incredibly lucky to get the IV antibiotics in the form that you do.  When my husband ALMOST DIED from his infection from the shunt (in case you didn't know, that is IN HIS BRAIN), I had to mix his medicine.  There was no fancy bottle that you could just plug in.  I had to mix the IV solution, then hang the IV (without an IV pole...a hanger works wonders) and then had to attach it and flush the line afterwards...this was TWICE A DAY!!!

Third, so he got an infection.  Here, my husband has BRAIN DAMAGE AND PTSD!!! This is NOT FROM ANY CONTACT SPORTS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT...

IT WAS FROM WAR.

Do you think my husband was paid for the time he couldn't work?  Do you think that everything here was honkey dory?  Do you think that we didn't lose OUR HOUSE AND OUR VEHICLE from that?

HOW DARE YOU???

Lemme try that again...

HOW DARE YOU!!

How dare you even consider that you're having a hard time in your house with A/C and drive that fancy car and post pics on twitter.  When my husband had his infection, he had to get treated at the Houston VA Hospital, TWO HOURS AWAY.  Do you know how hard it is to come and go that far with an infant?  And by infant, let me show you a couple pictures of JUST ONE of our drives home.

 Sorry this is blurry, but I WAS DRIVING!  My husband couldn't even sit up on the way home, he was laying down in the back seat.  Which brings me to this second picture.

My son wasn't even a year old.  SEE HOW LITTLE he was?  I had a truck (at the time) that would disable the air bags and he had to be in the front seat so I could drive and take care of both him and his dad.

By the way?  As far as any money??? Yeah, he couldn't work.  That truck we were driving in, it got repossessed because we couldn't afford the payments after his brain surgery.  The house he had, it was foreclosed on because we couldn't afford the payments.  I robbed Peter to pay Paul and begged the utility companies to give me time to pay the bills.  Oh yeah, and that's while paying for the gas to go back and forth to Houston.  

We're STILL FIGHTING THE VA FOR HIS DISABILITY FOR THE TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY. 

I'm doing everything in my power to raise funds for a Service Dog for my husband so that we can at least go to an NFL game again.  He panics in crowds and so my son doesn't even remember our last game.  

I'm incredibly proud of my husband because EVEN WITH THE BRAIN DAMAGE HE'S GOING TO COLLEGE!  He's trying to provide for his family.  (Also, we were earning good money when he was able to work!!) I'm having to work part-time while my son goes to school, because we can't afford the child care for me to work more.  Every time my husband gets sick I worry about shunt malfunction and whether or not we're going to have to have yet another brain surgery.  He wakes up EVERY DAY WITH A HEADACHE!!!

EVERY. DAY.

Do you think you can even imagine that?

Do you think you can imagine having to worry about bills and whether or not your even going to be able to feed your family the next month?  The Military is supposed to be taking care of it's VETERANS, but your husband is getting WAY BETTER TREATMENT than my husband EVER DID.  So, please don't tell me that you're upset with the statement that was released.  Please, don't tell me that you don't think your husband isn't responding well to treatment.  Because, as I see it...you've got it pretty easy!  I wonder if you have someone come in and hook up his medicine?  

I'm going to step off of my soap box now because I'm so angry and upset that I'm shaking, and I DON'T GET LIKE THIS OFTEN!  I'm also going to tweet this blog post to you, and I hope you really read this, maybe try reading some of the past posts, like THIS ONE. Or, maybe THIS ONE. And, if you're really feeling generous, can you please check out our fundraiser going on at GOFUNDME, you can find the link on the right side with the picture of us!!! Maybe, this will give you a little glimpse into our life.

Two Weeks With My New Smile

It's been a little over two weeks since I got my new smile. 

I have to say, things are different.

People actually look at me now, instead of past me.

People actually want to converse with me, instead of running for the nearest exit.

I smile more often.  I have more self esteem.

It's amazing how differently people treat you when they don't know your circumstances.

They see the rotted teeth, and the missing and broken teeth and think that I'm not worth their time.

I've had people turn me down when I asked to volunteer my services.

I've had people just brush me off.

Now...it's different.

People actually listen to me.

They respond to me.

They look at me.

It's horrible that people are so judgemental, but it's today's society.

If you're not what they perceive as pretty, or educated, or even in the right income bracket, people think less of you.

I wish I had done a little more of a scientific study of this.  I wish I could have actual events, and facts.  But, I only have my perceptions, which are really different now.

My first big event with my new smile was in Arlington and I noticed right away I was treated better.  When my Sister and I were at Six Flags, people listened and conversed with me us in line, instead of the usual "hi".  (Yeah, we're both a little on the outgoing side.)

We laughed with high school kids who were playing a "concentration" game. 

We talked with a couple about the first years of marriage.

We met some wonderful people.

All in lines waiting for the rides. 

When what would have happened to me would have been them trying to avoid me.

I hope things get better, and I hope that my little blog makes people think twice about superficial things. 

That person that you ignored, they're probably incredibly funny but the medicine that they are on caused that breakout of acne, or for the teeth to rot, or even the weight gain.  

Please, don't judge people based on looks...they're usually pretty hard on themselves as it is.

Kristins Gifts Review and Giveaway

Yes, I know I'm wayyyyy behind on this, and I apologize profusely.  There's really no good excuse for this, so I won't try to tell you.  Let's just say that things were HECTIC here for a good two months!

Anyway...Here goes!! Kristins Gifts. Have you heard of them?  

I'm a big pen and stationary person.  I like all kinds of pens and all kinds of unique stationary.  And this is about as unique as you can get.  I first won a small notebook from a twitter party a while back and became hooked on these.  Then Kristins Gifts graciously sent me a WAFF pad and a WAFF book, along with some WAFF cubes to personalize them.  What can I say about these?  They are AWESOME!

And an incredible conversation starter.  

I pulled out my WAFF book and I now use it for my journal.  I've personalized it with the letter M, because lets face it...I don't have much of an imagination when it comes to this type of stuff.  As for my WAFF pad, yep...it sits on my desk for me to use.  I put a diagonal pattern on it and I love it.  I also use my WAFF book Mini all the time to take notes when I'm out and about.  Again, it's a great conversation starter.  

The WAFF Pads are refillable which is great because I take lots of notes around the house.  And the WAFF book is also refillable.  So this is a great investment.  Now, with everyone's kiddos going back to school, it would be the perfect time to get one for your little one.  It can give your little one a way to express themselves, and they can change the front when ever they want.  I love that it's silicone and soft to touch.  Now, for the fun part.  If you head over to Kristins Gifts Facebook page, and tell them that TheMarciFactor sent you, you will be entered for a special drawing at the end of the month for a FREE WAFF Pad and WAFF book with Cubes.  That is what I got in my package, and I love it!  Also, I'm going to giveaway another WAFF Book to one lucky person, all you have to do is enter on the Rafflecopter below.  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Trip to the Dentist, A Change of A Lifetime

Most of ya'll don't know this, but I've been afraid to smile since, well, middle school.  

See, I've had the straightest teeth in my family.  BUT, I've also had big front teeth and one had a cavity in it, so you could always see the filling, even though they made it white.  So, I went through school, and life, with low self esteem because of my smile.  When I was 13, my brother accidentally knocked my front tooth loose.  We went to the dentist, and they said it was fine but that I might need a root canal. Well, things got hectic in the family and that never happened.  Throughout the years, my tooth would occasionally turn gray, and then turn back.  I never had any pain, but I knew it was dying.  

Then, I had my oldest son.  You know how they say that in some pregnancies, no matter how much vitamins you take, that the baby will "steal" the calcium...yeah that happened with BooBoo.  After I had him, I had to have 2 teeth pulled because they broke.  They never had cavities or anything, they just broke.  We couldn't afford the dental treatment, and it was cheaper to just pull them.  That started the whole cycle of teeth breaking and getting cavities easier.  I still brushed and flossed twice a day, but it never helped.  I also couldn't afford dental care, so I did what I could.  

Then, in 2006 I started having seizures.  The doctors put me on Dilantin, and that pretty much sealed the coffin for my teeth.  They started rotting from the inside out.  I frequently had abscessed teeth, but could only take antibiotics because back then I couldn't afford the dental care.  Then, I married Mike.  We had dental care, but never the time for me to go to the dentist and get everything taken care of.  Slowly, my teeth broke and got worse.  During the past 7 years, I was either pregnant, or he was in school so I couldn't have someone to drive me home after the dentist.  So, we waited.  Then...I had the time, and funds, and I wasn't pregnant, so this past week, I FINALLY got my teeth done.

Of course, because I'm cheap and like to save money, I only got the top done right now.  I'm going to wait until October when my insurance resets to do the bottom.  And, OH what a difference this makes.  

I never cared about my looks, didn't wear make up often, didn't do my hair, except in a ponytail.  I knew people judged me because of my teeth.  I was always afraid to smile.  So, I'm going to show you, for the VERY FIRST AND LAST TIME what I looked like before I went to the dentist.  I've also put a watermark across it so that no one can steal this picture, so please don't mind the watermark across the picture.

 Here, you can see how bad they were.  The front tooth that my brother hit was the first to go because it was already weak.  All of them were rotting from the inside out.

  Yes, I chose the gas because I was extremely nervous...can you tell by the look on my face that I was scared to DEATH!! 

And now, less than a week later...I CAN'T STOP SMILING!!! I haven't felt this pretty in a very long time, and I think my self esteem has taken a big leap in just a few days!  

So, I've posted this so that other people on Dilantin and other medicines that make your teeth go bad aren't afraid to smile!  Everyone always told me I was beautiful, and I would agree with them, but I didn't feel beautiful.  Now, I really do feel beautiful!  And, I've noticed that people do treat me differently already...so people, if you're one to judge a person because of looks, there's probably good reasons for it, and you shouldn't judge!!!!!