Karwoski Life

Happy Mid February! Sometimes I really just can’t believe how the time flies by. Growing up the ‘old folks’ always say that, and as a kid you just shrug and say whatever…but seriously…where DOES the time go!? Things have been pretty busy for us lately, and maybe that makes it go faster…I don’t know. I just find myself more and more perplexed by the speed at which life happens these days. I guess Ferris Bueller really did know what he was talking about when he said “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” So true. Last week I mentioned that Matt and I got a new car, but didn’t elaborate. We sort of accidentally bought it! It wasn’t an impulse or anything like that…it just happened much faster than we intended. We had been contemplating a larger vehicle for a while now. Something that the wheelchair easily fit into and that we could still have room for passengers (where a wheel wasn’t sticking out between their heads), something t...

What a crazy couple of days. I had been intending to write about the exciting new car we purchased last week and all the silly and fun things we’ve been discovering about it…but all the excitement sort of fizzled when we had a health scare in the family. Monday night, just as we were sitting down to supper we received a phone call from George that his mother Dora was at the emergency room in Boone…she had appeared to have suffered a stroke. We had just been up to Boone on Saturday for an early birthday lunch with the family…and the memories of her smiling face and eternally friendly attitude were painfully fresh. Suddenly the thought that we could lose her overwhelmed us… We have long realized we are incredibly blessed to have such healthy grandparents, but oh, it is so easy to take that good health for granted. Matt’s grandparents are in their late 80’s and yet live incredibly independent and full lives. I’ve always admired the pep in their steps…the twinkle in their eyes. I realiz...

Sometimes a week or so goes by and I’ve not posted anything because, well…there isn’t much going on. Other times a week or so goes by and I’ve not posted because we’ve been so busy I just haven’t found the time…THIS post is the latter. Things have just been crazy busy!! But in a good way, for sure. We found out last week that my insurance would cover the new medication that Dr. Struck prescribed, only costing us a monthly co-pay which is completely doable, considering the outrageous cost per pill. We received the first shipment yesterday and Matt took his first dose last night. We are anxiously waiting to see if this medication will help the tremor and will definitely keep you all posted! I just can’t say enough about how grateful I am for my job and my insurance…holy cow! Last week also kicked off what turned out to be a super, busy, fun-filled birthday week! Tuesday was my good friend Gina’s birthday, born just six days before me. So Tuesday night a bunch of us went out to celebr...

Yesterday Matt and I met with Dr. Struck for his regular follow up on his tremor etc. She told us about a new drug which just received FDA approval this past October to treat any kind of involuntary movement. She’s had quite a bit of success with several of her other patients…one of them she said it was like a miracle for…it reduced his movements by 80%! This was very encouraging, naturally and we are excited to see if we can give this drug a try to help Matt’s tremor. HOWEVER, the cost may be an issue. The primary use of the drug so far has been Huntington’s disease, which the FDA considers an ‘orphan’ disease in that it impacts less than 200,000 American’s per year. Because there are relatively few people with the disease the cost of the drug is outrageously expensive…upwards of $50 per PILL! Dr. Struck and her team went to work right away to try and work with our insurance to see if they’d cover part of the medication. They were rushing around filling out forms, and Dr. Struck ...

Matt and I went and saw the movie Yes Man this weekend. It was a good movie; funny, and full of Jim Carrey as his goofy best-ness, but at the end of the movie I was left thinking huh…there might actually have been a moral to the story! In the movie, Carrey’s character is forced to say yes to every opportunity that comes his way, in an effort to open him up to new things and experience life in a whole new way. While obviously you simply can’t say yes to everything…there is something to be said for saying yes, when you might otherwise just say no. I know I am completely guilty of this – especially these past few years. For the past 3 years I have been pretty well focused on Matt. What Matt needed. Where Matt needed to go. How Matt was doing. What can we do more for Matt…as well as trying to juggle and balance work and running our household. I let a lot of other things slip; my own personal health, relationships…and yeah, opportunities passed me by. I think I was so focused on my own...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year…a little late, and a little early! We had a wonderful Christmas week! Naturally it flew by and the reality of WINTER is starting to sink in…but as usual, I will do my best to see the bright side! It sure was pretty to have lots of new snow for Christmas, and since my parents and Matt’s family from Michigan had already safely made it to Iowa, I welcomed the fresh blanket. Of course, it has since mostly been covered in ice and partially melted, so things are a real mess now…but it sure was pretty on Christmas! Mom and Dad arrived in town on the 23rd and we had some time in the afternoon at our place. It was so great to have them over and just spend time visiting and puttering around the house together. Dad helped me hang up some things, while Matt and Mom supervised, of course. We ordered pizza and relaxed. They were tired after the long trip though, and headed back to their hotel to crash, while we watched some football (what else is there this time ...

It’s been a pretty tough week here. Wednesday I attended the funeral of baby Graham…which is something I had hoped and prayed we wouldn’t have to do. While the odds were stacked against him from the beginning of his short life, we all prayed diligently for healing and health…but it just wasn’t to be. I can’t imagine the pain of losing a child…especially after waiting so long for the blessing of one. I just can’t make heads or tails of it…none of us can. All we can do is lean on our faith and pray for comfort and peace. I pray that Scott and Julie will be washed in the peace and comfort of the Holy Spirit and know that their baby is safe and healthy in heaven. It’s hard to know what to say to try and comfort her…it’s hard to feel comfort myself and I am just a friendly bystander. The sadness I feel for Julie is profound. It caught me off guard…I just couldn’t fight the wave of grief that bubbled up and poured out when I got the news that he was gone. And sitting at the funeral, seeing...