I am Blessed!

I am blessed! For someone reason I feel the need to say it this way; I am "Blessed not perfect". I have lived a very imperfect life but still I am blessed. Often people let their mistakes define their future. Mistakes are just what they are mistakes. Webster's defines mistakes as "to blunder in choice"; that says to me, just make a different choice next time. Now, I know that sometimes those blunders' come with consequences, and sometimes those consequences are severe but it does not mean life is over. Many times the blunders are valuable lessons and while they are uncomfortable, they are often key to getting you on the right path.

This Christmas season let's recognize that we are blessed, learn from our mistakes and make the New Year fantastic! Start by helping out a great cause The Royal Project by purchasing a 2010 calendar.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act Includes Increases for Programs Advocated by the LFA

FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act Includes Increases for Programs Advocated by the LFA

March 11, 2009
article by Lupus Foundation of America (Reference Below)

The United States Senate today passed appropriations legislation which funds much of the federal government through the end of September. The bill provides $4 million to support the National Lupus Patient Registry, as part of a broader national epidemiological study on lupus, and $1 million for a national health provider education program to improve early diagnosis and treatment of lupus and reduce health disparities. The legislation also includes nearly $1 billion more for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the largest single source for funding for biomedical research on lupus.

Under the legislation, passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will receive an additional $1 million to further expand the National Lupus Patient Registry (NLPR). In 2003, the CDC received $1 million to establish lupus registries in Georgia and Michigan. LFA has advocated expanding the program to include additional sites in other parts of the U.S. to ensure the study includes all forms of lupus and all populations affected by lupus, particularly African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, Asian Americans, and Native Americans who are disproportionately at-risk for lupus. Thanks to all of the hard work of LFA advocates, last year Congress tripled funding for the registry. The registry will receive another substantial increase in funding for 2009.

The legislation, named the FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act (H.R. 1105), also provides funds to conduct a national health provider education program on lupus. Congress provided $1 million for this program, to be operated jointly by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, Office on Women’s Health, and the U.S Surgeon General. The education program addresses a key goal for the LFA’s advocacy efforts to improve early diagnosis and treatment of lupus. According to a LFA survey, more than half of the people with lupus reported they suffered symptoms of the disease for four or more years and visited three or more doctors before obtaining a diagnosis of lupus.

LFA officials also express appreciation to Congress for their steadfast support of the National Institutes of Health. Research supported by the NIH is a critical component of efforts to find the causes of lupus and development safer, more tolerable and effective treatments for the disease.
Senate passage of the 2009 appropriations legislation follows the LFA’s Eleventh Annual Advocacy Day when advocates from across the nation gathered in Washington, D.C. Advocates met with Members of Congress or staff members on March 3, 2009 and shared the message that federal funding for lupus research in 2010 must be expanded.

Reference: http://www.lupus.org/webmodules/webarticlesnet/templates/new_empty.aspx?articleid=2395&zoneid=99

I am Not That Deep!

Today, I heard a preacher say, he is just not that deep, and it reminded me of a conversation I had with a friend. The friend and I were talking about life and she had it all figured out and I remember saying to her, WOW; I am just not that deep. I admit I can sometimes say deep things but most of the time that is by total accident. ;-)

What did I mean by that? I think I meant I am just living life, I am most definitely trying to do the right things but I must admit I sometimes fall short, and I am sure glad mercies are new every morning. I have always been intense and some have even said intimidating. The intensity comes from having to make adult decisions and deal with very adult situations at way too young of an age. However, I think the intensity was also from trying to figure out who I was going to be or what I was going to do when others were saying not so kind things. The intimidation, well not to sound sarcastic but I somewhat think, that is the issue of the person feeling intimated (sorry).

OK so, with all that being said; I am happy to say that at the moment I get what I am suppose to do and I like who I am! So this year in my journey, I discovered and I admit it was probably in a moment when I was trying to be all super spiritual (oh yeah we all have those moments), I figured out that I am just not that deep (cracking up).

OK, here is what I have figured out:

• I found a career that I am good at, but it is only a small part of whom I am.
• I love video games! Ha, this may be a larger part of me.
• I love being a mom and I think I have the neatness kids.
• I love to help people.
• Finally, I want to make a positive difference.

For me I learned I could accomplish those things through my relationship with Christ. That relationship has taught me not to judge, to be giving, to be forgiving and at peace. Here is the cool part; if I can, not judge, if I can, be at peace, if I am forgiving and if I continue to live to give; then I can accomplish my list above. PRETTY COOL!

Now for my most important lesson, God made me smart, bold, intense, purposeful, and ME, and you know what, I LOVE IT! Live the life you were born to live and LOVE IT!

Stay Blessed,

Toni

Someone You Know Has Lupus

Zero in fifty. Thursday, November 20, 1958 marked an unfortunate anniversary. It was 50 years ago the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last approved a drug to specifically treat lupus. Those drugs are:

· Aspirin
· Plaquenil
· Prednisone

Below is some devastating data regarding side effects that lupus patients face. Please help us find medicines that can give lupus patients a better quality of life. Click on the link to see how you can help. http://www.firstgiving.com/giftofloveforlupuscure

Plaquenil side effects
Side effects of treatment for lupus and rheumatoid arthritis may include:

Abdominal cramps, abnormal eye pigmentation, acne, anemia, bleaching of hair, blind spots, blisters in mouth and eyes, blood disorders.

Blurred vision, convulsions, decreased vision, diarrhea, difficulty focusing the eyes
Diminished reflexes, dizziness, emotional changes, excessive coloring of the skin, eye muscle paralysis, "foggy vision," halos around lights, headache
Hearing loss
Heart problems
Hives, involuntary eyeball movement, irritability, itching, light flashes and streaks, light intolerance
Liver problems or failure
Loss of hair, loss or lack of appetite
Muscle paralysis, muscle weakness and wasting, nausea,
Nervousness, nightmares, psoriasis (dry, scaly, red skin patches), reading difficulties, ringing in the ears, skin eruptions, skin inflammation and scaling, skin rash, vertigo, vomiting, weariness, weight loss

Prednisone side effects

Problems with your vision;
Swelling, rapid weight gain, feeling short of breath;
Severe depression, unusual thoughts or behavior, seizure (convulsions);
Coughing up blood
Pancreatitis (severe pain in your upper stomach spreading to your back, nausea and vomiting, fast heart rate)
Low potassium (confusion, uneven heart rate, extreme thirst, increased urination, leg discomfort, muscle weakness or limp feeling); ordangerously high blood pressure (severe headache, blurred vision, buzzing in your ears, anxiety, confusion, chest pain, shortness of breath, uneven heartbeats, seizure).

Obama Sworn In as 44th President

Barack Obama Sworn In as 44th President

New First Couple Celebrates