Kidney Stones and Green Screen Videos

The past few days I have been dealing with something that stinks. Kidney Stones.  I get calcium stones and never really figured out why I get them (I don’t drink much soda or tea; mostly I drink water and a cup of coffee in the morning). I have been getting them since high school. They are extremely painful at various times until they pass.

My last kidney stone. I didn't catch the ones I passed this time.

The kids and I went to visit with my Uncle Jim, Aunt Kim, and my cousins Lindsey, Parker, Thomas, and William. While we were visiting, I felt my back start to hurt. Usually, that’s the first sign they are coming on; however, I do have back pain a lot so it’s never easy to spot. Anyways, we were visiting and I got in the car to leave I felt it get a little more severe. By the time I got home, I was covered in sweat, had chills, and was vomiting, so I knew it was a stone(s). I normally just take Flomax, pain medication, and nausea medicine until they pass. I went inside and found out I was out of all three. I called my urologist’s office, and they agreed to see me (even though they don’t do walk in appointments). By the time I drove to Dr. Chiangs office (my urologist), I couldn’t stand or walk without extreme pain. The kids were so worried and confused why dad was just laying in the parking lot and yelling in agony. They were so sweet to help me up and assist me walking into the dr’s office. 

They are always so well behaved in places. We sat in various waiting rooms for about 2 hours until I was seen. 

They brought in some toys they got from my uncle, aunt, and cousins.

Seriously, they are so adaptable and well mannered. I couldn't be prouder.

My friend called after we had been there for quite some time, picked up the kids, fed them dinner. It was a life saver. When I went to pick up the kids after seeing the Dr. and I kind of collapsed in their driveway , so I hobbled into my friends’ house and just spent the night on their couch. They helped me care for the kids and took the best care of me that night. The next morning I was able to drive us home.

The past few days I haven't really able to do much besides just sit on the couch or sit in the bathtub. I want to take a moment to give a big shout-out to my older three. They were so patient and caring for dad. They each helped make meals and helped clean up since dad wasn’t really able to do much. Everytime, I would cringe or yell in pain, the kids would always rush to me and kiss me on the forehead and rub my hands while saying things like “Dad, you are doing great! We are going to take care of everything.  You just go rest.” Even in that much pain, I was really touched by their compassion.  I had an xray done and it said I had three to pass this time. So far, I’ve passed two. Only one more to go.  I’m pretty much drinking as much water as possible trying to flush it out.

We had some old friends over and they were gracious enough not to mention my house being dirty ;) It was fun catching up.

Their daughter Rebekah holding the tarantula :)

I’m able to walk and do some a few things, so today since the kids had been so amazingly awesome, we did a fun treat. They love to do videos, so I found some old poster boards used to draw pictures. They are foam boards and very sturdy. We found some green paint and I let the kids paint their own green screen.  Then we assembled it and mounted it in the living room. The kids each picked some shows or themes to use as the backdrop. Then we filmed them acting silly, while I yelled out the different shows/ games and then sang the theme songs to each. They had a blast.

The old posters we used. We just painted the backs. I never get rid of anything :)

Before painting

Finished Product. 

Not perfect or professional, but the kids made it, so I love it.

Neela helping Titus get dressed for the video shoot

(I think this is the sweetest picture.)

I just finished putting it all together. So I wanted to share the final product. Please pardon the roughness of the video. I’m still in a lot of pain, so I couldn’t sit down for a super long time to make it perfect. The kids absolutely loved doing this activity today and it was a good thing to entertain them at home, while not being too strenuous on me.

Enjoy!

Be Blessed,

Seth