Severe!!!

So, lots has happened since my last post. I have moved into my house, painted almost every room, almost finished unpacking, and progressed from Profound to Severe!!!
I had my second hearing test on August 26th. Sorry no photos from this one! Same drill - the beeps and the whooshing sound and then voices. As I sat through it, saying "yes" every time I heard the beep, I was absolutely positive that I was hearing much more than in my first hearing test. When we got to the words, it was a little strange - I could hear her speaking very loudly but I couldn't understand a single word. It was a strange and very frustrating sensation - she was telling me just to say what I thought I heard, and out of ten words, I thought I might have gotten 2-3 right. Turns out I had them all wrong...
But on a positive note, when I sat down with the Specialist afterwards, he reviewed the hearing test and I showed him my first one. I asked "have I improved?" and he said actually, yes - quite a bit! Then I asked if I now fit in the "severe" category of hearing loss and he said yes I would. Yay!!! I let out a little cheer and he laughed at me. He's apparently never seen anyone excited to be severely deaf in one ear. I knew it had gotten better, though, so this just proved that my positive thinking has helped.
With that said, the Doctor doesn't think it will get any better but does want to run a few more tests - I'm still waiting for the MRI, and now I have to get blood work done too. Foranyone who doesn't know me well, this is probably my hugest fear. I am completely terrified of needles. I can't even see one on TV without breaking out in a cold sweat. To think that they will be sticking me with one and drawing blood out... ewww... not sure about this. But I will do it. Just have to procrastinate a little but I'll get around to it.
So that's all that's new on the ear-front.
As for the move, it went well but was a huge amount of work. I'm not going to lie - the people whose house I bought left it quite dirty. Thank god for Merry Maid! Even they were a little survprised at the grime in the kitchen and baths though! Anyways, once we got through that, we started painting. My mom has been amazing through this. She helped me paint almost every single room in the house. It looks like a new place altogether. I love the colours that I chose (with the help of Josette - if anyone is looking for an interior decorator, let me know). I only have 2 bathrooms and a hallway left to do. It's been a lot of work but well worth it! This house now feels like my home. My dog Piper loves it, too - she's getting 3-4 walks every day, at least one of them including some play time with the pooches at the dog park nearby. My neighbours are great, the commute is much shorter, and although the backyard is small, it's perfect for sitting out, working on my laptop or reading a book with a glass of wine.
So all in all, I've had a splendid couple of weeks. What a great word - splendid!