Life lately

So, if pregnancy is a good way to loose weight, which for me, it was. Then gall stones and the subsequent surgery have been an excellent plateau buster.

When I was home visiting in June I also made a trip to the ER. What a glamorous way to spend a night away from your kids. I woke up one morning at 3 in considerable pain in my chest, like right under my breasts. (Sorry.) I knew I wasn't having a heart attack so I tried to go back to sleep. An hour later I woke up in such bad pain I thought I was dying. I seriously got on the floor and began praying and weeping for my kids. I woke Brother 3, who woke my mom, who eventually woke my dad around 5 to take me to the ER. After several hours in the ER, an X-ray, CT scan, and EKG they said Gastritis, possibly an ulcer and sent me home. Of course nothing is ever really wrong with me.

Fast forward a few weeks and back home in Colorado, my friend Abbi along with her little girl, Braelyn and the kids and I went to the Wildlife experience. All of a sudden I was in severe pain and kicking myself for not following up with my doctor once I got home. That stabbing upper abdominal pain left me incapacitated and I suffered through the museum. No way was I going back to the ER to hear I was fine. I was in pain until about 5 that night, it didn't matter if I was standing, sitting, walking or laying down it hurt and nothing helped. Then as suddenly as the attack began, it was over and I was back to cleaning and getting ready to pick my mom up from the airport. That was Thursday.

Five days later, on Tuesday, my Granny, Grandpa, Kay and I were going to watch Frank and Brother 2 play softball. I had another attack. It hurt to breathe, I wanted to vomit and definitely didn't want to talk. I briefly told my grandparents about the type of pain and they said it sounded like the pain my Granny had before they removed her gall bladder. I still had a hard time believing there could actually be something wrong with me, but after some convincing by Frank and my grandparents, I visited the ER, again. This time I got pain meds! Totally worth the trip for that reason alone! Thanks for nothing, Chesapeake General! After I was sufficiently high, I cried my eyes out to the nurse. A few hours, and another dose of pain meds later I had an ultra sound, then some more waiting, and finally a visit from the Doctor. Sure enough, I had gall stones. Holy what?! Something was really wrong!? I was discharged with some more meds, and instructed to follow up with a surgeon. Night 2 without children, a rocking success, NOT!

I was able to sleep until about 5 the next morning and woke up in pain, 10 hours after the attack had started (my other attacks had lasted about 5 hours each and the pain is constant) this is when I realized 1. something really was wrong with me and 2. gall stones weren't a joke. We had tried to get my prescription filled after being discharged, but the only 24 hour pharmacy, Walgreen's, does not take Tri-Care (Boo!) and they wanted $60 for some lousy pills. Pass. I should have listened to Frank though, and just paid it, but I figured by the time the medicine they gave me in the ER wore off, the attack would be over. Plus, who wants to pay $60 for something now they don't and may not need when they can get for free in 8 hours?!

I called my doctor for a follow up and so he could write a referral, the soonest appointment, Aug. 10. I seriously laughedand explained the situation in my pain induced hysteria. A few hours later a nurse called me to write a referral. She even called the surgeon and made me an appointment for that afternoon. So instead of attending my own Tastefully Simple party, I left my mom and Granny in charge and went to see the surgeon. We scheduled surgery for Friday. Frank rushed me home in time for the end of the party, but since I was put on a bland diet to keep any further attacks from happening I couldn't eat anything, well I may have tried a few things I shouldn't have, and my mom yelled at me :). I lived on peanut butter and juice for the next two days and stewed about my upcoming surgery. Friday I was a crying, panicked mess, and thankfully my husband put up with me.

The surgeon told Frank there was a lot of scar tissue around my gall bladder and I have probably been dealing with this for the past year. So for all the times, I complained about being in pain while I was pregnant, it wasn't Joel, it was my gall bladder. Sorry son. And thanks to all the NP's that shook their head and said it was just the baby. 'Preciate ya.

Apparently I am sassy when waking up from anesthesia. Frank told me he bought a pair of shoes when I was in surgery, and I told him, if that were true I'd put him in the ICU. I spent the next few days groggy. I was eager to get back to normal and we took a drive west on Sunday, the boys panned for gold, and we searched for rocks.

The recovery from gall bladder surgery is worse than child birth. No sweet baby to snuggle. You have to sleep on your back. In and out of awareness from the medication. Pain any time you move, even on the meds, or any time something (i.e., kids) nudges your bloated stomach. No lifting. No driving. Still no good eating. And lots of things I'm not willing to write about, and you would not want to read about.

Thankfully, I'm on the mend now. My family went home, we were so blessed by their visit, especially the timing of it all! Frank took Wednesday and Thursday off work to help me around the house with the kids. He's back to work today, I'm in minimal pain, I still don't carry Kay around like she'd like and I'm still sore but overall good. I'm down about 5 pounds since surgery. Making my total weight loss from pre-pregnancy to now 20 pounds. Hopefully I will be able to start working out again next week!

Next Friday, my cousin Brittany is coming to visit :) Then Frank leaves on Saturday for New Orleans, for training for 6 days. Then about 2 weeks after he gets back, the kids and I will be flying to North Carolina for 2 weeks, then driving to Indiana for Brittany's wedding, and I'm praying I fit into my dress, then we'll be flying home from there.

I've been keeping myself busy, before the surgery, that is, making homemade laundry soap - love it, homemade dishwasher soap - new recipe next time, making freezer jam, and stocking our new freezer with meals. Kay loves to sing and dance, she has been doing lots of counting and she surprises us everyday with something new she's learned. Joel is, well, big. 18 pounds at 3 & 1/2 months. He's not sleeping through the night consistently, but he's a quick eater and goes back to sleep easily, most nights. He's so happy, smiles and laughs all the time, jabbers and drools a lot. He loves his big sister and she loves him and we are having lots of fun as a family of 4.

I think that's it for now, I've got to get bread baking for dinner :) the west is a rough place, no luxuries like back east ;)