This past weekend, Devin ended up in the hospital again.
It started as an innocent doctor's appointment. After weeks of back and forth on whether we were going to send him for a second opinion, an episode in Wal-Mart sent us into panic and we decided that we would definitely make an appointment.
We went on Friday afternoon for the appointment. It was with a pediatrician in Winterville. We thought we'd go, sit down with her and tell her what we've been seeing and she'd either recommend us to a specialist of some sort or send us home and tell us we've lost our mind.
Instead, she sent us straight to the hospital.
It kind of freaked me out.
First of all, it's hard to explain what exactly is going on with Devin so we always have trouble explaining it because we really don't know. All we know is something isn't right.
This doctor was great. She sat down and talked with us and really let us go through the full story, from birth to now. She stepped out and looked at the hospital records and came back and agreed, the things that happened at the hospital didn't seem right.
It wasn't until she found out about some things in Allen's family that she became concerned enough to admit Devin in the hospital.
Devin has some choking issues and they seem to come from out of the blue. Sometimes he chokes for no reason. He isn't eating or anything. We also have an extremely hard time feeding him. We were told he as acid reflux so our initial thought was that all this mess is attributed to that.
In the hospital after he was born, Allen told the doctor that his family has this esophagul trachea defect in his family. He has had two siblings die with that. Apparently this is when milk goes into the lungs due to some defect. We were concerned Devin had it. The doctor, however, said there was no way he had it because if he did, he would not be able to get the feeding tube in. That made us feel better and we moved on and didn't think twice about it.
However, when we were telling this doctor the story, she got really wide eyed and said that was not true, that there were actually two different types of that defect. A feeding tube would rule out one of them but not the other. That's where she became concerned and sent Devin to the hospital. That, and the fact she was hearing his heart beat on the wrong side. That is something else that is common in Allen's family and I cannot think of the name of it.
Turns out, Devin's organs are in the correct place. Maybe his heart is so giant that you can hear it on the other side!
Everything also checked out for the esophagul thing too. I felt like that would be okay because if it hadn't, Devin would probably not have lived this long. But, I was glad tests were done to 100% rule it out. Devin had to have 2 x-rays and one other test. But all three came back great and ruled out the stuff the doctor was worried about. That's the good news.
The bad news is we still don't know what's going on. It all falls back to severe acid reflux but Devin has not officially been diagnosed with that and I'm not sure he has as severe a case as people think. There's a lot of symptoms that could be acid reflux but there's others than lead me to believe it's not. So, we're left with just waiting to see if things improve. We did have a feeding team come in and talk to us and give us some suggestions on feeding that would maybe help. They looked at Devin and noticed some rashes that could indicate he's allergic to his formula. He's on a special soy formula because there were concerns he was lactose intolerant. So that may be causing some of the issues. But, again, we don't really know.
We go back this week for a follow up and we are hopeful that we'll be able to talk to the doctor a little more and maybe figure some more things out. But until then, it's still a wait and see game.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Potty training for dummies
Soon after bringing Devin home from the hospital, Allen and I decided we should start potty training Corbin. Changing two boys diapers was a bit much! But besides that, Corbin was showing signs of being ready to start using a big boy potty.
He is very interested in the bathroom in general. He goes in there all the time, sometimes to do things he isn't supposed to. One time, he went in with a straw in hand and yep, he drank out of the toilet. I'm not sure how he didn't catch something from doing that but he's still alive and well so that's good to know! Of course, we are more mindful about him sneaking in the bathroom. But Corbin still likes to sneak in the bathroom when people are using the bathroom. When I'm in there, he'll try to peak IN the toilet to see what's happening. When Allen's in there, he tries to stick his head in the line of fire!
So we started telling Corbin what we were doing and we talked to him about the bathroom. When we changed his diaper, we'd tell him what we were doing and what he had done. Of course, all little boys seem to pick up on the word "poo poo." Today, that is Corbin's favorite word. Anything that happens, he'll go "ewwww poo poo." It doesn't even have to be bathroom related. If he finds something on the floor, he'll pick it up and go "ewwww poo poo."
We bought Corbin his very own toilet to encourage him to go to the bathroom on his own. Currently, we are slowly moving him towards using it. Since he's so young, we feel we have plenty of time to potty train. But, already, he's doing great. Sometimes, he pulls his pants down and that'll let us know he's trying to go. Of course, sometimes, he pulls his pants down simply because he likes to pull his pants down. Other times, he'll go in the bathroom while we're in there and decide that he, too, needs to use the potty. He has actually used his potty a few times. But he's certainly not ready to dive into underwear just yet. But soon, I imagine we'll put some on him for a few minutes at a time.
Corbin's a smart kid so he's picked up on potty training pretty good. But, I'm not sure he'll be 100 percent potty trained anytime soon. He's stubborn and does things when he wants so we'll just have to wait and see.
I imagine once summer gets here, we'll catch him peeing outside. I KNOW he'll love doing that!
He is very interested in the bathroom in general. He goes in there all the time, sometimes to do things he isn't supposed to. One time, he went in with a straw in hand and yep, he drank out of the toilet. I'm not sure how he didn't catch something from doing that but he's still alive and well so that's good to know! Of course, we are more mindful about him sneaking in the bathroom. But Corbin still likes to sneak in the bathroom when people are using the bathroom. When I'm in there, he'll try to peak IN the toilet to see what's happening. When Allen's in there, he tries to stick his head in the line of fire!
So we started telling Corbin what we were doing and we talked to him about the bathroom. When we changed his diaper, we'd tell him what we were doing and what he had done. Of course, all little boys seem to pick up on the word "poo poo." Today, that is Corbin's favorite word. Anything that happens, he'll go "ewwww poo poo." It doesn't even have to be bathroom related. If he finds something on the floor, he'll pick it up and go "ewwww poo poo."
We bought Corbin his very own toilet to encourage him to go to the bathroom on his own. Currently, we are slowly moving him towards using it. Since he's so young, we feel we have plenty of time to potty train. But, already, he's doing great. Sometimes, he pulls his pants down and that'll let us know he's trying to go. Of course, sometimes, he pulls his pants down simply because he likes to pull his pants down. Other times, he'll go in the bathroom while we're in there and decide that he, too, needs to use the potty. He has actually used his potty a few times. But he's certainly not ready to dive into underwear just yet. But soon, I imagine we'll put some on him for a few minutes at a time.
Corbin's a smart kid so he's picked up on potty training pretty good. But, I'm not sure he'll be 100 percent potty trained anytime soon. He's stubborn and does things when he wants so we'll just have to wait and see.
I imagine once summer gets here, we'll catch him peeing outside. I KNOW he'll love doing that!
Friday, February 15, 2013
I'm a wannabe cool mommy
Unfortunately, I am not a very organized person. I want to be, I really do, but let's face it, I'm not. And it reflects in my parenting skills.
One of my goals for this year is to change that
I want to be a cool mommy that does cool things with her kids. I want to come up with cute little crafts to do with Corbin and Devin and make them cute little food snacks in the shapes of things.
Working full-time makes it extremely hard to do those things. But I'm going to try hard to at least come up with things we can do once a week, maybe on weekends.
Allen stays home with the boys and as a man, he's not very good at multi-tasking. He cannot do the whole keeping the house clean and watching the boys thing. It's one or the other. He is, however, improving and he can do some chores during the week. One night this week, he actually cooked me dinner and it was ready when I got home! I didn't have to help any so he is getting much better at things. Men also are not prone to have "craft time." I've joked with Allen that if we had a little girl, he'd have to have tea parties and all that stuff! Luckily though, he gets two boys, so he can do man things with them. He has agreed that if I find some things for them to do, he'll try it. So I'm hoping to find some manly type craft things for Allen to do with Corbin during the week. Allen loves to build and Corbin loves anything Allen loves so I'm sure we can come up with something!
Anyway, this week, I was at my grandma's visiting. Corbin and I decided to make some cookies and I actually let him help. You have to really loosen up when you let a kid help you cook. You can't freak out when they want to lick their fingers or taste whatever it is you are cooking. So when Corbin tried to eat the cookie dough instead of roll it up and put it on the pan, I bit my tongue and told him it was okay to taste what we were cooking because that was the perk of being the cook!!! However, I added that you have to still cook what you are cooking and not eat all the dough. He seemed to think that was fair and he put little cookie dough balls on the pan. And at the end, he licked the bowl. That was the best thing ever, to be able to interact with Corbin that way and him listen and follow directions. It's really the simple things in life that make you so stinking happy as a parent!
So I'm meeting my goal of being a better mommy. But I still have a long ways to go!
One of my goals for this year is to change that
I want to be a cool mommy that does cool things with her kids. I want to come up with cute little crafts to do with Corbin and Devin and make them cute little food snacks in the shapes of things.
Working full-time makes it extremely hard to do those things. But I'm going to try hard to at least come up with things we can do once a week, maybe on weekends.
Allen stays home with the boys and as a man, he's not very good at multi-tasking. He cannot do the whole keeping the house clean and watching the boys thing. It's one or the other. He is, however, improving and he can do some chores during the week. One night this week, he actually cooked me dinner and it was ready when I got home! I didn't have to help any so he is getting much better at things. Men also are not prone to have "craft time." I've joked with Allen that if we had a little girl, he'd have to have tea parties and all that stuff! Luckily though, he gets two boys, so he can do man things with them. He has agreed that if I find some things for them to do, he'll try it. So I'm hoping to find some manly type craft things for Allen to do with Corbin during the week. Allen loves to build and Corbin loves anything Allen loves so I'm sure we can come up with something!
Anyway, this week, I was at my grandma's visiting. Corbin and I decided to make some cookies and I actually let him help. You have to really loosen up when you let a kid help you cook. You can't freak out when they want to lick their fingers or taste whatever it is you are cooking. So when Corbin tried to eat the cookie dough instead of roll it up and put it on the pan, I bit my tongue and told him it was okay to taste what we were cooking because that was the perk of being the cook!!! However, I added that you have to still cook what you are cooking and not eat all the dough. He seemed to think that was fair and he put little cookie dough balls on the pan. And at the end, he licked the bowl. That was the best thing ever, to be able to interact with Corbin that way and him listen and follow directions. It's really the simple things in life that make you so stinking happy as a parent!
So I'm meeting my goal of being a better mommy. But I still have a long ways to go!
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Mama Ruth
I'm pretty sure I've written about my mom in this space before but just in case, let's recap.
My mom walked out on my dad when I was like 1, maybe 2 years old. She walked out and never looked back.
I'd get an occasional card or phone call but that was it. Sometimes, like once every 10 years, she'd call and want me to visit her. My dad made me go and I hated it, just about as much as I hated her.
I know, it's horrible to say but I hate my mom. She's done nothing but disappoint and hurt me.
Over the years, she'd call and say she wanted to be in my life so I'd do something stupid to let her in. I'd always regret because like clockwork, she'd always disappear again. At 28 years old, I received a letter from my mom. The letter apologized for leaving me and for not being there for. The letter proclaimed how my mother had found Jesus and was a new person. And finally, the letter said she wanted to be a part of my life.
I thought about the letter for a while and finally wrote back. I told her how much she had hurt me and how my mother was the women who raised me, not her. But, I told her I'd try to let her in. And I did. Then I got pregnant with Corbin. I was doing pretty good and letting her in my life a little more each day. When Corbin was born, she came to the hospital to see him and a few weeks letter she accused me of not wanting her in his life because I had not driven AN HOUR AND A HALF to visit her. Anyway, I informed her I had a newborn and driving that far was ridiculous. If she wanted to come see him, she could drive her butt to Nashville. That's when she accused me of basically plotting to not let her be a part of his life. My whole plan, according to her, was to never let her in my life. She went on to talk about her newfound religion and how great she'd be for my kid and how she'd pray for me and blah blah blah. So I unleashed a fury on her I never even knew I had. It was a fury without bad language and it was about as Christian a fury as I could give. Long story short, after lots of back and forth conversations, I finally told her to leave me alone and to not talk to me or my family ever again because I didn't want my son around someone like her. She said okay and I haven't talked to her since. That was a year and a half ago.
Anyway, I do have more to share on this topic but it's for another day. The point to all this is, the woman who gave birth to me is not my mom. My grandmother is my mom.
Mama Ruth is the one who raised me. She's the one who forced me to wear ridiculously girly clothes and curled my hair so high, I looked like a wannabe 80's country singer. She's the one that went on to help me during hard times, the one who has always been there for me and the one I go to when I need a mother.
But, Mama Ruth is also my grandmother. Which means she's not a spring chick anymore, as they say.
Mama Ruth is getting up there in age. She's like 85 now, I think.
Her health has been going downhill for a while and I guess we all know that people don't live forever.
A few years ago, while visiting my aunt in Ohio, Mama Ruth had a stroke. It was just before Thanksgiving and she was in the hospital in another state. That actually turned out to be a blessing but my dad, Allen and I ate at some stupid Chinese restaurant for Thanksgiving that year! It was the worst Thanksgiving ever. Luckily, her stroke was a mini stroke and wasn't too bad. But it scared the crap out of my family. The theory is that Mama Ruth is continuing to have these little mini strokes.The strokes are causing her to have dementia. She is getting worse every day.
There are days she talks to her kids like she doesn't know who they are. She can't remember things as well and sometimes she just stares into space. But then there are other days, she's the same ole feisty Mama Ruth.
Mama Ruth can't drive anymore and we don't let her cook. We have to make sure she takes her million pills every day and many days we have to make sure she eats.
All this mini strokes are going to lead to a real stroke one day. And a real stroke is not going to be good news for her. Both of my uncles died from strokes.....and they died within the last 2-3 years. Their death was really hard on Mama Ruth. I think her getting worse is partly because of that. She lost two of her brothers within a very short time, plus her sister-in-law.
Anyway, my family is looking at having to consider options for her and by options I mean, either putting her somewhere or figuring out a way for someone to be with her all the time. I'm pretty sure the latter will be our choice. Mama Ruth would kill us if we put her in one of those nursing homes. But anyway, Mama Ruth is slipping away from us and it is killing me.
I'm losing my grandmother and my mother all at once.
I can't imagine her being completely gone. But it's inevitable that one day, it will happen.
I hope that day is a long ways away.
My mom walked out on my dad when I was like 1, maybe 2 years old. She walked out and never looked back.
I'd get an occasional card or phone call but that was it. Sometimes, like once every 10 years, she'd call and want me to visit her. My dad made me go and I hated it, just about as much as I hated her.
I know, it's horrible to say but I hate my mom. She's done nothing but disappoint and hurt me.
Over the years, she'd call and say she wanted to be in my life so I'd do something stupid to let her in. I'd always regret because like clockwork, she'd always disappear again. At 28 years old, I received a letter from my mom. The letter apologized for leaving me and for not being there for. The letter proclaimed how my mother had found Jesus and was a new person. And finally, the letter said she wanted to be a part of my life.
I thought about the letter for a while and finally wrote back. I told her how much she had hurt me and how my mother was the women who raised me, not her. But, I told her I'd try to let her in. And I did. Then I got pregnant with Corbin. I was doing pretty good and letting her in my life a little more each day. When Corbin was born, she came to the hospital to see him and a few weeks letter she accused me of not wanting her in his life because I had not driven AN HOUR AND A HALF to visit her. Anyway, I informed her I had a newborn and driving that far was ridiculous. If she wanted to come see him, she could drive her butt to Nashville. That's when she accused me of basically plotting to not let her be a part of his life. My whole plan, according to her, was to never let her in my life. She went on to talk about her newfound religion and how great she'd be for my kid and how she'd pray for me and blah blah blah. So I unleashed a fury on her I never even knew I had. It was a fury without bad language and it was about as Christian a fury as I could give. Long story short, after lots of back and forth conversations, I finally told her to leave me alone and to not talk to me or my family ever again because I didn't want my son around someone like her. She said okay and I haven't talked to her since. That was a year and a half ago.
Anyway, I do have more to share on this topic but it's for another day. The point to all this is, the woman who gave birth to me is not my mom. My grandmother is my mom.
Mama Ruth is the one who raised me. She's the one who forced me to wear ridiculously girly clothes and curled my hair so high, I looked like a wannabe 80's country singer. She's the one that went on to help me during hard times, the one who has always been there for me and the one I go to when I need a mother.
But, Mama Ruth is also my grandmother. Which means she's not a spring chick anymore, as they say.
Mama Ruth is getting up there in age. She's like 85 now, I think.
Her health has been going downhill for a while and I guess we all know that people don't live forever.
A few years ago, while visiting my aunt in Ohio, Mama Ruth had a stroke. It was just before Thanksgiving and she was in the hospital in another state. That actually turned out to be a blessing but my dad, Allen and I ate at some stupid Chinese restaurant for Thanksgiving that year! It was the worst Thanksgiving ever. Luckily, her stroke was a mini stroke and wasn't too bad. But it scared the crap out of my family. The theory is that Mama Ruth is continuing to have these little mini strokes.The strokes are causing her to have dementia. She is getting worse every day.
There are days she talks to her kids like she doesn't know who they are. She can't remember things as well and sometimes she just stares into space. But then there are other days, she's the same ole feisty Mama Ruth.
Mama Ruth can't drive anymore and we don't let her cook. We have to make sure she takes her million pills every day and many days we have to make sure she eats.
All this mini strokes are going to lead to a real stroke one day. And a real stroke is not going to be good news for her. Both of my uncles died from strokes.....and they died within the last 2-3 years. Their death was really hard on Mama Ruth. I think her getting worse is partly because of that. She lost two of her brothers within a very short time, plus her sister-in-law.
Anyway, my family is looking at having to consider options for her and by options I mean, either putting her somewhere or figuring out a way for someone to be with her all the time. I'm pretty sure the latter will be our choice. Mama Ruth would kill us if we put her in one of those nursing homes. But anyway, Mama Ruth is slipping away from us and it is killing me.
I'm losing my grandmother and my mother all at once.
I can't imagine her being completely gone. But it's inevitable that one day, it will happen.
I hope that day is a long ways away.
Answers for Devin
Having a sick kid is so hard. It's one of those things you just can't put into words.
Devin has been home now for 6 weeks. Every day, he seems to be getting better. But it also seems to be that after several really great days with him, something else happens and we take a step backwards in his progress. The problem is we STILL don't really know what the heck is going on.
While Devin was in the hospital, we got very few answers as to what was happening. At first, it was fluid on his lungs or his lungs were underdeveloped. The doctor even considered whether Devin was born premature! UMMM He was 10 freaking pounds. I was one day away from being 40 weeks when he was born so even if they got my date off some, there is no way in God's green earth he was premature. If I wasn't so emotionally unstable and drugged up when all this was happening, I'm pretty sure I would have laughed when the doctor suggested it. Anyway, they moved on from that and said he had that tachypnea thing, which a lot of newborns have when born. Typically, though it goes away in a few days. Devin's didn't so the confusion continued. Eventually, the doctor just stuck with fluid on the lungs which could have been from underdeveloped lungs, which we still don't know why that occurred, or it could be that Devin maybe had pneumonia. Either way, when we walked out of that hospital, we still didn't know exactly what had happened. All we knew is he said that Devin's breathing was significantly better and the doctor said we could go home.
Anyway, though the doctors seemed to focus on Devin's breathing issues, he also had some stomach issues that we had to deal with while in the hospital. His formula was switched 3 times. We are now on this Soy Enfamil formula. It's supposed to be easier on his stomach. Devin also had the nipple on his bottled changed at least 4 times. All this was because of his stomach issues. Eventually, he was put on acid reflux medicine. He is still on that.
Devin isn't really having the breathing issues anymore and we are thankful for that. However, he is still having some digestive, stomach issues. That is what we are still seeing that concerns us.
Devin is actually choking and gagging. Most of the time it happens randomnly and not even while he's eating. He'll start coughing and basically stops breathing for a bit. It's the scariest thing in the world. We thought he was getting better because we haven't seen it in a while but last night, it happened again. Twice.
I have no idea what is happening to my little boy. I just know that he's the most unhappiest baby in the universe. He cries a lot and he seems to always be so irritable. That in itself has been bad enough. But now, seeing that he's still having the choking thing going on terrifies me. So, we are moving forward with our plans to get a second opinion.
I hate to have to put Devin through more doctors but he's not getting better and it sucks to not know exactly what is going on. I'm not even sure it is acid reflux but I really don't know. That's the hardest part. But we've delayed going somewhere else long enough. And now, it's time we get some answers.
Devin has been home now for 6 weeks. Every day, he seems to be getting better. But it also seems to be that after several really great days with him, something else happens and we take a step backwards in his progress. The problem is we STILL don't really know what the heck is going on.
While Devin was in the hospital, we got very few answers as to what was happening. At first, it was fluid on his lungs or his lungs were underdeveloped. The doctor even considered whether Devin was born premature! UMMM He was 10 freaking pounds. I was one day away from being 40 weeks when he was born so even if they got my date off some, there is no way in God's green earth he was premature. If I wasn't so emotionally unstable and drugged up when all this was happening, I'm pretty sure I would have laughed when the doctor suggested it. Anyway, they moved on from that and said he had that tachypnea thing, which a lot of newborns have when born. Typically, though it goes away in a few days. Devin's didn't so the confusion continued. Eventually, the doctor just stuck with fluid on the lungs which could have been from underdeveloped lungs, which we still don't know why that occurred, or it could be that Devin maybe had pneumonia. Either way, when we walked out of that hospital, we still didn't know exactly what had happened. All we knew is he said that Devin's breathing was significantly better and the doctor said we could go home.
Anyway, though the doctors seemed to focus on Devin's breathing issues, he also had some stomach issues that we had to deal with while in the hospital. His formula was switched 3 times. We are now on this Soy Enfamil formula. It's supposed to be easier on his stomach. Devin also had the nipple on his bottled changed at least 4 times. All this was because of his stomach issues. Eventually, he was put on acid reflux medicine. He is still on that.
Devin isn't really having the breathing issues anymore and we are thankful for that. However, he is still having some digestive, stomach issues. That is what we are still seeing that concerns us.
Devin is actually choking and gagging. Most of the time it happens randomnly and not even while he's eating. He'll start coughing and basically stops breathing for a bit. It's the scariest thing in the world. We thought he was getting better because we haven't seen it in a while but last night, it happened again. Twice.
I have no idea what is happening to my little boy. I just know that he's the most unhappiest baby in the universe. He cries a lot and he seems to always be so irritable. That in itself has been bad enough. But now, seeing that he's still having the choking thing going on terrifies me. So, we are moving forward with our plans to get a second opinion.
I hate to have to put Devin through more doctors but he's not getting better and it sucks to not know exactly what is going on. I'm not even sure it is acid reflux but I really don't know. That's the hardest part. But we've delayed going somewhere else long enough. And now, it's time we get some answers.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Back to the Grind
So I am now in my third full week back at work. Unfortunately, because Allen stays home with the kids and I work, I wasn't able to take as much time off as I would have liked, especially considering everything that happened.
So just a week and a few days after my appendix surgery, I came on back to the office and on my first day back, covered an 8 hour retreat. Fun stuff!
Things have been crazy at home. It's very stressful right now, readjusting to our new lives. Corbin is adjusting okay but he's very clingy now and has not been sleeping well so many nights, he ends up in our beds.
Unfortunately, with everything that went on, we lived in hotels and then at my dads and were never home. I'm sure that had an impact on Corbin and his adjustment to our new life has been a little challenging. But Corbin is doing pretty good with his brother so that's good!
On a side note, me being home has given Corbin an epiphany and now he is suddenly a momma's boy so when I get home from work, he is actually happy to see me and wants to be with me. Now that is a great reason to rush home everyday!
Anyway, work has been going well. I've gotten right back into the groove of things but am already working a lot again and I miss my boys a lot. Being a working mom is really hard. I miss my kids and I want to be able to spend more time with them. I'm trying to learn how to savor the moments I do have with them. But it is hard. When I get home at night, I'm exhausted and I just want to sit down and relax. Yet somehow, so far, I'm finding the strength, and time, to play with Corbin and be with Devin too. Now I just have to find time to be with Allen!
So just a week and a few days after my appendix surgery, I came on back to the office and on my first day back, covered an 8 hour retreat. Fun stuff!
Things have been crazy at home. It's very stressful right now, readjusting to our new lives. Corbin is adjusting okay but he's very clingy now and has not been sleeping well so many nights, he ends up in our beds.
Unfortunately, with everything that went on, we lived in hotels and then at my dads and were never home. I'm sure that had an impact on Corbin and his adjustment to our new life has been a little challenging. But Corbin is doing pretty good with his brother so that's good!
On a side note, me being home has given Corbin an epiphany and now he is suddenly a momma's boy so when I get home from work, he is actually happy to see me and wants to be with me. Now that is a great reason to rush home everyday!
Anyway, work has been going well. I've gotten right back into the groove of things but am already working a lot again and I miss my boys a lot. Being a working mom is really hard. I miss my kids and I want to be able to spend more time with them. I'm trying to learn how to savor the moments I do have with them. But it is hard. When I get home at night, I'm exhausted and I just want to sit down and relax. Yet somehow, so far, I'm finding the strength, and time, to play with Corbin and be with Devin too. Now I just have to find time to be with Allen!
Friday, February 1, 2013
Appendicitis
So, just as we were getting settled into our new life with two kids, we had another round of fun to deal with.
We were packing up and getting ready to go to Bethel when I started to have some pains in my right side. The pains would move into my stomach and back area and started off as just minor pains. I just assumed I was having some pains from my c-section because I had been overdoing it a bit. As we drove to Bethel, the pain increased and after we got to Bethel, we ate dinner and Allen took Corbin to his parents house for a visit. He, of course, left his phone at my dads. I started to hurt really bad and started to wonder if I had hurt myself. My grandmother had come over so I gave Devin to her and I tried to walk around some to see if that would help. Then I'd sit down and try it again. The pain got worse and worse as time went on. Devin, of course, started to become irritable and I had to deal with him while also trying to ignore the pain.
Eventually, I let my grandma have Devin back and I went and laid down. I tried to call Allen to tell him something was wrong but he didn't have his phone. My aunt came over later and she helped with Devin so I was able to go and lay down some more. The pain got so bad, I started throwing up. I finally got up with Allen by texting his mom. By the time Allen came back, I was in so much pain, I was in tears. I took a super hot bath and threw up again and then laid down. Allen finally decided I was going to the hospital and I, being the stubborn person I am, refused.
Allen's sister is a CNA and he asked her to come look at me. When she came over she said I could have busted a stitch around my uterus area. OR, she said, it could be my appendix. Either way, I needed to go to the hospital to be looked at. I refused again but then Allen said if it was my appendix, it could rupture and I could die. So okay, I finally decided I'd go to the hospital. But I wasn't happy about it.
Because we were in Bethel, I went to Greenville. But my dad had to take me because we couldn't leave Devin. With his issues, we aren't really comfortable leaving him alone with people yet. There are just way too many things going on with him so Allen had to stay home with him, which sucked. But, my dad went and that was okay too. My aunt and grandma stayed with Allen to help him.
It was around 11 p.m. by the time we got to the hospital. The pain pill was finally kicking in and I wasn't hurting quite as bad. I was fully prepared for the doctors to make me feel like an idiot and tell me nothing was wrong and send me home.
Instead, they did a million tests on me, including a CT Scan. The next morning, I was informed that I had an appendicitis and the surgery team was preparing to take me back to take out my appendix. I was not thrilled.
So, after the surgery team met, I was told that because of my c-section, my woman parts inside may still be swollen some and may pose a problem for the surgery. Instead of doing the easy, laproscopic surgery, where they just poke little holes in my belly, they may have to actually cut me open. But, they wouldn't know until they cut the first little hole and stuck the camera in and looked. Of course, they also went over all the risks associated with surgery, which always terrifies a person. I was scared enough.
You see, I've never been to the hospital unless it involved a baby. SO this was a new adventure for me and I did not like it.
I cried the whole time I was being wheeled back to the prep room. Allen wasn't there, my dad had left and I felt so alone. I cried pretty much until I crawled on the operating table. That's the last thing I remember.
After that, I was apparently drugged up and knocked out. I woke up in a room with a nurse standing over me. My other aunt was sitting next to me. I don't remember much about any of the surgery. When I woke up again, Allen and Devin were there. That, of course, really woke up. I ate some chicken broth, crackers and drank something and the nurse told me if I could get up and go to the bathroom and walk around, I could go home. So that is exactly what I did. I was on my way back to Bethel just a few hours after surgery.
I was really, really sore for a few days. But it's been two weeks and aside from the occasion tenderness around the four holes/incisions in my belly, I feel pretty dag-on good, especially considering I've had two surgeries on my stomach area within a month.
I think having kids around speeds up recovery times. I know for me it did and although I would have loved to have laid around and rested, I didn't get to do a lot of that. Instead, I chased around a 19 month old and comforted a screaming newborn. And I also comforted my husband, who was about to have a mental breakdown with everything going.
I'm glad things are somewhat back to normal now. I've went to all my final checkups and all the doctor's said I'm doing A-Okay and for that, I am grateful.
We were packing up and getting ready to go to Bethel when I started to have some pains in my right side. The pains would move into my stomach and back area and started off as just minor pains. I just assumed I was having some pains from my c-section because I had been overdoing it a bit. As we drove to Bethel, the pain increased and after we got to Bethel, we ate dinner and Allen took Corbin to his parents house for a visit. He, of course, left his phone at my dads. I started to hurt really bad and started to wonder if I had hurt myself. My grandmother had come over so I gave Devin to her and I tried to walk around some to see if that would help. Then I'd sit down and try it again. The pain got worse and worse as time went on. Devin, of course, started to become irritable and I had to deal with him while also trying to ignore the pain.
Eventually, I let my grandma have Devin back and I went and laid down. I tried to call Allen to tell him something was wrong but he didn't have his phone. My aunt came over later and she helped with Devin so I was able to go and lay down some more. The pain got so bad, I started throwing up. I finally got up with Allen by texting his mom. By the time Allen came back, I was in so much pain, I was in tears. I took a super hot bath and threw up again and then laid down. Allen finally decided I was going to the hospital and I, being the stubborn person I am, refused.
Allen's sister is a CNA and he asked her to come look at me. When she came over she said I could have busted a stitch around my uterus area. OR, she said, it could be my appendix. Either way, I needed to go to the hospital to be looked at. I refused again but then Allen said if it was my appendix, it could rupture and I could die. So okay, I finally decided I'd go to the hospital. But I wasn't happy about it.
Because we were in Bethel, I went to Greenville. But my dad had to take me because we couldn't leave Devin. With his issues, we aren't really comfortable leaving him alone with people yet. There are just way too many things going on with him so Allen had to stay home with him, which sucked. But, my dad went and that was okay too. My aunt and grandma stayed with Allen to help him.
It was around 11 p.m. by the time we got to the hospital. The pain pill was finally kicking in and I wasn't hurting quite as bad. I was fully prepared for the doctors to make me feel like an idiot and tell me nothing was wrong and send me home.
Instead, they did a million tests on me, including a CT Scan. The next morning, I was informed that I had an appendicitis and the surgery team was preparing to take me back to take out my appendix. I was not thrilled.
So, after the surgery team met, I was told that because of my c-section, my woman parts inside may still be swollen some and may pose a problem for the surgery. Instead of doing the easy, laproscopic surgery, where they just poke little holes in my belly, they may have to actually cut me open. But, they wouldn't know until they cut the first little hole and stuck the camera in and looked. Of course, they also went over all the risks associated with surgery, which always terrifies a person. I was scared enough.
You see, I've never been to the hospital unless it involved a baby. SO this was a new adventure for me and I did not like it.
I cried the whole time I was being wheeled back to the prep room. Allen wasn't there, my dad had left and I felt so alone. I cried pretty much until I crawled on the operating table. That's the last thing I remember.
After that, I was apparently drugged up and knocked out. I woke up in a room with a nurse standing over me. My other aunt was sitting next to me. I don't remember much about any of the surgery. When I woke up again, Allen and Devin were there. That, of course, really woke up. I ate some chicken broth, crackers and drank something and the nurse told me if I could get up and go to the bathroom and walk around, I could go home. So that is exactly what I did. I was on my way back to Bethel just a few hours after surgery.
I was really, really sore for a few days. But it's been two weeks and aside from the occasion tenderness around the four holes/incisions in my belly, I feel pretty dag-on good, especially considering I've had two surgeries on my stomach area within a month.
I think having kids around speeds up recovery times. I know for me it did and although I would have loved to have laid around and rested, I didn't get to do a lot of that. Instead, I chased around a 19 month old and comforted a screaming newborn. And I also comforted my husband, who was about to have a mental breakdown with everything going.
I'm glad things are somewhat back to normal now. I've went to all my final checkups and all the doctor's said I'm doing A-Okay and for that, I am grateful.
Blessed
When you are going through things, you really find out how blessed you are.
Allen and I were fortunate to have dozens of people that did things for us while we were back and forth from the hospital. The kindness was so appreciated and really did mean a lot to both of us. People did all sorts of things for us, from paying for hotel rooms for us so that we could stay close to Devin but also be with Corbin to feeding us to sending us gift cards to help with things we needed. And, when needed, we always had people willing to help with Corbin. People sent us cards telling us they were thinking of us and praying for us. We were on several prayer lists at churches. And, let me tell you, we felt the prayers and I believe they helped.
This was a very challenging time for my family but our friends and family made it so much easier by being there for us and doing things that made our life easier.
Allen and I were fortunate to have dozens of people that did things for us while we were back and forth from the hospital. The kindness was so appreciated and really did mean a lot to both of us. People did all sorts of things for us, from paying for hotel rooms for us so that we could stay close to Devin but also be with Corbin to feeding us to sending us gift cards to help with things we needed. And, when needed, we always had people willing to help with Corbin. People sent us cards telling us they were thinking of us and praying for us. We were on several prayer lists at churches. And, let me tell you, we felt the prayers and I believe they helped.
This was a very challenging time for my family but our friends and family made it so much easier by being there for us and doing things that made our life easier.
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