Wednesday, July 29, 2009

I'm Home!

Here is a copy of an email I sent out yesterday after I got home with a few updates about today.

Today I'm surprised about how much swelling I have--lol!! Having never had surgery before I didn't think my belly would swell so much which means I'm lounging around in my pj's for today.

I pulled a muscle getting in my bed last night so I have more pain than I should and may sleep on the couch tonight if it doesn't start feeling better soon.

The staff at the hospital was wonderful except I thought they really shoved you out the door pretty darn quick after surgery. I woke up at 2:05 from surgery and was heading out the door by 3, but being home was great and I could tell John was ready to get out of there-lol!!

The highlights--surgery was delayed because of other surgeries going on and I didn't go back until almost 1. we had cable in the room so we watched the deadliest catch which is one of our favorite shows so waiting wasn't bad but I was STARVING FOR KING CRAB BY THE TIME I LEFT--lol!!!

The gallbladder was inflamed, very diseased and not functioning, there where adhesion's attached to it with scar tissue and the surgeon said "other things" in the area was attached to it that shouldn't have been--don't know what that means but he said it REALLY REALLY was good we took it out. I'm having some pain but it's bearable--the dry mouth is bothering me though. Getting comfortable is hard but something I'm sure will pass soon.

Alisha and Baylee will spend the night so someone is here first thing in the morning with me--Annie has to go babysit over night so she won't be here.

Who knew chicken broth tasted so good--lol!!
Thank you for the prayers and I'll let you know if I need anything

Monday, July 27, 2009

Nesting.....

Not sure if it's pre-surgery jitters or feeling sympathy for a friend as she waits these final days/minutes/seconds until her travel call to say their son is ready to come home but either way my house is as clean as it gets--lol!!!

My hubby should be pleased when he arrives home to find that every stitch of laundry we own is cleaned and neatly folded and in it's proper place---that proves there are still miracles being done today-lol!! I so hate doing laundry, I'd much rather wash dishes or scrub toilets than sort and fold and put away the laundry. I think it stems from my childhood days when each of us three kids had to take turns doing the laundry.Back then my mom only did it on Saturday and we somehow always had about 13 loads on my weekend to do it. I think my brother and sister changed their clothes about every 3 hours on the weeks they knew it wasn't their turn and I got stuck staying in the house all day long sorting,washing and drying then folding,ironing( yes my mother made us iron the clothes right then and there!) and putting away everyone's stuff. It really is a wonder I didn't grow up to live in a nudest colony after that--lol!! So if you ever stop by and see 2 or 3 loads of laundry just sitting there waiting to be folded you'll know why.

I'm hoping to take the boys to the free splash park here in town after nap time and then it's back home to eat and go watch my hubby and daughters and sons-in-laws play softball. Anything to keep my mind busy today. I'm not really nervous about surgery or any pain afterwards as my surgeon promises I will not be feeling all that bad,I"m just not looking forward to being forced to take it easy and not do the things I normally do for my kids and husband. I won't be babysitting my grandkids this week and I have a feeling I'm really going to miss them. Since moving back to town we have not hardly had a day when one or more of the adult kids have been over spending the entire evening with us--our house is usually a zoo around dinner time with anywhere from just us 5 to over 11 people or more all squeezing around the dinner table. So not having them around will be a little sad and a lot of quite!!!

My mom is coming up to the hospital to "sit" with John so say a prayer for him--lol!! She is a talker and he is not and he isn't looking forward to making small talk for so long without me there to rescue him--lol!! I think he may be the one that needs the pain meds tomorrow afternoon and not me-lol!

I'll let everyone know how I am as soon as possible. John and I are believing that this will resolve all the problems that have been going on including the heart palpitations and both of us are looking forward to me returning to my perkier active self soon!!!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Surgery and God's peace!

Well the test results are back and my gallbladder needs to come out. It is functioning at only 30% and after speaking with the surgeon he feels it will only get worse and cause major health issues if left in there. When my gastro doctor called to give me the results I was so relieved, which may sound as though I lacked faith but the truth is I have been asking God for CLEAR results that would give answers to all the symptoms I have been dealing with for this past year.

Finding out my gallbladder was toast was indeed an answered prayer. I would like to say I have the mountain moving faith at this moment to just stand on the word of God and believe that the gallbladder would be healed and begin to function in perfect harmony with the rest of my body but the truth is my faith is stretched from all the sickness and issues that this past year has dealt me. So in examining my faith I know that I know allowing the surgeon to be "God's hands" in bringing health back to me is the right thing. On Tuesday of next week I will be having out patient surgery to remove the diseased gallbladder.

The surgeon who will be doing this was the most tenderhearted and compassionate doctor John and I have ever meet. John was thrilled with how detailed of an exam he did as he left no stone unturned in trying to help us determine what was the best course of action to take. My gastro doctor was leaning more towards not removing it at this time because I'm also experiencing some muscular pain in the area of my gallbladder and he didn't want us to think this would be a "cure all" for all that is going on. We could have tried to do a special diet and worked on the muscular issue first and wanted the surgeon to do a very good exam to determine if there was more gallbladder issue verses muscular issues before we decided on surgery. So John and I prayed before the exam with the surgeon that it would be clear which issue was causing the symptoms and that we would have a clear answer and God provided the answer to that prayer. Up until the surgeon visit I wasn't having much peace about what we should do or not do, but as soon as we walked in the door of the surgeons office I knew God was going to give me clear directions and so I'm THANKFUL FOR ANSWERED PRAYERS!!!

While I am a little nervous about next Tuesday it's not because of the actual surgery as I know I'm in good hands with the surgeon. I'm actually a little nervous about being away from the boys and allowing someone else to care for them for the whole day-lol!! It seems I'm quite the over protective mother these days and am experiencing some separation anxiety at the thought of being out of it for a whole day. I have no idea what I'll do next year when they go off to kindergarten but I think I better start praying and preparing myself for that now!!! So if you think about me this week and next say a prayer for peace and comfort for me and for my boys. I won't be able to pick them up for a few days or weeks until the surgery sites are healed so we will have to adapted as I still pick them up and carry them around every now and then. ( if you are thinking they sound a little spoiled to be picked up and carried at the age of four you're right but since they are my kids I don't really care what anyone thinks--lol!!)

I have other results form test done this past week but those are for another day as I'm still trying to wrap my brain and heart around some of them and figure out where exactly I stand......... The one thing I know with every fiber of my being is that THE NAME OF JESUS IS ABOVE ALL NAMES and NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD!

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Test update

No results yet but I want to thank anyone that took the time to pray for me during the testing process. I really felt the peace of God and know that it was not just my faith getting me through.

The good news is that I SURVIVED the HIDA scan of my gallbladder--lol!!! I am highly claustrophobic and the thought of being inside a machine with no way out was causing me a bit of anxiety to say the least. I had this test over 10 years ago and the machine used back then to pick up the nuclear medicine they inject into you reminded me of a COFFIN! I had to lay on a table after they put this dye in me and they pulled this huge HEAVY camera over my whole body and took pictures for so many minutes---well it seams that technology has come a long way in 10 years and the new machine is much different than what I remember--also the test took 2 full hours and I don't remember it being that long back in the 90's. Thankfully the camera used in today's time only covers you from the neck to thigh area and you are on a padded bed with a pillow and blanket, but they still pull it down to about 2 inches off your body so you feel this huge presence of something on top of you for the two hours. The best thing of all was that JOHN was allowed to be in there with me the whole time!!! The camera is not an x-ray so no radiation( other than what they pumped into my veins-lol!!).

They put the special nuclear dye in me and pulled the machine down then went and got John to sit next to me.Unfortunately I looked up before he got there and saw this "thing" at my chin level and was having a cow when he arrived-lol!! I truly have the best husband in the world as he stood at my side and held my hand and rubbed my arm until the panic attack left. A nurse walked by and saw him standing bent over me and got the chair they provided and slipped it under him so he wouldn't have to stand the whole 2 hours---if they hadn't have come by and the panicking feeling hadn't have left he would have stood the whole two hours!!!!

I LOVE YOU HONEY AND AM SO THANKFUL YOU WERE THERE FOR ME WHEN I NEEDED IT THE MOST!!!!!!

Other than the panic of being "trapped" the test isn't that bad except you have to lay perfectly still for 2 hours. Now being the mother of 2 very active 4 year olds the chance to lay down for two hours wasn't have bad--lol!!!! And the bonus of having my wonderful hubby there holding my hand and making small talk turned out to be a restful morning and a simi good date all things considering--lol!!

After the HIDA scan I got the heart monitor put on for the next 24 hours in hopes of having one of the "big episodes" of my heart racing super fast. As it turns out always for me no matter what I do to try and produce an 'episode' into happening I always fail.There is really no rhyme or reason as to why my heart will suddenly jump up to 145-180 beats per minute at times and therefore trying to make it happen is impossible. I did have a few minor times of increased heart rate and one moderate one but the rate was not that bad, my only hope is that the moderate one will give some answers or at least warrant me wearing the monitor for a longer period of time so that we might record a major incident.

I know that it sounds like I lack faith because I'm hoping to record a major heart episode instead of posting that I'm standing on the word of God that I NEVER have another one but the truth is I have been standing on the word for over a year now and it's time I hook my faith up to the medical world to get the answers as to why my heart has these episodes. Then I will know how to apply my faith so that it never happens again. In the word it says that EVERY NAME THAT IS NAMED SHALL BOW IT"S KNEE TO THE NAME OF JESUS and I just need that exact name to what is happening to me!It could be something as simple as my hormones being out of balance or a misfiring in the heart that could be zapped so that it never misfires again. No matter what it is I'm standing on the doctors finding the EXACT cause so that we can get on with resolving the issue instead of trying to cover it up---because covering it up isn't stopping it from "breaking" through!

I have return doctor visits scheduled for the next three weeks to get the results--sounds like an eternity to wait that long but since I have been dealing with it now for over a full year a few more weeks won't be that long!

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Medical test/Prayer request

Tomorrow I'm going in for some medical test and I'm praying we will get clear answers to some of the issues I have been dealing with for the past year. In the past two months I have been having more and more irregular beats of my heart plus I began having some gastro issues on top of that,which has left me feeling somewhat of a failure in my faith walk.And if that wasn't bad enough I began having vertigo issues about three weeks ago---THANKFULLY we discovered that was being caused by fluid behind my ear drums so some over the counter decongestant and motion sickness medicine and I'll be back and walking upright in no time--PRAISE GOD!!!!!!

I fully believe in the power of the NAME OF JESUS and HIS shed Blood for me. I have stood on the word of God for many things and prayed and had answers given in times past so this year of medical issues has thrown me for a loop because it feels as though my faith isn't working. I know that I know that what the word says is true and that the word DOES WORK!! I'm still standing on Isaiah 53:4-5 which reads in the amplified bible:
Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains, yet we considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities: the chastisement peace and well being for us was upon Him and with the stripes (that wounded) Him we are healed and made whole
It is the word that sets me free from the pain and medical issues that are present in my body and since I have not been able to see a manifestation of that healing with just my faith alone I have decided to use every known thing under the sun to aid me. So while I feel like a failure in faith I know that God will work the miracle I need at whatever level my faith is at,which is why I'm so glad to go have these tests done!Bright and early John will be taking me to the hospital to have a scan done on my gallbladder and afterward I'm going to be hooked up to a heart monitor for 24 hours. I'm praying that if even the slightest thing is wrong with my gallbladder it will show up on the scan so my doctor and me can decide what to do from here. Also I have been having irregular heart beats off and on now for a full year but never when I'm at the doctor or if I have a really bad episode by the time I get to the hospital it is over so they have never been able to document one to know what is causing them so I'm praying I have one show up on the monitor. My doctor wants me to not take the meds that are suppose to stop this irregularities and to try and do anything possible to make an "attack" happen so we can get a good one or two on the monitor recording so I'm praying I have a real good one which wont be hard because things have gotten so bad that my heart will start racing in the middle of the night while sleeping and several times a day for no reason..

Getting the test results will be the first stage in knowing what to do and I believe with all my heart that God will direct the doctor with wisdom and understanding so that I can get on with my life!!

Monday, July 6, 2009

Moving again!

I don't know if I should say UGH! or PRAISE GOD! But we are going to be moving again.
Most likely it will be in the next three months as we will have the ability to buy around the first of September.

A few weeks ago our land lady called to ask about us buying the house and at the time John was very honest and told her that because of the neighbor situation he wasn't ready to say a 100% yes to buying the house, he really wanted to see if the neighbors were going to change their opinion about having kids living next to them before we committed to a HUGE mortgage. She fully understood but told us that she really needed to sell the house even though we have a two year lease agreement and she would "make things right with us".

We will get no less than a 60 day notice to move but we have decided to start looking and not wait around till the last minute. The good news is that John thinks it will be for a PERMANENT HOUSE AND NOT A RENTAL--PRAISE GOD !!!!!! The bad news is that I'm so tired of looking at houses that I have house apathy-lol!!! I'm sorta afraid that we will just take the first thing that is sorta ok just because we are both tired of thinking about what we really want and having to hunt for it,only to wake up 6 months after moving and realise we hate the place. Not to mention that I have to once again keep a house perfect and spotless for showings with 2 four year olds running around.--UGH!!! I'm so so tired of the thought of having to scramble around to get the house ready because someone is coming over to see it.....pray for me as I need it to endure this final leg to our new home.

The realtor is coming tomorrow to take pictures which means I'm trying to run around and get things organized and decluttered ( not that there is much clutter just to much for showing a house in my opinion) but that is a little bit difficult right now as I have developed some sort of vertigo and moving around makes it worse. It's pretty darn hard to clean the toilets while laying on the couch waiting for the room to stop spin--lol!!! I"m heading to the doctor after I finish this post and hope to have a better idea about what is causing all of this and will update my medical PRAISE REPORT as I'm believing to make soon.

In the mean time this is our prayer request about the "future house" we are wanting to find and buy.
No less than 3 bedrooms
an office if it's only a 3 bedroom
upstairs game room
three car garage
open floor plan
NICE NEIGHBORS!!!!
Big back yard

We have actually had the time to re-evaluate our wants and needs for a forever house and are willing to look in some neighborhoods that we once thought we didn't want to consider so that opens up more possibilities. We are also thinking of looking at some fixer uppers as long as it's in a good neighborhood. Before John was so tired of working on our Wagoner house he wanted a move in ready one and now we are thinking of finding one in need of some TLC at a great price....but move in ready is still wonderful too--lol!!

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Summer Fun!

Remember the summers of your childhood when you spent all day doing things that you never let your kids do now?-lol!! It seems today that our society has forgotten how to let kids be kids, but if you give them enough time and let them be, the kids will do what comes naturally.

This afternoon we had a play date and while not everyone could stay all day some did so we let them out to play in the sprinklers just like when we were young. NO fancy splash pool, slip and slide, or anything else just water coming out of the yard sprinklers( ok I admit growing up we didn't have a sprinkler system to water the yard--heck we never watered the yard as that just made the grass grow and make us have to mow it more-lol!!) and of course when you let three boys alone in the yard with water to play till they get "caught" this is what you get.........Why is it that boys + water = head to toe mud-lol!! They had a great time and got a good mud treatment so they should all wake up with wonder smooth skin--lol!! Hope your summer is being filled with wonderful childhood memories too!