Audrey is down for a nap, so I should, or maybe I should say I HOPE, I have some time to sit and type and give you all an update on our lives.
Bec
I've been feeling kinda raunchy for,,,,ok, for months! I noticed in the last post that Doug said I had a surgery for endometriosis. That's true, but the original intent of the surgery was to remove a large ovarian cyst that was hemorrhaging badly.
Which, let me go into detail a bit to share a really cool story of God's protection. When I was sitting in pre-op waiting to see my doctor, I was feeling really badly. My Dr came and said he had tried to call us ALL day the day before and our phone was off the hook, unbeknownst to us. He wanted to call off the surgery because some pre-op bloodwork showed a abnormality in my platelets. But, the Dr figured since I was there, all decked out in my cool gown & all hooked up to IVs and such, that he'd go ahead with surgery as planned. Well, all said and done, the Dr was so glad he did. He said when they opened me up he discovered a large blood vessel in my ovary had ruptured and an "enormous" amount of blood had pooled in my back in the short time I had been laying on the operating table. The cyst was bigger than he thought and it had adhered to my abdominal wall, resulting in the need to remove a portion of the abdominal wall lining. He discovered the endometriosis was worse than he had origianlly expected. And so the Dr and Doug and I were so glad that the surgery was done when it was. Having waited longer, I would have been in some serious trouble. Praise God for working everything out the way He did. I am so glad our phone was off the hook that day.
Ok, back on to the the progress report. Healing from surgery is going so-so. A few days before that surgery I had been taken to the hospital by ambulance for an unusual migraine. It was worse than normal and I was unable to form words, to walk, and to see out of one eye. I was shaking uncontrollably and the doctors couldn't get my heart rate or blood pressure to regulate. All in all, it was pretty rough and it made going into surgery seem a little more precarious.
It's been 4 weeks since surgery. I have been having a hard time recovering. The doctors are a little baffled as to why I'm in so much pain and everything is still so inflammed. I go back to the Dr next week to monitor the post-op recovery and to do more bloodwork - in hopes to diagnose some type of platelet disfunction.
It's been so hard since Audrey has been born. Between the C-section, being so sick with a diseased gallbladder, having it removed, experiencing so much pain with the ovarian cyst, the migraine, and the cyst/endo surgery -- my life seems too eventful and exhausting. At times, it's tough to take care of little Audrey and this house!
Doug
Doug is floating on cloud nine. Why? We got a new TV and a DVD player. We got the DVD player from ourAWESOME friends Mark and Brooke. The TV was our Christmas gift from Doug's folks.
Although excited about the TV, Doug's greatest, most overriding emotion would be one more or frustration. With what you ask? Not having seen the final Lord of the Rings movie. The boy loves those movies so much. He dreams of the movies. Everyone has seen it, but him. In fact, his sister saw it on an IMAX and it just made Doug bitter. We do need to see it soon. But movies cost so much, our schedule has been swamped, and it's hard to be away from Audrey for so long.
Doug is getting over a cold. We both got one as a souvenir from spending the holidays in Nashville with my family.
Audrey
My little Audrey. I love her. I don't think I'll ever look at her and not be able to quickly recall in an instant the whole overwhelming story of how she came to be. About 100 times a day I look into her big round blue eyes and chubby cheeks and I see God's miraculous display of love, provision, and artisty. My daughter brings me joy in a whole new dimension. I see my God in a whole new way because of her.
Although she is the source of much joy, she can also be the source of much frustration. The little thing loathes taking naps. I'm serious. She can't fall asleep on her own in the bed during the day. And, if there is any hope of sleeping, she still wants to be tightly swaddled. That is getting harder. She's getting bigger and our little receiving blankets are not. She is 6 months old. We do the same napping routine everyday. And yet, she doesn't learn. The perplexing things are these - she never tires of screaming in her crib and falls off to sleep. She could go all day up there. The other odd thing is that Audrey puts herself to bed at night flawlessly. We put her in her bed while she is wide awake and walk out of her room, never to hear a peep. What's up with that?
Audrey give me lots of kisses. She is still obsessed with her mouth and has her hands up there or her tongue going crazy 24/7. She babbles nonstop. She rolls and rolls and rolls. She loves her dog, Sadie. Audrey will roll all the way across the room to get to her sleeping Dog. Audrey sucks on Sadie's legs and pulls her fur. The two are great friends. Audrey loves books. Could I be any happier with that? She can look at books in your lap for a good 30-45 minutes! Audrey's hair is growing at a s-l-o-w rate. That's sad, but my heart skips a beat when the light hits it and you can see much RED!!! Her diet has now included the occasional sweet potatoes and peas. YUMMY.
Doug and Bec
We enjoyed going to Nashville for a week right after Christmas. I have a fabulous family. A family that all loves God and a family that works hard at being a part of each other's lives. We all really KNOW each other. We like each other. We played tons of Mafia, we ate, and ate, and ate. Lots of good cooks in my family - especially my mom and my new Aunt Lindsay. At times I felt a somber moment come upon me when I looked around and was acutely aware of my grandpa's absence. I miss him so much. It's almost been a year and yet I still am not comfortable with the idea that I have no grandpa. No "crappa." I love knowing he's with his Father celebrating Christmas in glory this year, but I hate not celebrating it with him.
Medical bills have been flooding our mail box. Not cool. I love insurance, don't get me wrong. If anyone in the world needs it, it's me. I'm keenly aware each day of the blessing of insurance. However, having insurance doesn't make my life scot-free all the time. Our insurance was not accepted by the anesthesiologists for my C-section or my latest surgery. We are also paying for having Audrey, an ambulance fee, and ER fee, Audrey's heart monitor a few months back, Audrey's trip to the ER a few months back, Audrey's deductible once she became a family member, some pathology bills for me that insurance didn't cover, medications for me that insurance didn't cover....... Really I could go on, but you get my point.
Ok-wait. Don't think I'm complaining. Let me reiterate that I'm very grateful for our insurance. God has given Doug a good job. We are making it and we could be tons worse. I know that. What's my point? Not sure, I guess. I am just amazed at the amount of money we owe for doctor's bills. It's tight right now. REALLY tight. There were things we really needed and had hoped for for Christmas. We spent a bunch at Christmas and doing some repairs on our car. We haven't been on a date in months. It's just dumb. I am not a huge fan of living without things we need. Like who his though?!?! I dislike having to deliberate so much over every little purchase. We have been talking for so long about getting an exersaucer for Audrey. We just don't know if we have the money. Funny thing is, by the time we decide we should spend the money on it, she won't be of age to use it!!!