Recovering

As most of you know, almost two weeks ago, I had an emergency appendectomy and was hospitalized for 4 days. I wanted to fill you all in on what occurred and let you know that all is well in our home!

I woke up on that Friday morning and stepped out of bed only to discover that I could not move. This was extremely unexpected considering I've had very minimal pain and sickness during this pregnancy. I was having excruciating pain on the right side of my lower abdomen and could not walk. After seeing my OB that morning, I was sent to the hospital immediately. The pain was absolutely excruciating! I was evaluated by 3 different doctors and they decided to do emergency surgery to remove my appendix. They said that if my appendix ruptured, it would kill the baby immediately and place my life in danger. We prayed and felt it could be my appendix and agreed that they should go forward with the surgery. I was nervous about being under anesthesia and the stress the surgery would put on the baby, but I continued to have peace. They removed my appendix around 5pm on Friday. I woke up from surgery in even more pain! At that point, they realized that there was something else causing me pain besides my appendix.

I literally could not walk for 2 days. I laid in a hospital bed in one position absolutely afraid to move because the pain was so intense. Finally on Saturday at 4:30am, I woke up and told Nathan I had to move because the pain was unbearable. I stood up for the first time on Saturday morning, but wasn't able to truly walk until Sunday. I walked to the restroom a few times Sunday and walked the halls Sunday night and Monday morning to prove that I could go home. I was released on Monday. I was so thankful to go home! Being away from Judah was the hardest part of all of this!!!

I was in so much pain for about 5 days, but the pain lessened each day. The doctors think that my appendix may have been infected, but that I also had a degenerative fibroid on my uterus that was causing excruciating pain and bleeding. Both have been extremely painful, but the doctors have assured us that neither will not seriously hurt me or the baby. At this point, they say that I will heal from the surgery and return to a very normal pregnancy and birth. The baby's heartbeat is strong and I feel sweet movement daily! I am so thankful that both baby and I are in good health! It may take me some time to fully recover, but knowing that so many other things could have been behind this pain makes me extremely grateful!

We are so thankful for all of our family and friends who have helped us during this time. My husband's bosses even flew my mother in the Sunday after the surgery to help us care for Judah. The doctors have asked me not to pick-up Judah for 2 weeks so I have needed a lot of help while Nathan is working. We have been blessed to be served by the body of Christ! I love to serve, but being served is always a struggle for me. I believe God used this time to show me the joy of being served! Thank you to everyone who has prayed for and cared for us during this time! God has been faithful to provide for us in every way! There have been nights when I wanted to look forward in fear, but God has drawn me nearer and asked me to once again trust in Him. The Lord is good, His mercies are new every morning!

We look forward to spending Christmas (and Judah's birthday) with family and friends. This time of year brings forth so many wonderful memories! I can remember being in labor with Judah on Christmas morning and thinking of Mary birthing Our Savior. Christ became even more real to me as I pictured Mary crying out to God as she brought forth His Son into the world. She birthed a living breathing babe much like the one I held in my arms after hours of labor. It's not that I didn't know these things, but birthing a child on this special day made it all so real to me!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. I pray it is a time that your entire family will reflect on Our Lord!