Stone #4

Just when I thought that the kidney stone nightmare was over, I awoke this morning with yet another unpleasant surprise.

The good news is that the stone passed in roughly 9 hours and my mother in law is here to help take care of Anna. Having help taking care of my toddler has made a huge difference.

I still have the kidney infection and I'm still very much pregnant. Other than that, I'm happy to be alive and no longer suffering from the blasted kidney stone pain.

I hope and pray that this is the end of the stones!

False Alarm

Last night we rushed off to the hospital excited that I was in labor. I really was in labor and it lasted for around 5-6 hours. I was making good progress (dilating and effacing) when suddenly everything stopped. If I was just a few days further along, I would have been given drugs to kick start everything up again. I guess my doctor wants me to hold this baby in just a wee bit longer if possible.

We didn't know if the labor would kick up again after leaving the hospital so we stayed at my parent's house (which is much closer to the hospital). Although I did have regular contractions every 5-7 minutes throughout the day, the intensity and frequency didn't increase.

We hope the baby comes soon, and will let you all know once we have some exciting news to share.

I guess the baby likes to play tricks, as he sure fooled us today.

A Stay at the Hospital

Last night I was released from the hospital, and I am so happy to be home again. My kidney stone still hasn't passed, but it's almost out. I started to develop fevers on Sunday, and by 3am on Monday morning, my fevers shot sky high. The highest one we know of was 104. Levi took me to the nearest hospital for evaluation, where they informed us that I had a kidney infection and that I would be hospitalized for several days. They also informed us that it was possible that the infection would cause me to go into labor. I was having regular contractions at this point that were 5 minutes apart. They also said I was dilated to a 3. I was given some drugs to stop the contractions and an IV with 2 rounds of antibiotics. Once the fever broke and my contractions stopped, we made arrangements to get me transfered to a different hospital so I could be under the care of my OB.

I was in the hospital for two days, and released late last night. Today we were worried that I might be in labor, so once again rushed off to the hospital for evaluation. I really don't want to deliver a baby while recovering from a kidney infection, and the baby would be over a month early.

Everything is okay and I'm happy once again to be home in my own bed and with my loving hubby, Anna and Atticus.

I will never look at pain the same again. I feel that I have been through the most painful experience of my life. I hope the infection clears up quickly, as I'm anxious to get back to normal life.

Tummy Yuckies

Anna and I have had some sort of stomach flu for the last 5 days. The days have been miserable and long, and there were times when I thought the flu bug would never go away. Being 8 months pregnant made things a little difficult as well.

One of my new sweet neighbors who heard of our illness brought over some treats to make us feel better. It worked. I called Levi at work and told him about the fresh sweet rolls we received, and he said he would drop by the house on his way to school to try one. When he arrived home, he and Anna played for a few minutes and the sound of her laughter was like a dose of medicine. Suddenly the atmosphere in the house seemed to change. The sweet rolls, Levi being home (even for that short time), and Anna laughing was the best medicine I could have asked for.

This experience reminds me that there are a lot of people out there that are in desperate need of some of this medicine. Not the sort of thing a doctor can give, but the kind that we as friends, neighbors and family can give. It's a smile, treats, a visit, a phone call. As soon as this flu bug is gone, I will try harder to spread some of this good medicine around.