Olivia's Day in Pictures!

We started our day in front of Wolfson Children's Hospital here in Jacksonville! She really was in a good mood. I tried to prepare her (as much as you can prepare a 4 year old) for what was going to happen. I didn't really want her to have any surprises.

She insisted on wearing her pink hair band! And of course we had Baby with us!

Just like most medical procedures...there was a lot of w.a.i.t.i.n.g. going on! We had to be there at 9:00am for an 11:00am surgery that didn't actually happen until about 11:30am. In the mean time....she played.......

and played.................

and played some more. In the surgical waiting area, she played Wii bowling with a little boy that was there to have his ear tubes replaced (for the 5th time!).

Finally, she was pre medicated. In all seriousness...I think they should give the pre-medication to the parents instead of the kids. She was very calm...even before the silly juice. Mom was the one that was about to crawl out of my skin! If I didn't know better, I'd say she looked drunk!

By this time, she was very intrigued with the butterflies on the ceiling.

She really wasn't interested in sitting still. She moved from chair to chair while I bit off every nail that wasn't covered!

This is her hospital transportation....it's a wagonboat! Each kid had their own! I had to kiss her goodbye in this...then they wheeled my baby away!

Tonsils......GONE!!

My sweet baby girl.

Her first post op popsicle..........

.....of which she promptly threw up about 5 minutes later!

This is post op day one and she still hasn't had any pain! For this...I am so thankful!

Olivia Update!!!

Thank you all for your prayers! I can't tell you how good it makes me feel inside knowing that
when in need, my blogging friends will selflessly pray...fervently...no questions asked! Please know that I do the same for you (I really do!).

Olivia is doing really great! The worst part for me has been dealing with the heaviness of this day with only about 2 hours of sleep under my belt. Both Amelia and Olivia were up a lot last night. Finally...I just got up. Are you aware that NBC will replay the Olympic coverage after midnight? I had no idea! I was watching downhill skiing at 3:40am!

My beautiful little daughter NEVER cried once! Not even when they took her off to the operating room in a wagon shaped like boat! They had given her something that made her a little loopy....but she still never fussed or cried.

It probably only took them about 20 minutes to do all three procedures! The E.N.T said he had never seen such big tonsils on a 4 year old! Anyway, she did fine in the recovery room too. When they wheeled her in, she already had a sippy cup of apple juice. Once she finally started to wake up some....they gave her a Popsicle. She ate the whole thing.....and then promptly threw it up. So, we changed her clothes and the bed and then started all over again with giving her fluids.
About an hour later, we were on our way home!

Since being home...she has perked up considerably. She has had jello, vanilla and chocolate pudding, yogurt, apple sauce and chocolate ice cream! She tells me that "nothing hurts". I don't know how long that will last. Once all of the numbing medicine and anesthesia drugs where off....she might be singing a different tune! Speaking of which.....her voice sounds different! They told me to expect this...but it's somewhat strange. My little baby doesn't really sound like my little baby anymore.

Anyway...as of right now (8:58pm), EVERYONE in my house is sleeping! I suppose I should be getting there too.

Thank you again for praying for us!

Prayers please!

I'm asking for your prayers for my little Olivia! She is having surgery tomorrow morning (Monday, the 22nd)! She's having her tonsils and adenoids removed...as well as having tubes placed in both ears. Her surgery is scheduled for 11am (EST).

Today, I took her shopping for Popsicles, jello, pudding and some ice cream. I let her pick out her favorite flavors! She's excited that she will get to camp out on the couch in the living room for a few days. I'm hoping that she does not have a bad reaction to the anesthesia and that we can keep her pain controlled. They say that the first two or three days are the worst.

If you have enough time, please sneak in a prayer for me too.....I'm so nervous that I could crawl out of my own skin. As much as I hate surgery, I wish I could do this for her so she wouldn't have to endure it. But...she's only four and I'm told that the younger they are...the easier it is.

Thanks!

Post-Op Observations...

I sure am glad to be home! I think I feel pretty good, as long as I'm not moving! I spend most of my time, lounging in my recliner in a Percocet haze. I'm encouraged knowing that each day the pain will decrease and my mobility will increase. As I sit here and contemplate what has happened over the last 4 or 5 days, I've made some observations that I thought I would share with you....

Observation #1...When the physician who is going to do your surgery prescribes an anti-anxiety pill for the night before surgery so you can relax and sleep instead of going over and over in your brain every.single.scenerio.that.could.go.wrong..... take it!! DO NOT hesitate...just take it!!

Observation #2...When the anesthesiologist offers to put "a little something" in your IV right before they wheel you into the OR....say, YES PLEASE! This will mean that you won't remember them wheeling you in, you won't remember moving to the table, you won't remember the oxygen mask going over your face....nothing! This was awesome!

Observation #3...When you wake up from surgery and you are in the most excruciating pain you have ever felt and you keep pressing the PCA (patient controlled analgesic) pump and NOTHING HAPPENS (NO PAIN RELIEF)...something could be wrong.

Observation #4...When you continue to have no real pain relief and no one really knows why...but imply that you could just be a "pain wimp"....something could actually be wrong (see observation #3).

Observation #5...When the arm that your IV is in becomes swollen (read that..."double" in size), very red and inflamed....it could mean that the IV has infiltrated and that actually all of the fluid and PAIN medication that you've been given for almost 24 hours....wasn't actually getting into your veins...only into your arm (see observations #3 and #4) No pain wimp here!

Observation #6...When they remove said infiltrated IV and you beg for pain medicine..they will give morphine in the old buttocks, and when you feel relief for the very first time...you will feel like a totally new person and ask the nurse if she wants to dance!

Observation #7...Since they removed the IV, you won't technically be receiving any of the fluids that your body really needs....so they will try to start another IV in the same arm (cause they can't use my left arm because of the mastectomy) however, the arm is still really swollen and painful and they will try 12 (T-W-E-L-V-E)times to get the needle in! It won't work...so they will just give up and call an ICU nurse to try. She won't be able to do it either so they end up calling my oncologist to "ask permission" to use my portacath that was used for chemo! Now....why didn't somebody think of this 17 sticks ago!!!!!

Observation #8...When they finally move you to your room after two days in the "post op" area because they didn't have a bed for you.....you will rejoice and start singing Handel's "Alleluia". You will have your own tv...your own bathroom and your own nurse!!

Observation #9...Be ready with a pillow on your abdomen for the first time you cough! Trust me on this one.

Observation #10...Everyone will be very interested in your bowel habits after you've had surgery! Strangers will come to you and ask you if you've "passed gas yet" or if you've "had a BM yet". Don't let this shock you and be very careful how you answer as your hospital diet depends on it! My advice...lie if you have to, otherwise apple juice and jello is about all you're going to get!


Observation #11...When you're lying in your bed, with a nurse all to yourself, when they bring you your pain medication without asking, when they fill your pitcher with ice water and adjust your pillows, when you have free Dish Network and watch all these great shows you never get to watch at home, when you hear the quiet and realize this could be heaven....you will then sneeze....instantly reminding you why you are there in the first place and you will be so grateful to God for your life, your family......and morhpine.

I'm Home

Hi All,

I'm home! I'm glad that this part of my journey is almost over. I'm still in a fair amount of pain, but I know that each day it will get better. I will update as I'm able. Thank you to everyone who had prayed and supported us. Much love to you all.

Blogging break

I ask for your prayers as I take a blogging break until after my surgery on Tuesday the 17th. I will have Dan post an update. Your prayers of support and encouragement mean the world to me.

Health Update

This has been a very strange weekend. I have spent most of it trying to keep my anxiety to a minimum. For some reason, I am extremely nervous about my upcoming surgery. It's not like I've never had a major surgery before....let's see...

1. all 4 wisdom teeth surgically removed under anesthesia
2. 4 surgical D&C's after miscarriages
3. had my gallbladder removed laproscopically
4. 3 C-Sections
5. Mastectomy (unilateral)
6. Port placement

All of these procedures required general anesthesia (except for the C-Sections....I had two epidurals and one spinal). Anesthesia has different effects on different people, but for me....I get horribly nauseous. For most people, this isn't a big deal....however, when you have surgery that requires you to have stitches in your abdominal area.....throwing up becomes an issue all on it's own. With the gallbladder removal and the Csections....just taking a deep breath can bring excruciating pain to your abdomen! Sneezing, coughing or laughing can bring the same pain. Can you imagine having to throw up....and the pain that can cause!???
Another concern is that I won't be able to drive for 2 weeks! This is definitely an inconvenience. This will be more stressful for Dan and we will have to rely on friends and extended family to help us through this time.

I guess it's all about surrendering control. I have always been under this false assumption that I somehow have control over things in my life. I don't. Lack of control creates fear for me. Because of the cancer, I feel as though decisions are being made for me. I realize that these decisions that I'm forced to make (or, rather, agree to) are for my own good. Hopefully, they will allow me to be a mom and wife for many years to come.

Most days, I don't think about the realities of having cancer. I just live it. But when you take a close look, you realize that in some ways, I've become a robot. I go here for an appointment, I go do that, I take this pill, I have that scan, I have this surgery...blah, blah, blah. My oncologist is my new boss. I now understand why those in a more advanced stage of the disease sometimes just put a halt to everything! They say NO MORE! I don't blame them. My prayer is that I never get to that point. Sigh.

Anyway, I have my pre op workup tomorrow. Then, I have a whole week to sit and contemplate what life will be like without a uterus.

Friday Favorites and some Random Thoughts....

Today's (actually...tonight's) Friday Favorites are about a couple of magazines that I just love!!


1. Family Fun Magazine: I get a lot of my crafting ideas from this magazine. For two years in a row, I handmade our gifts for the family!

For Christmas 2006, I made these decorative napkins.

And for Christmas 2007, I made these cute Nativity scenes!

Several years ago, I made this chore chart for Nathan. I tweeked it a little to make it work for us...but it was a great idea! It's hanging in our kitchen.

I can't say enough about this magazine. Yes, I know it is a product of Disney, and yes, I know all the hoopla about Disney....but I said my peace about that subject here in this post.


2. Mater et Magistra - Educating the Heart and Mind in the Catholic Home: This is a wonderful magazine for Catholic families. It's perfect for home schoolers. Now, I am not a home schooling mom...at least not yet! However, it doesn't matter. This magazine is just full of spiritual nuggets for educating your children about the faith. After all, parents are the primary teachers of their children and I am so impressed with this little magazine. I got an email recently stating that my next copy is on its way and I am so excited!


3. Cure: Recently, I found a complimentary issue of this magazine in my Oncologist's office. I recommend it for anyone who has faced a cancer diagnosis. It is full of cancer updates on research and treatment as well as education. To me, it has been comforting to know that there are people out there who are tirelessly working to find a cure. We have come so far, but we have lots more to do.



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I thought I would add some "random thoughts" to this post. These are just things I've been thinking about and wanted to share with you.

• Why is it that every time I get into the car with the kids, they ALL try to talk to me at the same time, trying to talk over one another? I don't get this! I think the US Military should use 3 children under the age of 8 in a car...with all of them talking at the same time...as torture! You don't actually need water boarding!


• Olivia informed me this morning that when she grows up...she wants to be a ballerina and a doctor. I told her that I thought that was great and that she could be anything she wanted to be! However, I was curious as to why she didn't want to be a mommy, so I asked her. She replied...."Oh, cause I'm going to be that tomorrow, not when I grow up!" Okie Dokie!


• My hysterectomy has been scheduled for February 17th at 7:30am. It has to be an "open" procedure as a opposed to "laproscopic" because I've had three C-sections. Apparently having my babies this way created a lot of scar tissue which will make it necessary to open me up all the way! Lovely. This means 2 to 3 days in the hospital and a 4-6 week recovery period. Sigh! I hate hospitals!


• Yesterday, I caught Amelia scratching her hiney. Normally, I would overlook this but it appeared to be a true problem for her as she kept doing it for several minutes. I asked her what was wrong....she informed me that her "bottom is trying to eat her panties!" Well now, isn't that special!


• And lastly, I wanted to show you a picture of my very first camellia of the year! Isn't it gorgeous!!!