And then the rain comes out again...and it storms, hard

So, after my lovely post about the sun coming out, we had some huge storm clouds circle our lives for a few days.

On Saturday we went to the ER with more pains (which I thought could be kidney stones) and they ran some tests, poked me, etc. and discovered that my recent pains were not kidney stones but stones of another kind....gall stones. They did an ultrasound of my gallbladder and apparently it was chuck full of stones...enough to make a pretty necklace.

So, we got admitted to the hospital, spent a long night in a small hospital room with a newborn, and I had my gallbladder taken out the next morning.

So, I am trying to recover from surgery, feed my baby, and survive. Rob is taking care of me, Lily, and somehow trying to keep up with school....the rain definitely came to our lives this week....we are hoping to start seeing the sun again anytime now.

The Sun Does Always Come Out....

So, no new kidney stone attacks....Lily slept in the swing last night instead of in my arms....she hasn't screamed a ton in the past 24 hours.....the sun does indeed come out! We are doing so much better today!
We are very grateful for her and how cute she is....I am glad for a relaxing Saturday today at home with my husband and baby....

The Little Lil-ster

Here are some pics of the little Lil-ster.

We are surviving....this week has been harder than most.

I have had three (that is right 3) episodes of kidney stones since Friday. That has made this week really hard.
My baby does the "I am being beat cry" (meaning she is screaming uncontrollably for no reason as far as we can tell) a few times in one day. Lily usually only sleeps if she is touching me--meaning I am holding her. The longest I have gotten her to sleep without touching me in about 2 weeks is about 45 minutes. Breastfeeding....another challenge to say the least. Breastfeeding while having kidney stones.......challenge doesn't even begin to describe how hard that is.

We are so grateful for Lily and wouldn't have it any other way. We love her and are happy to be parents and so grateful for her. I know it will get easier, so we are just trying to survive each day and appreciate how cute she is...even when she is screaming.

I would gladly give away my kidney stone problem to the first taker however. I would rather go through labor again than have another episode of kidney stones. I also discovered in the midst of my agony that the two times I went to the hospital (32 weeks and 38 weeks) I was having kidney stones. Having kidney stones also kicked me into contractions, but not labor. But my main pain problem was kidney stones and they didn't do anything for me at the hospital because they thought I was being woosy about the contractions.

Anyway, that is pretty much my life. If I am showered and the kitchen clean before noon it is a good day...today, we are already halfway there.

My Labor Story

So, you can totally skip this post if you want, but I needed to record it!

I woke up on Tuesday August 26 morning at 4:30 with some contractions. I started timing them using both cell phones (I would use Rob's to call mine and then look at the call log) and they were about 7 to 10 minutes apart. This lasted all day. Finally, at about 8:30 that night they got to 3 minutes apart--Hallelujah! So, we went to the hospital and got checked into maternity triage. The nurse came and "checked" me and I wasn't dilated hardly at all and it was extremely painful for her to check me because Lily was so high. So, after some rude comments from the nurse about not coming to the hospital unless you are in "real labor" (I thought 3 minutes apart for contractions was real!) we got sent home. I labored all night at home with contractions 3 minutes apart.
The next morning we were supposed to start calling to see if we could get in for an induction. We called at 5 and they told us to call back at 8am. So, I made Rob call right at 8 and they said we could come in. I almost started crying.....by this point I had been in Labor for 28 hours! So, off we go to the hospital again. We had to go to the check-in place and they had to bring a wheelchair in to take me up to be "induced" even though I was already in labor.
So, we get to the room, they give me some mild pain meds, check me and give me one round of gels. After one round of gels I was ready for Pit and for an epidural. They gave me an epidural and then the Pit......Gotta say, BIG FAN of the epidurals! I labored with the pit, the epidural and the big BEAN until about 5pm. My doctor came and checked on me and was very pleased with my progress. He thought it would take way more gels and pitocin to get me as far as I was, so I was glad about that.
At about 8:30 my nurse checked me and I was at an 8 so she thought it would be another 2 or so hours until I could start pushing and then 2 hours of pushing. I was gearing up for that. At about 9:00 or so she checked me and said I had progressed and asked me to try a push and see what I couldo do. I started pushing and right as I did my doctor walked back in and came running over and said "Hold on, she is coming out. Stop pushing." So, I had to stop pushing for a few minutes while he got his scrubs on, and a million nursery nurses came in. I pushed for a few minutes and then our friends called and said my mom was in the parking lot and could be up there in like 3 minutes. So, I stopped pushing again and we waited about 5 minutes for my mom to get in the room. Once she got in there, I kept pushing and out came Lily at 9:35pm. I only pushed for about 15-20 minutes total-----but after 40 hours of labor, I still feel like it wasn't "easy" which I have heard from some women because they pushed for a lot longer than 20 minutes!
I was very glad my mom was there for the last few pushes because she stood at my head to encourage me while Rob was holding one of my legs back. It was an amazing experience....not as bad as I imagined. The day I labored at home was way worse than anything that happened in the hospital. Anyway, we stayed at the hospital for the next 2 nights and got to bring her home on Friday morning...I was very glad to not be stuck in the uncomfortable hospital bed any longer!

So....we think she is cute!

So, we are first time parents-----and we think she is absolutely adorable.



She slept in her bassinet/play pen for the first time today. She has been sleeping in our arms for the past couple of days and the car seat before that. We are both getting better at the breastfeeding thing----I am very grateful for the breastfeeding helping my belly to go down----I got into normal pants yesterday! Yippee!
It is hard to believe how quickly and how much life changes so quickly when you have a little one to think about and worry about all day. It changes everything about life as far as I am concerned----all for the better. All of the pain and agony and sorrow that comes with being pregnant and delivering a baby are all worth it because of the terrific package that comes out at the end. She has enriched our lives, marriage, and family for the better. She has us both completely wrapped around her tiny little fingers.

Thanks to everyone for their love and support!

Pictures of the Little One

Here are some pictures of the little tike who is exactly one week old---in about 40 minutes. She is doing good---already surpassed her birthweight as of yesterday at the Pediatrician.
I have left the house twice since getting home---to the doctor yesterday and to Babies R Us today. Both went pretty good.
I bought an amazing little helper for nursing at Babies R Us-----she was having some serious latching problems and I found a solution! It was nothing short of a miracle----we all might survive this baby thing yet!
I am severely sleep deprived. I was very sad to see my mom go home yesterday but I am sure she was excited to get an uninterrupted nights sleep last night. It is hard being this far away from my family with my first baby----but we shall survive.
The people from our ward finally started coming by today and bringing stuff. Our home teacher was the most on top of it and brought us delicious cookies and pretty flowers the day we get home from the hospital. The Relief Society didn't kick in until today and a meal was brought in---nobody else has really visited us yet.
Rob started school on Tuesday---so he is gone all day and needs to actually sleep at night---so the little Lil and I hang out all night by our lonesome selves.
That is it----we think she is pretty cute, but I am the biased mommy!

Happy 3rd Anniversary

Today is our 3rd Anniversary----craziness! Nothing super special-----a one week old definitely limits the celebrating. Rob was at work all day. I was home with Lily and my sister all day. A lady from our ward brought us dinner. Rob went out and bought an ice cream cake. I gave him a Cabela's gift card.

Happy 3rd Anniversary! You are the best and are already such a great Daddy!

Here are some pictures of the progression of our relationship---see the above post for what we are doing now----cooing at our cute baby!