The updating begins...

Halloween

I have to get the trick or treating pictures from camie...

Here are a couple pictures from the Petersons Halloween Party the Monday after Halloween

A Letter to my Princess

Dear Alaura,

It's occurred to me recently that you will always be my only first child. I think that there is a special connection between us that is due to this fact. You're the only child who for three whole years didn't have to share mommy and Daddy with anyone. You have been our whole world for those three years, and now our little world gets to expand in a wonderful way. I watch you everyday as you talk to Sydney in my tummy and tell her about the world around her and how much you love her and I'm amazed. You have a sweet pure love that can only be found in a child who hasn't seen the hurts of the world.

Sometimes I'm scared that when Sydney comes I wont know how to give both of you everything that you need. I hope that you never doubt or wonder how much I love you. Growing up I never wanted anything more than to be a wife and a Mom. And now that I'm living that dream it's amazing. I've experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows over the past five and a half years. But the truth is I wouldn't change any of it, because with out those occasional lows I wouldn't be able to revel in the amazing highs!

I'm so excited to watch you grow and learn new things and to continue teaching you new things. I love the way that you love to do everything that I'm doing. (sometimes it's a little hard, but I do love it) I'm so excited to teach you the things that my Mom taught me and the things that your Daddy has taught me. I also love watching you and Daddy play...he loves having girls even though he swore he would have all boys...He's an amazing Daddy. You've always been a free spirit and have done things your own way, and while sometimes it scares me to death, I really and truly love that about you.

I can't wait for the day to come that you are married and have little babies of your own who you love with all of your heart and cry for live for and would die for. I love you so much baby girl. (I know that I'm not allowed to call you that anymore, but you'll always be my Baby girl)

Love
Mommy

Silly Alaura

I haven't been updating about the funny things Alaura's been doing lately, and i know if I don't write them down I'll forget them. So here are two conversations I had with Alaura this week

While getting ready for a quick trip to the park with Camie and Leyna.

A: "Is Camie picking me up to go to the park?"

B: " Nope I'm going with you this time, so I'm going to drive."

A: "No Mommy you're sick, only me and Camie and Leyna can go."

B: "Don't you want me to go with you?"

A: "It's a weird park Mom, you wont like it"

B: "I wont like it?"

A: "Nope, It's weird for you. Only me and Camie and Leyna will like it...If you come the gates will close and they wont let you in!!!"

I guess she's gotten used to going places without me :( I did go, and it wasn't weird and the gates didn't lock me out either :) Although I was REALLY sore afterwards.

This is the second one I'm going to post about right now. I believe that this was in the car on our way home from the park that same day.

B:"Did you have fun at the park?"

A:"Yep, now I want to go to five stores!!!"

B:"Five stores? I think it's time to go home and take a nap, it's getting really late."

A:"I have to take a nap? But I'm not tired (said while yawning). Then I have a quest for you to do while I take my nap."

B:" A quest for me?"

A:"Yep, You must get three things for me. First you must get ketchup. Then you must get Milk. Then you must get Popcorn from Target for me."

B:"Popcorn milk and ketchup? I think we have those at home"

A:"No, you have to get them from the store while I'm sleeping."

B:"But I can't leave you alone at home while you're sleeping."

A:"It's OK Mom, I will let you!!!"

She's so funny. We have some of the best conversations!!! I'll try and remember to put them in as they happen.

I'm also going to try and do one more update with a few pictures today...Just in case by some miracle I get to have Sydney tomorrow. That way I can be caught up. I'll try to do it very slowly throughout the day. But for now i need to go.

I know you've all been wondering what's going on with us here...No, I haven't had her yet, I'm 38 weeks, huge and very sore!!! I went in on last Tuesday and I was 80% effaced,she's dropped to a 0 and I'm dilated to a 2....But my Dr still doesn't want to induce me :( I've been in ALOT of pain and I really think that she's huge. I have a Dr apt on Thursday and I'm hoping that He'll induce me then. But I'm not counting on it because I got in touch with my urologist...finally. (after 6 weeks of trying) He wont see me until FEBRUARY 24!!!!!!!! Which means that I have to be in this pain until at least the end of February. I really hope that it gets better, but I'm really really scared.

We're doing well otherwise. I keep waning to update with pictures, but I have a hard time sitting for very long. I'll try and do it soon though.

Third time's a charm...

Or something like that. Well, I haven't posted much lately because I had another kidney stone!!!! That's right. three in two months! I went in to the Dr because I was pretty sure that I had another one, they told me to take pain killers and try and see if I could pass it on my own at home instead of checking into the hospital again...so after a horrible painful night I believe that I passed my second stone!

On the brighter side though the Dr said that I'm dilated close to a 2!!! So at least I'm progressing finally! I have an appointment on Tuesday to see how I'm progressing, hopefully it wont be too much longer. She's growing so fast! I'm nervous she's going to be huge! All I know is she's in my kidneys more and more every day!!!

I'll do a Christmas post soon. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!!

Quick question

I have a quick question for those of you who've had a C-section. My Dr mentioned doing a c-section and i kinda freaked out and told him that I wanted to just be induced. But the more I think about it I'm nervous about the amount of pain that I'll be in due to the large Kidney stone residing in my left kidney. Even braxton hicks send my body into so much pain...So my question it this...What's the recovery like after a C-section? How would you compare it to a vaginal delivery? Would it be worth knowing that I'll be able to have her three weeks early vs two vaginally? I'm not sure what to do. Sometimes I feel like it's going to be fine, but others I'm not so sure. When I'm in a lot of pain i wonder about weather or not I'll be able to do this.

Soooooo much to catch up on...

Here are the highlights of the last 3 weeks of my life: (I'm working on a post with pictures, but it may take a while...you'll see why)

• First I have to state that on Saturday November 14th we bought a 2004 Honda Pilot!!! We love it!!!
• On Sunday we had Dinner with Eric's family. It was the first time in almost a year that the entire family was together scine Amberly john and Daphne were in town for a little while
• Thursday I finished the Craft Night and it went well. I think everyone enjoyed it and I'm soooo glad that it's over.
• We packed up and drove to Utah the day after the activity...we stopped in Las Vegas and played at the Balagio then ate at Denny's with Camie and Juan
• Alaura was wonderful on the trip!!!! (And the entire vacation)
• Saturday, We saw my parents new house it's cute and when they make the changes they want to it I think they're really going to enjoy it!!!
• We had pizza at my Aunt Vickie and Uncle Mikes beautiful home on Saturday night, which happens to be the same day we came into town ( I had the most delicious vegetarian pizza I've ever had in my life!!!!)
• Sunday we went to church with my parents and had Thanksgiving Dinner with my Mom's side of the family in My Aunt Sandy's newly renovated beautiful Kitchen
• Monday we hung out around town Eric and Alaura decorated Grammy's tree while I slept off what I thought was a bug. We had Family home Evening at Grandma and Grandpa Matthews house...we had a really good time playing wii. I really want to get one of those!!!
• Tuesday we all went to Salt lake to hang out. We hung out at the gateway mall and Temple square
• Wednesday we played around town again as I wasn't feeling very well and was starting have a lot of contractions and back pain. Eric and Alaura decorated Grammy's Christmas tree's. Camie, Juan, Leyna and us went out to Chili's with my cousin Ashleigh and had the worst service I've ever had!!!
• Thursday we celebrated Thanksgiving with my Dad's side of the Family. It was great to see everyone!!! Then we played at the park until 5 and saw Bolt at the movie theatre with my family. It was pretty funny.
• Friday I took my sisters and Mom shopping for a blessing dress for Sydney. I found a very simple one that I'm going to try and alter...I hope it goes well. Then we all went out to Chili's again (My whole family...16 of us)
• Saturday we went to Wellsville for Eric's Great Grandpa Lieshman's 100th Birthday!!! It was amazing to see him eating cake at 100 years old. We went fishing for a little while, but I still wasn't feeling good at all so we went back to his Grandma's house to relax until dinner. Then we all went out to Chili's (again) It was fun to spend time with his side of the family as we don't get to see them as often at I'd like.
• Sunday morning we decided to stay home from church because I was feeling really achy and tired and nauseous...Then my back started hurting horribly!!!!! Eric rushed me to the hospital...

Here's what happened over the course of three days that I was in the hospital (It's going to have a lot of details and way to much information)

Sunday

• 10:00 We get to the hospital and I'm rushed into Labor and delivery pretty sure that I had Kidney stones again
• 11:00 they give me a shot of Demerol in my Butt (It hurt really bad and I'm still having problems with it hurting)
• 11:15 they rush me in for x rays to see why I'm in soooooo much more pain this time. They told me that the pain killer should be working by now but it's not, I'm hurting worse and worse and the room feels like it's moving and I'm starting to hyperventilate. Then the throwing up begins. I'm heaving so hard that my back is cramping and it sends sooooo much pain into my kidney and through my entire body. They inject contrast into my IV so they can see in the xrays what my Kidney's doing.
• 12:00 After 3 xrays and 45 minutes the pain is almost too much to bear. They wheel me back into labor and delivery and the nurse wants to give me another shot of Demerol. Of course I tell her no because I'm having some kind of a reaction to it. So they gave me a shot of percoset (I think) and start a Morphine drip. I've never had one of these before, but with out it I don't think I would have made it. It never took the pain all the way but I wasn't in horrible pain anymore
• 1:00 The OB comes in to tell me that I have a 1 cm stone blocking fluid from draining from my kidney. It's too big to pass on my own. They're going to have to use ultrasound waves to break it up so I can pass it...BUT they can't do it while I'm pregnant!!!!! So they schedule me for a stint placement on Monday at 3:00 to allow the fluid to drain from my Kidney to my bladder. It'll keep my ureter open.
• 2:00 My contractions are less than 5 min apart so they gave me a few shots to calm them down.
• 3:00 they tell me to get comfortable because I'm not going anywhere for the night, so the only thing they can do is try and keep my pain under control.
• 6:00 Alaura and my family come to visit.
• 7:30 I get food finally
• 8:30 Eric takes Alaura home to sleep and I try to sleep with all the machines beeping, monitors strapped everywhere, the contractions and the blood pressure cuff going off every 15 min.

Monday

• My machines kept going off all night, Sydney would move and they'd lose her heartbeat and the machine would start beeping so they'd have to come in and adjust it. I was calling nurses in all night because of one thing or another not working right.
• 5:00 wake up and can't fall back asleep because I'm hurting and I'm getting hungry but I have to fast because I'm going to be put under soon.
  10:00 Eric and Alaura came to see me in the hospital and we decide that Eric needs to drive home because he's out of vacation time. So he heads to Grammy's house to start packing
• 1:45 they show up over an hour early to take me in for my procedure (and no one's there to talk to the dr after I wake up very druged)
• 3:00 I wake up in recovery in a lot of pain. The Urologist tells me that I need to follow up with a urologist at home.

Here's an illustration of the Stent placement

They insert it through the urethra into the bladder through the ureter and into the kidney. And it hurts really bad!!!!!!

• 4:00 They take me back to my room with instructions to wait for the anesthesia to wear off then I can go home. I keep telling them that I'm in horrible pain and they wont listen to me. When I get into Labor and Delivery I'm having horrible contractions and my kidney and bladder are spasming. They start pumping me full of pain killers and giving me shots to stop my contractions...I seriously thought that I was going into labor and felt like I was being ripped in half. I'VE NEVER IN MY LIFE FELT PAIN LIKE THAT!!!!!!!
• My sweet wonderful husband brought me flowers and a card. All of the nurses loved the smell of the flowers.
• They finally got my pain and contractions under control and Eric had to leave with Juan so they could get home in time for Eric to start work the next morning.
• It was so hard to let him leave because i was in so much more pain than I thought I would be in.
• It hurt sooooooo bad to go to the bathroom too!!! And my pee looked like fruit punch from all the blood in it. Infact it still does..

Tuesday

• After a very long painful night and a long painful day I was finally released at 6:00 on Tuesday evening. My parents took me back to my Grammy's house to recover and they kept Alaura.
• It was so hard not seeing Alaura regularly. I'd already been apart from her for 3 days and it would be another 3 before I was with her again

Wednesday

• Lots of pain and relaxing

Thursday

• Still lots of pain, but I decided that I needed to get out of the house so I went with Camie, Leyna and Alaura out to lunch in Salt lake with our cousins Liz and Ash. It was fun to see them but I was hurting a lot

Friday

• Packed up and left at 4:00 to drive home with Camie Leyna and Alaura. I'll do a separate post about the trip later because i really need to go lay down, But it took 15 hours and was painful but it felt great to be home and see Eric.

I'm still trying to recover and hurt ALOT but Sydney's great and I think my Dr is going to induce me in 3 or 4 weeks. I'll post pics soon