Monday, January 19, 2009

Hospital Visit

Last Wednesday during naptime I started feeling quite crampy and uncomfortable. My first scary thought was that I was having contractions and could be in pre-term labour. But when I felt my belly, it wasn't tightening at all. I decided to have a hot shower and by the time I got out the pain had localized in my lower back on the left side - the same place where I've had kidney stone pain in the past.

The kids (including an extra that I was babysitting) woke up shortly after and I let them watch TV and have the run of the house while I lay on the couch. Eventually the pain got so bad that I threw up. By this time Erik was on his way home with his sister Kristi who agreed to watch the kids while we went to emerg. From emerg, they sent me straight up to maternity. Despite the pain and nausea I was experiencing, I was excited to get my first look at the new Abbotsford hospital - especially the maternity ward. We weren't disappointed!

They checked me for dilation and hooked me up for a non-stress test. Thankfully, baby looked fine and was still very active. But I had to wait a bit for them to get doctor's orders for pain meds and by that point I was feeling very uncomfortable. They finally gave me a morphine injection and it knocked me out for about 3 hours. They let us go home, but said I could come back if I needed more pain management or if I became dehydrated. At about 2 am I woke up again feeling very uncomfortable and nauseated. I was showing signs of dehydration as well so we decided to head back in. Thankfully, Rosanna was on stand-by to come watch the kids which was helpful!

They admitted me for the night and brought me to my hotel, er... hospital room. Seriously though, it was beautiful. A huge new room with a big window facing towards the mountains and my own bathroom. I felt like I was on vacation :) They told me they had put me on the quiet end of the ward - away from the labouring mothers and crying newborns. And it was quiet - and warm and peaceful. Once I had the morphine I just slept and slept. Mid-morning on Thursday I passed a stone that amazed even the nurses with its size. I also noticed that the kidney pain was gone. It felt so good to know that we had found the culprit of all the pain. They decided to send me home and I've felt fine every since other than being more tired than usual.

Anytime I try to relax on the couch, I get bombarded by both kids who want to snuggle with me. There's barely enough room for me and my belly, let alone all four of us!


In other news, we decided last week to put Keziah's mattress in Micah's room. Micah has been complaining about feeling scared and lonely when we put him to sleep - nothing we haven't heard from him before, but we figured it was as good a time as any to put them in the same room. It has been a bit interesting though and they have had some late nights of "playing" together. So we started putting Micah down first since he is ready to sleep by 7 pm. He usually falls asleep quite quickly and then we can put Keziah down. Keziah jabbers to herself a bit as she settles down for the night, but Micah can sleep through all her talking (and her night crying), so it seems to be a good system. I realized this was my last big thing on my "to-do" list before the baby comes. I've moved Keziah out of her crib, potty-trained her, and moved her into Micah's room - all with 2 whole months to spare! Maybe I should've spread it out a bit more so I wouldn't be twiddling my thumbs for the next 9ish weeks... Oh well, I still have to get out the baby gear and newborn clothes so that should help pass the time :)


All rosy-cheeked after her nap:


Picking up on Micah's bad habits...


Thanks for your votes on Ju-Jube's gender and birthdate! So far the boy votes are definitely out-numbering the girl votes. When I was preggo with Keziah, the girl votes out-numbered the boy votes, so we'll see if the majority is right once again. One more thing that makes me think this is a boy is that I'm starting to swell like I did with Micah. I got a bit swollen with Keziah but with Micah I was unable to wear my wedding rings and regular shoes. I had to wear flip-flops for all of November and December. Yesterday my rings felt extremely tight, so I think I may have to leave them off until baby is born and my water retention returns to normal!

17 comments:

Lori said...

Glad you're feeling better James...:)

KDees said...

I was waiting to hear about that unfortunate hospital visit! Very glad to hear you're feeling better and hope the tiredness gets a bit better too! I can't believe how fast Keziah potty trained! Is she all done? No accidents? WOW! You really are on top of it! :0) Good for you, Jamie! Enjoy these last 9 weeks, snuggling on the couch with your TWO kidlets! Can't wait to hear who's baby pool guess is right! :)

Jamie said...

Karen - we're not totally out of the woods with potty-training yet. Keziah never wets her pants, but we still have issues with going #2... I'm not worrying about it too much at this point but hopefully it will come soon :)

Trev and Rebekah said...

I think I'll be emailing or calling in a few months for wisdom from you (a mother of 3) when it finally comes time to fully potty train on switch my kiddo to a bed.
See you tomorrow! We already have some fun ideas to do with the kids.

Wenona said...

Kidney stones?? Ouch! Glad that it is all over now.
Ahhhh, water retention - I can totally relate! I look back at my pictures now and just laugh, it was so ridiculous! But it sure wasn't funny at the time! lol.
You still look fantastic and I can't wait to see the newest addition in a few weeks!

kelly ens said...

so glad you're feeling better now. not really the ideal way to get a sneak peak at the new hospital, but at least you got to enjoy it a bit! :)
VERY cute pic of Keziah's rosy cheeks :)
and congrats on the room transition for Keziah. Wow - major accomplishments so far in advanced before the baby comes! that is awesome! Then you aren't trying to have major adjustments before baby is coming; this gives Keziah plenty of time to get even more deeply into these new things :)

The Keowns said...

wow, kidney stones again. That is crazy. Glad that is done with.
I remember how excited I was for the new maternity ward when I was pregnant with Liam. It was such a nice change and I didn't mind staying there.
drink lots of water and green tea, it helps with the water retention. I never seemed to swell much and if I did I would watch my sodium intake as well....but somedays I don't think we have much control of it and it will all go once the baby is here.
#2s for Liam took a good couple months as well. I remember One day he did it and he was fine ever since.

Anonymous said...

oh my! i heard that kidney stones are VERY painful....so sorry!
and i'm glad to hear that you're feeling better!
and i'm pretty sure you know what to do with your spare time:)

enjoy a lot of RELAXING days!
leslie

Bonnie said...

Scary stuff! So glad that everything is OK and that you're feeling a bit better. Praying these last 9 weeks go smoothly!Can't wait to hear the big news of the little one's arrival!!

Amber said...

hee hee. i remember those days of trying to fit a baby belly, hailey, jayda AND me on the couch. it's much easier to position the 4 of us now :) :) i'm VERY excited for you to have this baby. it's crazy and yet completely amazing to add that 3rd kid to the family.

i'm so sorry to hear about your kidney stone experience. i am glad that that is OVER with now and you can rest up and get better. that hospital does sound lovely though!!! hope you are having a good day jamie!

Amber said...

oh, and i was going to mention...i never really noticed any water retension with any of my 3 pregnancies. do you think it's a boy thing??? (add that to the list of 100 ways to tell the gender...).

rachel joy said...

Glad you're feeling better! Take it easy, mama.

Kirsten said...

Yikes! So glad you passed the stone and were able to come back home and rest. Praying for you and your family today.

Anonymous said...

Whoa Jamie - that sounds totally scary! I'm glad you are fine, and that you were able to pass that stone so it will no longer plague you. Praying for you guys, and baby too! :)

GSFALK said...

We were praying for you those days. I love discovering your updated blogs. What a great invention!

Nichole said...

Sounds miserable! So glad that nasty stone is gone and that you are feeling better.

Janelle said...

i've been thinking about you! how have you been doing???? i'm praying for you tonite babe!