A JOYFUL NOISE

11. knowing that there's yummy food on the way 12. learning to ride a bike (with training wheels) 13 Big sister holds baby sister 14. Sweet cuddles for baby sister 15. Hugs from Paw paw 16. Hugs from Yee-yee We went to Richmond again this weekend to help out with the girls since my brother in law was in Las Vegas for a business trip. We had a great time there; Caitlyn continues to melt my heart along with Miranda. I love them to death and love to play with them although it's hard for me to play with them right now since my energy level is still low and my pain continues to spike up at times. I took bunches and bunches of pictures but these were the ones I decided to post. Enjoy!

I went into work this morning at 7am (1-1/2 hrs earlier than scheduled time) to put in some flex hours; mom came and got me to go see. Dr. Gampper for my appointment. He did notice the swelling especially around my nose and upper cheek/lower eye and asked how I was feeling. I told him that I still have quit a bit of pressure and felt uncomfortable and that I was still running a mild fever. He told me to monitor my temperature and to report back to him if it gets over 100 (esp if it reaches 101, which is a bad sign) because they may need to do more investigation into why I developed the infection (this happened one time about 5 yrs ago and I ended up having to go in for emergency surgery to see where the infection is internally). He thinks that somehow the circulation on the right side is low, but not to worry about it because over time and healing it will get better which will increase circulation. I also told him that last night, my operating site was oozing which he said is...

I wanted to give you a quick update about my health and recent surgery. Please continue to be in prayer for me. Last Monday through early Thursday, I was feeling pretty well. I mean, I was still in pain, but it was manageable with a lower strength of pain medication (the one I usually take for my chronic back pain). Anyhow, Thursday evening I started to feel horrible; I started to have severe pain again, and I ended up feeling a lot of pressure and heaviness and inflammation on my operating site. It was somewhat swollen but I decided to weigh it out. I was running a slight fever that day about 100 degrees. Friday and Saturday remained the same with a lot of pain, pressure, and mild fever. Sometimes it would run 99 sometimes it would run 101; but the pain medication I take has Tylenol in it so it help bring the fever down; I continued to monitor it and keep tabs on my temperature readings. I wasn't really expecting anything dramatic; Sunday morning I was fe...

Each day comes and goes. Each day I'm feeling a bit better and struggle with pain less and less. I'm now trying to take my strong pain medicine only during the night to ensure a better night's sleep. My main struggle right now is to get stronger, and stay healthy. I'm hoping and praying that my sneezes and cough is just allergies and nothing else. Over my recovery, I've received countless emails and cards from my church, especially people from my worship team. Growing up in a tight-reigned church, I never felt the love of God as much as I have felt since God has lead me to become a member at Covenant Presbyterian. I've never felt so much care from the body of Christ. Sure, I had family members from the church I grew up in, call or send cards; or maybe it was because I wasn't a Christian then; but I just feel so blessed and loved and cared for by the Body of Christ at my church. I was asked several times by different people at Cov...

This past weekend my parents and I went to Richmond to babysit the girls for my sister and brother in law so that they can celebrate their anniversary early. It was fun being able to spend a lot of time with the girls and it was fun. I felt okay during the weekend with just several periods of not feeling well (weak, tired, in pain, stomach upset); but overall it was really great and fun. Here are some pictures from the eventful weekend!! Caitlyn and Miranda with my Mom (their "paw paw) Me with my precious niece, Caitlyn .............Miranda wanted to play in the pack n play with her sister. It was so adorable to watch them interact! SUPER TIME!! It was a good time spending the weekend with them; I wish I were able to be more active with them, but I'll have plenty of time to have fun with my nieces!

Yesterday was my post op visit to my doctor. I got my stitches removed----and again---I had to get poked by a needle to drain pocket of blood that collected on my surgery site. Other than that, he thinks I'm healing well even with the swelling still present. He isn't surprised with the amount of pain I'm still in and thinks I should feel better soon. There's still a bit more he can do, but he didn't want to do too much on me at one time. I don't have to see him until early next year to see what progress I made and maybe discuss further surgeries for next spring or summer! hmm.. Over the week that I have been recovering, I have received so many cards. It's so special to me to see how many people care and love me. My friend Susan and her family sent me a get well gift. the gift was really neat....it was a medicine cabinet filled with "medicine" (candy), bandages (gummi band-aide), ice pack, tea bags, and a can of chicken no...

So, recovery I think is the hardest part about surgery. I guess surgery really brings about 2 things: the surgery itself and the recovery. Surgery is hard because you have to prepare for it, but recovery is hard to as you have to deal with pain and discomfort, and the feeling of tiredness, not feeling hungry, or the stiffness of your body. Anyway...........I'm slowly progressing. I'm eating a bit better---still just small and soft meals here and there; I'm still happy with just chicken broth and crackers. I guess it has enough calories in me to give me some energy throughout the day; but I guess my not eating my regular diet or my regular amount really has to do with pain associated with eating as well as the nausea from medication. My pain is still moderate and I'm taking medication for it which itself makes me have the Z's. Overall, I'm doing okay; slowly having more and more energy as days go by. I was able to carry on a 15 min conve...