Hi friends!! I sure have missed you!! Thank you so much for all the calls, messages, thoughts and prayers!  

If you haven’t heard, last Sunday night I ended up in the ER.  It is a long story so get comfy, but if you have a queasy tummy, you may just want to skip over this part. 🙂 

Last Saturday night we went out with some friends to celebrate my husband’s birthday.  When I got home I started throwing up and it didn’t stop until Monday morning.  Sunday afternoon I told my husband we had to go to the ER.  I puked out the car window all the way there.  We got straight to the front of the line because I was puking and screaming bloody murder.  It felt like someone was stabbing me with a knife in my stomach.  It was so scary and so so so painful.  It was the worst day of my life thus far (and hopefully ever).

After a TON of anti nausea and pain medication, they finally got me stable on Monday morning.  My mom and dad rushed to be by my side.  I was transferred to observation some time that night.  I had a panic attack and couldn’t feel my fingers so that whole time was just a big blur.  On Monday morning they put in a NG tube and once it was in right (the first nurse did it wrong), it suctioned out the contents of my stomach and I finally got some relief.  

On Monday afternoon I got a call from my GI doctor who I saw the previous Friday and she let me know that my test results showed I had C diff.  I wasn’t happy with this diagnosis, but grateful to have something to treat with medicine.  My mom taught my dad and husband how to play bridge and I watched.  It was a much needed distraction. 🙂

It was a VERY long week.  My mom, dad, husband, and friends took turns spending time with me so I was never alone.  I think they all slept less than I did last week.  My parents kept saying, “YOU are supposed to be taking care of US in the hospital!!!”

I got every test imaginable done while I was in the hospital.  The doctors were all pretty perplexed by my case as I didn’t have a lot of the typical symptoms of C diff.  I even had to drink barium for a special CT scan so they could see my intestines and what was going on down there.  I saw every doctor possible too from Infectious Disease to General Medicine to Gastroenterology to Surgeons.  I know I had the best team working on my case.  All the doctors and nurses at Vandy were truly amazing.  I could never do what they do.  

My sweet bestie, Lissa, stayed with me Thursday night and even braided my hair.  

Sneaking a popsicle. 🙂 

I have never seen my husband cry more than I did last week.  He and my parents were all so concerned.  He couldn’t stand seeing me in pain, which made me so so so emotional.  If this isn’t true love, I don’t know what is.  

The best part of my week was a surprise visitor in the hospital on Friday evening.  My sister flew all the way from Dallas to be by my side (despite having law school finals next week!).  I am seriously the luckiest person in the world. It was all caught on video Here!

I was clearly a little emotional ;).  My sweet girls.  Love them so so so much.  

Saturday was the best day ever.  After a few more tests that started showing some improvement in my blockages (the doctors knew it wasn’t just C diff… I have 2 blockages in my intestines and they are slowly healing), I got discharged.  Besides surgery, the best way to get rid of blockages is to rest the bowel (aka no eating or drinking) so I didn’t even have a sip of water until Wednesday.  It was rough.  I am slowly improving, but it will be a LONG healing process with a very strict diet and lots of rest.  I had never been more excited to see the sun shine.  It was a REALLY good day.  

I am at home now and so happy.  I am feeling better each day and taking it very easy.  I am hoping to be back to a somewhat normal life and schedule soon.  I can’t wait to get back to work (I know, I may be a little crazy).  

Backing up a bit to end this post on a positive note.  The Saturday before all the madness began, I headed to my mom’s pool with my little brother.  This is what this infection has done to my body.  I have lost 20lbs, but my stomach is super distended and bloated.  It has gone down a LOT since then, but we still have a ways to go.  (I promise there is not a baby in there.)

My sweet brother catching some rays. 

Then we put him to work. 😉

Such a great view. 

My mom and stepdad have a ton of beehives and make their own honey.  I got to see the process and how it is all done.  It was so neat!!

Their honey is like no other and it was cool to see it made!!!

That’s all I have for today!!! I love you guys so much!!! 

 

Hey guys!!  I hope you all are having a fantastic day so far!  I am feeling pretty good today, but I have more doctors appointments this week to hopefully figure out what the heck is going on!  

I want to switch gears a bit today because like most of you, I am seriously looking forward to summer (or at least spring!!!) with all the teases of warm weather we have gotten recently.  I have really been enjoying the short lived glimpses of nice weather so today I wanted to share a list of things that I am looking forward to at the weather heats up a bit! 

1. Long walks with my pups.  Don’t get me wrong, I do walk my pups every day, but it is brutal when it is cold.  If it is raining, you can forget it… Riley refuses to go outside in the rain. 😉 I don’t blame him one bit!  We live near a park and I love the days when we get to take a long walk at the park.  It is good for my pups, but equally as good for me.  
2. Reading outside.  I have been getting back into the habit of reading again lately and I just love reading a good book outside in the sunshine!  
3. Lake trips.  Between my parents and in-laws, we have quite a few lakehouses to visit this summer and I can’t wait.  There is just something about being on the water in the heat of summer that I just contain my excitement!  I have some of the best memories fro our lake weekends with friends and family and I can’t wait to make more this year!
4. Fresh flowers.  My mom and step-dad have a ton of hydrangea bushes and I love taking home fresh cute flowers for my kitchen table.  Fresh flowers make me so happy!!
5. The pool! My mom and step-dad have a pool that I frequently take over in the summer.  Give me a float and a book and I am good to go for hours. 
6. A tan.  Don’t judge me… I do wear a lot of sunscreen, but I can’t help but love a really nice summer tan.  I currently look like a ghost. 🙂 
7. County concerts. There is just something about country music concerts in the summer.  It is so not the same when they are indoors.  We bought our Taylor Swift tickets what now feels like forever ago and I can’t wait!  I have been wanting to go to one of her concerts for a long time now and it is finally happening.  Fun fact: I got to go on Taylor Swift’s tourbus and meet her in a Walmart parking lot before she was super famous.  This is back when I was in high school.  It is really neat to see how far she has come.  
8. Cocktails on the porch with my hubby.  After a long day at work, my husband and I love to kick back on our back deck with a drink.  It is a good time for us to catch up (sans electronics) and play cards or darts.  
9. Music in the park.  At a local park near us, every Friday night in the summer they have different bands playing and food trucks lined up to feed people.  We grab a blanket, our pups, a bottle of wine and spending the night relaxing and chatting while listening to some great music.  It is always a great time.  
10. Smoothies.  I used to be a big smoothie fan, but when the weather is cold, I am all about warm oatmeal.  I am excited to get back into the habit of making a cold smoothie each morning.  🙂 

That’s all I have for now!  Please fill me in on what you are most looking forward to this summer!! I want to know what your favorite activities or traditions are!! Share in the comments!!

Hi friends!  I really appreciate all the sweet get well soon messages.  You guys are so sweet.  I just wanted to pop in again to let you all know that I am still here and haven’t gone anywhere, but yes I am still sick.  

I have been fighting this this for over a month now and it has been hard.  I have missed a ton of work and just feel out of touch with most people in my life.  My mom, husband, and dad have been taking really good care of me.  I seriously don’t know what I would do without them.  My mom has taken me to doctor appointments and procedures non stop this last week so my husband wouldn’t have to miss work.  She truly is an angel.  As of now, I am home and SLOWLY getting better.  I had a lot of tests done last week including another CT scan, an x-ray, and two scopes and the doctors can’t figure out why I am still sick.  They have put me on a few new medications so we are taking it day by day at this point.  My stomach is still very unsettled, but I have been able to keep food down the last couple days, which is a big step from earlier this week.  

So there ya have it.  That is where I am at now.  I really appreciate all the thoughts and prayers and I promise I will be back to regular posting once I am healthy again.  Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!