Hospitalization - Day 8 (Part II)

"It's like a tv show... we need to talk about common interests." -Rachel C. on why she shared my blog with another co-worker.

I am so glad that my life is like a tv show. As if I haven't heard that before. I'm glad that I get to be the star of this specific tv show and that so many people are entertained by my adventures. I really do enjoy letting everyone know what it is like to be perfectly healthy but stuck in a hospital room for a few weeks. I can't wait until I can share our little girl with all of you when she's born (but I can of course wait until the 22nd because she needs this extra cooking time)!

Deb had a sore throat, so had to wear a mask.

Deb, Grandma Ibeling, Grandma Feikes, and Esther came to visit today. They brought lots of gifts and we talked for awhile and played Fact or Crap (gift from Pam and Teresa). We then went to one of the cafeterias for lunch. It was delicious and best of all, it was not from the menu so it didn't have to be low in fat and sodium.  I also took the grandmas and Esther down to the newborn nursery and we looked at the babies through the window. They are so tiny! Sometimes I purposely go to the nutrition room by the nurses desk or go out to see the nurses rather than waiting for them to come down to me just so I can look at the babies. I know that Madelyn will be hooked up to machines and need extra help when she is born, but I am just so excited to be able to hold my little girl in my arms. I love seeing the moms in the newborn nursery with their babies. It makes my heart leap for joy!

Grandma I, me, teddy, Esther, Grandma F

Deb and I

When we got back from lunch, I was informed that Madelyn and I only have to be monitored twice a week now (Mondays and Thursdays) instead of every morning. We're doing so well that they are decreasing our sessions. They will still monitor if I have pain or if she seems to be decreasing her movements though.

Afternoon snack.

I was not completely lazy today. I actually fixed some reports, entered some notes, completed a discharge, and worked on a treatment plan. Yep, that's right, I was productive. More work tomorrow on treatment plans and reports, but I felt like I accomplished quite a bit today. I also found time to talk to some coworkers on the inter-office message system (Surprise, surprise!).

Ah, relaxation. Blanket and chocolates courtesy of Pam and Teresa. 

Renae came up and brought me clean laundry (Yay!) and a cupcake (Snickers!) from the new Scratch that opened in Coralville. Unfortunately the kiddos couldn't come because Kate is feeling a little under the weather. Renae couldn't stay super long because she had a spelling test to study for. I told Renae that she should just sound out the words and that I'm sure she'll do fine, but she insisted that she go home to study.

So delicious!

I forgot to mention that we saw L, the Entertainment Lady, just before lunch today. I didn't make it to craft group, but did stop by and talk to two of the ladies that I met last week at our educational group.

Flowers from Deb.

Once again tonight, the nurses (led by B again) came to play Cards Against Humanity. They are slowly starting to warm up to the idea of having filthy minds. I love it so much. Tonight, we got six nurses to play! This is becoming an every night activity. I apologize in advance to all the other patients for all the nurses disappearing around 8:30 or 9 pm each night so they can play the card game for horrible people in my room. Hope there are no emergencies at this time of night!

And this is why I'm becoming the most liked patient.

Bad news bears. My nurse tonight, NL, went to flush my ivs and my left one was leaking. She had to pull it out and then Mo (the anesthesiologist that put my left iv in last time) came and put a new one in. Two times in a row, he has not spilled one drop of blood. Mo is pretty much just awesome. He gave me his schedule (Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sun) so that I know when he can come back to replace ivs for me. Definitely my favorite anesthesiologist. Is it weird that someone would have a favorite anesthesiologist? It would be really great if he were the one that was present for my surgery on the 22nd.


Daily Info
Date: November 5th
Gestational Date: 25 weeks, 5 days
Visitors: Deb, Grandma Feikes, Esther, Grandma Ibeling, Renae
I am grateful for: cupcakes. How can a person not love cupcakes? I feel like Madelyn will love cupcakes from day 1, even though she won't be able to eat them for a few months. I even bought her an outfit that includes a onesie covered in cupcakes.

Goal accomplished!

Hospitalization - Day 8 (Part I)

Good morning!

So last night after I published my entry, I continued to have a migraine. The nurses and doctors decided that to finally get rid of the migraine, they would give me reglan and benadryl through my iv. They started at 10:30 and it went until like 4 this morning because the third shift nurse forgot to come and change the bags. Meanwhile, I slept drugged but crappy. The drugs made me feel like I lived in a different realm where everything was backwards and upside down. Also, because the 2nd shift nurse set it up so that I would get saline in between bags if the nurses didn't get in here to switch it right away, I had to get up (all drugged and woozy) to use the bathroom twice. I didn't call a nurse because they can be super busy around here, especially on 3rd shift (one of the other ante-partums said that she thinks they only have two nurses at night for the whole floor). I thought it was previously difficult to sleep with ivs because they get hooked on pillows and blankets, but sleeping while tethered to a machine was even more difficult. there were two times where I about choked myself with the piping. Even after they released me from the machine, my weird dreams continued for a couple more hours.

I ask the staff physician (Greiner) this morning about another ultrasound and she said that it is unlikely that I will get another one before Madelyn is born. I think it is kind of weird. It is like they want the surprise of opening me up and not knowing what to expect. The nurse midwife yesterday said that for every day that I can keep Madelyn safe in my uterus, it is (on average) two less days in the NICU.

This morning was weigh and urine day. Apparently they do this every Tuesday morning and I just happened to miss it by a few hours last week. They have a pee catcher for the toilet, but still made me pee in a cup. What kind of crap is that? Pregnant ladies should never be asked to pee in anything smaller than a lake because it is already hard for a lot of girls to pee in a cup and then you add a pregnant belly and a distrustful bladder to the mix.

Anyway, I succeeded and then was rewarded with being weighed. My plan to gain back all the weight I've lost during my pregnancy plus the 15 pounds I was told I could gain when I got pregnant is slow. I've only gained three pounds in the last two weeks. Disappointing. I was hoping they would have to roll me onto the operating table. Sadly, it looks like I will not be waddling accidentally before the baby is born, although I might waddle on purpose, just to be able to experience it in case this is my only pregnancy. (Also, who doesn't love a good waddle?!)

Also, I noticed that my arm looks like I have been not been making good choices. Not exactly my best look, but thought I would share with all of you. I should mention that my wrist looks similar as well.

Ouch.

I opened the Day #8 gift from Kelsey, which was actually for Maddie and not me. I still tried it on, despite the note that said it wasn't for me. Maddie is going to get plenty of things that are new to her, she'll just have to accept that I wore her tiara before her.

She's already a princess and she's not even fully grown.

I am now awaiting my visitors from Ackley. I should probably end this blog so that I can get dressed, so I don't look like the slob we all know I am, when they arrive.

I will fill in the usual daily stuff below, later.

Hospitalization - Day 7

Hey ya'll!

I know people were getting used to two entries a day and then I started to only post one a day and some have filed complaints about the decrease in information from me. If today had gone differently, you might actually have gotten two entries. But alas, it is only one again today.

Woke up to doctors asking the same questions as always. Then went back to sleep so they would get to wake me again in another hour. I know they enjoy waking me twice in the morning and I don't want them to miss out on all that fun. No news from their rounds. The big thing that happened was that the staff doctor (Greiner) noticed my ongoing game of Cards Against Humanity and even read some of the cards out loud! I explained the game and she said something like, "Well, I guess I'm not in Missouri anymore!" I tried to explain that my family has a sick (but awesome) sense of humor. She and the other doctors did laugh about the ones on my board though which made me feel a little better. The last thing I need to do is offend the people that will be cutting me open in a couple weeks.

I ate breakfast, including toast with Ashley's fabulous apple butter atop. I talked to Megan for awhile on the phone, but then it was time for monitoring. Madelyn participated very well and it didn't take us long at all. I took a short nap and then my mom called for her daily update on my life. I ate my lunch and realized that it is really easy to get tired of eating the same things morning, noon and night every day. Especially when it is cafeteria food and purposely low on fat and salt. I thought that pregnant ladies were supposed to be able to eat whatever makes them happy. Apparently the UIHC was not notified of this. Even the saltine crackers they send with my soup has "unsalted tops". How can they even be called saltines without salted tops?

The cafeteria is getting fancy with how they plate up my grilled cheese.

This afternoon I got a sudden tightening pain on my left side, pain in my lower back and a migraine all at once. I took my migraine medicine and then they monitored Madelyn again and she was a perfect lady and participated wonderfully again. Considering she participated twice in one day, she probably won't want to be monitored again for the rest of our stay. The midwife and med student came and saw me a few times to make sure that my pain wasn't getting worse, but let me sleep for an hour. My migraine went away partially but I still have a headache now, 7 hours later. I have taken the migraine medication that my OB/GYN in Waterloo had prescribed to me and Phenergan and still can't get rid of it. The pain in my side has slowly improved and considering how hard Maddie has been kicking today, I have to wonder if it wasn't just a really hard kick that caused my body to react that way. (Not likely, but I like to imagine her becoming a famous soccer player.)

What I'm watching every day at 4 pm.

Kelsey showed up and hung out for a few hours. We watched Ellen (by the way, the guests for the next two days will be awesome: Taye Diggs, Matthew McConaughey, Ashton Kutcher). We ordered Pizza Hut and watched How I Met Your Mother. SPOILER ALERT! How awesome was the thing that happened at the lighthouse? Amazing. Also, I love the relationship between Lily and Linus. Hilarious! Kelsey left after HIMYM because she was concerned about walking out to the parking garage on her own.

Little sis and I.

I also informed Kelsey that the longer I stay here, the more I smell like hospital. It gets exponentially worse daily, despite how much I shower and how long I scrub myself. I am starting to become concerned that I will continue to smell like hospital even after I go home.

Today was a "bear pants" kind of day.

After Kelsey left, my night nurse, B, came in and also noticed the Cards Against Humanity on my white board. She said it is an awesome game and that she wants to buy it to play with her kids for the holidays. She then suggested we play with the nurses tonight. We chose the card out of the box that says, "Tonight on 20/20, what you don't know about ______ could kill you." I played too with the four nurses that we got to play. Mine was "the placenta" which probably won't be funny to a lot of people, but considering my current situation, made me laugh pretty hard. B's answer was not quite as blog appropriate as mine was. Despite a splitting headache, I had some great laughs with the nurses when I saw their choices. At least three out of the four are looking to buy it now. I should get some sort of pay out for how many people I have introduced to Games Against Humanity that have already bought it.

The nurses and I playing Cards Against Humanity.

Daily Info
Date: November 4th
Gestational Date: 25 weeks, 4 days
Food: Breakfast: omelet, pineapple, apple slices, toast and chocolate milk. Lunch: grilled cheese, pineapple, apple slices, tomato soup. Supper: Pizza Hut 3 cheese stuffed crust with ham and mushroom and cheese breadsticks. Snacks: Sour Patch Kids
Today I am grateful: For Madelyn who keeps me entertained with her random kicking and messing with the nurses.

Today's plan was only halfway accomplished. Still have the headache. 

Hospitalization - Day 6

Hello all loyal readers!

Today started off pretty tame. All the usual stuff: rounds, vitals, and morning medications. I was still not really able to sleep in, despite having an extra hour between going to bed and rounds this morning. I remembered to order breakfast! We did monitoring and Madelyn did really well being tracked but her heart rate dropped off once and another time she moved and the monitor only picked up my heart rate. We ended up being monitored for over an hour again. After the monitoring, the nurse wrapped up my arms in saran wrap so I could take a shower and it sort of made me feel like leftovers.

Dan took a nap this afternoon while I listened to music on my phone and computer. One thing I love about Pandora is that my stations are constantly introducing me to new musicians that I might not run across otherwise. Today, that singer was Ben Rector. I was listening to my Pandora when I heard his song, "When a Heart Breaks." Pretty awesome song. I looked up the lyrics and then listened to the song again on youtube. Later, when Dan woke up, I played it for him too.

Dan worked out this morning at the Fieldhouse and then when for a run this afternoon. It kind of makes me feel lazy when he exercises so much, but I shoved any feelings of laziness down with a carton of milk and a pack of Swiss Cake Rolls.

The Masbruchs with me.

This afternoon we went to church in the hospital and Steve, Renae, Kate and Cael joined us. There were only 11 people total at church but it was a good service. Cael kept wanting to touch my ivs. He seemed fascinated by them. After church they all came up to my room. Cael played with the Lego VW bus Dan and I built, Kate played with Maddie's teddy bear and Steve wrote on my dry erase board.

Steve's addition to my white board.

Maddie's new outfit from Aunt Renae

Renae and Steve participated in the ongoing game of Cards Against Humanity. They brought a new outfit for Maddie too.

My personal laundry lady. Check out her extra legs and arm.

Renae was sweet enough to take my laundry to wash, so I don't have to keep wearing the same clothes day in and day out. 

After they left, Dan and I were able to get a tour of the NICU. The charge nurse was really nice and explained what will happen with Madelyn on the day she is born and all the machines that she may or may not need.

Trenton was nice enough to come and get Dan (and bring me food) so that Dan could get home and get some rest before work tomorrow. Trenton and Dan both got me cheese balls today and Trenton also brought me a Ghirardelli Mint Cookie bar. Yummy! Trenton and I also discussed some of the shows that we both watch.

Dan and Trenton

Trenton teaching Dan how to fly. 

Daily Info
Date: November 3rd
Gestational Date: 25 weeks, 3 days
Food: Breakfast: omelet, cottage cheese, apple slices, pineapple. Snacks: Smarties, Swiss Cake Rolls, Fiber bars, cheese balls x2. Supper: grilled cheese, tomato soup, pineapple, cheesecake and chocolate milk.
Visitors: Steve, Renae, Kate and Cael, Trenton
Today I am grateful: for my husband who keeps me laughing everyday. I couldn't be concentrated on my health here if he wasn't taking care of everything at home for me.

Hospitalization - Day 5

Aloha!

Sorry that there is only one post today. It was the start to my first weekend at the U of I. They only did one set of rounds today and they were around 7:30 am. At 9:30, the nutrition department called and asked if I was going to eat breakfast and I ordered enough food for almost three people. You're not supposed to order food for anyone but you, the patient. However, if your eyes are bigger than your stomach, what can they say? So, when they called me this morning, my eyes were huge. :-) 

The hubby and I.

During monitoring this morning, the nurse sat here the entire time and joined Madelyn in her game of Hide and Seek. It only took us about 30 minutes. I'm thinking at this point, my stomach is just becoming used to having ultrasound jelly all over it. The worst part is when they get it in your belly button. Nothing like scrubbing between the wrinkles inside your belly button trying to rid yourself of jelly. Luckily, pregnancy helps you with this by stretching your belly button and trying to push it flat so you don't even have a belly button at all.... Ah, the gifts of pregnancy. 

I started to get a migraine this morning. It seems like these are coming almost daily now. I can't tell if it is from the amount of time I stare at my television and computer or from the interrogation lights they place in the room. I like that they offer three types of lights in my room: a spotlight above the bed, super dim lights that belong in a club, and the lights that make you want to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I have to take my migraine medication from home because they don't carry it in the pharmacy here. The only problem is that I have 7 pills left. Looks like I will be switching to something else pretty soon unless the headaches stop by some miracle. I got another migraine tonight that came with nausea. Luckily, it was close enough to bedtime that I took my whole slew of medications and am preparing to go to sleep. 

A glittery puzzle with pandas and 3-D jewels.

Dan and I did a puzzle and built a Lego VW bus today. It was fun. We took the puzzle back apart but the bus gets to stay together. 

Our Lego bus.

I got a new iv in my right arm today. They took it out of my hand because it was getting painful (and to me it looked puffy like the fluids they were flushing it with were just sitting below the skin). The nurse said they might need to put a PICC line in due to still having almost three weeks to go and how many ivs they have already put in. The anesthesiologist today was not a very social fellow. He made me do some of the work and was crabby with the nurse too. Even she said that he is not her favorite. Her favorite is probably Mo who I saw yesterday and was a lot happier of a guy. They best thing about having the ivs in my arms is that I can now return to washing my hands. Nothing like peeing every 20 minutes and being told that you can't wash your hands. I am not one of those people that can go into a bathroom without washing my hands, no matter why I'm in the bathroom. Please don't throw up after reading that I haven't been washing my hands for a few days, I HAVE been using hand sanitizer and more often that I even wash my hands normally because I feel so very dirty all the time. 

We watched the Iowa-Wisconsin game today. By watch I mean I watched and Dan played on my computer and ignored the television. We also did some people watching out the window. Some people get really nicely dressed up for the game. I saw a lot of black and gold to my joy. The game was really good for the first half but turned disgusting awful quickly. I didn't have time to grieve the loss because I had very special visitors this afternoon... THE GOBLES!

Me and my cousins, the Gobles.

Ashley, Shaun and I

Shaun, Jeff and Ashley showed up and entertained us with all the words that Shaun has learned and awesomeness in general. Ashley brought a bag of hospital necessities. Movies like: Finding Nemo, Sister Act, Anchorman, Elf, Wall-E, Princess Bride, Best of SNL: Will Ferrell and Hairspray. Also mini Crunch bars, apple butter and pickles. Shaun loves Dan. I have joked since Kate was a baby that he is the baby whisperer and he further proved that today when Shaun became his best friend pretty much right away. 

The baby whisperer with his new best friend.

I also paid some bills this afternoon. I packed Dan's checkbook so now he can bring bills down on the weekends and I will pay them and then send him back for him to drop in the mailbox. As a reward for paying the bills, Dan went to the cafeteria and got me cheese balls. Sweet, greasy, cheesy, goodness. 

After the Gobles left, Dan and I tried to take a nap. I succeeded, poor Dan did not. I was woken from my nap when the nutrition department called to ask if I wanted supper. It is as if they have been reading my blog posts and noted the fact that I forget to order my meals. I once again ordered too much food for myself and my husband was forced to finish it. :-)

Daily Info

My plan today FAILED. Cute Panda that Dan drew.

Date: November 2
Gestational Day: 25 weeks 2 day
Weather: Mostly Sunny
Food: Breakfast: french toast, omelet, apples, pineapple, chocolate milk. Lunch: fiber bars and cheese balls Supper: grilled cheese, tomato soup, cottage cheese, apples, pineapple, cheesecake and chocolate milk.
Visitors: Dan and the Gobles: Ashley, Jeff and Shaun.
Entertainment: Shaun, facebook, Iowa game, continued playing of Cards Against Humanity.
I am grateful for: anesthesiologists who can put in ivs without making them painful.

Hospitalization - Day 4 (Part II)

Hola!

Mom came to see me this afternoon and we did People Puzzlers. Madelyn somewhat participated in her monitoring today. Our nurse, CW, was awesome and I told her the whole baby story with miracles and prayers and all the fun that we've been through since June. She didn't even get frustrated when Madelyn tried to hide. She said that Madelyn loves hearing mom and I talk, so maybe that will be helpful with future monitoring.

Oncologists came to see us today and once again described what they would need to do during a surgery depending on what happens when they get inside. The anesthesiologist also came by to get my medical history and then he replaced the iv in my left hand that hurt so bad with one in my left forearm. My veins tried to fight him, but he won in the end.

Entertainment Linda's "Entertainment of the Day"

Entertainment Lady L came by too and brought colored pencils and coloring pages. I feel like my room has been busier today than most days with people going in and out. Mom left around 3:30 pm, and then I chose to take a short nap.

Day #4 gift

I also opened my Day 4 gift from Kelsey, which was a safety bath duck. Mom said it will make me feel more at home since my bathroom at home is decorated with rubber ducks.

Jordan apparently is auditioning to be a hospital model or something.

Jordan came down and brought my other suitcase. We watched our Thursday night tv shows on my laptop and started a game of Cards Against Humanity. Each person who visits for the next week gets to answer the question, "What ended my last relationship?" We have some good competition going on after only one night.

My bestie brought me more things to entertain myself.

Jordan helped me with some more People Puzzlers. Good thing too because I suck at remembering the names of all the characters on Sex and the City.

And super pretty flowers too!

Jordan also brought me flowers and a dry erase board with dry erase crayons.
















Dan and Trenton came up tonight too. We took funny pictures and they brought me a Casey's pizza for supper - yummy!

Me with my delicious sausage, mushroom and onion pizza.

Dan played on my laptop and ignored us for awhile. I dropped one of my several pillows and the tv guide behind the bed and Trenton slayed a dragon and rescued them for me.*

Trenton, seeing what he'd look like in a hair net.

Dan, otherwise occupied.

I enjoyed sleeping through the night with the help of Ambien last night for the first time in months. As a result of that enjoyment, I took another tonight. You forget how wonderful it is sleeping through the night until you are able to accomplish it again. I am enjoying the sleep as I've heard that after the munchkin is born I can expect to not sleep through the night for at least 18 years.

Daily Info
Food: Breakfast: french toast, apples, pineapple, chocolate milk. Lunch: cheeseburger, french fries, soft serve ice cream and cottage cheese. Supper: Casey's pizza (sausage, mushroom and onions)
Visitors: Mom, Jordan, Trenton and Dan.
Entertainment: Ellen, watching my Thursday night shows and talking pop culture with Jordan, disgusting conversations with Dan and Trenton.
I am grateful for: my family and friends who keep me entertained by visiting and emailing/texting/snapchatting me throughout the day.

*Part of this sentence is not true, but I was coerced into writing it anyway.

A bit of a tight fit for a three person selfie.

Hospitalization - Day 4 (Part I)

Dr. Taylor is in the house! 

Sorry, just really excited. Dr. Jena Taylor, who I saw many times in a row at ultrasound when I was still an outpatient had her service moved up to my area. Therefore, I get to see a familiar face on a regular basis. I guess since I see all the other doctors every day multiple times, they are all familiar faces at this point, but I actually remember her name and she's been there to watch my case for the last few months. Also, I think she sort of just gets me (and my family and goals) and is motivated to get me the best outcome. Other doctors seem to look at me like I'm crazy. In short, it completely made my day to hear that I will be seeing her on a regular basis. No chance I'm falling back asleep again this morning. She is like my Meredith Grey (or maybe Addison Montgomery Sheppard because she's a lady parts doctor). 

So, rounds this morning were actually super informative. Instead of just asking the same questions about gushing fluids (sorry if those two words made anyone sick to their stomach), they talked about my actual PLAN. Dr. Taylor reviewed that they would like to have a plan in place for 28 weeks but that we realize that even the best laid plans can get really screwed up by a baby and a placenta in the wrong place. 

She said that in the "Big Meeting" last Thursday (the one that concluded with the decision moving me into my current digs), that the neonatalogists said that the OB/GYNs should just let me go until the day before my uterus ruptures. This made all the doctors in my room laugh and me too. I informed the doctors that if I get a random call from a psychic giving me the date of the rupture, I will be sure to let them know so that they can schedule my c-section 12 hours in advance. 

Dr. Taylor also told me that they would love to deliver the baby and then have my placenta make a gentle "pop" and then they sew me up and I'm awesome again, but we shouldn't count on that. I told her that unfortunately for them, I think there is a limit to the amount of miracles I get lifetime and I've already used a couple on this pregnancy. She said to pray for one more. 

Anyway, she explained the need for the oncologists (check the italics in Day 3 (Part II) for that explanation). I also found out that I am now the most high risk patient they have (the one in front on me was delivering as they were speaking to me). I'm #1! I'm #1! Okay, so maybe that is not so great, but I told them I felt like a celebrity. Not a famous one, but more like an infamous one. They agreed with me on that. The best part, I made Dr. Taylor and Dr. Greiner laugh.

Dr. Taylor and Dr. Greiner also agreed that I am able to leave the unit as long as I'm with someone and I have the number with me for the nursing desk. I told them it was important to know, because I need to do all the praying I can do and I would like to attend mass on Sunday. They fully support me praying since they don't want to find a full-on mess when they get into my lady parts. I am really, really liking the phrase "lady parts" and use it multiple times a day with everyone that I encounter. 

The nurses of the day, C and a student nurse, came in and flushed my ivs and I almost started crying when they flushed the left hand one. C said that she is going to talk to the doctors because she doesn't think that in an emergency that it would even be usable. She is going to ask anesthesia to come up and check my ivs and maybe redo the left one. We're also going to try something new with the monitoring to try to get it to go more smoothly today, I'm going to eat breakfast and then wait a little while so that Madelyn will hopefully take a nap and not want to play hide and seek with the nurses. 

Jordan reported last night that he wants more involvement with Entertainment Lady L, so one of my goals today is to run into her so that I can let you all know what she is up to. 

Daily Info
Date: November 1
Gestational Day: 25 weeks 1 day
Weather: Partly cloudy
Entertainment: television (Kelly and Michael), and Nurse Christina finally noticed my white board! It was the message from yesterday because I didn't get a chance to change it for today yet. She laughed. 
Visitors: Does Dr. Taylor count? I shall have more visitors later today!