"Home is the nicest word there is." ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder
In love with Jesus. Wife to my best friend & man I love more than life. Mama to 4 amazing God given blessings. Proud Homemaker & Homeschooler. Living life with it's ups and downs and blogging about it!

Saturday, September 1, 2007

Lily, Miracle Baby #2


This week-end a year ago was very hard for me. It's kind of funny that I found out on Labor Dady week-end last year that I was pregnant with my 2nd child, at the same time I was put into the hospital for gallbladder complications. I had pancreatitis and Jaundice. I had stones blocking my duct. I almost died.

I stayed in the hospital for 8 days. 8 LONG days without my baby girl and my husband. Claire was 18 months old and did NOT understand why Mommy was not with her. That was so hard for me, I can't even begin to describe it.

When the infections went away and I was feeling better they let me come home because they couldn't do surgery until I was in my 2nd trimester. Too risky. I might miscarry or the baby might have birth defects. We were trying to save the pregnancy. If it had gotten even the slightest bit worse, they would have HAD to do surgery. The Lord was with us.

So, I went home and promptly became even sicker, with morning and all day sickness. I was so nauseous they put me on nausea medicine for chemo patients. At nearly $500 a bottle. Thank God I didn't have to pay for it. It helped but I was still nauseous. It was that bad. So, here I am, sick as a dog, and with an 18 month old and my husband was working from 4 am to 8 pm (I am SERIOUS). There were a lot of days when all I did was cry. The stress was unbelievable.

So, at 4 months pregnant, because they couldn't wait any longer, they take out my gallbladder, luckily with a laser. I didn't have any blocked ducts, if I had, it would have been cut out and Lily would have died. We wouldn't know if I had any blocked ducts or not until after the surgery. On the drive to the hospital (an hour and a half away) I had a migraine headache and vomited all the way there.

I had written letters for my whole family and spent days agonizing over what to say. It was a very serious condition. Having to do that puts a lot of things into perspective. It makes you stop and really think about what you love most about the members of your family. The hardest letters I had to write were to my little girl, my husband, my Mom & Dad, my sisters. There are no words for the love you have for these people who have surrounded you with their love. It breaks your heart to have to do something like this. But, I'm glad I had to, it made me appreciate my family. And, if anything ever happens to me, they will have the letters. Not everyone can say that.

So, I make it through the surgery, I go back home pregnant with holes in me. I cannot lift on my daughter. My Mom and Dad have to come down every morning and take care of me and Claire. She called for me in the morning to get her out of the crib and I had to wait on my Mom to get her. It broke my heart. There were so many things that I could not do for her.

Still terribly nauseous and vomiting until I was about 7 months pregnant, I am not even joking! Lily did just fine and was growing so big and the greatest thing is I have ultrasounds of almost every month of my pregnancy! I have the same with Claire because my pregnancy with her was difficult, as well (I will tell that story another time). We also have a 4D ultrasound of Lily (which we did not have to pay for) because they wanted a very good view of her insides.

Lily was carried to term through the wonderful grace of God. I was put into the hospital to be induced on April 30th. Lily was born May 1 at 10:53 am after an epidural that I really did not even feel! I don't think it had time to take effect. I am so proud of myself and of Charlie because we focused and we did it together. I could not have done it if he had not been so calm and talked me through it so calmly.

Lily Charlotte Alise, you are my miracle baby, in your own special way. You changed Mommy, you made me so much better than I ever could become on my own. Your arrival knocked me for a loop and I still haven't quite recovered from the shock of all the Lord can and will do for us. You are the most precious, sweet, laughing baby I have ever seen!

So, today I am talking about my Lil-bear. This has been on my heart for a few days. I am so, so , so blessed to be her Mama. I look forward to being there to see her and her sister grow into Godly women.

Give your kids a big hug today, Okay? Remember how precious they truly are. Remember that they are only yours as a loan, they truly belong to God.

Love and Prayers,

Julie

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If we don't find Him in the small things, how will we ever find Him in the big ones? ~Elisabeth Elliot