Dear Friends & Family,
Karen passed a really good night, if you can say that about a night in which she only dozed. Paul came, and nursed, and stayed. A friend of Karen's in the nursery very sweetly brought a newborn crip for him to use, but it became evident that it was just a bit too narrow for him to sleep comfortably in, so Karen basically had to hold him in her lap all night (making the night nurse very nervous, but he stayed put). However, Paul makes little noises (associated with his breathing - little squeaks, chirps, drawn-out hiccup sounds, and even snores) and I'm sure her sleep was negatively affected thereby.
Then there's the common complaints about hospitals everywhere -- first, the constant traffic of people whose job it is to keep you alive. Dunno why they gotta check you every hour, though - you're wired for all you're worth to the wall and you can hardly turn over without the floor nurse knowing it. In fact, I'm sure they know exactly when you fall asleep, else how could they time their entrances so precisely to the point at which you had only just ceased to be awake?
Next is the infernal machine that squeezes your legs alternately to keep you from getting clots. A laudable goal, to be sure, but I guarantee you would have to be on more dope than they gave Karen to be able to sleep through its tender mercies. And since she had stopped using the narcotic self-dose machine after about 6:15 PM last night (no pain!), it did a good job keeping her wakeful.
I didn't sleep much better than Karen because the spouse accomodations are rather sketchy, even though my legs aren't being squeezed, and even though the people who come in aren't after me (yet). The pull-out armchair / lounge / trundle bed is not even when extended, there are joints between the sections, and in consequence your hips and shoulder fall into the resulting pockets -- just try to turn over without giving yourself a bad charlie horse in your thigh. I couldn't!
Even though (while enduring it) the night felt like being subjected to midieval torture on the rack, once I dragged my aching bod to the floor and got going, I didn't feel that bad the rest of the day, so maybe you can chalk up the above to the human propensity to gripe, no matter how good you have it. And griping is inappropriate, since it shows ingratitude to Him to whom I owe everything, not to mention doing no good. So I pray you will consider the above to be more of a mild attempt at humor.
Karen at least should have a better night tonight because today they unhooked all the machines, so she was free to walk around the room, sitting on the bed or chair at need as pleased her. The bathroom is available to her now as well, a welcome relief no doubt! I've never had a Foley and hope I never have to. She also progressed to liquid food, then light solid food, and now can have anything she wants provided it's not greasy or spicy.
Dr. came back this afternoon, and after checking her and reading her chart says she's doing GREAT, still on track to go home tomorrow!
Love,
--Steve
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Rachel's Note:
I talked to Karen around Noon, just for a short time since we were getting ready to eat lunch.
But Karen says that they took Paul up to the nursery for a little while today. When they brought him back, they told her that Paul now weighs 10 lbs and 11 oz. That's 8 oz more than Matthew was when he was born, and Paul is now 2 1/2 months old. Karen said we did a good job feeding him. She has really enjoyed having Paul with her. She enjoys SHORT visits, and notes and cards. She says her biggest WISH / NEED right now, is for somebody to volunteer to do some basic house cleaning for her this week.
The big girls are being a TREMENDOUS amount of help with the little kids. Tonight we managed all 10 of our little ones with barely a hitch (they wanted to slide down the back of Dad's couch). That included feeding and bathing them. Plus the kitchens were cleaned, food packed for a picnic tomorrow after Valarie and Lathan's birthday parties, water bottles filled, teeth brushed, and laundry and sweeping chores completed. WOW.
My Dad was saying tonight that the 3 big girls really deserve something special to happen to show how much we appreciate their help. Not sure what to do for them though. But it's the stuff that REAL LIFE is made of - they are getting an education about life. And we were very pleased with our little guys too - Anthony at barely 8 all the way down to baby LaRue - just really co-operative and pleasant.
Pray for us this weekend - we have THREE family parties. It will be fun, but I think we might have a very slow Monday and let everyone take afternoon naps, even the big girls.
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