Countdown to Surgery

Thursday is still my surgery day. I had my preop last Friday and left feeling a little freaked out. I have bittersweet feelings about it. As I was walking up to the hospital, there was a couple about to take home their new baby. The dad pulled the car up to the curb, the nurse put the baby into the car seat from the bassinet and then the mom sat in the back seat right beside the baby...just like us almost 8 years ago. I stood there and watched them. I just couldn't take my eyes off of them. How lucky they were! I thought, do they even know it? Do they know how much some women have to go through to get to that moment? Some never get to experience it at all. It brought huge tears to my eyes. The pain is still so raw, even after all these years. Of course, being at that doctors office and that hospital are hard for me. It just brings back so many memories.

Then I remembered that I might just get to do that someday soon. I hope and pray that it will be soon! How easily I forget that a baby is in our plans. Day to day tasks consume me sometimes. I will say that we have spent a lot of time the last week organizing Jacob's room and moving lots of stuff into the baby's room. It is very close to being ready for him or her.

On the way home from the preop, which took a whopping 4 hours, I had a pity party for my uterus. I listened to my favorite songs on my ipod (David Crowder's All I Can Say and Mercy me Bring the Rain and many others) and cried my heart out. I laughed at the same time thinking this was my goodbye moment for my uterus. God brought me such peace at that time. I AM READY!

We are to be there at 5am. Surgery should start by 7:30am and is expected to last for 5-6 hours. I hope to be out of the post op room and in my own room by the late afternoon. The doctors still say that I will be in the hospital until the following Tuesday, which is a long time. My longest hospital stay so far has been 3 days and that felt like forever.

Wednesday I will be on a liquid only diet and that evening will be taking some pills to clean me out...should be a fun night :) I have never taken the pills before but have been told they are better than the stuff you drink. Please pray that all goes well the night before...I tend to get very dehydrated with nauseau and vomiting.

Please pray that all goes well during the surgery and that I don't have any problems with anesthesia. Please pray that I am not in too much pain. Pray that I won't go crazy during my hospital stay. Or, drive Shane crazy.

Pray for Shane as he has to get up very early and drive me to the hospital and then sit in a waiting room all day and then sit in my hospital room. We are planning on him spending a couple of nights with me. He may need to be there the first night that I am allowed to get out of bed, also, which would be the third night.

Pray for my parents as they will have Jacob for several days. Pray that Jacob will not be scared. He understands that they are removing the parts that a woman needs to make and carry a baby. He also probably thinks that all mommies have surgery every year :(

Please pray, very hard, that this is the answer to what I have been going through all these years...the pain, fatigue. Pray that I will be a new woman after this. Speaking of being a new woman, they will put a hormone replacement patch on me while I am in the hospital. I am only allowed to use hormone replacement for 3 months then will have to switch to some other natural form. Pray that that goes smoothly for me (and for Shane).

I have been madly running errands and organizing this and that. Tomorrow is my last day of normalcy. Mom and I are celebrating with lunch at Rao's. I do plan on eating my favorite Oreo cheesecake. After that, no more food!

Thanks for all of your prayers!
Laura

Supercross

Saturday night, we went to the Supercross at Reliant Stadium. We went with our friends, the Hughes', the family that we ride BMX with. Larry works for Parts Unlimited, owners of Thor (MX gear). They had 2 big semi's set up and hosted a bbq dinner for Larry's Houston dealers. Of course, Larry's family is welcome to come in and eat and, lucky us, we were too. After bbq, we walked around the pit areas. The boys got to meet Ryan Villipoto and Chad Reed (the 2008 Supercross champ) in the Thor pit. They were sooooo excited to meet them.

About 50 people are given passes to walk the track before the race begins. Larry was able to get us all in to walk the track. It's cool. The dirt was very soft, kind of like walking in deep sand at the beach. I, of course, didn't walk up any hills that were too steep for fear of sliding down one of them on my tushie. How embarrasing would that be? They let us take some pictures on the track and then sent us on our way. Since Larry is a VIP, he got us all VIP passes and we were able to go anywhere and sit anywhere that we pleased.

The race was lots of fun. Jacob and Shane are both very excited about buying dirt bikes someday. For now, we will stick to BMX, which is much cheaper. Here are some pics from our night out:

Larry, Jeanette and Ethan in the Thor pit

Ethan and Jacob meeting Chad Reed

Walking into the stadium for the track walk

Us in front of the starting gate

View of track from press booth....WAY up high! Shane went up there to get some free program books.

Jacob and Ethan in front of Chad's bike

My Evil Knievel

So, apparently I gave birth to a wild child. I don't know if Jacob is just not scared of trying out crazy things or if he just thinks it's normal since the older kids on the street do it. Either way, watching him makes my stomach do flip-flops. It all started out so innocently when he got his first Radio Flyer tricyle for Christmas when he was 2. This is a picture of Jacob and his Uncle Randy that Christmas. Jacob was so scared of being up too high that he sat on the foot rest and pedaled for months.





Then some friends gave us their son's bike with training wheels which he conquered and outgrew by the age of 3. The next Christmas we gave him a brand new bike, still with training wheels, as it was a taller, bigger bike. He was off of training wheels and already scaring me before he turned 4. This next picture was taken when he was just 4 years old.







It didn't take long for him to start jumping onto the concrete after he mastered the grass (much better for crashing). Here are some more recent photos of him jumping his bike and scooter on the driveway (Now, this is what I can't watch...it really scares me. I just open the kitchen window and wait for a scream...then I go outside and see if a bandaid or a mommy's kiss is needed.)

Of course, I blame Shane for all of this. He is the one who has introduced Jacob to a love for bikes. They ride the trails around our house. This summer, Shane is planning on introducing Jacob to the trails at Keystone (most kids shouldn't attempt them until at least the age of 10 but Jacob is a good rider and jumper so Shane wants to give it a try).

And, I have to tell you that watching it is much worse than the pictures show. Right now, the kids on the street are setting up a racetrack with each of their ramps and tabletops. They are having a blast! Jacob was smart enough to start wearing his BMX helmet last weekend. Jacob crashed so hard yesterday that he broke his BMX helmet...not good.

This is a picture that my neighbor took recently. He is off of the ground...cool pic!

As for any BMX updates, since Jacob has moved up to the intermediate class, he has his work cut out for him. He has had to race 8 year old intermediates mostly, and has only qualified for one main event in three outings, but he took 2nd in that race! He will have to work his way up, just like he did in the novice class. This isn't going over so well for him, but he still enjoys it. There is a saying in BMX, if you aren't chasing someone, you aren't getting any faster. If you give him a choice of what he would like to do, he always chooses BMX. I see dirt bikes in our future as it is a natural progression after BMX and we have several friends and neighbors who already ride (I would love to ride one myself). That should bring about a whole new kind of stomach flops!

Anniversary

On January 4th, Shane and I celebrated our seventeenth anniversary. We can't believe we have been married so long, meaning time has really flown by. Each year we try to celebrate by eating out. Our favorite restaurant is America's in The Pavilion on Post Oak. We went out to eat on the 2nd since it was a Friday night and we knew we would be out late. We had a wonderful meal. After dinner, we drove to Sonoma, owned by our future sister-in-law, Farrah. Once there, we sat for hours with Shane's brother Tommy, and Farrah, and Shane's other brother, Bill and his wife, Rebecca. It was Bill and Rebecca's first night out together in about two years...they have 5 kids :) Tommy has asked both Shane and Bill to be his groomsmen along with another friend who we got to meet that night (can't remember his name).

They also asked Jacob to be the ring bearer. He is so excited. He has been telling his friends and didn't understand why they weren't excited for him (we had to explain that boys don't get into weddings too much). Of course, once he has to put on the tux, he won't be as excited. He will probably just keep asking if he can take the tie off. That might be my fault as I have never enforced dressy clothes on him...he has never even worn a belt.

Their wedding is at Hotel ZaZa, the old Warwick hotel. I am hoping that I am feeling ok as I wouldn't miss this event for the world...it is just 5 weeks after my surgery. I am also hoping that I will be up for shopping for a dress. Since I left the working world, my wardrobe doesn't have anything as nice as I would like to wear to the wedding. Should be fun if I can find the energy.

Here is a picture of our wedding January 4, 1992:

On Sunday, our actual anniversary day, we went to lunch after church and then I had to run to get Shane a care (I know, not exactly on top of things). But, Shane took Jacob to buy me a card so we were even. They also got me some flowers. When they got home from the store, Jacob secretly went upstairs and made us the "cards" below and taped them to his wall. How sweet it this?

H.A. stand for Happy Anniversary by the way. He is such a sweet boy! I just couldn't give him enough kisses after that.

Another Surgery

After many years of suffering from painful endometriosis, I am finally having a complete hysterectomy on January 29th. I know I just had surgery for it in late August, but it has come back with a vengeance...which means it is time to do something about it. I know that I can not have any more children so it makes the decision that much easier. The thought that I can live a pain free, less fatigued life is so enticing and I can't wait for it it happen. It doesn't mean that I am not nervous...I AM! But, I am also very excited.

During the surgery they will remove my uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries, appendix and any spots of endo that they see elsewhere. I will also have a GI surgeon who will remove the endo on my intestines and perform a colon resection where I have a large mass of endo. Hopefully, the colon resection will go easy. The unfortunate thing is that I will still suffer with some issues for a few months as my body heals but once it has healed, I should be good to go. I will be in the hospital an estimated 5 days and the recovery is about 8 weeks.

I have done the whole rest thing before (I was on bed rest most of my entire pregnancy). So, if anyone has any good magazines that they want to bring me...awesome! After surgery your mind is too muddled to concentrate on books very well.

Please pray that the surgery goes well and the recovery is easy and fast. Pray for Shane as he will have lots of responsibility that he is not used too....meals, homework, cleaning the house, etc. I am kind of like a backseat driver when it comes to the house and I know I drive Shane crazy. Pray that Jacob will understand everything that is going on. Pray that he will be self sufficient during my recovery time. He will, most likely, stay at my parents house while I am in the hospital.

Of course, the adoption is on. We just updated our birthmom letter. I am just hoping and praying that I get 2-3 good weeks of recovery before anything might happen. I have such wonderful friends and family that I know if it does happen, everything will be fine. And, of course, nothing may happen for a while. Please pray for us during the waiting period. It is hard!

Boo and Moose

So this is my new official view of my computer screen...blocked by a kitten. Boo is very interested in all the movement and tries to get it. If I pull up a picture or a video of her and Moose, she lays her paw on the screen to touch it. Too cute! And very annoying!

We said early on that if Moose liked Boo, we would keep her. Looking at the picture below, I would have to say she loves her. The cats have adjusted well to having Riley gone. Moose goes in and out the doors. Boo watches her through the windows and meows at her. Sidney is adjusting to the kitten but is not happy about having to share my lap now.

Moose and Boo play constantly. They love to run up and down the stairs. Boo loves to play with the blinds at 7am every morning...not funny! A couple of days after Christmas, the tree was shaking very bad. I looked in it and saw two sets of eyes looking at me from eye level. Both Boo and Moose were a good 5 foot up the tree and ornaments were falling off and breaking. It was time to put the tree up.

Speaking of Riley, she is doing great. Her new owner says that she rules the roost. She looks very happy in the pics that we have seen. We can't wait to hug her neck.

Christmas Day

After we spent the morning at our home having Christmas, we headed over to my parents for lunch and presents with them. Shane and I have been extremely fortunate that our parents have become great friends. We have taken trips with them and celebrated countless birthdays and holidays together. For lunch, Rich, Gail, Shane's Uncle Butch and Aunt Dee and our nephews, Marcus and Matthew joined us at my parent's house. They are pictured below. Marcus is the tall one...he plays basketball at Cy-Ridge (Dad, Shane and Jacob went to watch him last Saturday). Rich and Gail are on the right.


After a fabulous meal, they went home and we had our Christmas with my family. Here are some pics that we took:

Randy, Mom, Dad and Jacob

Uncle Ralph and Aunt Patsy

All of us together


This is a tradition...taking a picture of Sadie with a bow on her head. I don't think she cares for it too much but we always get a kick out of it.

Shane and Jacob

That evening, my Aunt Mary, cousin Elan and her baby Daniel came out to visit.

Elan and Daniel

Jacob and Daniel

Later on we stuffed ourselves some more and then went home for a good night sleep!

Christmas Morning

Christmas morning Shane and I woke up before 8am, kind of early for us, and got dressed and waited for Jacob to get up. I think he slept until 9am or later. First, we took him outside to the garage to see his new table top and ramps...he was real excited about that. Then, we came in and opened our presents. Jacob mostly received Star Wars toys and books, Tech Deck, MX bikes, Horton Hears a Who DVD and a DS game, along with some other smaller items. I gave Shane some shirts and something for his bike (which I think he is returning:( Shane gave me lots of kitchen stuff, which I really needed and won't go buy myself, and some charms for my James Avery bracelet. Our big gift for ourselves this year was a new camera so we kept the exchange between the two of us kind of small.

In the first picture you will notice how Sadie has her head in a bag. Well, Sadie loves Christmas. She loves all the activity. She loves to go spend the day at Mimi and PawPaw's house (yes, she knows their names). And, she knows that she will get a special bone every Christmas morning so she is looking for it. I, of course, hide it in the pantry so she won't sniff it out, but don't tell her that. We are very happy that she is still here for another Christmas as she is now 12 1/2 years old.

This picture has Jacob holding his stocking. It was handmade by Nancy Hutchinson before he was born. She had to wait to find out his name before she could finish it. Nancy has made us lots of afghans in the past.

After presents, I headed to the shower and the kitchen to cook. Shane and I bought an electric turkey fryer this year. He cooked two turkeys...one with cajun seasoning and one with garlic/herb seasoning. We all loved the cajun and plan on only cooking that flavor next time. At 11am, Shane's mom came over and we got to open presents with her. Rich had to drive to get our nephews, Marcus and Matthew, as their mom was sick that day. Rich and Gail gave me enough plates, bowls, etc. to complete my everyday 12 piece place setting. Did I say I needed some kitchen stuff this year???

Christmas Eve

Jacob and I went to the 5pm Christmas Eve service at church. Shane was already there playing the drums. Afterwards, Jacob and I went to my parents for dinner while Shane stayed and played at the 7pm service.

Jacob had been begging to open one, just one, present on Christmas Eve, so we let him. You can just see the excitement in his face :)

Then it was off to bed but not before a reading of The Night Before Christmas, an annual tradition.