Gallbladder surgery, Christmas, and Outback's Epic Fail...

Hello again! So I didn't post before Christmas...boo. Anyway, I guess I should update on my surgery. My parents came over to watch the kids and Todd took me up to the hospital. I was in surgery by 7:00 am. One minute I'm joking with the nurses, then I hear the doctor walk in the room, and the next thing I know I'm in recovery with bad heartburn. I ate some ice chips, then felt well enough to come out to Todd. I was discharged, came home, and pretty much slept and lived on Lortab over the weekend. By Monday I was feeling ALOT better, and even though I had a lot of people offering help, I felt totally capable to taking care of my kids. I still was hesitant to drive because I was getting over the horrible after effects of the Lortab, so my sister-in-law was kind enough to help out with picking Chase up from school, and she even shuttled me around on Tuesday. Each day that week I felt stronger and more like myself. I didn't take Lortab after the weekend, but rediscovered the full bottle of Percocet in the medicine cabinet from my C-section with the twins. I figured out that my body was adjusting to not having an organ that was somewhat vital in digestion, so eating became tricky. Yes, I gambled on a few occasions, and paid for it. I ended up losing 11 pounds at one point, but that was after a stomach bug came through our house, and I was really dehydrated. I've put a few pounds back on, but what a jump start to weight loss at the holidays! I've definitely had to cut portions, and am still figuring things out, but I think I've got the hang of things now.

Then came Christmas, and yes, we had a great Christmas. We opened presents here and then went to my parents house and opened presents with the rest of my family. The big boys got everything they wanted, and then some! And as much as I wanted the little babies to rip into packages, they just kinda looked at me like I was nuts. I'd give them the package semi-unwrapped, and they were more interested in the paper, of course. Today I finally got the house back to "normal," if there is anything normal about my home. I knew it must have been bad if Todd said something- he could CARE LESS about what the house looks like, I'm normally the clean freak! The front rooms were basically littered with candy wrappers from their stocking suffers, and toy parts all over. So, today I made Chase pick up trash, while Gunnar and I picked up toys to take upstairs. It looks so much better, and Todd feels more relaxed. I think we may have watched one too many episodes of "Hoarders," because he was worrying about the clutter!

So after eating Christmas dinner and Christmas dinner leftovers since Saturday, we decided to eat out tonight. Todd was coming home from an all day meeting in Oklahoma City, and the big boys actually made the call for Outback Steakhouse. We have one just down the street from us, so I called it in and Todd picked it up on his way back into town. We agreed to split a meal, because we didn't feel like eating a whole meal by ourselves, and it does save money. He gets home and is like "Did you order fish or some funky salad?" And I said "No...just our usual, why?" He started pulling stuff out of the bag, and it wasn't our order. Now, this is probably the 2nd or 3rd time this has happened to us, so I called and spoke to the take-out person. She said our meal was right there, and we could come pick it up, and she wanted to know if I'd like to speak to a manager. So I said I would, and basically told the manager that this wasn't the first time we've had to deal with this, and we're fortunate not to live too far away, but I really just wanted to let her know what was going on in her take-out area. She apologized and asked if she could do anything to make things right. I told her we ordered a dessert (Cinnamon Oblivion is back for a limited time...I couldn't help myself!) and didn't know what else she could do. She told me when Todd came to pick up the meal she would give him something. So, since they made the mistake on the meal, and they were not allowed to accept food that has already left the take-out area, we got to keep the "mystery sack" as well. I unpacked our sack, then started unpacking the "mystery sack" and MAN were we excited! The unfortunate couple, who's meal we received, ordered 2 steak and lobster meals with baked potatoes and salads! SCORE! I decided to eat the lobster for dinner and Todd ate our small steak that we originally ordered. I figure I'll have steak and potato or grill up some chicken and put it on one of the salads for lunch tomorrow and Todd will have steak for dinner tomorrow night. I have a dinner date with some girlfriends- SUSHI! Holler, y'all!

Well, I really and truly hope to post again soon. Thursday, the 30th, is my 10 year anniversary with my husband, and I have a little something special I'd like to post on here. Until then, thanks again for following my blog!

And the craziness has begun....

Yeah, I know, I'm a horrible blogger. I haven't posted in ages, but I have been busy. The twins are keeping me busy, and the week before Thanksgiving we had our first Pink eye outbreak. Both twins had it, and I think I might have had it as well (I took drops just to be on the safe side.) On Monday the 22nd, we started to figure out what we needed to pack for our upcoming trip to Arizona. That's right, I was to take 4 kids on an airplane the day before Thanksgiving, with all of the new TSA craziness. So on the 23rd, I had a horrible case of what I like to call the "F-its." Got lots to do? Forget it, do something else. Have a deadline you need to meet? Forget it, wait until the last minute and do it. I managed to pack the big boys, and Todd got his bag packed. I was so darn tired, all I wanted to do was make my list of things to do for the following day and go to bed. And that's just what I did-big mistake on my part. The next morning started early, and I began doing laundry that still needed to be done for packing the babies and myself and started laying out things that could be packed. I'm also one of those people who like to clean their house before going on vacation, so you can come home to a nice, clean home and it's one less thing to do when you get home. So, like a maniac, I began to vacuum, clean bathrooms, pick up toys...and I didn't eat (this part needs comes into play later.) I called and asked my mom to come over so I could shower and get packed, and my dad came by to take us to the airport, and my sister dropped by as well. I was ready by the time Todd got home, but I was also freaking out. My mom, dad, and sister watched a "Mommy Dearest" moment. Sure, I wasn't wearing red lipstick, no Bon Amie powder cleaner was being thrown, and nothing was mentioned about wire hangers, but I hadn't had anything to eat and I was yelling at the kids to get their backpacks and was so nervous about forgetting things. I was convinced to eat something, and then we were on our way to the airport.

As we were getting out of the Suburban, I ran into a patient from the office I used to work at, and she was so sweet. We checked in, went upstairs to go through security, and we high-fived afterward because it was SO easy! We couldn't have asked for things to go better. We made it up to our gate, and I had time to change the babies diapers before we were boarded. The big boys were so excited to get on the plane, and even though we expected the worst, we really got the best! They all did so well, and we weren't that annoying "crying baby" on the airplane. And it was actually kind of funny walking through the airport, because I've often said that having twins is like being a celebrity because we're always being stared at or talked about when we're right there. Walking around the airports and getting on the planes, I was actually taken aback by the people smiling and "ooohing" and "ahhhing." Even the most grizzly looking biker guys with scowls on their faces lit up with smiles when we strolled by. So we made it to the Phoenix airport without a hitch, and then this is where the "fun" begins.

The babies started having diarrhea diapers, and it only got worse...as did their horrible diaper rash. And they couldn't sleep, either because the pack-n-plays were too low and they felt like they were falling, or because we tried to sleep them apart for the first time, but we had to have them sleep in the bed with Todd and I, and I was already nervous, so this just added to my anxious attitude. Thanksgiving was fine, and the boys were having a great time with their cousins, but I was still anxious about the babies and I know was little "crazed" at times. I finally felt more comfortable with the sleeping situation when we went to Wal-Mart and got a crib. But their diarrhea wasn't getting better, and the diaper rashes were getting worse. On top of that, Chase was starting to get sick. So I called Dr. Gordon on Saturday morning, who called in some prescriptions for Chase and gave me some advice for the babies. And yes, meshed in with all of my worries and sick children, we had a lot of fun playing cards and eating delicious meals together as an entire family for the first time in 8 years. We also took family pictures, so when I get those I hope to post them on here!

We left for home on Sunday, and once again everyone was perfect for the flights. We arrived home around 7:30pm, ate, gave baths, and got the kids to bed. And the routine went back to normal the following week, except for one thing: the diarrhea and diaper rash hasn't gone away. So here it is, 2 weeks later, and it is finally getting better. We weren't sure if it's been a stomach virus or if it's just from teething, but every day it's getting better.

And this week has been kind of crazy for me, because I'm having surgery to remove my gallbladder on Friday, and I'll admit I'm scared. I've never been in the hospital unless it was related to pregnancy, let alone have an organ removed. I've been trying to get all of my Christmas shopping done (and it is DONE as of today! WHOOHOO! Thanks to Catherine and Kim!) and get things in order here at home. And I'm overwhelmed, and when I get overwhelmed, I shut down. So I have to clean up the house tomorrow, and Todd won't get home until late, and then I will go in for surgery at 6 am on Friday morning. I have no idea how the recovery will go, but I'm hoping for the best.

So that was my big update. Maybe I'll get a chance to post again before Christmas! Much love to you all!