Baby Willow - 26 Weeks!

26 Weeks. 

Can you believe it's already been 14 weeks since we announced we were having a baby! 

I have grown so much and so has Jake. I feel older somehow now that I know I'm getting closer to being a mom. 

Still as goofy though ;) 

So a lot has happened. 

I went to Utah over Thanksgiving and part of December and got over all my sickness with sugar! Yippee! Because of this, I gained 5 pounds. 

Wow. 

I laughed when the Dr weighed me and that was the outcome. He was a little worried before I left for the states that I was losing weight and not gaining any, but still eating and not throwing up as much. I hate to break it to him, but my body reacts to one thing and that thing is sugar. Even when I am done with having the baby I have to get off of it if I ever want to lose weight and become healthy. 

Anyway, before leaving for Utah I came down a slight cold/sinus infection - so I thought. 

I got to Utah and struggled with it for the entire time. I took tylenol, I took sudafed, I took everything I COULD take. Nothing was working, and it was getting worse. My cough was getting worse. 

But, Willow was doing amazing. 

And I wasn't throwing up anymore. I still took Zofran, but that was to calm my stomach. 

So our trip was amazing, and we got some great stuff for Willow. My mom and sister gave me a baby shower so I was able to see all my cute friends and my family. It was so much fun. 

But then it was time for us to come home to Germany. 

My cough was still getting worse. 

We landed in Germany on the 16th of December and by the 17th I was gagging I was coughing so hard. 

So I called my Dr on the 17th and told him that I had a bad cough and I had had it since November. 

He told me to come in immediately. 

When I got there, he examined me and did an US and then gave me some cough syrup, some cough suppressants, and tea to breath in. 

He told me to use them for a week then come back in. 

He also gave me a Dr note for work, but since I had been in the states I ignored it. 

By Friday I had thrown up I was coughing so hard, so I went back in. 

This time he gave me the antibiotic amoxicillan. 

I went to work that Monday before Christmas and was on the antibiotic, but the cough was not getting better and I was trying to not cough because I work in a daycare and I didn't want to cough on the children. 

By Thursday that week I was feeling awful. My cough was getting harder and nothing was coughing up. I couldn't sleep and I kept waking Jake up because I was being so obnoxious with my cough. 

I went back into him on that Friday. 

He gave me a different antibiotic called erythromycin. 

And another Dr note. 

I listened this time and gave it to my work for the next week over New Years. 

I took the Erythromycin exactly how I was supposed to. At one point I thought it was working. 

I went the entire week and decided that I was just going to let it run it's course until it was done. 

Then the next Sunday night came, and I was awake the entire night coughing like a maniac and not sleeping. I ended up sleeping on the couch because I didn't want to wake Jake up. 

I went to work because I figured I had been on the antibiotic a week so surely the infection was gone and I was just on the mend. 

I couldn't stop coughing. I felt so bad. The other workers would look at me like I was fragile every time I coughed. Finally, a coworker of mine that works in the same room as me told me "Courtney, you need to become a mama bear. You need to take care of you and take care of your little one. No one here matters enough for you to be here feeling like this. You need to understand that your life is more important and you should not feel guilty for missing work or telling them no you are not coming in. You need to get healthy because you are growing a baby and that is the most important"

So at lunch I called my Dr again, and he said to come in immediately after I got off work at 5:00

What I didn't know is he was going to admit me to the hospital. 

I was immediately put on a monitor to check the baby and make sure her heartbeat was still good and healthy and to check and make sure every time I coughed I wasn't contracting. 

I was immediately given an IV 

And my blood was taken. 

I figured I would be in there a day. 

He told me the lung specialist was going to come see me the next day, and I figured that would be the end of it. I would be given more pills and sent on my merry way. 

Nope. 

I got in a room with another girl and was having a good conversation with her for about 10 minutes before they came in and said "we have to move you to a room by yourself because you are too sick to be around people" 

Great. 

After that, I swear they almost always came in with masks on. Made me laugh because Jake sat right there with me with nothing on his face giving me kisses and hugging me. 

I got the IV antibiotic which I guess is the most powerful antibiotic I can get with being pregnant.

The next day they came in and gave me a new IV with the antibiotic, and took my blood. 

I waited and waited and waited. 

Thinking I was going to get to go home. 

Nope. 

The lung specialist didn't come in that day. He came in Wednesday. During this time I was being poked with needles night and day for blood and other tests. I was hauled off to a monitoring room twice a day to check Willow (not complaining it was awesome hearing her heartbeat and hearing her movement along with feeling it) 

First I want to mention that the Dr came in with my test results and even though I had already been on 2 sets of antibiotics, my infection level had jumped from .67 to 2.75. He was not happy with that at all. 

After talking with the specialist he started talking about doing a bronchial culture and taking tissue from my chest because it was VERY rare for someone to have a cough for as long as I did and for how hard mine was. 

I cried! I didn't want that at all. Jake at this point was back at work so I sat there and just cried by myself thinking I was about to have this culture done on my chest to tell the Dr what disease I might have. 

My Dr came in a while after that and told me before any culture happens I would need a lot more blood work done. 

So they took 6 tubes of blood.

And blood from my ear.

And blood from my finger. 

He then told me I would be there until Friday :( I was very disappointed because I really wanted to go home. I missed Jake and I missed being comfortable. 

My arm was killing me from the IV 

The IV had already had to be moved 3 times because it was so painful in my hand and the antibiotic was giving me pain all up my arm. 

I was hungry because the dinner sucked and they only fed me breakfast lunch and dinner with a very small gross breakfast and a small dinner. Jake brought food at night - but it was always fast food and while I am the one who asked for it, it never seemed appealing when he would get there. 

Wednesday night, my arm started to kill me again and I woke up in the middle of the night with horrific pain and I couldn't even bend my arm. So the nurse took the IV out and I was able to sleep for one night without a needle inside of me. 

Thursday they had to put a new IV in and I was fresh out of veins that were "good"

So, after looking for 20 minutes she decided to go for my deepest vein in my left arm. 

I never allow anyone to poke me there because I KNOW it's not a good vein because it's a job I am used to doing and went to school for. 

I begged her to go for another one and she just kept saying "it's ok"

Fine. 

So she stuck me, and I immediately started to cry. 

No, not cry. BAWL.

All she said "it's ok"

Then the idiot put the antibiotic in - WITH THE TOURNIQUET STILL ON!!!!!

It had been on for more than 2 minutes, my arm was turning purple. 

And now she was pumping me of my medicine with a stopper on the vein. 

I just looked at her and said "You need to remove this" and pointed to the tourniquet. 

She goes "Oh, it's ok" and takes it off. 

I was so mad. I could feel the IV in my arm worse than any other place I had been stuck. 

They took it out Friday and I am still having trouble straightening my arm because it's so bruised. 

Total I was stuck 17 times. For blood or the IV. I have a huge nasty bruise on my left arm from blood being taken in the same spot and then swelling. 

Diagnosis for my sickness is that I have a very strong and aggressive infection. I have been put on antibiotics for the next 10 days and bed rest. No housework and absolutely no work on base. 

I found out that the reason they wanted to take the tissue is because the specialist was worried I had a tumor in my chest. He was also worried that I had a disease and that is why my lungs and bronchioles are clear. 

My infection level still isn't as low as they wanted it to be, but I begged enough to go home and my Dr could tell I really was done being there so he let me go. If it was up to him, I would be there until I have no infection, but I can sit on my couch at home and take pills just as easy as I can at the hospital. 

I have to go in on Monday for a follow up. 

My glucose test is supposed to be on the 20th and if it's not gone by then, well - no glucose test for me. The infection would mess up the test results so they can't risk it. 

Not going to lie, I feel like crap. I still have my cough - it doesn't happen NEARLY as often as it did, but it's still hard when I do cough. 

I'm able to sleep at night though so that is a blessing. 

I'm hoping with this new medication I can get better. I've been coughing for way too long and I'm so ready to be better. 

The whole week I was so grateful for Jake. He would go home and get me whatever I needed, then come back, work on school while sitting there with me, he fed me when I couldn't even lift my arms because of the pain in them, he helped pull my pants up because of my arms, he watched movies with me, he woke up very early just to come see me before going to work, and stayed super late because he knew I didn't want him to leave, he dried my tears, he cuddled me, he brought me dinner when I knew he was sick of eating out, but I didn't want him to take the time to cook because I just wanted him there with me, he was the absolute best and I'm so blessed to have a great and amazing husband like him. I'm thankful every day that I made that choice to wait for him because he is worth every wait in the world. 

So that was my week 26. 

Best part of the whole week was coming home, and getting out of that hospital room. 

Willow is doing great and is stronger than ever. She kicks and punches and rolls so often it makes me giggle. Yesterday she smiled for the picture and it made my heart melt. Jake thinks she looks kind of like me, but I think she needs more fat on her to really see. Though, I will say she has very defined lips…like her mommy. 

I had to laugh, I was looking at her, and because she has no hair or anything on her head she looks like she has a big forehead. I just said to Jake - Yep! She is our baby, she has a big forehead. Ha ha. 

Or in our case, a 5head. 

I can't wait to meet my beautiful girl. I can already tell she is going to be so beautiful and so precious. Fiesty, but precious. 

She moves ALOT after I eat, so I kind of like to eat just to make sure she is still wiggly. 

My favorite is being in the bathtub and seeing my belly move up and down and roll. 

We finally got her room emptied and our house organized so we can start painting her room. Jake has been working on her dresser, and I've been searching to find her a crib that I love and want. It's all coming together and I only have 14 more weeks until she here! EEK! I really need to get busy ordering stuff and getting her room ready. 

We are doing a Cinderella theme. I LOVE CINDERELLA! Growing up, she is the only princess I would pretend to be - I got the house really clean really fast that way (now you know my secret, mom)

My smiling girl 

Sleeping with her arm up

Well, now that I'm stressing about ordering stuff, I better go do that. I have a week of bedrest and I need to use my time properly and buy buy buy ;)