There's no place like Home...

There's nothing like a stay in the hospital to help one appreciate their family and the sweet comforts of home. I was hoping to avoid the hospital scene this winter but last Friday night Ryan and I found ourselves in the ER. I caught an aggressive bug and tried to convince myself I could fight it with lots of rest at home but when my lungs started bleeding...I threw in the towel.

I don't go to the ER very often. I kind of have a routine down when it's time for a "tune-up." I call the clinic and they call me when there's a bed ready for me at the hospital and I go right in, we've got it down to a science by now. However, this time there were no beds available so we were told that unless I could wait a few days, I needed to get to the ER. Unfortunately, I couldn't wait so there we were heading to the E.R. It was kind of an adventure...

As I looked around the little semi-clean ER waiting room, I thought to myself, "Ryan and I are the only normal ones here." That sounds so judgmental but have you ever been surrounded in a room and realized that you are the only normal one? Maybe in the airport, a mall, the Del Mar Fair, or at an arcade? Anyway, I'm sure I didn't look normal to the others waiting as I walked in pulling my green oxygen tank in my pajamas with a mask over my mouth. As we waited, I was fully concentrating on literally not coughing up my remaining functioning lung while I nervously tapped my foot on the floor. The intense concentrating was wearing down my nerves as was my paranoia about the germs that must be lurking in an ER waiting room. Meanwhile, waiting gave Ryan a good opportunity to play with his new iPhone but I could tell he was distracted and after a while I realized he was anticipating.

Anticipating what? Well, as "Grey's" fans, I think he was just waiting for someone to run into the ER with a pencil in their eye or a missing appendage! I couldn't help rolling my eyes as he excitedly asked my radioloy technician, "So, what's the craziest thing you've seen in here?!" He asked my nurse the same thing and both of them were like, "um... this is kind of a small hospital, we don't see a lot of crazy things here." I think the whole ordeal was a big "rain on Ryan's ER fantasies parade." Just as we were about to leave, (my paranoia was getting the better of me) we got called into the back and once back there I got the best of care. The doctors and nurses were so great and extremely efficient. In no time an R.T. (respitory therapist) was pounding on me and my I.V. was in and running.

The hardest part about being in the hospital this time around was of course, being away from Harrison. Ryan brought him to see me every day and he charmed all the doctors and nurses as we walked the halls. Although it was very hard to be separated from my little baby, I was so grateful to my mom and mom and dad Kaltenbach for taking such good care of him. It was such a blessing to know that he was being loved and nurtured by those who love him while his mom was getting better. It was a relief to not have to worry about whether he was happy and getting enough attention!

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the hospital stay... He loved the moving bed, the remote and walks with mom in the wheelchair : )







I am now home on I.V.'s and Harrison is such a good little helper nurse. He likes to hold onto my vibrating vest and bring me my I.V. meds with daddy. He also loves to chew on my oxygen tubing! One thing for sure is that he is a great healer. Just being home with him has given me the strength I needed to turn the corner. He makes me so happy and we are constantly giggling at him. Joy, laughter and Love are the strongest medicines I know of and I am looking forward to being good as new really soon!