A rough start.

As if my body hasn't gone through enough giving birth to Bronx, I have yet another medical hurdle to overcome.  It has been a very trying week.  I have asked many times 'Why Lord?  Why now?  I just want to feel normal and enjoy my sweet little baby!'

This past Wednesday I woke up feeling great.  I went to my dentist appointment in the afternoon and ran an errand.  As I was driving in the car to pick up the boys I started to feel some discomfort in my right breast.  The same side that I had the lump on.  You can click here to read more about that.  Within an hour, it was painful, and a few hours later I had the chills and sweats and it was excruciating pain.  I called my OB's office right away because I have had mastitis with the other kids, so knew the symptoms.  They called in a prescription for me and I began taking it right away.  Later that evening the pain was unbearable and I was vomiting.  I couldn't take it anymore, so Chelsea and Shana came over to sit with the boys and Derek took me to the ER.  I threw up a lot in the car.  Thank goodness I left home with a garbage can!  Things moved quickly in the ER.  They gave me morphene and IV antibiotics since I had thrown up all the meds I had taken previously.  We were there until about 2 am.  When I left the ER the pain was better, but still not completely gone.  They put me on Zofran for nausea, Hydrocodone for pain management, and then I was to continue with the Dicloxicillin.  

Thursday morning I woke up still not feeling well, and knew right away there was no way I could take care of the boys alone.  Chelsea was able to watch all 3 of them in the morning, and then my mom came down and took over for the afternoon, until 6.  I slept quite a bit that day.  The pain got a little better, but I had an awful headache all day.  Every time I would sit up or stand my head felt like it could explode.  By 6 that evening I was feeling well enough to handle the boys until Derek got home from work.  I just laid on the couch snuggling Bronx, and the older boys played and watched cartoons.  

Thursday night I slept well, and when I woke up Friday morning I was feeling a little better.  I did notice that a side effect of Zofran was headaches, so I stopped taking that right away.  I also cut the pain med dosage in half because I was just feeling too medicated.  Friday I was on my own with the boys, and it went well.  Bronx is a really good baby, and Boston and Brigham knew that I wasn't feeling 100% so they played nice together and listened well.  Brigham also took a 3 hour nap for me, so that was fabulous.   Friday evening I noticed that the breast wasn't looking any better. The redness had spread and the breast was extremely hard and larger in size than the left.  I called the hospital and talked to the on-call OB.  She said that if there were no improvements by Saturday, the next step was to have an ultrasound to check for an abscess.  I had also noticed a streak of red on the 'good side' of the right breast.  This was also a concern because the infection can spread to your blood stream.   

Saturday I woke up feeling fine, but the breast was still looking the same.  The redness was traveling up toward my collar bone area, and the muscle in my upper chest was also sore to the touch.  I debated all day about whether or not to give the antibiotics more time, or if I should just go in and get it checked out more.  Around 3:00, I decided I may as well go in.  I knew it wasn't something to ignore, and I sure as heck didn't want it getting any worse.  I took the boys to Glady's and headed to the ER.  I was hoping it would only be a few hours and I would be back home with different meds, but it was a 5 hour stay. The doctor that did the exam thought it felt like an abscess, so he ordered an ultrasound right away.  Thank goodness the ultrasound results did NOT show that.  It did show a lot of infection and inflammation though.  They gave me more iv antibiotics, and talked about admitting me.  My blood work had also checked out ok, so that was more good news.  I got two different antibiotics in my IV.  One of them I reacted too. I got really red and blotchy on my upper body, front and back.  My skin was hot but not itchy, however my head itched like crazy.  It was like I had bugs crawling on my head!  I wanted to cry. My ER nurse was pregnant with her second son, so she had sympathy to how I was feeling about being in the ER and away from my newborn baby.  She could tell I was not liking the 'admitting' orders, so she talked with the doctor about other options.  It was a lot of waiting around to see what the final call was going to be.    

I was finally discharged around 8:30 with an IV in my hand, and orders to go to the Infusion Center for 7-14 days for IV antibiotics.  They also prescribed Bactrim.  The on-call OB doctor that came and did my exam, and took over my case for follow up, mentioned MRSA.  She didn't say that I had it, and they did not test me for it, but they wanted to be proactive in treating me for it.  My discharge papers all say diagnosis is 'Cellulitis' and I am not sure what is different between that and mastitis.  Another question for the doctor on Thursday.  

I went to the Infusion Center at the hospital yesterday. Day #1 of 10 for my IV antibiotics.  It's a 30 minute drip, so it went fast.  I am so thankful it is not any longer.  I have my appointments all set up through August 6th.  One challenge with these appointments, is figuring out what to do with my boys!  Derek has very little flexibility at work, and since he is still new to his Finance position, it's hard for him to get time off.  It sucks. It sucks on a normal week, but these past few weeks I have really struggled with the demands of his job.  After a Facebook message to close friends and family about the situation, I had a babysitter lined up for the boys for ALL 10 days of Infusion appointments.  Such a blessing!  

I am feeling OK today.  Tired, but that's to be expected with a new baby:)  My IV doesn't bother me at all, it's just a matter of keeping it dry, clean, and remembering that I am very limited with my left hand. I find myself catching it on blankets or my clothes when I am getting dressed, so I am still learning. I put a zip lock bag over my hand while I shower, and then hold my arm up and out of the water.  I still haven't figured out how I will bathe Brigham & Bronx..  I may have to call in for some help on that!  Bottle washing is tricky but do-able & everything else is going in the dishwasher!  I am seeing small improvements, but still a long ways to go.  The redness has gone down some, but the breast is still quite hard.  Almost feels like half of an apple is wedged on one side of my boob!  I am convinced that the swollen lymph node in my armpit, and this breast infection are related.  This infection may have been brewing for some time, and just took awhile to come to the surface.  It's a mystery I guess..  I follow up with an OB doctor in the clinic on Thursday.

Boston has seen and heard more about boobs this week than any 7 year old should.  Yesterday he said:  'Your boob is looking way better!'  I guess the small improvements are noticeable to him too :)  Please pray that these antibiotics clear up the infection, and that after August 6th, I have a clean bill of health for a very long time! 

Early Thursday morning in the ER.  I was just thrilled to not be throwing up.

 ER Saturday.

 The infection going up my chest.

 Headed for the shower.

Bronx-2 Weeks

We are continuing to adjust to life as a family of 5, however, it has been such an easier transition that I was expecting!  It makes having a 4th kid seem managable, although I am 99.9% sure there would be no convincing Derek of that!  Boston & Brigham are still doing great with their new baby brother, and they oooh and aaah over him all day.  Brigs is pretty protective of Bronx.  If someone is holding him, or looking at him, he will say 'My baby', and if someone jokingly asks if they can take Bronx home with them, he is quick to answer 'No!'.

Derek had Wednesday off this past week, but worked all weekend so we are anxious for tomorrow when he is home again!  We have pent most of our afternoons and evenings at Glady & Les'.  The boys love being able to play with the Eisenga kids, and it's been nice for us to get out of the house for a few hours each day.  The kids all play so well together without a lot of supervision, so it's been nice for me to get some time to relax and snuggle Bronx.  With each baby, it seems you get less of that one on one time because you are so busy taking care of other kids, and keeping up on house work and meals.  I take every minute I can to just sit and hold Bronx!

Bronx already seems to be filling out some, and has really changed in looks too.  I am starting to think he even looks more like Boston at times!  He continues to eat about every 3-4 hours.  He has taken more than 2.5 oz. a few times in the last couple of days, so maybe once he starts to drink a little more he will stay full longer.  Last nigght we went to bed at 10, and he was only up at 1, 5 & then again at 8:30! I have felt really rested each morning, so am thankful for that.  I try and rest in the afternoon if I am able, but most of the time can only doze off for a short time.  His belly button cord fell off on Saturday, so we were finally able to give him a good soak bath on Sunday night!  I warned Boston & Brigham before his bath that he may cry pretty hard, because babies don't like to get cold, but Bronx never cried once!  He did so good, and the boys thought it was fun to watch.

The boys watching cartoons.

He was a hungry little guy!  We rarely hear a peep out of him otherwise!

Derek had to work on Sunday, and Boston had spent the night at Grandpa Ron & Grandma Lisa's, so I took Bronx & Brigham to church.  It was Bronx's first time in church & he slept the entire time!

Boston just loves to lay on the floor next to Bronx.  He also loves having me take pictures of them together :)

'Mom take a picture of me giving Bronx a kiss.'

1st Bath- Sunday, July 21st.  Such a good boy!

Snuggle time with mom & dad while we watch Naked & Afraid!  

 Bronx took his first nap in his crib yesterday!  He slept sound for 2 hours!  He probably would have kept sleeping but I woke him so that he would eat.  Trying to keep him on a 3 hour schedule during the day, so he will hopefully have his 4+ hour stretches at night!

 I survived my first shopping trip with all 3 boys! Not a lot of room to put things with a baby in the back of the cart & a toddler in the front!  

2 weeks old!  Isn't he just the sweetest!

Another baby, another hair cut!  With all 3 of the boys I have gone out and chopped my hair shortly after they were born.  Loving it short again!

Our first week at home!

Bronx is 10 days old already!  It makes me so sad that time goes so fast these first days/weeks of having a new baby.  Time fly's anyway, but the first few weeks just seem to go extra fast.  We are adjusting very well to being a family of 5!  Derek was off work Tuesday the 9th, through Sunday the 14th, so was back to work on Monday this week.  We loved having him home, and I dreaded him having to go to work again.  I even cried when he left on Monday morning.  He kept reassuring me though that I was going to be fine, and that I was a great mother.  I was prepared for the boys to act up with Bronx home, and be complete terrors, but they have been so good this week!  Boston is a huge help, and Brigham hasn't really acted any different than normal.  He looks in on Bronx once in awhile, but for the most part he just does his own thing.  Most of the time though, I do have to find room on my lap for 2 little boys:)  Boston loves to hold Bronx, or have me lay him down on the floor.  He just lays next to him and talks to him, or lays by him and watches his cartoons.  It's super sweet to see!  Boston already talks about us having a 4th baby!  HA!

Bronx is also doing great!  He has been such a good baby and rarely cry's or fusses.  If he is dirty or hungry he lets out the littlest cry.  It's just so sweet.  I took him to the doctor for his 1 week check up on Tuesday afternoon and he weighed 6.9, so a few oz. over his birth weight.  I nursed him for the first 5 days, but we were both struggling.  I had the same latching issues with the older boys, so I really debated about even trying with Bronx.  After him wanting to eat every single hour on Friday night, and me feeling frustrated, emotional, and overly tired, I decided I wasn't going to keep at it.  I felt so bad about giving up so soon, and choosing not to pump and bottle feed like I did with the other kids, but I knew what was best for the both of us.  He has been doing great with formula!  He is satisfied after each bottle, drinks about 2.5 oz at each feeding and usually goes 3-4 hours between each bottle during the day.  He has even had a few stretches of 4-6 hours during the night.    

Our night time routine right now is that I feed Bronx around 8 or 9, and then I try and go to bed shortly after that. Bronx is usually sleeping, but instead of putting him in the bedroom with me right away, Derek keeps him out in the living room so I can get a few hours of uninterrupted sleep. Derek comes and wakes me up when he needs his next bottle around 11 or 12, and then Derek heads to bed. Derek has always stayed up later than me, so this system seems to work well.  Right now, Bronx is sleeping in the bouncy seat in our room at night.  In the next week or so I will start to transition him to his crib.  I like having him close by right now.  He just seems so little to put in that big empty crib!  He also sleeps pretty sound, so I rarely hear any baby grunts or groans!

The first morning at home with Bronx, Brigs sure wanted to make sure that his mom and dad were close by!

 Wide awake!

I celebrated my 33rd on Sunday, July 14th.  What a special year, having a healthy newborn baby a few days before my birthday!  

Me and my boys!

 33 years ago my mom and dad were holding me as a newborn!  

 He snuggled like this on grandma Peggy for a few hours!  

She only gave him back to me because she had to pee!

Boston really wanted to hold Bronx up on his chest.  He thought it looked so cute how Bronx would snuggle up and just sleep!  Such a proud big brother!

Derek's sister Chelsea and her family are here for a few weeks from New Mexico so on Monday afternoon we spent some time with them!  Worked out great that they were visiting right when Bronx was born!  

 The kids play so well together!

Derek got home early on Monday night, so we were all happy about that!  I think he was missing being at home with us.  I love seeing him snuggle Bronx!  Such a good daddy.

 Bronx loves to lay on his side!  If you put him on his back to change his diaper, or just to let him stretch out, he almost always flips himself to his side and most of the time will fall asleep like that!

On Tuesday morning, my friend Tosha watched the boys while I had a doctor appointment.  After lunch and nap time, we headed back over to Grandma Glady & Grandpa Les'.  The kids just can't get enough of playing with the Eisenga kids!

 Bronx looks so much like Derek's dad in this picture!  We thought the same of Brigham as a newborn too!

 Poop face :)

 Brigs thought it was funny to put my nursing pads on his shirt!  Little boys are so curious about where that milk is coming from!

1 week old!

Thursday morning the boys spent some time with the Elgersma girls again.  Renae took them to the spray park and they had a picnic lunch.  It has been such a blessing having friends and family help with the older boys this week so that I could get to appointments and just have some alone time with Bronx. I could sit and snuggle him all day long, but I don't think the other boys would appreciate that :)