And now we wait and see...

March 4th I finally got rid of my pesky gallbladder!  The surgery went well and Cody took the day off of school to be with me.  I forgot how painful abdominal surgeries were, until the nurse made me get up and walk around.  I can't wait to be able to get out of bed by myself again. 

Luckily the doctor was able to do a laparoscopic operation, which makes the healing process much quicker.   

They have to pump air into your abdomen to make room for the tools, but apparently they have yet to figure out how to get the air back out.  Look how swollen and puffy I am!  It's supposed to take 7-10 days to begin to deflate, can't wait!

Besides making me feel fat, the air bubbles like to move around and cause a shockingly large amount of pain, especially in my shoulders, who'd of guessed? Three days after the surgery i had to go back to the E.R because i couldn't breathe- turned out to be just air bubbles caught in my lungs, but of course they had to stick dozens of needles in me to do tests before deciding what the problem was.  I hate needles more than just about anything else in the world.   

So as it turns out I was born with an under developed gallbladder, making it too tiny to fully digest fat and cholesterol.  After years of unsuccessfully digesting, my gallbladder began to store layers and layers of cholesterol- until finally it hit it's limit and just quit.  This explains why I used to get sick when I eat, why I didn't notice a problem until about age 11, and why it has been getting worse over the years. 

Finally I can drink milk, eat cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, ice cream, butter, fried foods, etc.  Besides not being able to get up by myself, i feel better than i have felt in years!  

Oh, I Love My Husband!

Since my gallbladder crashed I've been stuck in bed, which may sound fun and relaxing at first, but after a couple days of it..it gets pretty boring.  I actually wish I could go back to school, never thought I'd say that!

My favorite video game as a kid was, (and still is) Donkey Kong Country, so my sweet sweet husband ran to walmart and bought me Donkey Kong Country Returns to play while I'm stuck in bed. 

He's so good to me!

Seth's Blessing Day

This Sunday was Seth's blessing.  Cody gets of work at 2 A.M so it was going to be hard to make it.  However, we wanted to be there so Cody was going to drive down to provo after work and pick me up, and we would drive all night getting to my sister's house just in time to change clothes and make the blessing.  Unfortunately with my gallbladder completely fried we couldn't make it.  

Here is Seth in his blessing outfit on the day of his blessing.  Sad we couldn't be there, but were so happy for my sister and her husband, and for Seth. 

Well, that certainly is ironic

The other day I was talking with my sister-in-law and we got to talking about Valentines Day. 

 I mentioned how every year in high school I managed to land myself in the Emergency Room.  Different reasons, but none-the-less every year i found myself in the E.R on Cupid's birthday. 

That particular trend ended in high school, and of course by telling her so i jinxed myself. 

This February 14th I woke up with a stomach ache, which was nothing out of the ordinary so I ignored it.  I made Cody a compleatly heart shaped breakfast in honor of the holiday and went about my day.  The pain escalated quickly and by about noon I found myself once again in the E.R on Valentines day.  (Side note, my adorable, law-abiding grandpa burned rubber skidding through a red light to get me there.) 

Long story short, after several needles, blood samples, tests, a CT scan and a HIDA scan the doctor may have finally found the cause of the past 11 years of pain, feeling crappy, and getting sick whenever i ate.

Apparently a healthy gallbladder has an ejection rate of 40% or higher and a normal gallbladder 35-40%.  My gallbladder has an ejection rate of...12%

As soon as i can get a surgery date they'll take my gallbladder out, and hopefully fix years of pain and getting sick whenever i eat.  Just hoping for the best. 


As a party favor from my fun day in the E.R, they sent me home with a picture of the inside of my stomach! Those with a weak stomach don't scroll down, those who are curious...keep scrolling.... 


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What the inside of my stomach looks like.

Early Valentines

Cody came home from work a few weeks ago grinning from ear to ear. I asked him what was going on and he excitedly told me he figured out that day what he was getting me for Valentines Day.  Of course he wouldn't tell me any more than that.  So i waited a few weeks, and on Feb 11th my present arrived.  Being as excited as he was to give it to me, and I to find out what it was we celebrated Valentines that day when he got home from work.  And... here it is!

Cody designed and had made this beautiful ring with our birthstones as the gems and little diamonds on the sides!

He even had our names inscribed in the inside of the band. Too cute!

Oh, how i love my sweet husband!

For his valentine gift I put together a movie night box for us, with some movies I thought he would enjoy and some i knew he wanted to see. As a sidenote, The Quick And The Dead is actually a really good movie!

Seth Brandon Hatch

My first nephew, Seth Brandon Hatch decided to come about three weeks early. Both mother and baby are healthy and doing well.

My brother-in-law, Brandon Hatch, the father and name-sake :)

I wanted to be there so badly to see this little angel.  I'm so excited for my sister and her husband, and can't wait for them to bring more into the world.

Zoe pyper Hamilton

My third beautiful niece, Zoe Pyper Hamilton was born yesterday!

Cody and I had to wear these face masks in the hospital because we both were recovering from colds.

Most of Cody's siblings came up from Cedar City to see her. It was fun to have the family for a few days.