Crazy Catch-Up
Good grief! Has it really been over a year since I last sat down to blog? I mean, a LOT has happened in the last year, but that's just pure lazy! My sweet friend Lindsey brought to my attention that I needed to pick up the pace, so here I go :)
We moved into our new home in Riverview, FL last July and Bernard came home to join us mid-August. I would be lying if I said it wasn't an adjustment to have him back. Don't get me wrong, I am THRILLED to have a husband again, and seeing him with Gabbi is even more amazing than chocolate ice cream. Not to mention someone else is here to do all the scary things for me- like kill spiders, check out the mysterious noises and encourage me to flush the toilet at night (I've always had an irrational fear about someone trying to "get me" when i flush the toilet at night)- but like any military wife will tell you, after a deployment there's always a readjustment period. 15 months of just me and Gab set us in our own routine, our own inside jokes and even our own little world. So it took a little while to get used to sharing a bed, cooking for three and sharing the TV remote. But now we're adjusted and I don't ever want him to leave again.
A few weeks after his return home, I got a phone call from him that went a little like this, "Hey babe, I'm in an ambulance on the way to Tampa General...can you come meet me?" Long story short, my super athletic hubby slipped on a sweat puddle during a game of pick up basketball and hurt his knee. Since he has a ridiculous pain tolerance, he was sent home from the ER and told to ice it. After finally insisting on an MRI 6 months later, they found out he tore his ACL. He was still running 5 miles a day on it. Around this time, he underwent surgery for a routine cyst removal. Two days later we were in the ER with a high fever among other problems. The worlds worst surgeon insisted we were overreacting and things were fine; we were sent home. Two days later we were in the ER again and Bernard was admitted to the hospital for 5 days. No one could tell me what was wrong with him. Day by day he got worse and worse until he finally wouldn't speak or eat and was given Anointing of the Sick by a local priest. PRAISE THE LORD we finally were seen by an infectious disease doctor who diagnosed him with having a penicillin resistant staph infection. 6 hours later, Bernard started making a HUGE recovery and was released the next day.
We also found out around this time that we were expecting baby Olsen #2! We had been praying about expanding our family and were so thrilled when we found out we were pregnant! Again with this pregnancy, I lost about 10 lbs and had pretty awful "morning" sickness so I was sure we were having a girl. We found out, however, that we are going to be welcoming Brenton Benjamin Olsen into our family, due October 12. The morning sickness ended around 14 weeks and Bernard went back to work after 30 days of recovery from his "routine" surgery.
We found out that Bernard was supposed to deploy back to Afghanistan in October for 6 months, meaning he would miss possible the birth, Bernard's bday, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, my birthday and Valentines day. While this made me just want to cry, I try to not get worked up over anything the army tells us...they change their mind all the time. Sure enough, the deployment has been canceled! Yay God! Bernard was sent to a follow up MRI appointment for his knee where the orthopedic surgeon discovered that now his ACL was completely detached and deteriorated and his meniscus was torn. So Bernard was scheduled for total knee reconstruction in which the doctors would harvest muscle from his hamstring to make a new ACL along and then go in to place it. This was another 30 days off of work. (6 months until he could return to sports and running and 9-12 months to a full recovery) While the timing has felt "bad" for the surgeries, I told B that it has been such a blessing to Gabbi and I to have this time with him before Brent is born. Special time with just him before life gets a little crazier, again :)
There are days when I feel totally overwhelmed with Gabbi and the dog and even with helping take care of Bernard and keep up with the house. But you know what? This is what I wanted. I always prayed for a family, for kids, for time with my husband. This is one of those answered prayers that may not come in the form I expected, but I am making it a point every day to be thankful for my blessings, for the craziness, and for the opportunity to watch it expand...
"This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed
This is the stuff that gets under my skin
But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use"
We moved into our new home in Riverview, FL last July and Bernard came home to join us mid-August. I would be lying if I said it wasn't an adjustment to have him back. Don't get me wrong, I am THRILLED to have a husband again, and seeing him with Gabbi is even more amazing than chocolate ice cream. Not to mention someone else is here to do all the scary things for me- like kill spiders, check out the mysterious noises and encourage me to flush the toilet at night (I've always had an irrational fear about someone trying to "get me" when i flush the toilet at night)- but like any military wife will tell you, after a deployment there's always a readjustment period. 15 months of just me and Gab set us in our own routine, our own inside jokes and even our own little world. So it took a little while to get used to sharing a bed, cooking for three and sharing the TV remote. But now we're adjusted and I don't ever want him to leave again.
A few weeks after his return home, I got a phone call from him that went a little like this, "Hey babe, I'm in an ambulance on the way to Tampa General...can you come meet me?" Long story short, my super athletic hubby slipped on a sweat puddle during a game of pick up basketball and hurt his knee. Since he has a ridiculous pain tolerance, he was sent home from the ER and told to ice it. After finally insisting on an MRI 6 months later, they found out he tore his ACL. He was still running 5 miles a day on it. Around this time, he underwent surgery for a routine cyst removal. Two days later we were in the ER with a high fever among other problems. The worlds worst surgeon insisted we were overreacting and things were fine; we were sent home. Two days later we were in the ER again and Bernard was admitted to the hospital for 5 days. No one could tell me what was wrong with him. Day by day he got worse and worse until he finally wouldn't speak or eat and was given Anointing of the Sick by a local priest. PRAISE THE LORD we finally were seen by an infectious disease doctor who diagnosed him with having a penicillin resistant staph infection. 6 hours later, Bernard started making a HUGE recovery and was released the next day.
We also found out around this time that we were expecting baby Olsen #2! We had been praying about expanding our family and were so thrilled when we found out we were pregnant! Again with this pregnancy, I lost about 10 lbs and had pretty awful "morning" sickness so I was sure we were having a girl. We found out, however, that we are going to be welcoming Brenton Benjamin Olsen into our family, due October 12. The morning sickness ended around 14 weeks and Bernard went back to work after 30 days of recovery from his "routine" surgery.
We found out that Bernard was supposed to deploy back to Afghanistan in October for 6 months, meaning he would miss possible the birth, Bernard's bday, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, my birthday and Valentines day. While this made me just want to cry, I try to not get worked up over anything the army tells us...they change their mind all the time. Sure enough, the deployment has been canceled! Yay God! Bernard was sent to a follow up MRI appointment for his knee where the orthopedic surgeon discovered that now his ACL was completely detached and deteriorated and his meniscus was torn. So Bernard was scheduled for total knee reconstruction in which the doctors would harvest muscle from his hamstring to make a new ACL along and then go in to place it. This was another 30 days off of work. (6 months until he could return to sports and running and 9-12 months to a full recovery) While the timing has felt "bad" for the surgeries, I told B that it has been such a blessing to Gabbi and I to have this time with him before Brent is born. Special time with just him before life gets a little crazier, again :)
There are days when I feel totally overwhelmed with Gabbi and the dog and even with helping take care of Bernard and keep up with the house. But you know what? This is what I wanted. I always prayed for a family, for kids, for time with my husband. This is one of those answered prayers that may not come in the form I expected, but I am making it a point every day to be thankful for my blessings, for the craziness, and for the opportunity to watch it expand...
"This is the stuff that drives me crazy
This is the stuff that's getting to me lately
In the middle of my little mess
I forget how big I'm blessed
This is the stuff that gets under my skin
But I gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing
It might not be what I would choose
But this is the stuff You use"
WELCOME BACK to blog world!! I'm not the best at keeping mine updated either, but I just love hearing about everything going on with you! Glad to hear Bernard is on the road to recovery!
ReplyDelete