I have missed posting here once again.  We wrapped up our school year and had our end-of-year homeschool evaluations so I was gearing up for more time to write and post here, then I hit a curve in the road.  Yesterday I was admitted to the hospital with pancreatitis and gall stones.  I went to the ER because of severe pain just under my breastbone and into the middle of my back and ended up being admitted.  The rest of the day yesterday and today, and, possibly tomorrow, I may not have anything by mouth except that I may use a little sponge on a stick to dip in water and use it to wet my mouth.  Otherwise, I have an IV in my wrist.  Surgery will happen sometime between Monday and Wednesday.  Some of the gall stones have moved into my bowel duct and I am hoping they will pass because if they do not, the surgeon will have to put a tube down my throat to try to remove them before removing my gall bladder.

Most of the day yesterday, I felt extremely tired because I didn’t get much sleep Friday night, as that is when the pain began.  I was also dehydrated and my mouth and throat were dry and parched until last evening.  This morning I am feeling fairly well.  I have no pain and I actually got a decent amount of sleep last night, and yesterday we found out the hospital has free wifi, so my dear husband was kind enough to bring my laptop for me.  He said, “Now, for the next few days, at least, you will have lots of time to write.”  I love how helpful he is and how he encourages me in my writing, and he tries to help me make time for writing.

The nurses and aids here at the hospital are wonderful.  They treat me so well.  My day nurse brought me a cup of water with ice and mint this morning for me to use with my little sponge on a stick and it’s very refreshing.  My night nurse upon introducing herself to me last night said that she heard that I am a popular patient, as I received many visitors.  She also said that she heard that I am an easy patient, and later in the evening, she said I was “the best patient ever!”  I guess they think that because I never push my call button needlessly.  I’ve only pushed it once since I’ve been here.  I know they have a lot of people to care for and I don’t want to take up their time needlessly.  Also, anyone who knows anything about writers, knows that we are used to, and often prefer, being alone.  Most of us are introverts.  That doesn’t mean we don’t like people or spending time with people.  It just means that we also need time alone, a break from people.  Being alone is where I regain energy and keep my sanity.   🙂

As to all my visitors, I had quite a few yesterday:  my husband and three sons, my mother-in-law and one sister-in-law, a couple and another gentleman from church, my parents, and our newly “unofficially adopted” daughter.  I am blessed with a loving, caring church family, some close family members and a handful of really, good, close friends.  My other sister-in-law, who lives in Massachusetts called me on the phone to see how I was doing last evening, and I called one of my long-time friends to tell her that I was in the hospital, and we talked for an hour.

This is certainly not how I prefer to spend my time, but I am grateful for the wonderful caregivers I have and for all of my loving, caring friends and family.  I am also extremely grateful to God, whose hand is definitely in this situation, for the timing couldn’t be better as my husband is still off of work recuperating from hip replacement surgery, and though he is limited on what he can do, he walks with a cane and can drive and do the basic tasks of day-to-day life, so I am not sitting in this hospital stressing over who is taking care of our children and who is getting them to the places they need to be.  I praise God for His timing and His faithfulness, provision and care.