28 days into Motherhood: Can't catch a break

It was 7:06 am and I was stumbling back into bed after hours of being awake and trying to get Vivian back to sleep, hoping to get a few more minutes of sleep for myself when Henry ran into the room. "Its morning time!" I found myself muttering, "Man, I can't catch a break." This seems to be the theme of our first month of parenthood.

Day 11: I start to feel a little sick to my stomach, the kind of sick you hope goes away after a trip to the bathroom. The kind of sick you hope is just related to overeating or something you ate. After going to the bathroom, I head out to Bunco with Vivian in tow. We stop and pick up Chelsea and I feel fine. During dinner I start to feel sick again and one of my fears is realized, I have to go to the bathroom and I am NOT at home. There is always a small paralyzing fear accompanied by going #2 in public or in someone's home. Its something we would all wish to avoid. Its loud, messy and smelly; something better reserved for our own personal toilets. Well, diarrhea waits for no one. Once done, I decide it is time to head home before I am too weak to drive or I throw up or have another explosive episode. I feed Vivian, say good night and thankfully make it home before anything dire happens. The next twelve hours are spent in a perpetually weak state laying in bed or hovering near the toilet. I have a bug that would eventually run its course through most of Athens and its a killer. Too weak to really leave my bed, Steve brings Vivian to me for feedings and I semi-lay/sit propped up in bed by pillows. My favorite part of the night is when Steve went to help Henry fall back asleep and I was left to drag Vivian's rock and play into the bathroom so I could rock her to sleep while sitting on the toilet. Yuck. Its also fun to try and change a diaper with zero energy. Luckily it passed by mid morning and I was up and about again that day.

Day 19: The kids and I try our hand at going to Sandy Creek Beach. Everything goes well and we have a great time in the sun. Its tiring sitting in the hot afternoon and I immediately fall asleep on the couch when we get home. After my nap I get up to prepare for babysitting that evening and realize I can't stand up straight and my back is killing me. I somehow threw my back out. Talk about feeling old. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before so I am at odds as to what to do. Should we go to the doctor? Should I pump myself full of drugs? I take some ibuprofen and it does nothing. Over the course of the next four hours I become more and more limited in my movements due to intense pain. I can't sit up straight, I can barely walk and I am even uncomfortable laying down. It is the closest I have ever come to going to the doctor for a non-wellness check up.
The real fun begins when we go to bed. I have to slowly sit on the side of the bed and then in one swift painful motion, roll my legs up and over. It hurts so bad to move that I am literally counting down before each movement. A mental preparation: "I'll move in 3..2..1..." but mostly I can't even follow through with the planned movement. Now I get to breastfeed my baby. Again I rely on Steve to bring her to me and I sit, hunched over with one leg tucked under me and one leg dangling off the side of the bed, the only semi-comfortable position I can get myself into. During the night, Henry wakes up and Steve goes to be with him. Guess who else wakes up? I lay in bed knowing that I need to get across the room to her but imagining how I am going to do it, terrifies me. I rally myself and try to stand up. Leaning against the bed I am able to step with my right foot and then have to drag my left foot to move. When I reach the end of the bed I can't make it without support so I have to kneel and crawl/drag myself to her bassinet. Miraculously I can lift her out and place her on the ground. Since I can't sit down and I can barely hold her, I kind of hover over her and lean my chest into her mouth. Seriously, its funny thinking about now but at the time it sucked. When she is done eating, I have to call Steve to rescue us from the ground. Thankfully Henry stayed asleep for the rest of the night so Steve could continue to help me.
Luckily the next morning, Steve brought home serious back pain medicine and within 30 minutes I am walking around and soothing my back with ice packs. Do you know what the best ice pack is? The packs that come with your breast pump. Also another humorous incident was trying to get into the shower without putting any weight on my right side. My back incident took me out of commission for a couple of days and I am still sore over a week later but I can move and sit and carry my baby again.

Day 28: Steve wakes up with pink eye and is forbidden to touch the baby. I'm flying solo with her and crossing my fingers no one else gets infected. And Vivian decides its the best day to get a cold.