The Boress Family: May 2011

Monday, May 30, 2011

Pain With Help and Love

Since getting my pregnant the infection on my left foot was getting worse and worse. It was beginning to be incredibly painful to walk. My podiatrist and I had made plans earlier in the year to treat the infection after baby Clara was born. He was afraid it would be too much to handle while pregnant. One day after work I had had enough. I called my doc and told him to schedule me for the procedure. Of course I would have said no had baby Clara's life been in danger but she was so close to full term that he felt it would be OK to do. Honestly I was limping so badly that I knew it would be dangerous to carry an infant up and down the stairs. Sometimes my left leg would go numb because of the pain! So although this has been very painful and difficult to endure while in my last month of pregnancy, overall I feel good about my decision.

Now I want to talk about how wonderful my husband Jon has been. Those of you who know me are aware of what an incredibly attentive man I married. I mean, seriously I can write never ending sonnets about Jon's kindness. Since day one Jon has been amazing! I have to soak my foot in a gallon of Epson salt for 20 minutes twice a day and then I have to reapply fresh bandages to my wound. Of course the "I" here refers to Jon. Not only does he take care of my disgusting (I once peaked at my foot and almost threw up- instead I cried like a big baby!) foot but he scrubs it and cleans it and sometimes blows kisses at it in hopes it will heal quicker.

I am couch bound :( That has been the hardest part for me as the need to nest has taken over my body. I cry at times because I wish I could do so many things to prepare for Miss Clara's arrival. So, in comes Jon who spent hours washing her clothes, cooking 3 MEALS A DAY for me, sanding things (more on that later!), going to the grocery store, cooking for the missionaries, organizing, cleaning our 2 bathrooms (ladies this is huge!), re-grouting our bathtub, and lots lots more. And the thing of it all, he is so incredibly patient! He only cracked once when I couldn't stop crying about how useless I was. He gave me a stern look and told me I am doing the most important and hardest job right now which is providing a home inside my body for our little daughter.

My parents have also been an amazing support to me. My father accepts all of my teary filled phone calls and uplifts me in a way that only a father can. At one point he wanted to drive to Gainesville, load me up in his car and drive me to his house so he can watch over me. I told him no (he was so serious!!) because Jon is taking care of all of my needs- I simply wanted to hear his strong comforting voice :) My mom has had her bags packed for days now until I give her word that she can come up to help. I am finally at that point this week and she is coming! I warned her I am as good as a lump of potatoes but she said she would love to help clean and organize my home. My mom is the best cleaner in the world! She gets into this zone and by the end of it you're in awe at how clean she has left everything. It's one of her many talents in life!

One of my favorite breakfast items are crepes. One morning Jon took 2 hours to make me fresh crepes from scratch!

Friday, May 27, 2011

Pain

The marks on my ankle are from the cuff that cut blood circulating to my foot

My last day at UF was May 13th. I baked 2 key lime pies and a delicious chocolate cake. It was my way of saying thanks to the sweet persons I worked with. On Thursday of that week my co-workers threw me a sweet baby shower. I was so grateful to have been employed at UF throughout my pregnancy. There were tough times, then there were fun times. I think I came out a better person and Jon has said so many sweet compliments to how much I have changed for the better because of the hard work I put in. Needless to say I am very grateful to be closing that chapter of my life and on to the next...

That weekend I worked my tail off! I cleaned until 1:00am, I shopped till I dropped, and I just simply wouldn't stop. Why? Because that following Monday I would be undergoing an incredibly painful foot procedure.

Monday rolled around and I headed to my OB before getting my foot ripped up. Clara is doing wonderful. She's right on track and her movements + hiccups are constant. Jon then drove me to my foot appointment and all I can say is WOW. I should probably mention that the week before I had passed a very painful kidney stone. It caused me to have some contractions that were too close together so I headed to the hospital and 6 hours later they stopped the contractions and sent me home. I won't lie, that was very painful.

Monday's foot procedure was a different kind of pain. The doctor gave me 6 shots on my foot of lidocaine and ladies and gentlemen, that shot was hell. Pure 100% burning through your skin torture. Once he shot my foot he went in with a needle and dug through the veins on my foot. I didn't skirm, I didn't cry, my face was so stoic that the doctor was in complete shock- "Young Claudia, are you OK?" I just looked up at him and said, "yes, I am in a zone right now" All I could do was stare out at the driveway and my focus point was a red mustang- thank you to whomever drove that red mustang!

After my foot was numbed the doctor put a cuff on my ankle to restrict blood from my foot. Normally they administer a shot of adrenaline but this shot would have gone straight into Clara Lucia and would have increased her heartbeat way too fast. That was not an option.

So, away the doctor went! After 40 minutes he finished and I wobbled away with Jon in my arms. And so now begins the healing process. I'll post more soon and tell you how the recovery is going and why I chose to do this procedure now versus after the baby is born.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Pharmacy School Graduation!

Jon ALSO graduated from Pharmacy School. It was a 4 year program and right after completing his 2nd year of Pharmacy School he took a year off to go to Business School. The past 5 years have been a whirlwind. There were times I felt it would never end. There were times our marriage was tested, but each and every time we managed to hold on to each other and came out stronger. Overall Pharmacy School is not for the faint of heart and I proudly wear a badge that reads "I survived Pharmacy School!"