So, im order to hold you over till the Christmas pics, i'll tell you a story that once again proves that our life truly never has a dull moment.
Last Friday, the day after Christmas, we were at dinner with some friends for one of their birthdays. After dinner, Vip had to split for a meeting with some other friends, and i went with the friends we had dinner with to the mall to do a little window shopping and help them out with language if they needed it. I started to feel a little funny on the way, but i figured it would pass. (another helpful preface would be to let you know i've had a suspected ulcer for about the last 10 months) So, i just trucked along figuring the pain would go away soon since i had just eaten and that usually did the trick. but, the pain just kept coming and getting worse. So, we finally parted ways with our friends, hopped in a taxi, and headed home. On the way home, i was feeling worse and worse and to the point of almost throwing up. I just kept asking Dad to get me through the front door and help me get Eliana out of the carrier attached to me before i lost it. We made it to our building, got the keys out, and then found out that our magnetic key for the door to our building (not our apartment) would not work. I asked a neighbor who was outside exercising if she knew another way into the building. she walked me back over to the door and tried my key (which i had already told her didn't work) and then told me that it wasn't working (well, duh!). so, she suggested i wait for someone to come out of their apartment or to walk through the car park below the building. i definitely didn't want to wait outside in the freezing cold with Eliana and risk getting sick outside too, so i asked her where the car park entrance was for this building. she pointed me in one direction and gave me some more vague instructions, and we were off.
thankfully, my oh so smart hubby always makes sure i have a flashlight in my bag, so i pulled that out and headed down the dark ramp for the car park. i don't know why they don't light those, but they don't, so i was pretty freaked out to be sure and still not feeling that good too. after wandering around in the dark for a while, i finally found a gaurd and asked him where my building's entrance was. he told me i was in the wrong car park and needed to go back outside and through another one across the street. so, we trucked ourselves back up the ramp and back into another dark car park. this one didn't have signs labeling the building entrances, so i was really having a hard time figuring out where i was supposed to go and the gaurds weren't at their station, so i finally just shouted out "Wei??" (that's the local word for "hey") and someone came out of a room in the corner. they immediately knew where we lived (i guess the foreigners with the baby kind of stick out) and walked me to the entrance and to the elevator. they also kindly informed me that our building was without power for the time being, which was why i couldn't use my magnetic key to get in the building. so, we got in the elevator and went upstairs to our dark apartment finally. i fished around and found Vip's handy dandy headlamps and a few other flashlights and got busy getting Eliana ready for bed (still in major pain throughout all this too).
Now, we've gone through things like this before. that's just a part of life over here it seems, but this time was different for me because of my sweet Gift from the Father. I knew that Eliana was exhausted. she had that glazed look in her eyes and had yawned a few times, and it was way past her normal bed time. but, she never cried. through the dark car parks, and the dark hallways, and the uncertainty of the whole process, she just quietly rested on my chest. then, when we got home and it was pitch black, she, once again, didn't cry. at one point, i sat her down in our hallway as i looked for some medicine for me, and she just giggled and smiled at me as she played with one of the flashlights. as i looked at her in the hallway and watched her play when we were getting ready for bed, the Father just amazed me with how calm she was in the midst of a crazy time. He just reminded me that just as she is calm and secure when she is near me, I need to be that calm and secure as i rest in Him.
later that night, after talking with some doctor friends on the phone, we were encouraged to get ourselves to the capital city where we could get a flight out if needed as they thought i might need surgery. so, we packed a bag real quick, arranged a taxi, and then headed out. when we picked eliana up out of bed, she didn't even wake up. she just kept on sleeping on Vip's chest as we put her coat on and strapped her into her carrier. it was so calming to me to see her so peaceful in the midst of the craziness of it all.
Well, the pain eventually subsided, so our doctors told us we could stay there but that we should get checked out before heading home. the doctor in the capital city found that i have several gallstones, which most likely caused the severe pains on Friday night. they also still suspect the ulcer, so they gave me some medicine to help with that. there also might be some kind of bacteria infection as well, but we haven't been able to check for that yet. we just found out that the hospital in our city can actually do that test, so maybe tomorrow we will be able to get that done.
So, in light of all these fun events, we are leaving early for our vacation in January! We leave January 16 for sunny Tland, where i will say goodbye to my gallbladder at the hospital Eliana was born at and then hello to some fun in the sun before our time in America. yes, that is just over two weeks away! craziness!
So, if you don't hear from me too much in the next two weeks that's because i'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off getting ready to go! so much to do!
Hope that your new year is off to a much less crazy start than our's!
