Wow...

I apologize for taking so long to make this first post-op blog entry.  Needless to say the surgery has been an experience.  At a future date I'll go into details of the surgery, recovery, etc., but for now I just wanted to let everyone know that we came home on our earliest possible release date, which was Christmas eve, so there were no complications, and I got to be with all of my family on Christmas morning :)  The surgery went as well as we could have hoped for.  I had a lot of difficulty keeping pain meds and muscle relaxers down, most likely enhanced by the pregnancy, therefore I was sick somewhat frequently.  We finally settled on Tylenol and Flexeril; not the strongest pain relief, that's for sure, but it's pretty much all my stomach can handle.  I definitely miss my morphine button!  I'm in a lot of pain, I basically feel like I not only had my skull drilled into and a vertebrae removed, but also a jaw/face lift.  Everything from my shoulders up absolutely just aches!  Sleep is interesting, I set my alarm to wake up for medication because I don't want to think of going without it, even though it doesn't seem to do too much, but I usually see every hour of the night on my clock anyway.  I also spend the majority of the day laying down because sitting up is difficult.  The sutures are on the back of my head and it is painful to lean back against them, even on the cushiest of chairs.  It's also exhausting to hold my head up on newly reconnected neck muscles, so laying down on my side is the best option.
I can't say thank you enough to everyone who has kept us in their thoughts and said prayers for us.  Another HUGE thank you to those who have already brought or sent food, and to those who plan to.  Kevin is starting to realize how nice it is not having to worry about every meal!
XO for now..