How to Grow (and Raise) an Alien...or Two

So I took a little hiatus from the How to Grow an Alien story. I had another episode of continuous barfing. The trip to the emergency room turned into a stay at L'hotel Magee Women's Hospital. They wanted to keep me on an IV and also wanted to "observe" me. I must not have been very interesting to observe because I was unceremoniously discharged after only 3 days. I was a little disappointed...the hospital had room service. Seriously...you call them, order from a menu, and 45 minutes later, someone brings your food to your bedside. And the food was decent. Anyhoo, I guess they decided that as uninteresting as I was, I still needed medical attention. They signed me up for visiting nurses. I'm like an old person. When it started they were coming every day. These nurses had the fun assignment of inserting new IV lines and teaching me how to hook myself up for home IV therapy. UPS delivers IV fluids packed in ice, syringes, medications...the whole lot. I don't have to leave the house. Now, this is the problem with this wonderful arrangement. An IV, for those of you who aren't familiar, pumps fluid from a bag directly into a vein in your arm. This way, I stay hydrated and medications given this way are more effective. However, each IV location doesn't usually last for more than 3 days. This is where the nurses come in. They bring out the big needles and find another vein in my arm that hasn't already been tapped. When an IV is "blown", the fluid no longer goes directly into your vein. It finds somewhere else in your arm to go...usually right under your skin. The first 3 times this happened, I discovered it fairly quickly, as the swelling becomes obvious and my arm would get rather sore. BUT, when it happened the fourth time, I was asleep and didn't feel it right away. Imagine my surprise when I awoke to an arm twice the size that it was when I fell asleep. I pulled the IV out and called the nurse (there's no call button at home...that's just in the hospital...I actually had to pick up the phone and call the nurse). She came today and used that big needle 3 times before stating "all of your veins are blown...this isn't going to work". Therefore, for the time being, I am off of IV therapy. Hopefully, I won't start barfing again. If I do, it's a whole 'nother story that I won't get into unless it actually happens.

I had a doctor's appointment today with my OB/GYN. I heard the baby's heartbeat. It's amazing how I can be so ill and the little thing seems to be uneffected.

So for now, I shall lay awake, sweating, and staring at the clock until the alarm goes off.