Ear surgery knocked me on my butt. I don't remember the doctor warning me that I will experience some of the worst days of my life afterwards. Maybe I didn't hear him, which quite possibly happened since I was severely deaf. The surgery itself was easy thanks to general anesthesia, but the drive home was insane. The pain was so intense and unbearable that it felt like someone had just drilled straight through my ear drum. Oh wait, they did. I think I almost passed out. Day two consisted of vertigo so horrible that if I even opened my eyes and looked at the ceiling, I would become so dizzy and vomit. Thanks to an additional prescription being called in, I was able to finally sit up after laying in bed for 12 straight hours.

As if the day couldn't possibly get any more glamorous, as Nick was helping me out of the shower, turning his back for 10 seconds, Audrey managed to trip and bust her lip wide open. With blood gushing everywhere and a hysterical little girl, we knew we had to rush to the ER. So here we are: me in a wheelchair, covering my head and eyes from the world and crying, bandages covering my ear, and Nick and Audrey covered in blood. The nurses didn't know who the patient was. Maybe one day we can look back and laugh at this situation. Thankfully, Audrey's wound only required two stitches:

This recovery has been very difficult, but a stapedectomy was necessary to lessen the effects of otosclerosis, a presumed inherited condition that causes hearing loss. Basically, sclerosis formed on my stapes bone (tiniest bone in the body) so they replaced it with a titanium implant. All done with a microscope, amazing! My hearing the first day was SO incredibly sensitive and superhuman like that I could hear things most people probably can't. It was amazing! A car door slamming outside sounded like a bomb going off. My phone on vibrate was deafening. The sound waves from the video monitor were piercing. I could even hear tiny glitches which I think was the titanium getting settled. Thankfully, this superhuman power has subsided and once the packing is removed from my ear, I should experience a "normal" range. Its day 6 and I can just now walk in a straight line, so hopefully all the pain will be worth it in the end. And maybe I can forget how horrible this was for when I have to have my left ear done. Thank goodness the implants last for 30 years.

Anyways, now on to the good stuff. I was feeling decent enough to keep the Easter festivities rolling, which included Nick's sister and his cousin and her fiancé from NY. The first night we dined on THREE delicious homemade pizzas (courtesy of Trice and Nick):

We rolled out of bed for the sunrise service to beat the crowds but didn't get a family portrait because Nick was too quick to throw off his suit and jump into a tshirt and jeans. But Audrey looked ADORABLE in her pretty Easter dress thanks to Aunt Patrice!

We even had a mini Easter egg hunt:

But I don't think she understood the concept (I love Erin's laugh in the background):

And here is a family portrait, but mainly just proof that Audrey is already half my size. Her height is all Whitefield.

The last two weeks Nick has been home have unfortunately been filled with lots of worry, stress, and exhaustion. So much has taken place that I feel like I lived an entire year in just two weeks. And he left again for two more weeks this morning. Deep breath. I can do this!