Saturday, January 31, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
The longest day...
It's 9pm and I have finally made it to Starbucks for a few minutes to post an update. First of all, Abby is well. More on that in a moment.
We didn't sleep a wink last night. They had to move a little girl into our room at
3am. We were up anyways, so it wasn't that big of a deal, but it certainly didn't help matters. Then at 4am, Abby's bag leaked. We had to change it one last time. At 6am, x-ray came to take a picture of her chest, and right on time at 6:30, they came to take us to surgery. I was able to carry her the whole way down and they wheeled the crib along side. We signed some paperwork, met with the doctors, and then had to hand her off to the nurse to be taken away. Probably the hardest moment of my life...so far.
She was in surgery for 4 hours and 7 minutes (but who's counting?). Longer than expected, but she did well. She has a central line placed in her chest, but was able to be extubated immediately after surgery. Brian saw her in recovery for a few minutes, then they kicked him out and I stayed with her for about an hour and a half.
We were finally taken back to our room at about 1pm. Abby has an NG tube in her nose. It is collecting all the "stuff" in her belly, since her intestines are not yet working at all. Her central line in her chest will stay there until we are discharged. She was getting morphine every 3 hours, but they have upped that to every 2 hours now. She has been on and off the nasal cannula, but seems to be doing better with her oxygen saturation now that we have gotten a little further in the day. She also has a catheter right now. And unfortunately, she lost a little more blood than was expected, so she is in the middle of a transfusion. Her red blood cell count was a little too low for the doctor's liking. And to be honest, she was looking very pale. Her transfusion should be done at about 2am, and her color has already started to improve.
Now we just wait, and manage her pain. The fluid coming out of the NG tube has to turn to clear, then we will know the intestines have started functioning again. After that, they will listen for bowel sounds. Once that happens, we should start to see some poop, or at least something, coming out of her little tushie. Once the poop starts, they will slowly start her on clear liquids. As long as there are no unforeseen obstacles, we expect the whole process to take another 5-7 days.
I am not going to lie...this has been a very difficult day, for everyone. We are a little worried about her desats, but as long as they are fewer and farther between, it is a good thing. She is clearly in a lot of pain and she is very, very hungry. She has been constantly making a little sucking motion with her mouth. She must be dreaming about her bottle.
Again, thank you all for the support and love that is pouring in. And thanks to the visitors that stopped by to wish Abby well. I am sorry if I didn't respond to all of the test messages and voicemails, but service in the hospital is spotty, at best. I have to get back now, but I will end with a few pictures from this afternoon, taken once she was back in her room.
And yes, that is a heart-shaped dressing made especially for Abby by Dr. German...in honor of Valentine's Day. And yes, that little C in the middle does represent the Chicago Cubs...also by Dr. German, to match the sweatshirt her Daddy was wearing today.
More tomorrow, but for now I have to get back to my girl...
We didn't sleep a wink last night. They had to move a little girl into our room at
3am. We were up anyways, so it wasn't that big of a deal, but it certainly didn't help matters. Then at 4am, Abby's bag leaked. We had to change it one last time. At 6am, x-ray came to take a picture of her chest, and right on time at 6:30, they came to take us to surgery. I was able to carry her the whole way down and they wheeled the crib along side. We signed some paperwork, met with the doctors, and then had to hand her off to the nurse to be taken away. Probably the hardest moment of my life...so far.
She was in surgery for 4 hours and 7 minutes (but who's counting?). Longer than expected, but she did well. She has a central line placed in her chest, but was able to be extubated immediately after surgery. Brian saw her in recovery for a few minutes, then they kicked him out and I stayed with her for about an hour and a half.
We were finally taken back to our room at about 1pm. Abby has an NG tube in her nose. It is collecting all the "stuff" in her belly, since her intestines are not yet working at all. Her central line in her chest will stay there until we are discharged. She was getting morphine every 3 hours, but they have upped that to every 2 hours now. She has been on and off the nasal cannula, but seems to be doing better with her oxygen saturation now that we have gotten a little further in the day. She also has a catheter right now. And unfortunately, she lost a little more blood than was expected, so she is in the middle of a transfusion. Her red blood cell count was a little too low for the doctor's liking. And to be honest, she was looking very pale. Her transfusion should be done at about 2am, and her color has already started to improve.
Now we just wait, and manage her pain. The fluid coming out of the NG tube has to turn to clear, then we will know the intestines have started functioning again. After that, they will listen for bowel sounds. Once that happens, we should start to see some poop, or at least something, coming out of her little tushie. Once the poop starts, they will slowly start her on clear liquids. As long as there are no unforeseen obstacles, we expect the whole process to take another 5-7 days.
I am not going to lie...this has been a very difficult day, for everyone. We are a little worried about her desats, but as long as they are fewer and farther between, it is a good thing. She is clearly in a lot of pain and she is very, very hungry. She has been constantly making a little sucking motion with her mouth. She must be dreaming about her bottle.
Again, thank you all for the support and love that is pouring in. And thanks to the visitors that stopped by to wish Abby well. I am sorry if I didn't respond to all of the test messages and voicemails, but service in the hospital is spotty, at best. I have to get back now, but I will end with a few pictures from this afternoon, taken once she was back in her room.
And yes, that is a heart-shaped dressing made especially for Abby by Dr. German...in honor of Valentine's Day. And yes, that little C in the middle does represent the Chicago Cubs...also by Dr. German, to match the sweatshirt her Daddy was wearing today.
More tomorrow, but for now I have to get back to my girl...
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Day 2 and things are good!
Wow. I just read everyone's comments, and as always, they brought tears to my eyes. Thank you all SO much for praying for our little family. For those of you whom I haven't seen on my blog before, I can't wait to go check out YOUR blogs, and I will do so soon, I promise!
How's Abby, you ask? She's great. A rockstar. But we already knew that. So far we have literally just been "hanging out". Except for a small heel prick to take some blood last night, it's just been life as usual. We are really just trying to keep her entertained in our little corner of the room. She shares it with a little boy...22 months old. I think he may be going home today or tomorrow...lucky him. And ironically, his Daddy is a firefighter too, so we've had lots to talk about.
Today is another day of just hanging out. We've pretty much moved the whole house over here. Boppy. Gymini. Bouncy seat. You name it, we brought it. Its the only way to keep her busy. She's not one to just lay around. She likes to be on the move. And entertained.
She will have a chest x-ray later today. She's been doing really well, considering she's been on a clear liquid diet for more than 24 hours now. I guess the "observation" is just simply measuring input and output and checking her vitals every 4 hours. Other than that, we just try to play with her. We are avoiding any walks or activities outside of our room because there are a lot of RSV patients in there right now.
All of the real excitement will start tomorrow morning at 6:30. She'll be taken to St. Joe's for surgery. It looks like they will be placing a central line in her neck. Ugh. It will have to stay in until we are discharged. Unless something unexpected happens, they plan to extubate her immediately after surgery. She will be brought back to the room and her pain will be managed with morphine. Then we just sit and wait. Sit and wait for poop. Who knew we would be waiting for such a bodily function to occur??? And with such excitement and anticipation, too!
So, I stayed with her last night and learned a little math.
That's right! I swear she had the best night sleep of her life last night. I put her in the crib at 8pm. She slept through a vitals check at midnight and another one at 4am. And I had to wake her up at 7am for a bottle and diaper change! She slept all through the night. In her crib. This clear liquid diet has really done wonders for the reflux. I know I still have to give her milk, but now I am wondering if we should try something different? Maybe soy? She is already on a specialty formula for allergies to cows milk. But maybe we need soy formula? Do they even make that? I'll have to call the pediatrician when we get home.
Well, that's the latest from here. I had to run to Starbucks to get on the internet, so I suppose I should be getting back to Abby and her Daddy. Here are some pictures from our first day in the hospital. Aside from the institutional, jail-like crib...things aren't so bad!
Waiting in the lobby to be admitted
Laughing at Daddy
Giving the crib a test run
"if you're not going to feed me, I'll just eat my arm!"
Playing the piano
Visiting with Grandpa Gary
He had to bring us baby wipes. Apparently wipes aren't in the CHOC budget. Diapers? Yes. Wipes? Nope.
I will try to update after surgery tomorrow! Thanks again, to everyone, for being so awesome! And if you don't mind, please keep praying. The hardest days are still ahead of us.
How's Abby, you ask? She's great. A rockstar. But we already knew that. So far we have literally just been "hanging out". Except for a small heel prick to take some blood last night, it's just been life as usual. We are really just trying to keep her entertained in our little corner of the room. She shares it with a little boy...22 months old. I think he may be going home today or tomorrow...lucky him. And ironically, his Daddy is a firefighter too, so we've had lots to talk about.
Today is another day of just hanging out. We've pretty much moved the whole house over here. Boppy. Gymini. Bouncy seat. You name it, we brought it. Its the only way to keep her busy. She's not one to just lay around. She likes to be on the move. And entertained.
She will have a chest x-ray later today. She's been doing really well, considering she's been on a clear liquid diet for more than 24 hours now. I guess the "observation" is just simply measuring input and output and checking her vitals every 4 hours. Other than that, we just try to play with her. We are avoiding any walks or activities outside of our room because there are a lot of RSV patients in there right now.
All of the real excitement will start tomorrow morning at 6:30. She'll be taken to St. Joe's for surgery. It looks like they will be placing a central line in her neck. Ugh. It will have to stay in until we are discharged. Unless something unexpected happens, they plan to extubate her immediately after surgery. She will be brought back to the room and her pain will be managed with morphine. Then we just sit and wait. Sit and wait for poop. Who knew we would be waiting for such a bodily function to occur??? And with such excitement and anticipation, too!
So, I stayed with her last night and learned a little math.
Clear liquid diet = no reflux
No reflux = one comfortable Abby
One comfortable Abby = an entire night of peaceful sleep for baby!
No reflux = one comfortable Abby
One comfortable Abby = an entire night of peaceful sleep for baby!
That's right! I swear she had the best night sleep of her life last night. I put her in the crib at 8pm. She slept through a vitals check at midnight and another one at 4am. And I had to wake her up at 7am for a bottle and diaper change! She slept all through the night. In her crib. This clear liquid diet has really done wonders for the reflux. I know I still have to give her milk, but now I am wondering if we should try something different? Maybe soy? She is already on a specialty formula for allergies to cows milk. But maybe we need soy formula? Do they even make that? I'll have to call the pediatrician when we get home.
Well, that's the latest from here. I had to run to Starbucks to get on the internet, so I suppose I should be getting back to Abby and her Daddy. Here are some pictures from our first day in the hospital. Aside from the institutional, jail-like crib...things aren't so bad!
Waiting in the lobby to be admitted
Laughing at Daddy
Giving the crib a test run
"if you're not going to feed me, I'll just eat my arm!"
Playing the piano
Visiting with Grandpa Gary
He had to bring us baby wipes. Apparently wipes aren't in the CHOC budget. Diapers? Yes. Wipes? Nope.
I will try to update after surgery tomorrow! Thanks again, to everyone, for being so awesome! And if you don't mind, please keep praying. The hardest days are still ahead of us.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Getting ready
It's been a tough day, and I am sure the next few will be even worse. I called the hospital this morning to see what time we needed to be there and they said 8am. I think that's when it finally hit us. I cried. Her Daddy cried. She was sitting on her Daddy's lap just looking at us.
Our sadness must have rubbed off on her because next thing you know, she threw her little bottom lip out in this sad little pout
Ugh. Let's just say many more tears were shed. But soon after, Grandma Jean came over and cheered us all up. Daddy and I went to Babies R Us and bought her some super special, snuggly warm pjs for the hospital (it's freezing in there). I was careful to get some that they will hopefully let her wear. They don't have feet and have snaps so leads and IVs and wires and such can come out between the snaps. I think I'm just about done packing her bag. Favorite toy. Check. Favorite blanket. Check. Butt paste. Check. Favorite puppet. Check. PJs. Check. Zantac. Check. Bottle. Check. Paci. Check. Awesome post-surgery gift from her friend Luke. Check. Camera. Check. Computer. Check. Formula for when she can eat again...5 days or so from now. Check. Burp cloth and bib. Check. Hat and socks. Check.
Come to think of it, I am probably bringing way more than she will need, but I want to keep things as familiar as I possibly can for her, ya know? I just hope I am not forgetting anything. Well, that's all for now I suppose. Not sure what the internet access is like, but I will do my best to update as often as I can. I have to say a huge "thank you" to you all, for keeping our little Abby in your prayers. We know she will get through this with flying colors, just as she has before.
Our sadness must have rubbed off on her because next thing you know, she threw her little bottom lip out in this sad little pout
Ugh. Let's just say many more tears were shed. But soon after, Grandma Jean came over and cheered us all up. Daddy and I went to Babies R Us and bought her some super special, snuggly warm pjs for the hospital (it's freezing in there). I was careful to get some that they will hopefully let her wear. They don't have feet and have snaps so leads and IVs and wires and such can come out between the snaps. I think I'm just about done packing her bag. Favorite toy. Check. Favorite blanket. Check. Butt paste. Check. Favorite puppet. Check. PJs. Check. Zantac. Check. Bottle. Check. Paci. Check. Awesome post-surgery gift from her friend Luke. Check. Camera. Check. Computer. Check. Formula for when she can eat again...5 days or so from now. Check. Burp cloth and bib. Check. Hat and socks. Check.
Come to think of it, I am probably bringing way more than she will need, but I want to keep things as familiar as I possibly can for her, ya know? I just hope I am not forgetting anything. Well, that's all for now I suppose. Not sure what the internet access is like, but I will do my best to update as often as I can. I have to say a huge "thank you" to you all, for keeping our little Abby in your prayers. We know she will get through this with flying colors, just as she has before.
Exersaucers Rock!
She's not quite big enough for it yet, but we wanted to give it a little test run. Looks like it's a hit!
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Random Picture Challenge
It's Saturday, and that means another random picture challenge from Brittany. This week it's August 2007, picture #30.
And so, my #30 is....
This was taken after we finished playing a round of golf at Wailea in Maui. Brian was calling to get us a shuttle to take us back to our hotel. We were there on our belated honeymoon. *Grin*
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On a totally different subject, check out what ML did for Abigail over at Meet Me in the Clubhouse. Seriously...I'm still crying and I saw it over 20 minutes ago. The sweetest thing ever. Thanks ML.
And so, my #30 is....
This was taken after we finished playing a round of golf at Wailea in Maui. Brian was calling to get us a shuttle to take us back to our hotel. We were there on our belated honeymoon. *Grin*
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On a totally different subject, check out what ML did for Abigail over at Meet Me in the Clubhouse. Seriously...I'm still crying and I saw it over 20 minutes ago. The sweetest thing ever. Thanks ML.
Friday, January 23, 2009
Unexpected...
Abby had her pre-op appointment with the surgeon. He said every thing looks great and we are a go for surgery next Thursday as planned. On his way out of the office I was stunned when the conversation went like this:
Doctor: "Great! See you Tuesday".
Me: "You mean Thursday, the twenty-ninth".
Doctor: "No, I mean Tuesday.
Me: "But Tuesday is the twenty-seventh".
Doctor: "Yes it is. She needs to be admitted on Tuesday, the twenty-seventh".
Me: (luckily to myself and not out loud)..."what the bleep-ity-bleep-bleep-bleep?!?!"
Apparently, and I was not told this by the scheduler when they called, Abby has to go in 2 days early for observation, another barium enema, and some other pre-op tests. This I am NOT happy about. I had finally come to terms with putting her in the hospital on Thursday, knowing that she would quickly be put under and then for a few days, not really know where she was or what was going on. Instead, she has to go in on Tuesday and will be very aware (and probably not happy) of her surroundings. Ugh. We also have to start her on clear liquids for 2 days. Man, she is not going to like that.
My sweet little innocent baby. She just has no idea what we are about to do to her. I am broken-hearted over the whole thing.
Doctor: "Great! See you Tuesday".
Me: "You mean Thursday, the twenty-ninth".
Doctor: "No, I mean Tuesday.
Me: "But Tuesday is the twenty-seventh".
Doctor: "Yes it is. She needs to be admitted on Tuesday, the twenty-seventh".
Me: (luckily to myself and not out loud)..."what the bleep-ity-bleep-bleep-bleep?!?!"
Apparently, and I was not told this by the scheduler when they called, Abby has to go in 2 days early for observation, another barium enema, and some other pre-op tests. This I am NOT happy about. I had finally come to terms with putting her in the hospital on Thursday, knowing that she would quickly be put under and then for a few days, not really know where she was or what was going on. Instead, she has to go in on Tuesday and will be very aware (and probably not happy) of her surroundings. Ugh. We also have to start her on clear liquids for 2 days. Man, she is not going to like that.
My sweet little innocent baby. She just has no idea what we are about to do to her. I am broken-hearted over the whole thing.
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