Photos that I promised

Here is Lindsay's monitor this morning when we walked in. The concerning number in the operating room was the blue one at the bottom. This was only in the low 60's and Dr. Devaney was pretty concerned about that....but look at it now! 78. WHOO HOO!! Yes, we all know that she is on "Lindsay" time. Blood pressure and heart rate are perfect, for her, too. Heart rate is the top green number and BP are the red numbers. Cole wanted to see Lindsay up close today. He is so brave. He is looking at her with her chest open!! He loves her so much and can't wait until we can take her home. Doctors said today that they will probably close her chest on Sunday. They want to give her a little more time to loose some more of the extra fluid around her lungs. ... and her poor little head!!! Her color overall is awesome but still a little cold. One of our favorite nurses, Jen, was working today so it was good to see her again. They are all so wonderful, it is hard to say that you have a favorite, but extra special when you get to know them so well. Tonight we are headed back up to spend some quality time with her. Cole is all geared up with his Leapster and there apparently is a Star Wars movie on tonight. So, he should be good and entertained. I will update you again tomorrow. Please pray for a uneventful night and that Lindsay keeps going strong like she has been. We are so proud of you baby girl!

Love, Suzie

ROCK STAR!!!!

Well, I have been referring to Lindsay today as "our little rock star". I will post a picture in a little while of her and what we saw on her monitor when we walked in this morning. All of her numbers were as close to perfection as you could get! She actually had improved overnight and a few hours ago, the nurses have removed the Epinephrine and the Vassopressin because her blood pressure was so good! We left last night with not a good feeling in our guts but again, the princess has spoken and she is on a roll! She was not nearly as swollen as I thought she would be this morning. Her poor little head looks like it is about to erupt because of the extra blood flow so I'm sure she has an awful headache. Otherwise she looks great....and she is peeing wonderfully!! The doctors think they will get her chest closed on Sunday. She still has to eliminate more fluid before they will do that, which is fine. She is starting to wake up a bit but then is given more meds to relax her a bit. Can't have her too mobile with that chest open. She has built up such a tolerance to the pain meds from last time, that she is a tough one to get to stay under. So, she is on a versed drip too.
Keep the prayers coming. They are definitely working and being heard! Talk soon and I will have photos for you to look at too! GOD is soooo good!!!
Love,
Suzie

Finally another update!!

Yes, it is 1:15 in the morning and we finally are back in our room at the RMH.....with Cole!!! Our oldest baby is back!! Lindsay has had quite a day. Ok, here we go......In the 5 hours approx. that she was in surgery, she had her shunt removed, patch successfully installed in right atrium, and no luck fixing her tricuspid valve. Every technique seemed to not work but doctors are not overly concerned about it. We will just have to see how she does in these next crutial 24 hours. She might have to have it replaced at some point down the road. She started to dip in her numbers tonight before we left but that was warned to us before she started to do so by the nurses. Typical for these babies to get worse before getting better. Once they figure out her sweet spots for the medicine, she should be fine. A medicine later on can control blood flow for the tricuspid problem as well. Here is what she is on right now: Milrinone, Dopamine, Epinephrine, Vassopressin, and Morphine. We were also warned that she will be a little marshmallow baby tomorrow when we see her. They are expecting her to be very swollen this time because of the increase in blood flow now to her upper extremities. All of this again is overwhelming and very familiar. I do have to say, and Jr and I both agree, that this time is much more frightening than the last. Please pray that her sats get better throughout the night. It is also time again to pray for pee! She had started lasix to relieve some of the pressure off her lungs to see if that would help her sats along a little better. What a little peanut. She has been so strong and she is putting up a good fight. I'm exhausted and will post more in the morning. Remember...pray for pee!
Love always~
Suzie

Update #2

Lindsay did fine after removing her shunt and this last update is Dr. Devaney was starting to insert the patch in her right atrium. Alicia, the nurse practitioner, wasn't sure if he had done any work yet on her tricuspid valve yet or not but will know that on the next update. Wasn't the right time to have a discussion with him. :-) We are all hanging in there and still praying that she keeps on this good path and that she soon comes off the heart/lung machine just fine.
Love, Suzie

Surgery Update #1

Everything is going fine. At 10:30 we got the first update and they had just started the incision and working through the scare tissue. They were able to get all of her lines in easily and handling the anesthesia well. We should have another update around 11:45. We were told this morning that the procedure will take about 5 hours. So, hold on to your seats and keep the prayers flowing!! They are being heard and I know that they are being answered!
Love,
Suzie

A prayer for our Daughter

Dear Lord~
Please be with our daughter tomorrow. We pray that your hands are holding her and guiding her towards a beautiful recovery and back in our arms in no time. We pray that you are with all of the surgical staff tomorrow and that they are on their A-game tomorrow. Lindsay is stronger than we could ever have imagined and we just know that you will take care of her. We thank you everyday that we have such wonderful people that support us and support our choices for Lindsay to have a shot at life. I'm am certain that you have chosen her to serve you and have a long and happy life. Tomorrow is another miracle day and we know that you have the power to make this miracle happen.

Amen

Heavy Hearts Tonight Before Surgery

We're all going to sleep tonight with thoughts for Lindsay and her surgical staff. Hugs go out to Suzie and JR as they release their beautiful little girl over to the Dr's early tomorrow morning.

We have had Cruz all week and yes, the poor boy has Mono. Two years old and he has Mono. Can you imagine the week that Suzie and JR would have had at Disney with Cruz. Isn't it funny how things work out?

Bill and I took him in to the hospital last night as we thought his condition worsened. I have to tell you when we checked in we were told that they had never had such a prepared letter of authorization, even notarized, so that we could get the necessary care for Cruz. That's my daughter! I don't have to tell you how proud I am of her and of JR. What a wonderful husband and father she choose for her soul mate.

We returned home from the hospital at 3:30am when Cruz was released, only if we promised to get him to the Pediatrician today. Well, thanks to Papa Don for coming to our rescue to take him. For those of you that don't know, I've taken a new full time job as the Assistant Program Director for five local radio stations and Bill can't drive, so I really needed help today. I had already planned to take off early tomorrow to go to Ann Arbor, so Don really helped me out. Thank you, thank you.

Bill has been taking care of Cruz this week and doing an outstanding job. He has so much compassion for him and how miserable he is. Because my job is so close to home, I'm only gone for four hours at a time.

We're all excited to see Cole returning from his Disney trip with the Winter's. His Uncle Dan is going to pick him up at the DTW airport tomorrow night and we'll all gather in Ann Arbor after Lindsay's surgery. Don't worry, I won't be taking Cruz anywhere near U of M. Dan's on the road this evening from Pensacola to come up for the weekend to be with the family and oh yeah, there's a Michigan game Saturday.

Well I sure know I need some sleep tonight to be there mentally and physically for Suzie and JR tomorrow so it's off to bed for me. Cruz is already down, but with mono, he's sleeping a lot. We'll keep up with updates as well as we can tomorrow and thanks for all your prayers!

Heart Hugs,
Linda