Thursday, December 13, 2007

Surgery Update



It's 12:05 a.m. and we just made it back to the hotel. It's been a long, difficult day but we survived it. More importantly, Ava survived it. When I left the hospital she was resting in Grandma Geri's lap, snoozing the best she could. She was in so much pain tonight. She was given morphine for pain, and Tylenol to help bring down her 101 degree fever. The surgery was a success, thank goodness, but Ava has a long road ahead. All of us are hoping that she can grow and thrive now that the constant vomiting will cease.

We arrived at the hospital at 11:30 a.m. only to discover that pediatric surgeries were running at least two hours behind due to some procedures that took longer than anticipated. Perfectly understandable, but poor Ava, she had to go without food or drink for many hours. True to form, she did it without complaint. Thank goodness for Mam pacifiers! The great part is that instead of having to go from one place to another, the staff comes to the patient. We just hung out in the pre-op waiting room, and nurses, doctors, and support staff seamlessly coordinated their visits with Ava. She was such a happy baby, all hugs and kisses for anyone who would give her a glance. She's such a little trooper. Because they needed to insert her IV prior to sedation we weren't allowed to escort her to surgery. Not a problem, she held her arms out to the doctor and let him carry her off. What a great kid.

Friday will bring g-tube training. I am confident that Laura will be an expert on tube feeding by the end of the day. She has been remarkably calm and focused. I, of course, have been of very little help. I cry when I see Ava in pain. Now, I am supposed to be providing moral support here, but unfortunately I seem to fall apart when I see that baby cry!

Thanks for keeping Ava in your prayers. I'll post a progress report soon. Until then, Happy Friday!

10 comments:

Julie said...

I am so glad everything went well. I hope she starts doing better. What a little sweetie.

Heather said...

Whew, I couldn't wait for the update. Hope she isn't in too much pain the poor thing.
I'm sure she will thrive after this! Much love, heather

Nancy said...

Goodness, I barely survived the update. I hate seeing kids in hospitals. It just feels wrong.

Thinking lots about you and your family.

camille said...

Thank you for the update. I'm glad she's safely out of surgery. I hope she recovers quickly and that you all can go home soon. Thinking of you!

Kerry said...

I'm so glad things are going well... keep posting. Thinking of you and Ava over here :)

LindaD said...

I'm so glad that all went well with the surgery. I remember well 3 years ago being in the same place you are right now. It's hard to see our sweet little peanuts in pain. Ava is so lucky to have such a great mom and family to support her. I will keep that sweet little girl in my prayers. She is will be up running around in no time.
Hugs to all of you!
Linda
grandma to Melina

Anonymous said...

We are so glad that Ava came through surgery well. We have been thinking about all of you. Watching the slideshow took me back to the days of Melina's feeding tube. This journey is hard in the first days but remember that the feeding tube will become like old had before you know it. If you need anything, please let us know. We would be happy to help. We send our hugs and prayers that this is the answer you have been looking for.
Love,
Danielle, Danny, Melina & Alyssa

Noel said...

I knew she couldn't have had the surgery on a better day:) I am glad that things are going okay. My niece has had a g-tube since birth and it really is not hard at all to learn to use. It's funny because my niece could tell you how to do it! Hopefully this will make this better and Ava will grow and thrive!

Noel

Tara said...

I'm so glad everything went okay. Here's to gaining some weight!! I actually fought tears looking at the pictures...something about a child in the hospital. It's really hard to see. Try and get some rest...I'm still praying for her.

Unknown said...

I am so happy that all went well with the surgery, I hope Ava has a smooth recovery and you are all home soon. I will continue to keep you and your family in my thoughts and prayers.