On Monday we were told that Harper was doing so well that we should be able to come home on Saturday. Karen and I were so excited to hear the news and began making a long list of things we needed to do in preparation for her homecoming. We did not let anyone know initially because we still were not certain and did not want to get any hopes up. Tuesday morning, Karen went to see Harper in the morning and I went to school to teach the first band of the day. After that, I went to the hospital to check in and the nurse said, "well, plans have changed a little... Harper is going to get all her tests done today so that she can go home tomorrow!" I truly could not believe it and it did not sink in that she was going to finally come home!
Karen and I took our list of things we wanted to get done and consolidated it into what we could get done before the next day! Obviously, the list shortened and we still had a lot to do. I got my coverage and lessons done for the rest of the week, went shopping for final pieces that we needed for her care at home, we made doctor's appts for the upcoming days and also check-ups for a couple months from now, etc. It was a busy 24 hours from when we got the news 'til the next day when we finally walked out of the hospital with her, but it was worth all the hustling and it was worth all of the stress of the past 8 1/2 weeks...
Thank you to our distant friends and family from out of town who have been so supportive with phone calls, emails and letters. Your thoughts and prayers have certainly made their way to Cleveland and have touched all three of us. Thank you to our friends and family who are in town; your support, overall kindness, help with the dogs and other house chores, dinner distractions and frequent visits were not merely 'helpful', but completely necessary to our survival over these months. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts... we cannot thank you all enough nor can we find enough ways to repay you.
Please look back to the blog from time to time and I will continue to post pictures and updates about Harper! Just looking back at her pictures from a couple of months ago are strange to see - she has already grown up so much and is a completely new baby now that she is all healed up!
Thank you again. We love you all. xoxo =W=, =K= & =H=
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012
Back "Home"
Sorry for the lack of updates...
All is going well and we are back at Hillcrest now, which is like being back at Harper's first home. We are very grateful for the care we got down at Main Campus and appreciate all of the hard work by the nurses, doctors and staff... they all did a great job during the 5 weeks we were there. But, despite their great work, the Main Campus of The Clinic is just a hard place to enjoy. The parking situation was a pain, the drive down there (in the opposite direction of work) was a drag, the 4 babies to a 'small' room was uncomfortable and the fact we had to leave the room any time the doctors/nurses had to talk about another baby in the room was very inconvenient. All of those are out of the control of the nurses, doctors and staff members, so we don't hold our unpleasant against them but rather against the situation that the facility created.
So... having said that, we are very happy to be back at Hillcrest!
Harper is doing great! She needs to get up to full feeds and we should be able to bring her home. Harper takes a full bottle every here and there with a half bottle in between. But, last night they said that she took a fully bottle each feed! So, we will see how today goes and tomorrow and hopefully get a better idea of when we can get her home!
We are very happy with all of the big steps forward she is taking and can't wait to be back in the comfort of our home, which I feel we haven't gotten to be in for more than an hour during the daylight in the past 8 weeks.
Wish us luck with the feedings... this is our last hurdle and hopefully can take it in stride as we push toward the finish line! =W=
All is going well and we are back at Hillcrest now, which is like being back at Harper's first home. We are very grateful for the care we got down at Main Campus and appreciate all of the hard work by the nurses, doctors and staff... they all did a great job during the 5 weeks we were there. But, despite their great work, the Main Campus of The Clinic is just a hard place to enjoy. The parking situation was a pain, the drive down there (in the opposite direction of work) was a drag, the 4 babies to a 'small' room was uncomfortable and the fact we had to leave the room any time the doctors/nurses had to talk about another baby in the room was very inconvenient. All of those are out of the control of the nurses, doctors and staff members, so we don't hold our unpleasant against them but rather against the situation that the facility created.
So... having said that, we are very happy to be back at Hillcrest!
Harper is doing great! She needs to get up to full feeds and we should be able to bring her home. Harper takes a full bottle every here and there with a half bottle in between. But, last night they said that she took a fully bottle each feed! So, we will see how today goes and tomorrow and hopefully get a better idea of when we can get her home!
We are very happy with all of the big steps forward she is taking and can't wait to be back in the comfort of our home, which I feel we haven't gotten to be in for more than an hour during the daylight in the past 8 weeks.
Wish us luck with the feedings... this is our last hurdle and hopefully can take it in stride as we push toward the finish line! =W=
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Back to the Palace...
I talked with the doctors this morning about taking Harper back to Hillcrest. The one doctor called Hillcrest Hospital a "palace" compared to main campus, which is fairly accurate. Private rooms, more space, up-to-date... we are looking forward to the possibly move. Also, close to work and free parking!
The doctors want Harper to stay for at least one more day and have a clear x-ray before they let her go from the care of the cardiothoracic specialist. So - hopefully, everything will look good tomorrow and we can move her back.
As for coming home, we need to get Harper taking a full feed of milk by mouth and then we will be good to go! Once again, we hope that she will be on milk by this weekend and be strong enough to take a full feed by next week or after that. We understand that it will probably be longer than that, as we have seen most of this experience has taken longer than we have expected, but we are staying optimistic. We see a small light at the end of the tunnel, but are still unsure of how far away that light is... but at least we know it's there! :)
The doctors want Harper to stay for at least one more day and have a clear x-ray before they let her go from the care of the cardiothoracic specialist. So - hopefully, everything will look good tomorrow and we can move her back.
As for coming home, we need to get Harper taking a full feed of milk by mouth and then we will be good to go! Once again, we hope that she will be on milk by this weekend and be strong enough to take a full feed by next week or after that. We understand that it will probably be longer than that, as we have seen most of this experience has taken longer than we have expected, but we are staying optimistic. We see a small light at the end of the tunnel, but are still unsure of how far away that light is... but at least we know it's there! :)
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Big Steps
Sorry I have not posted anything since Thursday... Life has been a little hectic lately! I was at school all day on Friday trying to catch up/get ahead, then coached Friday night (Go Hawks... 2-0 on the season, so far), worked the garlic stand bright and early on Saturday and tried to catch up on some Harper time the rest of the day (with a small break for the Buckeyes).
So... here is an update on Harper...
* Thursday she had her 'permanent' line put in for the supplemental nutrition she needs from lack of feeding. The procedure went well and the doctor only needed to put in a small incision in her chest, not in her neck like we thought.
* Friday was a great day because she got extubated! Harper's levels were all great and they were confident she was ready to be on her own. Since the ventilator went away on Friday, she has been doing excellent with no set-backs.
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* Friday night, feeds were started up again. The volume she has been receiving has been increasing and she is now over 50% full feeds. When she reached 50% they were going to clamp her chest tube and then monitor for another day before taking it out...
* BUT... they took an x-ray of her this morning and it showed that the chest tube had already slipped out of her and was hidden behind the dressing! So, they took it off, put a new dressing over the hole and didn't bother putting a new one in. She is doing great and is showing no signs of fluid build-up in her chest cavity!
* Since the chest tube is out she can now wear clothes! Also, they took her out of her plastic box and she is now in a 'crib' that we can take her out of any time and hold her! It is nice having less restrictions on when and how we can hold Harper!
We are so excited to see everything going in the right direction. We are hoping that Harper will keep tolerating her feeds and increasing in volume so that she can get off of the 'supplemental' fluids all together and then begin working on adding in some of Karen's milk for her. The milk will be the true test because it contains all of the fats and contribute to the production of the fluid. But, as of right now, the doctors think that as long as she tolerates the formula well at full, then the milk should not be a problem for her.
.JPG)
We are keeping our fingers crossed and looking forward to what this upcoming week will bring for Harper. Tuesday will be a big decision day to see when they think that Harper can start on some of the milk and truly test her duct, but as of right now we are happy to see her happy and improving each day!
So... here is an update on Harper...
* Thursday she had her 'permanent' line put in for the supplemental nutrition she needs from lack of feeding. The procedure went well and the doctor only needed to put in a small incision in her chest, not in her neck like we thought.
* Friday was a great day because she got extubated! Harper's levels were all great and they were confident she was ready to be on her own. Since the ventilator went away on Friday, she has been doing excellent with no set-backs.
.JPG)
* Friday night, feeds were started up again. The volume she has been receiving has been increasing and she is now over 50% full feeds. When she reached 50% they were going to clamp her chest tube and then monitor for another day before taking it out...* BUT... they took an x-ray of her this morning and it showed that the chest tube had already slipped out of her and was hidden behind the dressing! So, they took it off, put a new dressing over the hole and didn't bother putting a new one in. She is doing great and is showing no signs of fluid build-up in her chest cavity!
* Since the chest tube is out she can now wear clothes! Also, they took her out of her plastic box and she is now in a 'crib' that we can take her out of any time and hold her! It is nice having less restrictions on when and how we can hold Harper!We are so excited to see everything going in the right direction. We are hoping that Harper will keep tolerating her feeds and increasing in volume so that she can get off of the 'supplemental' fluids all together and then begin working on adding in some of Karen's milk for her. The milk will be the true test because it contains all of the fats and contribute to the production of the fluid. But, as of right now, the doctors think that as long as she tolerates the formula well at full, then the milk should not be a problem for her.
.JPG)
We are keeping our fingers crossed and looking forward to what this upcoming week will bring for Harper. Tuesday will be a big decision day to see when they think that Harper can start on some of the milk and truly test her duct, but as of right now we are happy to see her happy and improving each day!
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