Home again Home again...

We've been back home now for 4 days and I can't believe it's only been a little more than a week since baby P's surgery! We are really struggling with this lack of routine. We hadn't established a great routine pre-surgery (which was driving me crazy!), but now it's even worse. Tonight Preston finally went down at about 11. I keep telling myself we'll get there, but my fear is that it won't be until I'm home for the summer!

P is doing great! Sunday night we noticed quite a bit of bleeding at the top of his incision. We called the after hours number for the surgeon and were able to speak to him immediately. He didn't seem too concerned, so we went about things as normal. When we got up Monday morning the bleeding had gone all the way through the bandage and two layers of clothing, so obviously we called back. They wanted us to go ahead and come in just to be safe. Everything was fine and they gave us a different kind of dressing to use that's not as easy for Preston to pull on. We were scheduled to go for chest x-rays Tuesday, but they were able to get them done while we were there. Technology is so amazing! They took the x-rays, scanned them into the computer, and the cardiologist read them (from another part of the hospital), all within 15 minutes. She said everything looked great. There was no detectible amounts of fluid and that his heart had gone back to a good size. They had begun to see some enlargment prior to surgery.

Preston's feeding schedule, if you want to call it that, is really wacky. We pretty much have to guess when he's hungry. Sometimes he takes 6 ounces, sometimes 2. Pre-surgery he was eating about every 6 hours, but not anymore....earlier he took 5 ounces and then 3 more an hour later. UGH! Sleeping, well, that's a whole new story. Tuesday he didn't wake up until 12:30 in the afternoon!

He is such a trooper! Poor baby has eight different medications that he takes everyday. We now schedule our day around taking medicines rather than taking naps. We begin our regimen at 6 am, it then continues through the day at 9 am, noon, 2 pm, 6 pm, 9 pm, and he gets his last dose with his 10:00 feeding. (I say 10:00 feeding, that's what we hope for!) He will slowly come off of some of the meds, but probably not all. Right now he is taking Zantac for reflux (he's been on that for a while), mylicon very regularly! for gas, motrin for pain, benadryl for rest and to keep itching at ease at the incision site, cephalexin to keep infection away, lasix to keep fluid off of his heart and lungs, enalapril for blood pressure, and aspirin to prevent clotting. He will take aspirin everyday for the rest of his life, we're not sure how long the lasix and enalapril will last, and the rest should be short-lived. He used to take medicine like it was no big deal, but not anymore!

I think he's having some trust issues. Anytime he we get too far from him he gets sad face and screams! Our parents have tried to hold him and it has not gone well! He has become a Momma's boy, too! I'm not disappointed in that, but it makes me really worried to go back to work next week.

This sweet baby is so strong. He has already been through more in his short life than I think most adults have been through. I look forward to the days that these experiences drive his motivation to become a cardiologist who's a professional golfer on the side! Of course, he won't be playing at Walnut Creek though! :)

Going home...Yea!

Daddy was trying to hide:)

Bath time!!