Recovery

Natalie is resting peacefully next to me as I type this post, and what a wonderful sight that is!  After about three hours of surgery and recovery, Natalie returned to us whimpering.  Her only complaint thus far has been when she is moved or bothered in any way.  That's fantastic news because it means her pain management is working for now.  Her surgery was certainly not as extensive as last year's surgery, so we're hoping recovery will be much easier for this little girl who has no idea what is happening to her or WHY it's happening.

As Yogi Berra says, "It's like deja vu all over again."  Natalie had the same doctor, anesthesiologist and nurse as last year, and is just two doors down from her old room.  We'll hope that the similarities end there.

The view from Natalie's window, just two doors down from her room last year.

 The wait is the hardest...hoping and praying that she will be safe and she will return to us.  Surgery and the subsequent recovery for Natalie is dangerous, especially because she's had issues with RSV and pneumonia in the past.  Her lungs are so fragile, and that is a constant worry for me.  So I laid in her hospital bed this morning, praying and reading and doing anything to keep my mind off of what could happen.

Her throne awaits--including a froggy she received from her summer school teachers!

 Dr. Haasbeek just stopped by to check on Nat...his main concern was that she looked quite pale, so we put her back on the nasal cannula to get some extra oxygen in her.  She looks much better already!

When she wakes up, we'll try to get some clear fluids in her.  That means dietary sent up a tray of Jell-O, chicken broth, water, apple juice and....COFFEE.  Seriously.  She's five years old, people.  Ha!

Also, only of my pet peeves is student doctors.  I know they have to learn somehow, but there's nothing more annoying than having a student doctor come in to get a complete history of your child five minutes after she returns from surgery, then asks what type of surgery she is going to have today.  Ummmm..she already had it.  You may want to know that before you come in the room.  It took all I had not to laugh out loud!

Natalie is sleeping peacefully!  What a little angel.

A cool side note: Dr. Haasbeek is traveling to Ecuador on a mission trip this Friday to perform surgery on children in need there.  His face lights up when he talks about it, and it makes us admire him even more.  The best part is that the plates removed from Natalie's femurs today will go inside of a child in Ecuador...AMAZING!  

Thank you all for your constant prayers!  They mean more to us than you'll ever know!