Mom Update

As of yesterday morning my mom is #3 on the transplant list. The doctors were able to get her a higher score for her liver, which moved her up the list. The #2 person on the list is waiting for a liver and a kidney, so my mom may actually get her liver sooner.

As this news arrived we are all overwhelmed with the reality that this transplant is going to happen. Everyone has been so encouraging, and this is what we have been praying for. Because of that, it's strange that we are mainly feeling overwhelmed and scared. A transplant is a HUGE deal. And, I think we were all hoping that Christmas this year would fall low on the drama list for us.

The transplant could happen any day. Until then, please pray for peace for my mom as she awaits a very scary thing. Pray that she and my dad will not be overwhelmed by To Do Lists and What Ifs.

Random Transplant Facts:
- Piedmont Hospital does an average of 85 transplants a year. (That's more than one a week!)
- After a transplant the patient is usually in the ICU on a breathing machine with several tubes and drains for 3 days.
- Piedmont Hospital has a 93% first year survival rate for transplant recipients.

It's Been Awhile!

It's been awhile since I've blogged. Um, more like almost 10 months. Once you stop posting, it's hard to get started again. I'm sitting on my couch watching Say Yes To The Dress. Why do we watch this stuff? (I'm assuming others do too!) I'm counting down the minutes to when my kids will wake up, knowing that the days of both kids napping are almost over.

Let's see...Updates...

Parker is obsessed with superheroes, especially Batman, and Disney princesses. Interesting.

He dresses himself, takes medicine without throwing a fit, helped decorate the tree (really helped), and can actually be reasoned with. Basically, he's growing up. It's pretty cool.

Abigail is spunky, sassy, and confident. She always walks with a purpose, loves anything that sparkles, is picky about which skinny jeans she gets to wear, has Eric completely wrapped around her little finger and explained to Santa today how to get into our house and drop off her 2 presents that she has to have.

Eric is truly amazing. He makes it look simple to juggle work, kids and a high maintenance wife.

Here are the kids' school pictures this year. I love them!

Update

We are hanging in there. Seriously, hanging in there. The food and visits and my mom have kept us going. Thanks!!

We are now just waiting for next Friday, February 26. We will go for a doctor's visit and either get the cast removed or be told that she has to wear it for 4 more weeks. I told Eric last night that I can hang in there for another week and a half, but that I WILL have a meltdown if we are told that the cast can't come off.

Please pray for fast healing!

The kids are doing well. Abigail seems to not even realize that she has a cast on. The only problem is that she's getting really bored. Parker is a little attention hungry from all of this. He's said a couple times that he wants a cast too. Dear God, No! :)

The Weekend

The good news is that Abigail is getting back to her normal personality. She doesn't seem to be in pain at all anymore. She's trying to move around some on her own. She's getting used to the crazy harness for the car, and enjoying being held all the time. The hard thing is that she is getting frustrated with not being able to walk. And, it's hard to entertain her all the time.

The hard news is that we went to the doctor on Friday for a check up. They told us that she will definitely be in the cast for 4 weeks, but possibly for 6-8 weeks. We go back to the doctor February 26. Once she gets her cast off, she will have to learn to crawl and walk again. This will probably take a couple weeks. She will have a limp for about 3-4 months, but possibly for a year. That was hard news to hear.

I had some sort of stomach bug this weekend. Nice, huh! We're all exhausted in every way. My mom has been amazing! She's been here almost everyday. And, she'll continue to be here so that I can go back to work. She and Abigail have formed quite a bond.

Thanks for all the food, prayers, and visits. I think Parker is enjoying this time! He's had tons of friends stop by, and more play dates than ever before. Keep it coming!

Today

This is a picture of Abigail with a new toy. She loved it! She had 3 wet diapers today! It was only 1 yesterday. So, we've moved up! Yay! Today was a rough day because she was discontent. I also had to take her to the doctor because she has a sinus infection. Not fun! I'll try to take a picture of the harness she has to use in the car. Thank you for your prayers. She drank 2 cups of juice today, and ate a few bites of food. Yay! Now if we can just get some sleep! We go to the doctor for a X-ray on Friday. We'll know more at that point as to how she's healing. Thanks for everything!!

Abigail

Thank you all for your prayers for Abigail! Thank you for the food, the visits, and the emails. It's been so encouraging to have so many friends during this time.

Many of you have asked over facebook or email about what happened.

Saturday morning Eric was letting me sleep in. He was taking the kids downstairs to play. He tripped on something and fell down the stairs while holding Abigail. The fall woke me up. I rushed downstairs and saw them all on the ground. Eric was pretty banged up. Abigail was having a hard time breathing and was obviously hurt.

When we got her to the hospital we originally thought that she had broken ribs or something wrong with her lungs because she kept gasping for air. But, now we think she was just in shock.

The doctors first thought that she would need surgery and be in a full spica cast for 8 weeks with physical therapy to follow. We were moved to a regular hospital room to wait for the procedure to be on Sunday morning.

So, we were incredibly relieved and thankful when they brought her back from the O.R. on Sunday with less than half the cast we were expecting, and only a 3 week period of being in the cast.

It's been a rough 4 days. Abigail is normally very active and independent, so she's having a really hard time adjusting to the cast. We've been able to rig the highchair for her to sit in and borrowed a wagon from work to ride her around the house. She's started sleeping in her crib again at night and for her naps. My mom has also been here during the day with me, which has been so helpful. I don't think I could do it alone.

My biggest concern now is that we can't get her to eat or drink much. She only had one wet diaper today. So, please continue to pray for her appetite and thirst. I really don't want her to end up in the hospital again.

Please continue to stop by. She loves having visitors. Be prepared to hold her and read her a book if you come over. :)