They had to draw more blood at 4am and I was so awake I stood out in the hall and visited with the nurses for a while. Their parenting advice - Make your kid wear a helmet no matter what and NEVER let your kid ride on dad or grandpa's lap on the lawnmower. I heard some terrible stories but I choose not to share them with all of you because I don't want to think about them again.
By this morning, there were no children in PICU and only six in the pediatric ward, but a few more joined us from the ER by the end of the day. We didn't realize, until visiting with the nurses, that only two to three babies a year have this surgery and Ben is the youngest any of them had seen have it. I'm kind of glad we didn't know that beforehand.
We had lots of visitors today and Ben has flowers, a teddy bear, a balloon and new clothes. I know I've said this several times, but we are so grateful for the generosity of all our friends. Our meal calendar has been completely filled up and we have enjoyed so many wonderful meals already.
We thought Ben would get his bandages off today, but he is still bleeding too much for the drainage tube to come out, so the bandages will hopefully be removed tomorrow. If so, there is a chance we will be able to go home tomorrow evening. The biggest concern at this point is making sure we do not have a fluid build up on the brain. The drainage prevents that but he has to be on antibiotics because he has an unsealed opening into his head. After they take the tube out, they will bandage it closed and monitor it for several hours at the very least before we can go home.
Josh thinks we will be able to go home tomorrow evening but I am not so sure. It still seems like he is bleeding quite a bit and I think it will probably be Monday before we are released.
Other than that, we have had no major concerns today. His temperature was running a little cool for a while, but we switched him into long sleeves and added an extra blanket and he warmed right up. I would recommend anyone else taking their infant to the hospital, to bring pajamas without feet. His ID bracelet is on his ankle and they have to unsnap him for everything to check the bracelet. I would also advise anyone to bring the worst clothes because several of his outfits have been soiled with blood or medicine.
He has slept quite a bit today and continues to nurse well. All of the blood tests continue to come back great and we don't see any concerns at this time as long as the bleeding slows down by tomorrow morning.
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