Slow and steady wins the race...

One of the blessings of Trisomy 18... beautiful eyelashes!!!

I am becoming very anxious and wanting her to wake up and give me one of those priceless smiles..I continue to be very grateful for the epidural. I think it was after 1:30 a.m. when we requested some pain medicine. When you have an epidural, you are assigned a pain management team. They are the anesthesiologist that make up this team. Annabel doesn't cry very much and she endures much pain. You can tell by how she grimaces and furrows her eyebrows. So I would wait for this to happen, then she would cry out in pain and then the nurse would come in to check on her. We then would call the doctor to request pain medicine. Each time it took a bit for him to come up to the PCU unit. By this time Annabel had cried and was exhausted and I was able to snuggle with her in the bed and she would fall asleep. He would arrive and say "Well she doesn't appear to be in pain." The nurse and I would both verify that we had waited a while prior to calling him and then it took him a bit to arrive. He would refuse and be on his way. They have said with a child it is harder to know if the epidural is actually working because she can't respond and tell us. I do believe it is definitely working but I do think sometimes she becomes very uncomfortable that she needs just something to take the edge off. Well the doctor was not having any of this. So when pedi surgery made their rounds they notice her not being comfortable and ordered the morphine. The team came behind and cut the dose in half. That is just how it works here! We didn't give her the dose until around 3 p.m. today. It did really wipe her out and she did have some slight desats due to her sleeping much deeper. She then became nauseated and with the tube down her nose into her stomach she began to vomit. So we have let her lay and rest most of the afternoon. She is still in la la land...zzzzzzz...

We again are so lucky with great nurses. They are supportive and very informative in helping me understand what is going on. No only are they really good at their jobs but it is obvious that they have a huge heart for nursing.

Tara was the first one that got to hold Annabel today. I was a little nervous but the nurses encouraged me that she would be fine. Carly and Colette are also here for several days with Tara staying in the hotel across the street. They have been a huge help getting us food and snacks. Tara brings me Starbucks each morning for breakfast. I think I am becoming quite spoiled. Also, Colette has been standing by to give me neck rubs on several occasions to relieve my stress. Ahhhhhhhh....They have also been great company for me and keep things light. I know when Annabel is feeling better they will be a great source of entertainment.

We had a surprise visit from some friends of ours from home. Laura and Larry came to Houston to pick up furniture and stopped by with a Big Bird for Annabel and a bag of snacks for me. I can't imagine how much I will weigh when we are released.

Tara holding Annabel for the first time today and one of our

sweet nurses, Mary Ann

Sleeping or wakey???

Surprise visitors, Laura and Larry