Cleared to leave the PCICU

Sorry for not posting anything earlier today. I guess the sleep deprivation is catching up to us. Becca and I actually went home last night for our first at home since Colby was admitted into the hospital last Thursday. Becca mentioned on our ride back to the hospital this morning that she had gotten more uninterrupted sleep last night than she has since Colby was born. That stretch of sleep consisted of 5 hrs.... It continues to amaze me how well she continues to function and care for the boys with such short and sporadic naps day and night....


Leaving last night was really tough for both of us but he was doing really well so we decided to go home to swap out some laundry and make sure our bed was still in it's old place. Yesterday was a pretty good day. Colby seemed to continue to improve throughout the day. We became a little concerned at one point b/c he started running a fever which typically signifies some type of infection. In babies with heart conditions that scenario is more frightening than normal b/c of the potential harm the infections can cause on their already weak heart. As soon as they noticed his fever they immediately began running blood work and started him on some antibiotics. The initial results showed that his white blood count was not elevated which was good but they are still waiting for all of the cultures to come back to confirm that there is no infection. The typical culture times are 24, 48, and 72 hrs so we are over half way there.



We were also able to meet with Colby's cardiologist yesterday which was very comforting since he has been watching and caring for Colby since we found out at Becca's 20 week ultrasound that he had a "special heart". It was great talking with him b/c he was able to explain and clarify some of what was going on. One thing that he helped us understand was that several of the "set backs" were typical for his surgery especially since they used a larger shunt. The larger shunt allows a higher level of blood flow into his lungs which causes his body to have to adjust to the increase in blood flow. Colby is still pumping blood from his heart into his lungs plus the blood that is now passing through the shunt into his lungs. This information gave us a little more peace about some of the things that had happened since his surgery. As we met with Dr. Liske again today he explained that the shunt is a 2 sided sword in that it does allow increased blood flow to the lungs which allows his SATs to be higher reducing his blue spells but it also increases his symptoms of heart failure b/c of the increased blood flow to the lungs. As he continues to grow the flow with gradually balance out with his growth. Unfortunately as he grows the shunt will also become less effective thus causing him to have the next surgery.






Today was full of progress. Colby is starting look more like our old little Colby. His swelling has gone down considerably. His breathing has gotten better. They have weened him off of most of his IV medicines. He is no longer on the nasal cannula. Last but not least they were able to remove his chest tube. These are steps in the process to getting him out of the ICU. They cleared him to go to a regular floor earlier tonight. Unfortunately there were no rooms available so he should move tomorrow morning. Yeah.....









Yesterday was also fun b/c we were able to leave the hospital for an hour to go with Brody to play at the "dragon" park across the street from the hospital. This whole process has been taxing on us as parents for a variety of reasons but undoubtedly one of the hardest parts is being separated from Brody for such a long time. Fortunately we are surrounded by great family and friends that have shared in the excitement of keeping Brody. Someone joked yesterday that Brody thinks he is on vacation every time Colby is in the hospital. He gets to sleep away from home, go on field trips, and hang out with his little friends. Thanks to everyone that has helped ease the emotional burden of us being away by making Brody feel like part of your family....




God has truly blessed us yet again with His healing hand. If you notice the 2 pictures in this post you can see how much better he looks today over yesterday. Our prayers continue to be answered as Colby continues to get stronger. Thanks for all of the prayers....