Where Do I Begin???

Well, there is no way this one is gonna be brief, so you might as well grab a cup of coffee! :)

The surgery went well. Total surgery time was right about 4 hours, 5 if you include all of the prep once they take him to the OR. Both surgeons and the anesthesiologist were pleased with the procedures and how well Will tolerated them. Will is in a neck brace. Monday, his new one will be made and fitted to him.

So, yesterday evening, Will was brought to ICU. We finished chatting with Dr. Crone and headed up to the fifth floor. We have to sign in and wear name badges with Will's room number on them. She asked us if there was anyone whom we did not want to visit, and we explained that we live in another state and know only one other family and would have no visitors. Perfect timing, because that is exactly when Matt and Lisa from Faith Pres walked up and said, "Are you Billy and Nancy?" and the receptionist said, "I thought you didn't know anyone!" We explained how Faith Pres has supported us here in Cincinnati without ever having even met us. The Goertmoellers offered us their home as a refuge. Becky G visited with us during the interminable wait of surgery. Matt and Lisa dropped by, and tonight, the Riggs came with dinner in hand...and stayed to share it with us. (Oh! And we discovered that her relatives were actually the Weedons, friends of the Washingtons who are portrayed by GWYF leaders!) But I digress...

So, the receptionist was excited at how the Lord was at work. She explained the rules regarding ICU, then offered helpful advice on how to manage daily life here. There is a parent sleep room that is first come, first serve, but priority is given to those whose children are admitted that day. There is a washer and dryer available, and they provide detergent. A family today informed us of the parent meal card where you can order a meal from dietary that will be delivered with your child's meal, and it is significantly cheaper than paying full cafeteria prices. So we are learning how to survive at the hospital. We are still on the waiting list at the Ronald McDonald House, and all of our stuff is still at the Goertmoeller's house, but we are managing here at the hospital with a change of clothes that we washed tonight. And there is a Whole Foods about ten minutes away that Billy visited for Will since his diet is really limited...

Back to the story..

Will settled into ICU with a great nurse. (Do they have bad nurses here?! Have not met one yet!) Will was totally hilarious coming out of anesthesia. He was telling jokes but couldn't keep them straight, so he was telling like 20 jokes all as one...and laughing. And instead of asking for water, he was asking for H20. He amused all with whom he came into contact...His pain was well controlled, he was stable, and I was exhausted. Billy stayed in the room (only one parent allowed) and insisted that I sleep. So off to the parent room I went.

I slept fitfully and returned to the room early this morning to discover that Will was running a fever of 100.3. They weren't worried about it but were going to monitor it. The plan was to clean him up, change his clothes, remove his arterial line (an IV in an artery in the hand...they use it to draw certain labs and gives them better access for certain drugs.), and transfer him to a regular room.

They are waiting on a bed assignment for the neuro floor, when Will asks to go to the restroom. Billy helps him walk there. When Will gets back in bed, I notice he is shaking. I ask him if he is cold, but he answers no. Apparently he was shaking mildly before going to the bathroom, but is realllly shaking now. He mentions his vision is blurry. Well, that is enough to warrant some excitement. So, I head out to the nurse. We check his glucose. We check his vitals. We check everything we can think of and can find no reasonable reason for the shaking and blurry vision. Dr. Crone is finally called in and he decides it is simply autonomic dysfunction and tells them to transfer us to the floor.

Well, our pediatrician on the floor here decides that maybe that isn't what she wants to do, so she decides to keep him here in ICU tonight. It took well over an hour for the shaking and blurry vision to disappear...and the fever is climbing to over 102. Time to draw some blood from the port and run some blood cultures to look for infection.

Here I sit in ICU with my eyes crossing...and letting you know that Will is doing okay, but there are a few concerns...enough that we are all staying here at ICU another night. But even as I sit here yawning and wishing for sleep, I am so very grateful for how the Lord has orchestrated support and kindness for us here in Cincinnati...Thank you all for your prayers, texts, and messages. You really have no idea how much it helps!

As for Cincinnati, well...all I can say is that I love this hospital and am very glad that Will's surgery was here...