Next Surgery: April 26th

Life has been so busy, I haven't had five seconds to think, let alone get to putting a "real" post on here. So, for now, this is it... Sweet Jilly's next surgery is scheduled for April 26th with a whoooole bunch of appointments in between. I will do my best to keep everyone updated. And as always, please keep Jillian in your prayers throughout the next few weeks before surgery and during her recovery after. Thank you :)

Recovering from G-tube Surgery

Jilly's surgery went well : )  Other than needing oxygen overnight because her sats were low (even for her) she has been great! She was taken off of oxygen at about 6 this morning and has been breathing on her own ever since. She's very hungry- she hasn't eaten in over 24 hours- so we're hoping we can start feeding her small amounts soon. She was put in the CICU (Cardiac Intensive Care Unit) last night, as the whole hospital is on bed alert, meaning they are packed! This was pretty much the only place in the hospital to have any open bed spaces. We are waiting to be moved to CPCU (Cardiac Progressive Care Unit) for tonight and then hopefully home tomorrow.

G-tube Surgery, Friday March 11th

We've been home for almost 9 weeks now (WOOHOO!), but Jillian is still unable to keep up with the amount of feeding she needs. After multiple trips to our pediatrician, to Children's Hospital and a disastrous trip to our local ER to have her NG (Nasogastric- a thin tube put in her nose, down her throat and into her tummy) feeding tube placed after being pulled out, we've decided to go ahead with the g-tube (gastrostomy- not to be confused with "gastronomy" which, apparently, is the art and science of good eating...) surgery that will allow us to feed her directly into her tummy. With her second heart surgery quickly approaching- much quicker than JR or I would like to think about- we've decided to go this route in hopes that she will gain weight better. As of Friday she was just under 9 pounds. I'm not sure if there is a weight goal that the doctors would like her to be at, but just like the first surgery, the bigger the better! We're encouraged by the fact that she did so well after her first surgery, despite being teeny tiny, but we still feel like we need to do everything we can to give her the best fighting chance possible, and this is the best way to do that.
I have to admit that electing to put her through an unexpected surgery is wearing on me some. Maybe it's just because I've hardly had time to think about this surgery, because life with three kids 4 years old and under? Is CRAZY! Period. What with changing the baby and feeding the baby and giving the baby her medicines and WHY ARE THE BOYS RUNNING AROUND HALF-NAKED AGAIN?!?!?!, there really just are not enough hours in the day to contemplate much of anything...
In the end we're trying to trust and believe that the amazing doctors that she is lucky enough to have, are steering us in the right direction.