Stanford Day 1 - Pre Op

After an early morning wake up call, I dropped off Kam with family and we headed to the airport.  We arrived in San Jose at 10am and were a little stalled when the airline realized they lost Owen's stroller.  This isn't just any stroller.. this is an all purpose, oxygen carrying, backpack holding, lifesaving stroller! 

The gate agents were so nice and got Owen a wheelchair and we made our way to baggage claim.  The stroller didn't turn up, so we grabbed out things and filled a missing report.  It turns out the stroller was still at Phoenix Sky Harbor and it was going to be on the next flight out.  They lent us a stroller and informed us a courier would deliver the stroller when it arrived, so we headed to grab our rental car.

We got lucky with early check in at the hotel, grabbed an oxygen tank and made our way to the hospital for pre op.  We had a quick turkey dinner in the cafeteria.  For those of you that don't know, which is probably everyone, but Stanford has Thanksgiving every Thursday at the hospital.. ALL the fixins.  I can imagine it would get old fast, but for once every couple months, it's delish.

We checked into the heart center and Owen had a thorough echo.  He chatted with the echo tech the entire time and then came the EKG.  His weight was totally inaccurate, but he has grown to 42.5".   We then went into an exam room and saw a long string of doctors.

First came the research team.  There are always "studies" going on at this hospital so we were asked to sign up for one, and since it's non invasive and they are researching something close to our hearts, we signed up.

Then came the anesthesia team and we talked about all his meds.  Then came the cath lab docs and they did a full exam.  Followed by the transplant team for more followup.  Then came the anesthesia fellow to ask a few more questions.  Then cardio did a full workup.  It was a long afternoon!!

The consensus is that Owen is stable.  His echo is showing no change, which is great news.  I used to hope and pray for his echo to improve, but now I am just so thrilled if it stays stable.  The plan for the cath tomorrow is to check his pressures.  They can get a better idea of how his heart is functioning, including the tricuspid valve gradient.  When they compare the cath from March to December, they can see how his heart is holding up. 

So.. many prayers for an uncomplicated cath tomorrow.  They always go over RISKS and benefits and the main risk is death, or bleeding.  I hate that we have to sign that consent!!

We got our stroller!  We ate a fantastic dinner of Prime Rib (go big right!).  I got my dark chocolate Sprinkles cupcake at the mall.  All is well. :)

I'll update throughout the day tomorrow.  Night.

Crafts and Calendars

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Each year, I look forward to making a yearly calendar for Nana. Nana is my last surviving Grandma and I love that my kids get to create so many memories with her. I never got to meet my Great Grandparents, so I love that my kids have such a fun relationship with their Nana. Nana loves to get her yearly calendars at Christmas and she looks through them all year long! I always try and get a decent picture for the cover of the calendar and this years turned out pretty cute.   

I missed out on craft night last Friday because of that darned head cold, so I finally sat down and got it done this morning. I have said it before, but crafty is not a word to describe myself, so I love these little craft nights that are put together by others that are! I just buy my little kit, find a spot at a table and get my craft on. Well, today I didn't have the crafty ladies around to help me when things went horribly wrong and I still only managed to mess up one letter.  The "H" went a little wrong when the vinyl ripped the paint off my board.. sigh.  I know a few of you can relate. :) 

I am off to the drugstore to hopefully find some masks that we can wear on the plane. There are so many nasty bugs going around and I am determined to keep us all healthy.. even if that means we have to wear masks at the airport, on the plane and at the hospital. Prayers are appreciated as we head to Stanford.

Family Pics.. Sneak Peek

We finally pulled together and had our family pictures taken this weekend. Here is a quick sneak peek of one of my favorites. There are a few more peeks HERE!!!

We missed out on a few Christmas parties this weekend, but we are doing everything we can to stay germ free for our trip to Stanford this week. Time sure crept up on us this time. We are hoping for a successful cath and a smooth recovery.  We have a few days to get the house in order, finish up our Christmas shopping and pack!