"What lies behind us, and what lies before us are small matters
compared to what lies within us."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Sweet Victoria


Victoria made it through surgery! Thank God! Her surgery was almost 12 hours long, which was much longer than expected. Apparently, her femur bone was very difficult to bring down into the hip socket. They also had a very difficult time getting her IV in. It took almost two hours to get a line in and she ended up with an IV in her chest (ick!) and in her left arm. 

Here she is on the airplane. She was so good, as long as I held her. Maybe she is bonding with me! 


 My wonderful friend, Catherine, picked us up from the airport and brought me to her house for delicious home-made meatballs and zita. I sure wish I had some now! I am tired of eating power bars! The cafeteria at the hospital has limited hours and I keep missing them.


The night before the surgery I was riddled with worries and doubts. I felt awful that I was making the decision to cause her so much pain. Here is the last picture of her right hand before surgery. Two of her fingers had the tendons released to allow her to have more function. Also, her thumb was rotated. She did need to have  skin graft taken from her wrist. The doctor thinks she will be able to do much more once she heals.


Here is Victoria and Catherine at 6:30 in the morning at Shriners. Fun times! Catherine stayed with me the entire day!


Almost time to go into surgery. I was feeling more peaceful about my decision now. The anesthesiologist  was so kind. She asked me what song Victoria liked and I told her "little bunny foo foo" is her favorite. No one was familiar with the song, so I had to sing it in front of the surgeons and all the nurses and doctors. Anything to make Victoria happy! As the anesthesiologist carried Victoria away to the OR, she was singing, "Little bunny foo foo, hopping through the forest."  Very sweet!


Of course, she had to have pink casts!


She is on four different kinds of pain meds right now. She also has a catheter which delivers morphine directly to the bones. We are still in the ICU.


A CT was ordered for today, but because of how far her legs are spread in the casts, they hasn't been a way to do it yet. I am not sure what will happen next, maybe an MRI. There is chance that the ball of the femur is not securely into the hip joint. If this is the case, Victoria will have to come back in three weeks for another surgery. I am hoping and praying she won't need to have this done. She doesn't seem to mind the leg casts, but she is quite mad about the arm cast. She keeps waving her arm around. Hopefully she will start sleeping some soon.


She had tons of things hooked up to her, but the most important thing is that her pain seems to be manageable right now. I am not even going to think about how I am going to get her on an airplane. There is a certain way to pick her up or her hips could be pulled out. I am very nervous about messing things up.


Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers! I will try to keep updating.

28 comments:

  1. Wow oh wow! Bless her little heart. You are such an amazing Mama Catherine. Blessings. You give me such hope! Alex will most likely be having surgery in the summer. Thanks for sharing your story regularly with us.

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  2. Sweet baby girl. I hope she gets every benefit possible from this surgery!

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  3. Praying. I totally understand the wacky cafeteria hours at Shriners - that happened to me in Chicago, too - I wound up ordering Chinese carry out. I would also be a wreck about the position of those casts and how to travel with your little lady. Before you leave have them not only fill your prescriptions so you have the meds to travel, but also call them into your pharmacy at home so you don't have paper scripts to lose and so someone else can pick them up for you. Godspeed.

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  4. Keeping fingers crossed and prayers coming. Try and get some rest and real food in you. How long will you be in Philly? (((HUGS)))

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  5. Oh jsut praying for you guys - you are such an incredible mom! It might be worth calling http://www.angelflight.com/ and using the return ticket at a different time. I jsut can't imagine her fitting on a regular plane.

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  6. Bless her heart. And mama- you are doing such a good job! Casts, monitors and all- she is still such a precious, beautiful little girl!

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  7. Isn't it difficult to make the decisions for our children...hoping the pain they suffer now will make their lives better in the future. I pray for Victoria's comfort during your trip home, and for your peace.

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  8. Praying for sweet Victoria. She has been through so much in her little life. I always go back to one of the first days you were together. You were struggling SO hard with/if you could reach her through the walls she had built around herself. Whether she would ever heal. Or smile. I Prayed SO hard that you would just KNOW that she was your daughter and that you would bring her home.

    Just look at her! A Miracle Girl who SMILES! Who has Bonded with her Mama! She has come SO far!!

    When she is able to start taking foods orally, then order some food for yourself. It is common for a Pediatric patient. You can order an extra serving and some snacks that you two can share. I would also check into the Angel Flight! That is a wonderful association! Basically a flying hospital, where she can be in a bed for the flight. And, I believe it's a Volunteer program, so it "may" be free. I saw the link in a comment above mine.

    I know that line in her chest seems yucky (Central Line), but it's a great option for anyone who is a hard stick! They can use it for meds and blood draws. It will save a lot of pokes for your baby! Hang in there! Hugs ~ Jo

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  9. I'm still praying my friend! Love to you all!

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  10. OH WOW!! Please know I am praying for you and your sweet precious tooper!

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  11. Oh sweet baby and mom too! So glad surgery is over and recuperation has begun. Amazing how resilient our kiddos are and how God provides us, as the parents, with the strength to get through each medical adventure.

    Dannette

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  12. Oh my sweet friend and Victoria .. . . having just recently sat out 12 hours waiting for word that Katya was out of surgery at Johns Hopkins .. . I know how those 12 hours DRAG.

    Sending love and prayers for you all . . .

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  13. Sweet sweet victoria! I'm glad she came through well and her pain is well controlled. I will keep her (and you) in my prayers!

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  14. So precious.... so glad she is doing so well!

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  15. God bless you and your precious little girl!

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  16. Still sending you warm thoughts and prayers! Hang in there, Victoria!!

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  17. Praying for you and your sweet Victoria. She is so precious.

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  18. So glad she is doing well! Praying she keeps her sweet disposition!!

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  19. I am a new reader and have quickly fallen in love with yoir famiy. Just wanted to say I am praying for Victoria and that the surgery was successful. Also praying for you that you can make the trip back home easily. I'm sure you will figure out what will work best.

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  20. If you can't get an angel flight, please call the airline ahead of time and have a cart or someone meeting you as you get off the plane. People do it all the time for elderly or those that can't walk. I've seen many a golf cart picking people up at their gate to transport them. They should have one waiting for you on your layovers. Just explain the surgery procedure and what you will need. I hope they will do this for you~!
    Kim O

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  21. Praying for Victoria! I hope her recovery goes well and she won't need other surgeries soon! Praying for you too, you are an amazing mom!

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  22. Praying for Victoria and her family.

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  23. Okay, it's been three days since you posted... Long enough! How's Miss Victoria doing? :-)

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  24. Hi, just wanted to say that i was praying for you guys! I know what it's like to have someone in sugery for that long! My brother broke his neck and had to have a surgery that was suppose to take 8-9 hrs. But ended up taking 12. Hope Victoria gets well soon!!!!!!!

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  25. I'm seeing your blog for the first time. I found it via someone else who is posting about adoptions (sorry I can't remember which one).

    Anyway...I was noticing on one of the little girl's photos that possibly their ring finger and pinky are "webbed"? Am I seeing this correctly? I was born with both my hands (just pinky and ring fingers) like this. I sometimes wonder if it ran in just our family line or not, so it is kind of fun to see others out there the same.

    You have a beautiful family!

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