I had a meeting at the hospital with a Child Life Specialist. She talked with me about what would be happening with Eliana during her pre-op and surgery. She took us around the hospital to see the various room, gave me a lot of hand-out information and answered questions. It was all helpful and good - but also hard. A friend went with me and took notes. It was helpful to have her do that for me so I could focus on listening and on Eliana.
When I think of what is going to happen in the abstract, it isn't so difficult. When I think about what is going to be happening to Eliana, my baby girl, then it can be hard! It catches me by surprise sometimes too. I'll be doing fine and then it will hit me. It could be a comment or a thought. Today when we were in the waiting area for surgery, she told me about the timeline of surgery and how someone would come out to say "Surgery has begun". It hit me then and I just started to tear up. Seeing all of the anxious families there waiting ... and knowing it would be us soon. All the waiting and waiting ... and then it will happen.
Tomorrow will be a busy day for us. We leave early in the morning to go to Duke. It is Eliana's pre-op day. We expect to do the following things tomorrow
- Sedated echocardiagram
- EKG
- Chest X-ray
- Blood work
- Physical exam
- Meet the surgeon(s)
- See our cardiologist
We will be finding out who her surgeon is tomorrow (there are two at Duke) as well as the time of her surgery. We will be meeting with the surgeon unless there is some unforeseen emergency. I am hoping that this won't happen so that we'll have the chance to talk and ask questions. I think we'll also be signing some consent forms. I've been warned that this is difficult as they have to discuss all of the potential risks of surgery. I've also been told that the form is standard and not specific to Eliana. Even knowing that, it will be hard to listen to mortality statistics. I keep reminding myself to trust God in all of this! He loves my daughter more than I do.
As you can tell, it is going to be a long day. We'll be taking Eliana's feeding pole/bag/equipment with us. I should probably go pack all that I can tonight. Please pray for this appointment tomorrow. We'll have a lot more information about surgery to share after this day.
*******
I wanted to post an update on Wholehearted bracelet sales. This has really turned into a project for the whole family! We have been busy beading and working together. Christopher has given many hours and Joshua and Isaiah have just begun helping out. Roger also helps out in the evenings. We have needed all the hands we could get to keep up with the demand. It's a great problem to have.
We are also receiving much support from friends too - from helping to bead bracelets to buying bead supplies. We are thankful to all of them for their contributions for it wouldn't be possible without them!
Rebecca went in to work with her Daddy again and had great sales! She has also received several donations this week. In addition to friends, she received a sweet note from a stranger that had been given one of Rebecca's bracelets as a gift. When she heard the story behind the bracelets she wanted to support Rebecca's efforts.
Tonight we were counting up her money/totals to see how much she has raised. As we were doing this, the children were all coming in and out. Joshua walked out and then came back with a $10 bill. He said that he wanted to make a donation too.
Is that not the sweetest thing?! That is a lot of money for a 7-year old! What a precious heart. He has often commented recently on Rebecca and her heart for others. I think he has one too!Total money raised thus far ... $2174.00
It's late and I'm going to try to go to bed soon. If you haven't been here in the last 24 hours, check out the two entries prior to this for some photos and a "button" you can add to your blog if you want to.
Thank you for your prayers, encouragment and support! I am richly blessed!
With love,
Leslie
Posted by 
Posted by 
Posted by 
