So how did it go?

This is the most asked question since my last post and I finally now have the chance to let you all know how Miss Ellie is doing since her latest surgery.

So I always have a hard time passing off this face to surgery, but come on! She was making it extra hard this time...look at this little squirt!!




When I told her it was time to go and that she needed to be brave she gave this face like "bring it mom, I can handle it"...what a tough cookie



I always hate going back through my pics and video because so much time passed in between these two moments of before surgery and after, but it is always so day and night here. Like I said it took an hour and a half just for the IV. They said the whole procedure would take about 2 and a half hours, so because of that they were way behind. She went in at 1:00 p.m. and I didn't see her until about 6:30 p.m.! It was way drawn out and I was really anxious the whole time. Usually we go in so early for surgeries that I end up sleeping while we wait, this time I wasn't tired at all so it was really hard to just sit there and think.




So it was definitely different going to Phoenix Children's Hospital over St. Joes. I would say that it was uncomfortable and inconvenient for me, but so much better for Ellery. We did have to share a room though with another family, but it wasn't too bad for the short while we were there, Monday through Saturday. This was all the space we had, very cozy. At St. Joes we had our own private room, with walking space and our own bathroom, this one I had to leave the room and go down the hall. I had to hold it until Ellery was asleep in order to feel okay leaving her.
Also at St. Joe's we could order up food, not at PCH, so Caleb had to stock me up with bread, peanut butter and bananas.



They put this HUGE NG tube down Ellery's nose to suck out stuff from her tummy to make it easier for her bowels to start working again, I felt bad because I promised Ellery she wouldn't ever have one again, she even pulled hers out in the car on the way to the hospital, so she was excited! Anyway, she was two-face for a while with the monster tape job that was needed to keep this sucker in...plus the head IV




Recovery was okay, Ellery slept most of the time the first two days, they wouldn't feed her anything until something came out of her bum to indicate that her bowels were functioning properly. F.Y.I what they did in the surgery was a 3-in-1 deal. First, the doc had to remove part of Ellery's large intestine that was super narrow that nothing would make it through if we tried, we think it was infected back in novemeber, remember those days? It was actually the entire right side of her collon and then she also took out her apendix, it was in the way.
Next, she removed Ellery's belly button hernia, not sure if anyone can recall Ellery's very large outie, well it is gone!
And last, the surgeon put in a Mic-Key Button, a port to Ellery's stomach. They stitched her up and this is what she came back looking like...Caleb and I call it her little C-Section...



Throughout those days we had some good moments...



And then some bad moments...



Luckily, Thanks to my bro Todd, Ellery had her baby Einsteins...



And the coolest part of PCH was they let me take her for like hour long walks around the whole hospital, even outside!



So I can't even begin to express how cool I think it is that Ellery came home on the Fourth of July. We were scared because Thursday night was 3 days and still no poo from the babe and that means they need to start giving her some nutrition in her IV, well she needed a better IV, a pick-line! No no no no, please no. She was scheduled to go in Friday morning, Caleb and I had given up on being home for the fourth and just had to get prepared that her bowels just weren't going to work for a long time or maybe not at all...urgh. Caleb did all kinds of stretches and leg kicks with Ellery to get her pumping, he was rolling her around and pushing on her little tummy. We were desperate...
In the middle of the night that night she totally had a bowel movement! It was awsome, who knew I would be so excited about poo! They canceled the pick-line, gave her food instead and bam we were home FREE the next day...the day we celebrate our FREEDOM, I mean come on could it get any better?!! This should be it people, no more surgeries so it is hopefully true freedom.



Our good friends had a fun bar-b-que planned so we spent some time at home, then headed over for some dinner and then watched the schneff? farms fireworks in our neighbors driveway, it was fun!