We are post Fontan!!

We just met with the surgeon and everything went as planned. The surgery went very smooth and the DR is happy with the procedure. I just want to jump for joy and scream!! I cannot believe we are officially post-Fontan! Thank you Jesus for taking care of my little boy! Will update later after we see  Evan.

Fontan update #3

Evan is still on bypass. The surgeon is finishing up the conduit and then will be checking out the blood flow. Should be another hour before our next update.

Fontan update #2

Everything is going as planned. Evan is doing well. Hoping to start taking Evan off of bypass by the next update.

Fontan update #1

Just got our first update from the OR. Evan went back at 7:15. He had no trouble going under anesthesia and all of his lines are placed. The surgeon is thru to the sternum now, next update will come in about an hour.

Pre-Fontan heart cath, check.

Hi friends.

It's been a long day. Evan didn't sleep well last night and we were up by 5am. Surgery registration was quick and we were back in the cath pre-op area by 7:30. Evan was pleasant until it came time to place his IV. It took four of us to hold him down :( Once he got the IV, it was pretty much impossible to keep him calm. The anesthesiologist came by a short while later and gave him a little dose of versed. Evan was instantly as high as a kite. He was giggling at everything, swaying back and forth, and babbling away. We met with the cath DR and went over the plan. He said they should be done in an hour and a half to two hours. Scott and I went down to the RMH and ate breakfast while we waited for an update. After and hour and a half without a phone call, we called into the cath lab. The DR had just located a large collateral vessel and was going to measure it to see if he needed to coil it. 45 minutes go by and we received another update- the DR had a hard time accessing the collateral and had just made access. They estimated another 45 minutes before they were finished. The cath DR came out and said all went well! He coiled just the one collateral and Evan's pulmonary artery pressure was excellent. Evan's pulmonary arteries are slightly narrow but the surgeon plans on stretching them out a little tomorrow during surgery. It was another 30 minutes or so before we were allowed back to see Evan. He was MAD as fire. Thrashing around and crying.. After a cath, a patient needs to lie flat on their back and still to prevent bleeding. The nurses helped place Evan in my arms and I attempted to calm him down but it didn't help. He was super groggy still, coming off of anesthesia, and pinching and smacking me. It was rough! We transferred over into our room at the CVICU and Evan and I got comfortable in a chair. We've now been in this chair for almost 5 hours. He finally went to sleep about 45 minutes ago and I am enjoying all of the snuggles. :)

Our surgeon's physician assistant came by this afternoon and we went over the game plan for tomorrow. Evan is the first surgical case of the day and is scheduled for 7:15am.  The surgery tomorrow is the final stage of Evan's 3 stage repair. He is having an extracardiac fontan. The surgeon will connect a synthetic tube from his IVC to the pulmonary artery. I asked the PA if she could find us a tube similar to what will be placed in Evans heart and luckily enough, she had one in her desk drawer. It was huge! Much bigger than what I expected. I snapped a quick picture of Scott holding it for you to see..
..

Thank you guys for all of the support and prayers you have offered our family. We know it is only because of God that we had peace today and the strength to be strong for Evan. Please continue to pray for him as he heads into surgery tomorrow morning. I will be sure to update our blog as we get updates from the surgeon tomorrow.

It's time.

4 months have come and gone. We are now less than 24 hours away from hospital admission time. Our bags are packed, Elli's grandma is on the way to pick her up, our dog has left with my parents, our room at the Ronald McDonald House have been confirmed, pre-admission registration is complete.. We are ready.

But not really.

I am not ready to hand my little boy over to have his chest cut open. Not ready to sit in a brightly colored waiting room for hours, waiting for my phone to ring with an update from the surgeon. I'm not ready to see the fear, confusion, and anger in my two year old's eyes when he wakes and realizes what has happened. I'm not ready to watch him suffer and know that I can't do anything to help him.

God, this sucks. This pain and fear.. I wouldn't dare wish it on another soul.

Oh, Jesus, hear my cries.. Please take care of my sweet boy.


We are checking into the RMH house this evening. We need to be at surgery registration at 7AM tomorrow morning. Evan cannot have anything to eat after midnight tonight and only clear fluids until 5AM. After his heart cath, while he is still sedated, he will get an echo of his heart. He will then be sent to the CVICU for the rest of the day/night. Evan is the first surgical case on Tuesday. We should have the "exact" time tomorrow. I will be giving brief updates via Facebook and will be updating my blog as well.

Friends, please pray for Evan, pray for Scott & I. We are worried, anxious, nervous, scared.. We need to be strong for Evan. Please specifically pray for God to guide his surgeon's hands. To be with everyone in the operating room Tuesday and everyone in the cath lab tomorrow. Pray that Evan has a quick recovery and that he doesn't have to battle extra fluid in his chest. Pray for no complications..

Thank you.

Overwhelmed

17 days... 

Tonight I am overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends and family. You all have responded to our requests for prayers, goodies for Evan's hospital stay, and blood donations! It is so awesome to see how much you all love our little guy!

Everything has been set up with the local blood bank for direct donations for Evan's surgery. If you are still interested in being a direct donor, and have O+ blood, please let me know and I will add you to the donor list! If you aren't O+ and still want to donate, Evan can receive credits for your donation! You can donate now or after his surgery. Next time you go to donate, just let them know you want to credit Evan Sawyer.

Check out Evan's hospital treasure box! It is overflowing with goodies to keep Evan occupied during his hospital stay! He is so excited to get into this box! He also has two full bags of his favorite snacks to munch on! Seriously, friends, thank you!

This week I finally got around to making Evan's hospital gowns. The hospital issued gowns are usually too big(and purple) so I figured I would take a shot at making my own. I couldn't find a pattern for what I was looking for so I grabbed some chalk and just winged it. I am SO happy with the way they came out! My only regret is not making a pattern before I finished them! LOL They are kimono style and open up in the front. I also added snaps to the shoulders for easy access to IVs and the Central line (the big IV in the chest that goes to a large vein near the heart). Each gown took about an hour to complete (including cutting time) and cost about $6-8. 

My model refused to stand up ;) 

Seriously, friends, we are just so grateful for your generosity.  We love you all so much! Big HUGS to all of you!