Day 2

Evan's special HEART monkey

Well, today has been much better so far than last night, but we're expecting that it might be another rough afternoon because they will be taking him off of all of the pain and sedation meds to try to raise his heart rate.  Last night Evan was unsettled and trying to get off of the bed ALL night long.  The doctors and nurses were extremely perplexed by him, because he was given so many drugs to sedate him, yet nothing seemed to work.  

Finally, around 6:30 this morning, he decided to sleep!  ....and has been sleeping ever since.  He finally seems to be comfortable, but  they had to put him back on the pacemaker to keep his heart rate up high enough.  The percedex that he was on, tends to lower your heart rate, so that is probably why his heart rate is so low without the pace maker on.  The surgeon wants him off all of the meds by 3pm today so we can see if his heart rate goes up.  Keep your fingers crossed that it will and he will not be in too much pain!  The worst case scenario would be that his heart rate doesn't go up and they would have to put in a pacemaker for good.

Our little fighter

Let's see....the wait for Evan to come out of surgery went by SO much faster than we had expected it to!  My parents came and waited the wait with us, treated us to some breakfast, and helped make the time go a little faster.  Before we knew it, it was already noon and the nurse was calling us to let us know the surgery was a success and that we should head up to the pediatric intensive care unit waiting room.

Once we got there,  we still had to wait about another 1 1/2 hours before we got to see him.  I had to have someone show my which parts went where on the hospital breast pump, so we did sort of sneak our way into the PICU hoping we would see him when they wheeled him to his room.  We got lucky!  About 10 (doctors, surgeon, nurses, etc) wheeled him right past us.  They stopped and let us give him kisses.  This was the first time today that I actually broke down and cried.  I was SO happy to see him though, and he looked so much better than I had expected him to look!  The 10 people who wheeled him to his room, stayed in the room for a couple hours.  Once they started to clear out a bit, we were allowed to go in to visit him, two people at a time.  Around 3pm (I think) he began to wake up, so they took the breathing tube out so he could begin to breathe on his own. 

He was doing so GREAT!  Once the anesthesia wore off, it was a different story though.  He has been completely uncomfortable, irritated, crying, grunting, twisting, turning, and his blood pressure going up because of this.  He do this really mad grunting/crying thing for 30 seconds, then sleep for 30 seconds...over and over again.  He did this for about 3 1/2 hours.  They keep pumping him full of fentanyl, versed, toridol, benadryl, and finally precedex..... I've lost track of them all.  They are being very cautious and just giving him a tiny bit at a time though.  He finally decided to rest a few minutes ago, without three of us restraining him from twisting around off the bed, or onto his tummy.

That three hours was WAY more draining and stressful than waiting for him to come out of surgery!  There is nothing worse than seeing your child in pain, and not being able to do anything for him!  To make matters worse, the first two hours of that, the nurses kept asking me to leave because they thought it was my smell (and him wanting to comfort nurse) that was upsetting him!  Finally, when I noticed that he was still upset, even with me being gone, I put my foot down and said we were staying in there with him!  If he's going to be upset, I'd rather be with him, even if there's nothing I can do personally to make it better!  The nurses, and everyone really, have been so great though.  He has a nurse in his room ALL the time and they are all so nice.

I just hope that he will sleep through the night now, so he can begin to heal and recover!  Will update again tomorrow.  Thank you for your comments too, and all of the wonderful comments on facebook!!!  Lindsey, I tried to find you on FB and can't, so maybe you can find me.   I'm sure my name is a little less common!  haha.

Also, thank you so much Alis, Christine, Erin, Haley, Mom, Dad, and everyone else who has been helping us with  the other three kids!  You all really made this day much better than it would have been if I had had to worry about Ellie, Jordyn, and Hayden! 

Thank you for all of the delicious meals too!  I don't know what we would have done without them here, as it's been virtually impossible to leave to eat.  It's hard enough getting to our "kitchen" so I can't imagine if we had to actually leave the hospital to eat!  We are so lucky!

Just out of the operating room

Uncomfortable but FINALLY deciding to give in to the meds and go to sleep!  (Hopefully for the night)

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY EVAN GABRIEL BOUNGNASIRI!!!!

Last year at this time I was sitting in my bed, cuddling my newborn baby boy.  This year, I'm sitting in a smelly room, waiting while he's on an operating table having his chest cut open.  This is the single most hardest thing I think Obee and I have faced yet as parents.  Letting them carry our baby down the hall, away from us, to fix his little heart.

We got to the hospital at 6:30 to do all of the paperwork, meet with the nurses, doctors, surgeons, and everyone.  When they brought him to the crib where he hangs out before surgery, it was filled with birthday presents (and GOOD ones too) from the hospital staff!  What a fun surprise.  He was so excited about the dinosaur little people toy and the ball he got that he did not mellow out, even after given the verced.  He was the hit of the room talking and smiling to all of the nurses and other babies in there! 

Now we're just waiting....  This is going to be a VERY long day.  I'm trying to stay strong, because I don't want to cry.  Not yet anyway.  If you call me, don't ask me how I am, because really I'm NOT okay.  Not until I see Evan, will I be okay.

At The Sharing Place

Sleeping in bed with Mommy & Daddy at "The Sharing Place" the night before surgery.

Well, I'm actually at a loss for words.  That's something new.  We are here at the sharing place, which is a motel/common living space type thing on the same grounds as the hospital.  It's not exactly the nicest place I've ever slept (a little musty smelling for sure), but it was free, and it's across the parking lot from the Hospital so I'm not complaining!  We got a call from the anesthesiologist this evening.  He was really nice and I feel comfortable with him putting Evan to sleep tomorrow.  He answered all of our questions for today.  We will be up bright and early in the morning!  Our check in time is 6:30.  They will bring him back to the OR about 8:30am.

Here are some photos of where we're staying....

kitchen

Dining Room

TV room (no tv's in the bedrooms)

Playroom

Courtyard

Pre-Op Day at Sutter Memorial

We spent about 4 1/2 hours at the hospital this morning getting all of Evan's pre-op testing done for his surgery on Thursday.  We started the day off at the Cardiologists office, where Dr. Manohar listened to his heart and did an EKG on him.

All hooked up with stickers and clips to get the EKG print out

"What are you letting them do to me, mom?  I'd rather be playing trucks!"

Then it was off to the hospital for blood work and xray's.  We spent most of the morning there waiting, waiting, and waiting some more!  They have really small enclosed waiting rooms (which are really annoying when there are people in there coughing!)

"I don't like thiiiiiiiiiiiiiis!!!!"

Recovering on Daddy's shoulder after the bloodwork

My boy is so brave!  This time they didn't put him in the horrible machine contraption to take the chest xray.  The tech let him sit on the table instead, so we didn't have ANY tears and he sat perfectly still!

Yay!  We get to go home and see big brother and sisters for a little while!

Ellie is Star of the Week!

Yep, that's right!  My big, sweet, smart little Kindergartner is star of the week this week and she couldn't be MORE excited about it!   We got to pick her up from school today and spend a little time with her this afternoon (have I mentioned yet that I miss this girl?!).  She came running down the ramp soooo excited to see me, which is always nice of course,  and to tell me that she is star of the week.  First thing that went through MY mind...."Seriously?  THIS week?  They had to pick her name THIS week?"....but how can I NOT be excited for her when I see how much joy it brings her?!  I think the "mommy" guilt is just setting in that I cannot go into class for the "cooking project" until next week, instead of this week when she's star of the week!  I think she's okay with it though, so I guess I shouldn't worry myself.  I do love her!

2 Days until Open Heart Surgery

Chillin' at dinner tonight

So the kids went to stay at my parents house last night, so we don't risk exposing Evan to any germs they might bring home from school, just before his surgery. Wouldn't that be crazy if he got sick now? I can't imagine having to postpone everything another month, this waiting part is horrible. I just want it to be over, so I know he's okay and I don't have to worry and wonder and let my mind go crazy over everything anymore. Obee and I enjoyed spending the day with Evan and being able to focus all of our attention on just him. I do miss Hayden, Ellie and Jordyn though! I'm happy they're having a good time with Gramma, Grampa and cousin Haley so they don't miss us quite as much as we miss them! hehe.

 All along I've had it in my head that we needed to get Evan some button down one piece outfits so that once he can have clothes on, it will still be easy to just unbutton his outfit to accommodate all of the wires and tubes that will be coming out of his chest. I was on a mission today to find him a few of these outfits, but the type that don't have closed feet (since he hates socks and foot jammies). I finally found a few at Old Navy, and purchased them. Then it suddenly occurred to me tonight that he probably will NOT be able to wear them, because of the long sleeves. I completely forgot that he will have an IV in his arm, and I don't think it will fit under the sleeves of the outfits. SO frustrating! This is the kind of stuff they don't tell you about... Or maybe I'm just WAY over thinking things. Probably.

Check out those chompers up top!

Tomorrow we go to the hospital for all of the pre op tests and to see his cardiologist. Should be an all day thing. Hopefully I'll be able to ask some of my last minute questions tomorrow and it all goes smoothly. Then, we have to check in at the hospital on Wed. by 3pm for his surgery on Thurs. morning.

 We are still receiving heart shaped beads in the mail for Evan...Thank you SO much!!!! We love every one of them, and have yet to receive the same bead from two different people. We have filled up one small jar and are having so much fun going through them!!! I plan to keep them all close with me while we wait for him during the surgery.

A 1st Birthday Celebration!

 Yesterday we celebrated Evan's 1st Birthday, since his surgery is set for the day of his real birthday. It turned out okay. Would have been better if I wasn't such a basket case. I was so set on making sure his little family celebration turned out just perfect, that I ended up ruining it in the end by being so anal about everything! Then I just felt guilty (and still do) the rest of the evening for getting impatient with the kids over silly things. Another reason I was trying to have this "perfect" day was because I knew that Jordyn, Ellie, and Hayden would be going to my parents house to begin their 3 week stay over there. There weren't gone three hours, and I was calling my mom crying that I missed them! It's going to be a long month here...

Anyway, Overall the day went well. We sang happy birthday to Evan, he had cake for the first time, and got to open a couple of birthday gifts. Once he is all healed from his surgery, we will have a big first birthday celebration for him! For now though, we didn't want to expose him to too many people and risk him catching a cold or any other illness just before surgery. Enjoy the photos!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

We received SO many beautiful heart shaped beads today!  We are ALL enjoying this so much!!!  Even the littlest one!  (although he prefers to mostly drool on the jar)

Thank you also to everyone who has volunteered to bring us a meal in the upcoming weeks, and to help with the other kids.  You have no idea how nice it is not to have to think about grocery shopping, and cooking when we just want to be able to focus on Evan's recovery.  I cannot believe how many wonderful and amazing people we have in our lives and am feeling so thankful for every one of you!

Now we're just trying to enjoy the next two days with our three big kids before they head to Grammy and Grampa's house for a couple weeks.  :(

Oh!  If you would like to visit while Evan is in the hospital, we would love to have visitors!  We just ask that  if you come, please make sure you are not sick in any way.  Even the slightest sniffle could set him back very far this close to surgery and afterward.  I think we would really love to have visitors after Thursday, if you're up to coming!

Busy Week Ahead

Well, it really seems like reality is setting in now!  The time is just flying by and next week is almost here....I can't believe it.   Everyone has been so sweet and helpful! From our neighbors, to everyone at school, to old friends, new friends, family and even people who we don't know!  I am just amazed at how many people have reached out to us and are praying for Evan's surgery to go smoothly!  THANK YOU! We are so grateful to have all of you in our lives!

We got all of the pre-surgery paperwork in the mail yesterday, and I guess I didn't realize just how busy next week will be!  My mom was a huge help today with helping me to get the house completely clean.  I think we cleaned areas of this house that haven't even been cleaned since we moved in!  (Did I REALLY just admit to that?!)  Hehe.  Anyway, it's pretty darn clean right now and I'm feeling good about it staying spic n span until we return home from the hospital!  No germs allowed.  haha. SO, now that I don't have to worry about cleaning the house, I can relax a little and work on planning for next week.  Here's the schedule:

Monday:  At the hospital all day for Pre-Op tests (Xrays, blood work, etc)

Tuesday:  Back to the hospital to see the Cardiologist

Wed:  Pretty free day, but we have to "check in" to the Sharing Place (where we're staying) by 3pm or we lose our reservation for the week.

Thurs:  Evan's 1st Birthday - And he gets his heart fixed!  What a special birthday gift!

This weekend is also going to be a pretty full weekend, and Obee will be working out of town most of it, so I'm expecting it to fly by!

Keep Em' Coming!

You have no idea how MUCH we are enjoying the heart beads that are being sent to Evan!  We have this special jar (made by gramma of course) to put them in for now, and are hoping to fill it up some more so we have a good string of prayers surrounding Evan when he is in the hospital.  If you want to send  Evan a "heart" shaped bead, we aren't picky at all!  It can be a simple plastic bead from your craft bin, or something that means more to you....we are happy just to be getting "fun" mail (instead of bills and ads, ick!)  If you know of others who want to send healthy wishes to Evan, or who might be praying for him, feel free to pass our info on too!  It makes me feel good to think even more people are praying for him to have a smooth surgery and recovery, than just our own friends and family.

Thank you so much to those of you who took the time to send us a bead already!  These are all SO SO special, and it's amazing how something so simplistic, can bring us so much joy.  ;) 

If you do send a bead, please put it in a ziplock bag, and if possible, have the post office hand stamp it.  I've been told that if the beads go through the machines for postmarking, the bead will pop right out of the envelope.  The address to send the beads is:

Evan Boungnasiri

PO BOX 1140

Loomis, CA 95650

We will be sure to keep everyone posted with photos as our bead jar grows!

Thank you!!!

Look at this Chubbers  :)

So what ELSE have we been up to? (other than this whole heart surgery thing?)

We actually do stay pretty busy here at the Boungnasiri house.  Some days busier than I would like!  Here's what else we have been up to....!

We went to an A's Game and had a blast!  Thank you Kubota Family for the tickets!

Pre-Game Cheering



We had the a little birthday celebration for the most awesome 8 yr old I know! 

 We did some paddling around Grampa's pond....

 And visited the Circus..... 

 We snuck in a few naps....but certainly not ENOUGH of them!

 We played with friends at home and at park...

 

 And just this Friday, the kids ran in their schools first ever Jog-A-Thon (which mommy helped put together)

 

 
 

We also played a LOT of soccer, but I've been having too much fun chattin' with the parents this season to get out there and get any good pictures yet!