A sleepy day

Lacy’s birthday yesterday went well!! Scott and I got back to the hospital about 1 a.m. to a conked Annabelle… so by the time we went to the Ronald McDonald House, it was probably after 2 or later. *yawn*

We got to the hospital before doctor’s rounds this morning. I took one look at Annabelle, one look at her monitor, and knew that she had a fever again before even touching her.

Sure enough, she was up to 38.6. (anything over 38 is a fever…)

They had just given her Tylenol, and when we rechecked, it was up to 38.8.

Gave Ibuprofen.

Up a little more to 38.9 (which is 102F)

A few hours later, it finally went down to 38.3.

We gave Tylenol again just to keep it back on the downward trend.

Yeah, it went back up 38.5.

We scratched our heads.

Let her sleep. On her belly most of the day!

And her fever finally broke! I guess she just wanted us to leave her alone! She is now at 37.8, which is 100 even. Not a technical “fever” per hospital protocol… so WOOHOO for that.

However, she has slept almost ALL day as well, as fevers conk her out. Mommy even laid down in the back of her room, and even though I didn’t sleep, rested for a bit, as Annabelle having fevers conks me out too.

She is alert at the moment now… and is MUCH more herself than earlier today. Her is a little video of her and Mommy playing a little bit ago.

I also had a conversation with the attending doctor who will be on for the next 7 days… Our diuretics have been changed a LOT in the last few weeks. It has been a moving target, and I have felt that we haven’t had it “right” in a while and keep stabbing in the dark as to what it should be without a lot of success.

So we sat down and really discussed her history and the changes that have been made and the theory behind changing the diuretics, and have a good “plan” for this coming week that I am very comfortable with, which is a great relief!

We also talked about her fevers, and unfortunately, there really isn’t any good news here. They don’t think it is a traditional “heart” fever because the signs don’t point to it, although there is no way to be sure. Her white blood count and CRP numbers are very low, which points to no infection, which is GREAT. She doesn’t have viral symptoms, and she runs these so frequently we really don’t think it’s that.

It could be a *drug* fever… but she needs all her drugs, so even if it is, not sure what we could do about it.

So right now, we are calling them “fevers from unknown origins.”

Which is just LOVELY. (note sarcasm)

They say they’ve seen it before, and the fevers usually go away after heart transplant, which tells me it is something heart related, just unknown.

So, it just goes back to the main thing: Annabelle needs a new heart.

On a different note:

Melissa (Anna Reese’s Momma) and I went downstairs this afternoon and did a brief interview together for 107.5 The River’s radio-a-thon to raise money for the hospital. The fundraiser lasted from Thursday through today, and we were one of the last ones to interview at the end. In total for all 3 days, they raised over $185,000! It was a little weird to be “on the radio” (I like to write, but talking isn’t my strong suit!) but it was for a great cause, so totally worth it!

Prayer Requests:

• Continue to pray for Miss Anna Reese. She had an okay day yesterday and today… but still needs a lot of prayer so she can get extubated, get better, and go HOME!
• Obviously, pray that Annabelle gets her heart in God’s timing!
• That the fever would stay down and STAY AWAY!
• For Scott and I… we are doing a lot of praying and seeking God lately, and just need an extra dose of wisdom, discernment, and courage.
• My kiddos. They are doing SO well, but it’s almost been 8 months. This is a long time to be in such uncertainty at such young ages. Please pray that this time helps them lean on Jesus more too!
• My in-laws. My mother-in-law who will now be staying with us for a while to help, that she can have a big dose of patience, as dealing with three little girls is NOT easy!And my father-in-law will be going home this week. I know it’s not easy for him to go home and be without his wife for such long periods of time… so pray for him and for safe travels!
• My writing. This is SUCH a low priority item, however I feel like God’s been prodding me to “start” working on this again while I’m here with Annabelle. I don’t have a lot of time, obviously, but I’m trying.

These are all “long lasting” prayer requests… so I won’t keep listing them unless there is an update, but I am a big believer that praying specifically DOES help, and that God hears the prayers of his people!

THANK YOU all for your love and prayers for our Annabelle, and our whole family. We truly can’t thank you enough.

I realized I never posted this picture a few weeks ago… but it’s such a good picture of my Momma and Annabelle, I wanted to post it! Annabelle loves her Grandma!