Day 4 - We're home!

We're home and it feels great!

Ashlynn had a pretty good last night despite the interruptions.  From the moment she woke up, she couldn't wait to get back in the wagon.  We should have been counting the number of times we went up and down those halls!  She also showed off by crawling despite the No-No's on her arms.  Late morning our plastic surgeon and the pulminary doctor clear us to go home.  We were sent home with only some pain medication and no more antibiotics or nebulizer treatments.  Ashlynn will have a post-op follow up next week.

We got home mid-afternoon while the boys were still at school.  Ashlynn seemed glad to see her familiar surroundings again but she was more frustrated than she'd been in the last day with her No-No's.  She just can't play with her toys the way she is used to.  When she sat in her highchair, she expected to get her usual favorites.  She was disappointed to only be offer apple sauce and pudding by spoon and no finger foods.  She's unhappy about losing some of her hard-earned independence.  Hopefully the next ten days will go quickly!

Ashlynn gave the boys a big smile when they got home.  It's heart warming to see the bond they have already formed.  It's great to have everyone under one roof again!  And seeing all the "sick" kids at the hospital these last few days has reminded us how truly blessed we are!!

Thanks for all the prayers sent for Ashlynn's recovery.  We are thankful to have this week behind us!

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This is the best thing about this place!

Let's go home!

And you thought these "No-No's" would slow me down

 

It's good to be home!

Day 3

It was a good day!  What a wonderful change in Ashlynn.  She had a pretty good night of sleep last night so she was awake most of the day.  She wanted to play with toys, look a books, and watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on TV.  She took a couple of wagon rides through the halls again.  This time she waved at all the nurses.  No real smiles yet (it probably still hurts too much) but she would nod when people talked to her.  This afternoon we wheeled her to a rootbeer float party in the hospital lobby. She ate two cups of ice cream!  We suspect the cold of the ice cream felt good on her sore mouth.

Ashlynn's pain is decreasing slowly.  We were able to eliminate one of her pain medications today; however, she is still on two others and we can tell by her mood when it's getting to be time for the next dose.  She seems to have accepted her "No-Nos" (arm restraints).  She's gotten pretty creative with them already.  And she still hates any unfamiliar face in the room.  She cries whenever a nurse walks in.  Some of them have tried so hard to get her to warm up to them but Ashlynn's just won't give them a break.  After what's she's been through this week, who can blame her for not being quick to trust?!

Our plastic surgeon believes we'll be ready to go home tomorrow.  It'll be so nice to all be home together again.  Derek and Mason have been such good sports about the crazy routine this week.  A weekend home together will be good medicine for all of us.

Visiting with Grandma Lanoue, Aunt Kim, Brok, Hallee,
 and Great-Grandpa Leonard over Skype

Day 2

Ashlynn continues to improve as the day little by little.  She took a lot of naps, finally getting some much needed sleep!  She seemed more at ease and comfortable than she was last night.  During one of her naps this afternoon, we caught her with her mouth closed and breathing through her nose.  This is something most of us take for granted but for Ashlynn, it's a first.  She's never been able to fully close her mouth or breath only through her nose.  It's just another thing her body is having to re-learn.

The Pediatric Pulmonary doctor saw Ashlynn again this morning and felt there was less congestion in her lungs.  He reduced the frequency of the nebulizer treatments (one less reason to wake Ashlynn during the night) and believes she should not have to use a nebulizer after going home.  Ashlynn's plastic surgeon also visited this morning.  She was pleased with the fluid Ashlynn was willing to take in from the bottle and encouraged us to keep offering her pureed food by spoon.  After a few failed attempts today, Troy was able to get her to eat nearly a whole jar of baby food tonight.

Ashlynn also got to see the outside of her hospital room today.  We were able to give her a wagon ride through the halls of our floor.  She must have enjoying it because she wasn't happy when the ride had to come to an end.  She also got her first visitors today.  Derek and Mason along with Grandpa and Grandma Klecker drove up to see us this afternoon.  Ashlynn's concerned big brothers were glad to see their sister, even if she is still not quite herself.  Thanks to John and Jan for your visit and for bring the boys to see us.

We are hoping for a good night's sleep for everyone and more progress in Ashlynn's recovery tomorrow.

Our tough girl

Our tough girl has been through a lot in the last 24 hours.  We are hoping the worst is behind us.  Last night when Ashlynn was running a high fever, our plastic surgeon had a chest x-ray and called in a Pediatric Pulmonary doctor to review it.  He saw the potential start of some fluid on the lungs but nothing too concerning.  As a precautionary measure, he ordered some IV antibiotics and nebulizer treatments.
It was a long night as Ashlynn just couldn't rest comfortably.  It has taken some trial and error (and really helpful nurse) to get the right combination and timing of pain meds.  She is wearing "No-Nos" (that's really what they are called) to keep her from putting her fingers in her mouth.  The lack of mobility is really frustrating for her.  She also needs oxygen as she is having to re-train her body to inhale and exhale.  When her lip and palate were open, there was little resistance to move air.  Now that her cleft has been closed, her diaphragm has to work hard to move the air.  There was a seemingly endless stream of nurses coming in and out of Ashlynn's room.  She is unhappy with every unfamiiar face.  This all meant a sleepless night.
Ashlynn has been able to sleep a bit better this morning.  She was happy to see her Dad when he returned this morning after going home last night to be with Derek and Mason.  We're hoping some more sleep will help her be willing to try some pureed food today.  She has been good about drinking clear liquids from a bottle with a special nipple.  Eating from a spoon is another important milestone before we are able to go home.
Thanks again for all the support of our family!

The first hours of recovery

Ashlynn came through surgery very well.  Her plastic surgeon was happy with how well the palate and lip came together.  We were able to join her soon after surgery in recovery.  She looked better than we expected.  She has been sleeping most of the afternoon.  The nurses are working hard to keep her pain until control.  She lets us know when it's time for the next round of pain meds but overall she's tolerating it all pretty well.  She has been running a fever that's a bit higher than we'd like so they've done a chest x-ray to check for any fluid on the lungs.  We are now waiting to hear if anything more is needed.  While it's a little concerning and certainly only adds to Ashlynn's discomfort, we are hopeful they'll get it figured out soon.

Thanks for all the prayers that have been sent out way today.  Please continue to pray that Ashlynn's fever subsides and she is able to sleep comfortably.

Comforting Ashlynn after surgery with
her lamb from Grandpa & Grandma Klecker
and her blanket from Grandpa & Grandma Lanoue

Surgery is underway

We just kissed Ashlynn as they rolled her into surgery.  They had given her a sedative to help her relax (she's not a fan of anyone in blue scrubs) so she didn't cry much.  Troy was able to walk into the operating room and be by her side while she fell asleep.  We sure have fallen in love with that sweet little girl!  It wasn't easy to let her go even though we know she is in good hands.  Hopefully we're through the hardest part of the day.

When the plastic surgeon met with us earlier this morning, she was impressed with how "plump" Ashlynn looked since seeing her in July.  The surgeon was very optomistic about the success of today's procedure as she was happy with how much Ashlynn's upper lip had moved with wearing the band all these months.  The surgeon plans to first close the palate which is the most complicated and time consuming.  Then comes the lip repair.  We're told the total procedure will be at least 4 hours.

Thanks for Grandpa and Grandma Klecker for arriving at our house so very early this morning to be with the boys and get them off to school.  And thanks for all the phone calls, text messages, and emails.  We are blessed with wonderful family and friends!

18 months old

It's hard to believe tomorrow, September 23, will mark four months since our arrival home from China and the first night our new family of five spent together.  What an amazing four months it has been!  Ashlynn is thriving.  We see more and more of her personality each day as she gets comfortable with our routine.  She's developing a great bond with her big brothers and us.  She melts our hearts when we tell her we love her and she throws us a kiss. 

She has hit many milestones in such a short amount of time.  Derek and Mason enjoyed marking her half birthday yesterday, September 21.  Ashlynn is now 18 months old.  She is crawling everywhere!  She continues to impress her physical therapist as she masters each new technique.  Ashlynn really wants to be walking but she's just not quite strong enough.  We know it won't be long.  We feel so blessed to be a part of this amazing transformation. 

It's a big week.  Ashlynn's lip and palate repair are scheduled for Tuesday, September 24 at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis.  It's a four hour surgery and likely 3 - 4 days in the hospital.  It won't be an easy week for any of us, especially Ashlynn, but we hope she won't remember it and we know she will someday be glad we did it.  Please pray for her plastic surgeon and the medical staff to help Ashlynn through surgery and for us to help her through her first days of recovery.  We are planning to post updates on surgery day and the days that follow.  We so appreciate all the support we have received during this journey!

Here's a few of our favorite pictures of our sweet girl taken at the end of June (15 months old).

 

And here's few snap shots from the last few weeks.

First Day of School