Day 2: PICU

Emersyn spent all day yesterday and today in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Usually there is one nurse for every two patients, but we got lucky and had a nurse all to ourselves. The nursing staff in the PICU are awesome! Emersyn had a rough start as expected. She was in a lot of pain and swelling increased by the hour. Last night was rough as she cried out frequently and was uncomfortable. We were not able to spend the night with her since parents are not allowed to sleep in the PICU. It was very hard for us to leave her, but the nurse took great care of her. We got here nice and early. Her swelling was worse today which is normal after any type of head surgery. She is the cutest swollen baby EVER!! She looks like a mini sumo wrestler. The swelling should start to decrease after 48 hours. So we are hoping by tomorrow evening we'll start to see some change. The eye swelling doesn't hurt her, but she becomes frustrated at times because she can't see. Positives about today: she did eat a tiny bit. Its normal for her not to eat for a few days. So we are pleased with the little bit that she did take. She has a very sore throat from the breathing tube she had during the surgery. So swallowing isn't her favorite thing. Many of her IV's were taken out along with her catheter. Her vitals are looking great! We're excited about that. At 7:00 tonight we moved onto the pediatric floor. We are now in a private room with a nurse that takes care of three at a time. She is sleeping soundly and takes pain meds when needed. It's hard to tell if she is crying because of her throat pain, head pain, hunger pains or the fact that she can't see. So I just chalk it up to " this stinks" and do whatever I can to ease her cries. Zack and I spend the days here with her and will be taking turns at night. Its important we see Dylan too. My Mom is doing a great job at keeping him busy and having a fun time.

I started writing this awhile ago and then Emersyn woke up. I rocked her for a bit and I forgot what I was going to write. So I should probably get some sleep. The neurosurgeon will be coming tomorrow to check her head.

Thank you again for all of the well wishes. We truly appreciate them!