Big Day Tomorrow

Well, I'm back blogging so that means that the big day draws near. Very near in fact, things begin around 10am pst tomorrow (Friday, 6/4) and will last in the neighborhood of 7-8 hours (+/- a few). Emotions are free flowing at this point. Everything from anxiety and fear to relief and anticipation are running rampant. We are confident that we chose the right doctors to do this and do it very well, so we know things will be okay but it still brain surgery which is scary any way you look at it. The wait has been painstaking though (we've known since the beginning of March) and we're ready to be on the recovery side now.

Since the last time I wrote we've moved over to the dormitory attached to St. Vincent's Hospital. It's not much in the way of fancy, but it gets the job done for a very reasonable price. The proximity to Dr. Appt's and the hospital is second to none, and we've been fortunate to have met a lot of nice and amazing people while we've been here. Also, big bonus my Mom came to town on Tuesday so we've got reinforcements to help out while Kris is laid up.

Parker is doing very well. He had his 2 week check up and he's weighing in up over his birth weight now, which is excellent, and no issues what so ever with anything health related either. He eats, sleeps and poops like a champ so we're extremely happy and fortunate parents.

I'll be updating as much as possible tomorrow during and after the surgery, as I know there are many people that have expressed interest in hearing how things are going. Till then....

More Thanks

A huge thanks to Grandma Kaye for her time out here in LA with us. Her help has and will continue to be invaluable, and this whole thing would be infinitely harder without her. She put the rest of her life on hold for us, which is truly heroic.



Also, enormous thanks to Grandpa Jim for keeping an eye on our two pups as well. This task is not an easy one, especially with Esme who's a real handful. We're grateful our little ones have Jim's Cheesedogger Emporium to hang out in, so they didn't have to be boarded for over a month.

Thanks in advance to Grandma Donna as well, as I am positive she will be a big help with Parker when we're consumed with Kris' recovery from surgery.

Love,
Mike & Kris

Phase 1 Complete

Today was a glorious day as we all walked out of the hospital as a family. OK, so hospital policy requires patients to be wheeled out and Parker is still a few weeks away from walking, but you get the idea.





It feels great to be back in the comforts of our home away from home, much more spacious fo sho. I know Kris is thoroughly enjoying the nap she's getting in a real bed right now, without some eastern European nurse barging in to take vital signs or whatever the inconvenience of the hour happens to be. Don't get me wrong the people at Cedars-Sinai were outstanding, I'm just saying that hospitals just aren't all that awesome for extended stays is all. But I digress....

We're all really happy now, and we can rest a little for a few weeks while we prepare for phase 2: Tumor extraction. We're anxious to get Kris on the better side of this tumor, but the surgery is still a very scary endeavor.

It'll be pretty quiet here for a few weeks so you probably won't here much from me until the date of June 4th draws near. Perhaps in the meantime I'll try and convince Kris to put some of her thoughts down on paper for a different perspective on all this.

Special shout out to the help on the ground hear in LA: my great aunt Myrtle who lent us her car (for our entire stay!), my cousins Nancy & Mary who delivered the car and lent their car seat/stroller system, Amanda Carpenter who cooked and gave us rides (looking forward to you visiting more if you're reading this), Kris' co-worker Billy who lent us some baby gear, the ANA folks who gave Kris and Kaye rides before I got here, the list goes on.... We couldn't feel any more comfortable away from home and it has a lot to do with these folks.

Thanks for listening and thanks again for the support.

Homeward Bound

Parker's Pediatrician stopped in today and let us know that he's doing very well, and has a good chance of going home (meaning the hotel) with us when Kris is discharged tomorrow. Truly fantastic news. Right now we're in no rush, we're just enjoying having him around and going through the routine with him. Eat, poop, sleep. Eat, poop, sleep. Where do I sign up?

He's a super good baby so far, and is not fussy in the slightest. Eats well, sleeps well...just like Dad. I know this will likely change, but that's okay too. Health = happiness for us.

Everyone likes to play the game of "who does he look like?" I personally am not a fan of this game because I can't relate baby features to big people features very well, but let's see what all of you think. Here's a point of reference as well...my baby picture. I don't have a copy of Kris' scanned in so you'll have to use your imagination.

Graduation Day!

Our little dude continues to impress, and he is moving out of the NICU and down to the observation nursery right across the hall from us. No cords or monitors for him anymore, he's free wheeling now. They still will keep an eye on him in the nursery because of his age, but I think we're pretty much responsible for all his care, which is fine by us. The goal is for him to go home with us on Saturday, so we'll here's to hoping we hit that. Right now we've got visions of a Billy Madison type party for him at each stage of his progression (Parker, passed the 3rd Grade, ohh what a glorious daaayyy!).



Very exciting news indeed!

Kris is doing well too, and obviously her spirits have been lifted with him moving even closer to us. Her mobility continues to improve from the C-Section and she's walking around more now. She still has symptoms from the tumor, but they have eased some as compared to pre-delivery. Her neuro team has checked her out here in the hospital and they see no reason for any concern or haste in moving up her surgery. As of now, we're still on for June 4th, but we'll let you know if that changes of course.

Thanks for all the support and well wishes, they're greatly appreciated!

Action Packed Day

Sorry for the lack of updates, but it has been a day full of activities. We had an early morning visit with Parker and then met with his doctors. They were pleased with his progress and took off the breathing supplement and said he could start feeding normally! Here's a pic without the tubes getting in the way of his handsome mug.



The big task of the day has been getting him to feed. A little awkward for both parties at first, but they'll get the hang of it. I've gotten to change his diaper and dress him in some of his own gear, which was actually pretty awesome. I'm sure this thrill will pass, but right now it's all good and I'm loving it.

Today was a little more challenging because they didn't transfer Kris out of ICU until late afternoon, and ICU is not in the same building as the NICU. We had to make several trips back and forth with a nurse wheeling her over, which adds to the rigors of the feeding schedule. We're now in the maternity ward, which is only a floor below the NICU and I can wheel Kris up to see him whenever we want. MUCH better. We're told if he feeds well and his breathing continues to improve, he may be able to come down to our room to hang with us instead of the NICU. We can't wait to have him around full time!

Hopefully I'll have more time tomorrow to post some more pictures.

Another huge breakthrough!

Parker said his first words today. It was a little garbled, but I'm pretty sure he said "Go Blackhawks".