Serena is home!

I am so tired, but here is the email my mom sent out to family and friends with a little update from me...More details to come later. Thanks so much for all your prayers!!!
Hi all,
I just got home from the hospital. The surgeon was very pleased with the surgery. He said it could not have gone better. He was able to locate the 2 nerves and attach them!! It took over 4 hours, but it was a success! He feels this maybe a permanent solution to the aspiration problem, but if not it should be at least a 2 year fix.

We got there this morning at 10:00. Serena and Steph went down to the operating area at 11, but Serena did not get into the room until 12:30. The doctor had someone call every hour. At 4:30 they called to say the surgery was done and that the doctor would be up soon to talk. He told us the good news and at 5:30 Steph went down to recovery. She finally came back to the room with Serena at 6:45. Serena was very tired, sweaty and hungry. She drank 2 oz of milk right away and an hour later had consumed another 4 oz. She was happy to be with her parents!!! She has an incision from one side of her throat through to the other and a drain. I could not look at it, but Steph did. She is on steroids, antibiotics and a lot of oxygen. If the drain does not collect too much fluid or blood and everything else looks good, she will go home tomorrow. If not, they will keep her another night.
In terms of her voice, it actually sounds the same, but that is normal from the swelling. Time will tell how she will really sound. In 2 weeks she will have a modified barium swallow to determine if the aspiration is gone!
It was a very long and stressful day, but we are happy that everything went well and that Serena is on her way to being healed!

After my mom left Serena just slept. Her O2 was at a 3/4 of a liter for the night and she was 99-100%. We put her on only 100ccs her normal this am during an early morning nap and she was fine. She drank 9 ounces of milk at the hospital this morning and another 5 in the car ride home. She did really well and is now walking around playing, albeit with her neck dressing. Her voice is still the same and I have a feeling it isn't going to change. As you know we did this procedure to stop aspiration and there was a chance it could improve her voice. Even if her voice stays the same, I just hope the barrium swallow shows we stopped her aspirating. She is very brave and very strong. I am so proud of my little warrior.

Off to surgery we go (she was STARVING and very angry)

Being wheeled up from recovery with Mommy

Grammy getting me to crack a little smile

Watching tv with Daddy



Resting with my Mommy