Day 5 of Life

We got in to see Katherine around 8 o'clock last night. She was swollen and puffy, but not as bad as we had been expecting. Her chest is still open, so they had it covered up the first time we went in to see her. They say it will probably be about 3 days before they will be able to close her up due to the swelling. She is still on a respirator, which is doing her breathing for her. They probably will not take her off of it until they close her chest. They have several lines, tubes, and cables hooked up to her. The doctors went over with us what each of them was, but there are so many it is difficult to remember what they are all for. She only has one chest tube, which seems to be good from the way the doctors talk. She is on epi and another medicine to help her heart to beat properly. (There are other medications and fluids, but I do not remember what they are all for.) Her heartbeat is still tachycardic but the heart is beating on its own with the help of the medicine. Her left foot is purple right now due to a line (I think the central line) that they had to put in her leg near her groin area. It is interfering with the circulation to that foot. They tell us that this happens sometimes and usually clears up sometime around 24 hours after surgery. They do not seem concerned about it, but it is difficult for us not to be. She already has so much going on right now. We went to check on her several times in the night and each time, she was still stable. When we went to check on her this morning, they were doing rounds. They plan to start her on a lasix drip sometime today to start drawing some of the fluids off of her. This should eventually help with the swelling and make it possible for her to close her chest. Overall, everyone seems happy with her progress so far. Thank you for your continued prayers as she passes through this critical time. God is working in her life and in ours right now. Already he has used what is happening to bring us closer to Him, to each other, and to our daughter.