Back in the Fight

Surgery went wonderfully, and Zachary is well on the way to a full recovery!!

Today began with the anticipation of Zach's surgery, and the realization of our little guy having to be sedated and on a respirator yet again.  Daddy went to work for a short time this morning,  (a HUGE Thank You goes out to the staff at Boulder Country Club for being so understanding and accommodating during this whole ordeal) before he and Mommy drove down to spend some time with Zach before his surgery.    Since Zach was not fed after 4am he was fairly cranky and irritable for Valerie, today's nurse.  When Mommy and Daddy arrived, they were able to swaddle Zachary up and rock him to settle him down.  He soon fell asleep and was very peaceful and restful for 4 or so hours before the surgery.  

Around 1pm Dave and his daughter Brittney surprised us all by arriving at the NICU, and spending some much needed time with us.  It's great to have visitors, especially when you need to escape the negative thoughts and feelings that arise when things look a little bleak.  Shortly thereafter "Aunt" Jodee arrived and we all enjoyed passing the time and giving Zachary some much needed quiet time with Mommy and Daddy. The first three photos above are pre-surgery images of the three of us. 

Around 3:15 Dr. Handler arrived to discuss the surgery and what to expect going forward for Zachary.  After that the nurses arrived to prep him for surgery and Zach slept peacefully all the way up until they rolled him out to begin the procedure around 4:30pm.

Mommy, Daddy, and Jodee headed out to get some dinner, and arrived back around 5:45, with Dr. Handler coming out of surgery a short time later.  In his words the surgery "could not have gone any better."  What wonderful words to our ears!!  We are very excited.  They rolled Zachary back in around 6pm and it took about a 1/2 hour to get him all hooked up to the ventilator and and run all the pertinent tests.  The last two pictures above are of Zachary post operative.  Check out his little tongue sticking out! Zach had a shunt inserted in his head to relieve the fluid and pressure that results from hydrocephalus.  They made a small incision in the right rear of his head and ran the shunt down past his right ear, along his jugular vein and down into his abdomen.  It empties about an inch up and three inches right of his belly button. His body should naturally absorb the fluid that the shunt delivers to the abdomen. From he pictures above you can see a lot of wires and machines, but Zach is so strong and was doing so well before the surgery that they feel his recovery should be pretty quick.  If all goes as planned he should be off the ventilator tonight or early tomorrow (they even reduced the ventilator settings shortly before we left), then slowly be brought down off the pain meds as he heals.  He is cleared to move and feed in whichever way he needs, and our new day to hopefully bring him home is now Friday.  

Another day has passed and another major hurdle has been cleared in little Zach's road to recovery.  We are so grateful to God for the blessings he has given us thus far, and we pray he will continue to bless Zach in the future. Tomorrow is a new day and we look forward to seeing Zachary off the ventilator, and improving wonderfully.  Something about these overnight hours seem to inspire Zach to heal so greatly.  Maybe its the quiet of night, or the fact that he knows Mommy and Daddy love surprises, but for whatever reason, we're sure he'll brighten our day once we arrive at St. Joe's tomorrow.  Thank You All Once Again - Brian + Kimmie