Good News

One of my roommates from college, Julie, had her first baby last week. She delivered a baby girl via c-section, Lydia Kay. And she is gorgeous!

Unfortunately a few minutes after birth they realized something was not right with her color. PICU nurses ended up taking her upstairs to see if they could help her. It was discovered that there was a problem with her heart. They thought that the pulmonary veins were not connecting to her heart and therefor not supplying it with any oxygen. The decision was made to transport little Lydia to Mayo for immediate surgery.

She was taken via ambulance across the state line and was in surgery for about 5 hours. The doctors discovered that the pulmonary veins looked ok. Instead, the problem was that there were some holes in her heart that needed to be repaired. Lydia was a trooper and did fine during surgery. She was then put on a heart/lung machine to give her little body a break and be allowed to heal. Julie was allowed to leave to hospital the next day - a little bit more than 24 hours after her c-section. Her and her husband traveled to Rochester to be with their daughter.

The updates I have been getting everyday have been good. Lydia is passing her neurological tests. My friends Jamie, Laurel and I visited Julie and her husband Russ last night. Lydia was taken off her heart/lung machine and she seemed to be doing well. The doctors and nurses were working to try to find a balance in her drugs and medications because she didn't seem to be tolerating some too well.

They are hoping to close up Lydia's chest today. That means that hopefully by tomorrow or Saturday Julie and Russ will be able to hold their precious little girl for the first time. They still need lots of prayers and good vibes, so send some their way.

Luckily Julie and Russ got into the Ronald McDonald house today. It's such a wonderful service that they provide people. Hotels are SO expensive and don't offer the comforts of home. Hopefully they will be more comfortable now. We're thinking of you!