Author: Trish

Another Member of the Brian Reemtsen Fan Club!

While doing some googling today, we came across a site of another person who has been in our favorite heart surgeon’s care.  Not the usual pediatric patient, but a great account of the quality of the team here at UCLA.  We’ll write a tribute of our own soon! 

http://saipanscuba.blogspot.com/2008/09/two-week-follow-up.html

To read what Mike wrote about Rudy, click here: 

http://saipanscuba.blogspot.com/2008/10/putting-it-back-into-perspective.html

So glad that the same team giving our kid a chance at life is giving Mike’s kids a chance to have their dad!  The internet rocks.

Another Milestone Surpassed!

Well, it is almost 4pm here on the west coast and I’m wondering where in the world today has gone.  We left Rudy’s room around 11:30am so they could start the “closing up” procedure and Dr. Reemtsen met us in the waiting room about an hour later to let us know he was done.  All remains stable so far…although Rudy is going pee pee, his kidney function right now is still cause for concern but all the really smart people around here seem to think that it is just a matter of time. 

So now we pray against any infection from preventing his healing and we begin to pray for the next hurdle…getting him off the ventilator and breathing on his own.  Once that is accomplished then he needs to start learning how to eat.  He’ll be given my milk through a feeding tube at first, then gradually work his way up to learning how to nurse (we pray!!!) – not an easy process from what I understand.  But that’s work left for another day…today we are just sitting and resting with Rudy and enjoying looking into his eyes every now and again when they open.

My Love Affair with a Foot

Surgery Day 10-6-08
Surgery Day 10-6-08
Ready for transport
Ready for transport

Hi Everyone!  I’ve been itching to get to my computer all day to read everyone’s comments…being connected to you all through the blog feels amazing…we are so NOT alone and the blog really helps to reinforce that…so, again, thank you, thank you, thank you!  Today is not a day I want to repeat but I’m ending the day so very grateful for it’s outcome.  I’m adding a couple of photos from very early this morning just before they took him to surgery…I thought Rudy looked so handsome in his little blue beanie I just couldn’t resist! 

Rudy’s looking a bit different now…a little paler and drawn in the face…they have discreetly covered his open chest with a blanket but it didn’t prevent me from seeing part of it when we first saw him after surgery…a pretty tough sight for me but I was quickly reminded that although it’s no way to start a life, this is giving him a chance at life and a full one at that.

One thing that hasn’t changed is Rudy’s precious left foot.  When he was first born, I was able to hold him for a minute before the took him to the NICU but since then, we’ve only been able to touch certain parts of his body…mostly the top of his head because that’s the one thing that hasn’t have a tube or cord connected to it.  We’ve, at times, been able to rest our fingers on his little chest and this morning we were able to stroke his soft little back as the nurse turned him on his side for a bit for comfort. 

A day or two after getting all hooked up to his entourage of monitors, they were able to free up his left foot of connection to anything and for the first time, we were able to really wrap our hand around something and hold tight.  It felt so good and that whole day all I wanted to do was hold on to that foot and when I left for the night, I kissed the bottom of it and gave it a little eskimo kiss with my nose!!!  So, for the past few days I’ve had a growing love affair with Rudy’s foot.  It was the last thing I held on to when he left for surgery this morning and it was the first thing I looked for when he came back.  It’s still free of any cords and as his appearance changes before he starts looking like himself again (the doctor warned us tonight that he’ll most likely get quite puffy and to not be alarmed), you can bet that sweet little foot will be the constant I’ll be looking for to grab onto and give a reassuring squeeze!

Good night everybody, Sleep well…Good night Rudy, I’m so proud of you!!!

A Quick Stop at Home

We are headed back to Los Angeles today after a quick visit home overnight.  Rolf and I came home yesterday to tie up some loose ends, welcome Oma and Opa who arrived Friday from Texas and attend the Rescue Mission’s annual fundraiser.  It was a full but very good day of seeing friends and storing up hugs for our week ahead.  Rolf and I, the kids and Rolf’s parents will head back down to UCLA this morning and spend the day together with Rudy before his surgery bright and early tomorrow morning.

As many of you know, my parents were planning to come and take the first “child care shift” and then the Geylings were going to relieve them in a few weeks.  Shockingly to us all, my dad was diagnosed with a brain tumor last week and has since met with various doctors in preparation for his surgery on Tuesday!!  Of course, there is great concern and disappointment on all our hearts as Gma Jo and Gpa Dick are now on their own journey of faith and recovery and none of us are able to be with each other to support and love on each other in person.  So, I ask that you add my Dad, Dick Wilson, to your prayer list…especially on Tuesday.  Again, I find myself in a place of complete dependance on God forced to approach life one day at a time.

Rudy’s surgery prep will begin tomorrow morning at 7am and Dr. Reemtsen is estimated to begin his work around 8:30.  He’s explained to us that the Norwood procedure is probably the most risky operation done at UCLA (or any hospital) and there is a critical window where Rudy will be on bypass that can’t exceed 40 minutes.  The entire procedure should last about 2 hours and Rudy should be away from us for about four.  Dr. Reemtsen has warned us that the next week will be a long series of highs and lows for Rudy so we are bracing ourselves and praying for emotional strength.

We are grateful for Rolf’s parents’ willingness to kick into action to be with the children.  We have, however, been thrust into our new lifestyle much faster than we anticipated so it has taken everyone off balance a bit…especially Olivia.  Please pray that the kids will extend an abundance of grace to one another and to Oma and Opa and that the times we do share together in the next couple of weeks will be positive and fun (interpretation: that I will refrain from filling the time with instructions for the kids and details that can wait!)  I’m definitely being challenged in the area of “letting go”.

Rest assured that all the comments on the blog are being read and the phone messages and emails from home are making their way to us eventually.  Thank you for your expressions of love and support and, although, we’re not finding time to return everyone’s calls and messages, we are blessed by them and we will be in touch.  Big hugs to you too,  Trish

Okay, today was tough…

Hello dear ones, 

How wonderful it has been to read all the comments made on Rudy’s Beat the past couple of days…it feels like we’ve been on this really wild ride but in slow motion since early Wednesday morning when I realized Rudy was on his way!  We’ve had 3 days of some amazing ups and downs and we’ve really only just begun this journey!  Your continued prayers and comments on the blog have been such an encouragement and fun distraction. 

Today, I admit, was the toughest so far.  Today was discharge day and even though I’ve known for quite some time that getting discharged with Rudy in arm was not going to be our reality, when the time came to officially “leave” the hospital without him, I was overwhelmed with grief.  I was given a mountain of pamphlets and brochures in my “postpartum packet” that didn’t apply to my situation and a sweet little diaper bag that was quickly emptied of all baby stuff by the lactation nurse and promptly filled with breast pump supplies and storage bottles.  Not that I blame the staff for doing their normal discharge routine, but every step of the procedure was a heavy reminder of the fact we weren’t going home but to a hotel room and we weren’t going home with Rudy.

Instead, I walked the long corridor from the maternity unit to the CTICU with my bags in hand to “set up shop” in Rudy’s room.  A bright spot in my day was getting to hold Rudy’s sweet little left foot that was now free of a monitor and tape.   Another truly bright spot was seeing Wilson, Max and Olivia who took a day off from school to meet their brother!  Their hugs never felt better and although seeing Rudy for the first time was a bit disturbing, they quickly warmed up to him and had a nice visit. 

And so, we enter a new phase in this journey…it’s a little hard to process it all right now so I’ll wait to share some of the details of Rudy’s condition and upcoming surgery on Monday at a later time but even in the midst of the grief and exhaustion, we continue to experience God’s amazing grace and are so grateful for His presence with us.