Hazel Gets a Tune-Up Tomorrow!

For Hazie

Today I am finally getting a moment to write to you. This hospital is one busy place.  There is literally someone in this room to visit Hazel every 7-10 minutes.   Her three teams of doctors were all swarming around the room shortly after I arrived at 8:30 am.  They were still collaborating on what to do about the two problems.  (Her compromised PICC Line and the pockets of fluid in her abdomen.)  The problems they feel are rather simple to fix but will require a general anesthesia so that means they might as well give her a tune up while they are in there.  So there will be three procedures rolling forward tomorrow morning at 10:30 am. She is feeling better each day until they do something like a "procedure"  that can put her back tracking just a little.  But they are hoping that these procedures will get all the infection out so that she can have the new shunt put in soon. She cannot leave the hospital until that happens so we are looking at several more days, maybe a couple of weeks.  

She is such a little trooper.  She just keeps saying she doesn't even want to go home.  What? Anyway she gets along with all the staff and they love her. She is very funny. The other day she asked a team of 8 adults working on her IVs, "Hey guys, what does fumigation mean?"  This hospital is one of the top Children's Hospitals in the world for a reason.  They strive for excellence and they are fantastic.   Each and every one of the people that work there are great with kids.

Cassie and Hazie sing!

Today she had music therapy which was so much fun.  I posted two little clips of them singing on my FaceBook timeline. She also painted a wooden heart for her Mom, she took a little ride in her wheelchair with her IV pole and all the tubes attached to go to the gym with her PT. 

PT games

She opened and read a lot of mail from school friends, and she had presents delivered.  She is so sweet about loving the things people do for her.  (Katy, your package arrived today and she was very pleased.  Thank you, Borem cousins!)

Being at the hospital is like the movie Ground Hog's Day. Repeat, repeat, repeat.  But you just do what you have to do and keep your spirits up as high as possible.  Hazel passes her good cheer to everyone around her and we give it right back to her.  In that way...somehow (with your good thoughts and prayers) we survive it.  And she gets better.

So tomorrow after the surgery we hope she is three steps closer to well.

We are going to be here for Thanksgiving which in the beginning we had not planned  to do.  So it's just about time to buy a turkey, right?  Here a shot I took from the front porch yesterday.  By morning there will be a dusting of snow out there.

Happy Autumn!