Update on Miss Emma

   So it has been a crazy past couple of days.  We are now on the 8th floor which means Emma has improved from the initial journey here.  We do not know what caused her episode on Wednesday, but the doctors do think that she has had some type of infection.  Whether viral or bacterial, they are unsure.  Her x-ray, however, does look like she has or had an infection.  She has been put on a couple of antibiotics in an attempt to treat the infection(s) and improve her x-ray.  Her labs and all of her numbers continue to improve.  So now, we are in the waiting game.  We are waiting to see if these antibiotics improve her overall condition.  Also, we are waiting to see what will be the next step to get her closer to surgery.  She is still a very happy baby, smiling often and playing like normal.  She is still coughing quite a bit, but it has definitely decreased over the last 2 days.  We are definitely thankful that she is still a happy baby through all of this, which makes this whole road a lot easier.  We will continue to keep everyone updated as we find out more information.

Some specific prayer requests:
1)  Pray that Emma gets to feeling better and that her infection is healed quickly.
2)  Pray for the doctors, nursing staff, and other medical staff as they tend to Emma, that their hands and thoughts will be guided to make the right decisions.
3)  Pray for Sarah and me to have strength for the road ahead.

Thank you all for the thoughts and prayers.

As always, we are most grateful for God who continues to bless and watch over our precious little girl.

God is good, all the time.  And all the time, God is good!

Daddy Scott

Back to our home away from home the ICU

We went to the hospital early Wednesday morning because Emma was running a fever!  We were admitted to the 8th floor and monitored.  Ran some tests, fever came down, nothing seemed wrong so we were sent home yesterday early evening!  We gave Emma her bath and I went to bed( I have been taking the night shifts).  Scott came and got me a few minutes later to come look at Emma.  Emma was VERY blue, modeled, lethargic, and unresponsive!  We turned up her oxygen as high as it would go and called 911.  We were rushed to CMC in Dallas!  I was never so happy to see the  Koch and one of our nurses Robin.  Emma had pinked up by the time we got to the ER.  However, after running several tests, it was determined that her CRP and white blood cell count are elevated so more than likely, there is an  infection somewhere.  So, she has been started on two antibiotics.  

Emma is stable, but our road over the next few weeks will be bumpy!  Emma is growing out of her shunt and may have to have an intervention done before surgery.  Please be praying that The decisions made over the next few days will be beneficial and best for Emma!  Pray the infections leave her little body and she is infection free soon!  

Scott and I are both physically and emotionally drained and could use you prayers as well!  

We will update as we learn more!

God is good!  All the time!

Sarah :)

No Surgery Tomorrow

Well, surgery is a not going to happen tomorrow! The eye culture grew back Haemophilus influenzae infection, so Dr. Forbess wants it treated for 5-7 days first. We will keep everyone updated. Thank you for the prayers and please keep praying.

The Road Ahead

Hello to all.  It seems like months since I have been on here and updated this blog.  So, let me see if I can loosen up my "hinges" posting and give ya'll an update on my precious little princess and the road ahead.  First, let me just ask for all of your help in praying for Emma's next surgery that is on the 22nd.  Pray that it is a success, pray that the doctor's hands be guided by God, and pray that her recovery is quick!  Second, let me ask for all of your help again.  As you know, Emma is getting very close to her next surgery, and so, as many of you might have seen on Facebook, Sarah and I are asking that there be no visitors from now until her surgery.  There may be some that were planning on seeing her, but with her going into surgery, she needs to be as healthy as possible.  So, if you could all please honor that request, it would be much appreciated. 
 
  Now to an update on Miss Emma.  She is doing so good!  As many of you might have seen from the pictures and videos that we post, she is getting so strong, and is progressing so well with her therapies.  She never ceases to amaze us!  Now, as many would imagine, there are days where her stubborn side comes out and she just resists us working with her (don't know who she gets that from :-P ), but all in all, she is doing so good with all her work that she has to do.  What is so hard for us, is seeing how great she is doing and remembering that we have to take her in to surgery in a week!  What we constantly remind ourselves is that this will be so good for her.  It will open up many doors to her future if it goes well.  So we are constantly in prayer that all will go well and she will be back to her normal smiling and laughing self as soon as possible after the surgery. 

  As some may know, we had a short trip to the hospital yesterday through this morning.  Emma was just not acting like herself yesterday.  She had not slept well the night before and was coughing and gagging a little bit more than normal.  So Sarah and I made an executive decision, called Childrens, and got her admitted to the 8th floor.  When we got there, we were greeted by great people who make our experience there the best it can be every time we go!  A special thank you to all the staff on the 8th floor for always being there for us and always being so kind to us!  So, once we got settled in, they decided to run some lab tests on her and see if she might be a little sick.  They ran some blood and did a urine culture.  We found out that nothing was growing back on any of them (that means no bacteria was showing up in those samples).  After she got a great nights rest last night and woke up more like her normal self today, and with the information above coupled with the fact that she was not symptomatic for an infection, they decided to send us home this morning!  They want to get you in and out as fast as possible as a lengthy stay increases infection risk.  Praise God that she did not have any bad infection!  So, we are back at home now and she is as happy as ever! :)

   So this week is pretty status quo.  We are just going to be working with her in therapies this week and enjoying every second we have with her.  We will have to go in Friday and get the whole work up before her surgery next week.  Probably on Sunday, we will be admitted to get her in the best state possible to go in for surgery.  Still haven't heard officially though whether or not we will have to go in Sunday or Monday. 

  As always, we are so thankful for all the thoughts and prayers as we get ready for the road ahead.  We will, just as we did in her first surgery, only be updating everyone through the blog.  So if anyone has questions about her progress, be sure to direct them to the blog on that day as we will not be answering phone calls or texts that day so we can focus fully on our Precious Princess.   

  For all those prayer warriors, here are some things you can pray for:
1)  Pray Emma's surgery is a success!
2)  Pray for the doctors and medical staff.
3)  Pray that Emma's recovery is quick!
4)  Pray for Sarah and me as this is a very scary and unsure time.
5)  Pray that Emma will remain infection free and go into her surgery in the best state possible.

Hope From Emma's Heart: An Organization to Honor HLHS Babies

Hope From Emma’s Heart

Family, Friends, & Prayer Warriors:

We have been truly blessed to have so many wonderful family and friends supporting us every step of the way of Emma’s journey.  Whether we needed food, laundry done, supplies, bows J, encouragement, or especially prayers, you all were there.  However, there are many families that do not have that support.

We would like to begin early with Emma in teaching her how to give to those in need, so we are starting an organization called: Hope From Emma’s Heart.  This organization will collect items to put in care packages for babies in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit in Dallas with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. 

How can you help?  We will be collecting the following items to put in care packages for the HLHS babies.  All items must be new!

1.    Blankets (receiving) for boys and girls

2.   Newborn socks for boys and girls

3.   Johnson & Johnson Baby Bedtime Lotion and Body Wash (15 fl oz)

4.   Wash cloths for boys and girls

5.   Pink or blue gift bags (medium size)

6.   Pink or blue baby mittens

OR

7.   Walmart or Target Gift Cards

OR

8.   Money for special bows/headbands for the little girls and caps for the little boys       

that we are having made!  (We are going to have special bows made for the girls and caps made for the boys, so if you want to help with this then monetary donation would be the best route)

Each care package will include a special note about Emma and the love and support we have been shown.  We pray that this little package will be uplifting to the families as they go through the journey of mending their baby’s heart. 

If you would like to help it would be greatly appreciated.  This would be a great service-learning project for a school or business organizations J.  We will deliver the packages to Children’s Medical Center around Emma’s first birthday (October 4^th).  I have a goal of 15 packages for girls and 15 packages for boys!  I have no doubt that our wonderful family and friends will help make this possible. 

Address to send monetary gifts or package items:

Sarah Stewart

13710 CR 3660

Allen, Ok 74825

If your school or business organization would like to collect items, we could possibly arrange a pick-up in or around Ada, Oklahoma City, or Dallas.

Thank you again,

Scott, Sarah, and Emma Stewart

We have been so blessed!  Please consider helping us shower other families with blessings to help celebrate Emma’s first birthday.