We're home!!

We are finally home. I could not be happier. We were able to leave the hospital on Wednesday night. We were coming home on Tuesday but right at the last minute the docs decided to do one more test that worked the best in the morning. I was way so sad that he had to stay one more night but I am so glad that the doctors wanted to do one more test just to make sure he was going to be okay. Everything was normal with that test and so they sent us on our way. Christopher is feeling much better. His neck is still way sore and he has some aches and pains but he is alive. We would like to thank everyone for their prayers and support. Thanks everyone for taking such great care of Chloe and Tessa and for all of the yummy food.

Christopher getting ready to leave the hospital holding his lifesaver (the TV remote)

Back in ICU

I am just sitting here in ICU with Christopher and I guess I should document all that has gone on. I think my last post went to Saturday. Well Saturday Christopher started to have some weird pains that the doctors were not comfortable with. He was going to come home on Saturday night but the y decided to keep him over night to just watch him. Well Sunday morning he called me at the doctors decided to to a cerebral angiogram. They did the angiogram yesterday and what they found out was not expected!!! His left vertebral artery was totally block off from the dissection (tear) and his right was severely blocked off. They were able to put 2 stints in his right side and he know has double the blood flow to his brain. As for the left side it will just take time to heal on its own. What a blessing that they did the angiogram. I am so grateful that they did not sent him home on Saturday night. He had a huge risk of having a major stroke. The docs say that he can live just great with one working artery. Today he will be out of ICU and back to a normal room. Maybe tomorrow he will be able to come home. I am a little okay maybe a lot nervous to go home. I should be able to resume normal activity. It may take awhile but he will be okay.

We are in the hospital again. Twice in a week is not something to brag about. Chloe's was expected but Christopher's definitely was not. It all started on December 23 when Christopher decided to wake up early to exercise. He could not sleep because he was so excited for Christmas. The next morning he woke up with a sore neck. He kept complaining about it but what do you do with a sore neck. I feel really bad because I probably was not as sympathetic as I should have been. After about a week he decided to go to a chiropractor. He worked with him but it did not work. Then on Wednesday night he was playing hide and go seek with the girls and he hide under Tessa's crib. Once he was under it he must have jerked his head. He came and sat down and was having horrible pain. He then lay ed down on the bed but it was not getting better. All of a sudden his left arm went numb. My dad got there about that time and we decided my dad could drive him faster to the ER than wait for the ambulance. Once they got to the ER they immediately got him in a room since he was having stroke like symptoms. After a ct scan they determined he had vertebral artery dissection. In lamen terms for all of us that are not doctors his left artery in the back of neck tore. NOT GOOD!!! There are four major arteries going to your brain and one or his tore. They are thinking he probably tore it on the 23 and then made it worse on Wednesday. After they found out what was going on the transported him to Murray to the Intermountain Medical Center. They have an awesome neuroscience ICU. He was there until yesterday afternoon and now he is in just a normal neuro room. They are treating him with blood thinners and are really watching him. He is at a high risk of having a stroke because his body it trying to fix the tear. He has a MRI and it came back normal . He has no brain damage and everything looked good. Hopefully is everything keeps going well we will be able to take him home on Sunday or Monday. I am a little nervous to take him home but he will still be going to a lot of doctors the next couple of weeks.

Christopher in the ICU
Christopher loved it when he got in a normal room and Chloe and Tessa could come and see him. He has been missing them so much. Chloe was a little nervous when she first saw him but then she warmed up and they watch America's Funniest Home Videos together.

What a week we have had. I do not think I totally understood the seriousness of this problem at first. That probably was a good thing. I was a mess at first but after the MRI I was much better. The doctor told us the this only happens in 2.7 people out of 100,000 and mostly to women. We do not know why it is just one of those things. Christopher is doing very well and will fully recover. It may take a year of taking it easy. That is going to be the hard part. No heavy lifting or anything strenous for a year will be way hard for him. I look at is like we can do anything since he is still alive. Most people that have this happen to them either have serioius brain damage or death. We are just lucky and know that the Lord's had blessed us and is watching over us. I am so grateful that we have such great hospitals so close to us. These doctors have been awesome. Thank you everyone for your prayers and help. Our parents have been a great help by either keeping the girls or coming to the hospital with me. I hope this all makes sense.

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam

That's right Chloe started Sunbeams yesterday. I can not believe she is old enough to go to Primary. It make me sad. Where does the time go? She probably should have stayed home because today she is not feeling very well but there was no way she was staying home. She was soooo excited to go to Primary. She had tons of fun and can not wait until next week.

Chloe's first hospital experience

A couple of months ago Chloe started snoring. I mean snoring so loud that we could hear her snoring when we were in our room. It was such a weird noise, not a consecutive snore kind of like a wheezing and then she would be quite for a few seconds. It really scared me so when I took Tessa in for her 1 year well check the doctor looked in Chloe's mouth and said her tonsils were way swollen. I took her into see the same doctor that just put tubes in Tessa's ears. He said that Chloe definately needed to get her tonsils out. On December 30 she had her tonsils out. I was way nervous because she does not do well at the doctors or with shots. When she left she was crying and so was I. It is scary just letting the doctor take your little girl. The surgey only took 20 minutes and then she was in recovery for 40 more minutes before we could see her. When we saw her she was so funny. She did the opposite I thought she would do. She was cracking us up and I could not believe how different her voice was. Christopher and I could not stop laughing. All she wanted was a drink and a red popsicle. We had to stay another 3 hours while the nurses monitored her.

The red popsicles made her so happy (I think the medicine they gave her may have helped also).

She wanted Christopher to read to her from the Western Horseman. I don't know why she likes that magazine but she always wants him to read from it.

I think reading it made them both fall asleep.

Chloe is recovery just fine. As we were leaving the hospital she told me the she had fun. I asked her what part was fun and she said, 'All of it." I can not believe how good she has felt. She has been spoiled with all of the ice cream, Go-Gurts, popsicles, slushies, and pudding a kid could ever want. I think we have watch 20 movies to keep her relaxed. Hopefully in a couple of day she will be able to go back to preschool because she is starting to get bored.