Day 3-The Handoff-Surgery Day

We were both so exhausted we passed out last night and "slept" well. We got up at 5;30am to hurry down and spend a our last few minutes with Hunter. After they take him away we won't be able to hold him for over a week. We made our way to the NICU and he was waiting for us...so cute, squeeking so softly and just waiting not knowing what is happening. We got a good hour or so and then it started happening. First the Chaplan came in prayed over Hunter, it was powerful and hard at the same time. Next was Hunters Anesthesiologist, Dr. Leon (Lee-own). He is a nice looking younger guy full of vibrance and information. He was very reassuring but I lost count at 7 when he was talking about the number of drains, IV's etc that will be coming in and out of this little man. As he was loading us up with information when the O.R nurses appeared and undressed Hunters old bed and wheeled in the new one...it is much more intricate and involved...I had Hunter in my arms while all of this was happening, he was squeeking and fussing like he knew it was his fate. I kept holding him tighter and Megan who was sitting next us kept getting closer...I think it was our instincts to try and get between him and "harm". It was an emotional couple of hours to say the least. Our NICU night nurse Leslie, who was on loan from the PICU (pediatric intensive care unit) was a God sent, she prepped us for what we will see this afternoon as Hunter will recover in the PICU...that is hard to imagine, but we can't avoid it. Leslie gave us the sign, we handed Hunter off to Dr. Leon's assistant, kissed him as many times as we could then Leslie hugged us, her voice cracked...not out of fear but out of the enormous amount of heart that she has for strangers and their wounded babies...these people are amazing. Megan climbed back into her wheel chair and we headed back to our room...we crawled into my "bed" together, cried and fell asleep, our way of avoiding reality....


At 9;30am our case Manager , Paula came in...she is our voice from the surgery room. The first update was that Hunter was getting all of his "lines" and doing well...

At 11;05am Paula came back in to tell us that Hunter is on by pass, meaning his heart has been stopped so they can repair it and the machines are keeping him alive...so the surgery is underway!

A little side bar about the strength of a woman...I have to say that throughout this entire pregnancy I have been completely overwhelmed at how strong and powerful my wife is. She felt morning sickness from conception to birth, she was miserable, but never complained. As we went from doctors appointment to doctors appointment (an believe me we knew Hunter through ultra sound before we actually met him) Megan never once wavered. She carried this baby knowing his fate without one tear. Only toward the end when she was so uncomfortable did she show emotion. Megan has been and is my rock, our rock. She never let Stella know that she was worried or scared, for this Stella has no idea what Hunter is going through. She just had major surgery (C-section) and is very uncomfortable and sick from the drugs and still she forces herself into her wheel chair 5 times a day to see her son in the NICU with a smile on her face. She sacrificed her sanity, her body and her life to will this kid to 6 pounds 13 ounces and full term when it looked like we wouldn't make it to April 1st or 5 pounds. We needed Hunter over 6 pounds, we needed Hunter to be full term to be strong, developed and ready for surgery. Megan did it all, she gave him the the most optimal opportunity for survival. I can not express in words how proud of her I am how incredible this woman and all women are for doing what they do every day for their children. Hunter is a lucky boy, he has a strong mother.