We're Out of the ICU

It’s Tuesday evening and we’re just waking up from a much needed nap… all of us. Late last night, I went home to see Justin and take him to preschool this morning. He had a tremendous day, which included an adventure with Jonathan Knock to Agassiz Rock where they saw turtles (they were mating, dad) and where Jonathan caught a snake and let Justin touch it. He was so excited, even just retelling it. He had an amazing day.

But Tess and Joanna, on the other hand, were both exhausted this morning. Neither got more than a few hours of sleep, and even that came in fifteen-minute increments. Joanna assures me they slept soundly from 4:30 to 5:30 am. And that's it. There was one period of time where they had to work to get her pain under control, and then Tess was up all night with itchyness all over her body - an unpleasant but expected side effect of the pain meds. When I arrived in her room, Tessa's face was all puffy and here eyes were red and swollen. The doctors said that from a recovery point of view, she was doing great. But she certainly wasn’t happy.

We watched Charlotte’s Web in the morning to try and distract her from her itchyness. At the end of the movie, the credits began to roll and I moved to turn it off. “No daddy, I like this song.” It was Ordinary Miracle, by Sarah McLaughlin. Tessa closed her eyes and her face relaxed listening to that song. I thought to myself as Sarah serenaded my daughter to sleep, that’s just what we needed: an ordinary miracle. She just needed to be able to sleep for a while. She’s done it every day of her life - not for as long as we’d ever like, mind you - and it’s a very ordinary thing. Yet hearing that song and watching my daughter drift off to sleep, I thanked our God for finally letting her little soul rest.



The rest of the day has been great. They’ve moved us out of the ICU and up onto the 10th floor to a med/surg wing. The TV here has one of those remotes with a speaker in it. After trying to talk into it ("Hello? Hello?"), Tess realized it wasn't a telephone and just snuggled up with the device to listen to her afternoon movie. We have a private room, which surprised and pleased us! And there’s a Sony PS/2 connected to her TV, so I’m trying to convince Joanna that she should go home tonight and get sleep and let me stay here to play… I mean, to care for Tess. She’s taking fluids by mouth: as much Jello, Ice Cream and Orange Sherbet as her little heart can desire (or her tummy can handle, which isn’t much - maybe one cup, total.)

So we’re doing really well now. Tess is much more comfortable, able to sleep for a few hours this afternoon. If you’re still praying by this point, pray against the itchyness from her pain meds. She is only allowed Benadryl every 6 hours, and by the fourth hour she begins to feel itchy again. Pray also that she’ll be able to sleep through the night tonight, or at least for a few good chunks of time. We’re tired, but we’re in a good space as the sun begins to set over the Boston skyline.