Update

Here we are, Easter morning...the Easter Bunny came in the night and left all the kids in the hospital an easter basket, and we did our egg hunt at home before we left Folsom. 

Nicholas is not a happy camper these past few days.  He has been really needing us full time.  It is hard to even leave to go eat something without him getting pretty upset.  He also seems to be pretty uncomfortable physically.  His incision has started to itch and he absolutely hates all the IV's and such coming out of his skin.  I think the worst thing is his chest tube....not only is it stitched in place and coming out of his abdomen to drain the fluid, but it is placed internally and wraps from his belly button, inside up to the left side and over his heart, and then comes back in a circle on the right side of his insides.  He has consistently complained of back pain on the right side and I'm sure it has something to do with that chest tube inside.  My brave boy.

I know I haven't been updating so I will try to catch up.  According to the doctors, his LV struggled a little bit once the band was placed, and they routinely put heart kids on meds after most surgeries to help the heart stabilize.  Nicholas' doctors decided to keep him on dopamine for an extra day because although his heart function is good, it is just a little bit less functional than prior to surgery.  So last night (Saturday going into Sunday) they decreased the dopamine and will check later today with an echo to see if the LV is struggling more or if it is handling it's new load.  If Nic's heart is holding steady, then probably he will get released from CV-ICU and go to intermediate care. 

I think so far the worst part has been the eating issue.  He had his last meal on Wednesday night and didn't get to eat until yesterday morning (Saturday).  So he is very hungry, but his tummy can't hold much.  And he is very stopped up, so they have had to give him colase, which is oral and tastes horrible, and he is afraid to go if he has to.  So hopefully his digestive system gets back to normal soon. 

Nicholas on Easter Morning...I had to really push for this smile!

When he was still intubated, he vomited twice.  That was new.  He is definitely not excited to be here, and has been here enough that nurses recognize him and he knows that it's not his favorite place to be.  I suspect we might be staying a little longer than the last two times.  I'll try my best to keep you posted!