Recovery Ups and Downs

EP. 3 – March 28th, 2022

Welcome back to Gracies World. Tommy here with another Grace update. First, Grace, you continue to inspire me every day. You are the light of my world. You are so beautiful. I will always be here for you and you can call me anytime. Especially when you are in college or taking on your first job or just feeling a little lonely or lost – Dad is here. Call me (maybe). Love that song, but for real, call me. If for some reason I’m no longer here with you. Remember that special email account I set up for you? If not, no worries, I have specific instructions on an external hard drive with your name on it. Send me an email; even after I’m gone. I’ve got some classic auto-responders that I’m sure you’ll find amusing. That’s all Grace. Love You.

Sooooooo, post-surgery #1 for the Pulmonary Artery restriction bands has been quite interesting, to say the least. Grace is currently in the ICU on the 10th floor of the University of Michigan, Mott Children’s Hospital. There are a lot of babies up here with similar cardiac conditions. There are also a lot of babies up here attached to a lot of IVs and Wires and gadgets and gizmos that happen to make a lot of noises and alarm sounds anytime vitals change in a way that is not expected. You know, things that make mom and dad go into cardiac arrest themselves anytime they hear the alarm going off. And my goodness, Grace you really like to keep us on the edge of our seats.

Since surgery, Grace has been up and down on with her breathing. However, her heart rates and blood pressure are looking a lot better. It’s her respiratory that seems to be affected the most at this day and time. Grace is currently recovering with a breathing apparatus/tube through her mouth and nostrils. There are so many cords. Abby and I have finally just got to hold her for the first time yesterday since her surgery. Y’all should have seen the look on Abby’s face when she found out she was able to hold Grace for the first time since surgery. It was like a fat kid who got the call to come inside for dinner. Clearly excited. Then, upon opening the door, you would have thought the room was filled with gold cupcakes and ice cream. She was grinning from ear-to-ear baby. The moment the nurse asked: “Would you guys like to hold her today?” – Abby sprung up out of her seat and was bedside ready to hold baby quicker than Mohammad Ali shutting the lights off in the bedroom and getting under the covers before the lights go out.

Haha, seeing that made me really excited.

Any takers on who held Grace first? haha. There was never a chance in a million years it was going to be Dad holding baby Grace first, after surgery. Mom was really happy. I’ll never forget the look on Abby’s face holding Grace (ha. that rhymed) after surgery. Took a mental snapshot of that special moment.

It is a little tricky holding Grace right now. It’s actually a pretty lengthy process just to get her in our arms. Imagine Clark Griswald trying to untangle the big ball of Christmas lights. It’s a maze of wires and tubes that takes 2 people to hold up Grace and the wires. Then, while the two people are holding Grace and the wires, another person has to move the hospital bed out of the way, and move into its place a hospital reclining chair (clearly they didn’t speak to La-Z-Boy or Ashley furniture before they purchased these chairs). Once the chair is in place, Abby or I can then sit down, while the two people holding Grace and wires maneuver the wires over the top of our heads and then gently rest Grace in our arms. P.s. – speaking of wires, Grace had a little special connector that was left in through her heart surgery incisions/stitches. The connector was left on purpose and it can directly monitor the healing, growth, or blood oxygen… Sorry, y’all will have to forgive me on this one, my mind is blanking. It’s all over the place these days. Anyways, that connector will get to come out soon because Grace is our go-to-girl and has that “Firestone” strength and athleticism inside of her. Important Name Drop Announcement: Firestone is Abby’s mom’s maiden name – and the lineage of the ever-elusive, and unconfirmed mayor of Paw-Paw, MI #TwoPAWS – Grandma “Betty” Firestone. She’s a rascal. We love Grandma. Thanks for producing strong athletic genes!

Anyways, there are still alarms that go off from time to time; maybe because a sensor got disconnected, or perhaps breathing gets a little out of sorts. Always a little startling.

Oh, and I almost forgot, Grace, is able to eat. Raise the roof on that one baby. She can’t be fed by mouth, but they are able to feed her through tubes that go all the way through her nose, down her esophagus, and into your teeny tiny belly. Pretty crazy but she is slowly increasing her food intake. Abby, or who I have now dubbed as – Elsi – is producing some yummy delicious milk for Grace. Grace has no complaints about the food service. (not dad tested yet – may make a video on that one coming soon).

Now that I think about it, Grace never really has any complaints. Grace is the quietest baby on the floor. Maybe partly due to the drugs that they have administered, but she is definitely a well-behaved baby. That’s my girl. Well behaved. Definitely takes after dad on that one. and… 1…. 2… 3… Abby just realized what I just wrote and this is the part where I say… I’m sorry! Because we all know well-behaved isn’t even in my dictionary. haha. Ornery might be, but well-behaved not so much. Work in progress. To be continued…

Today we are just thankful to be able to have our sweet baby girl Grace in our arms. We are reminded of how precious life is and just how thankful we are to have good health. Thank you again to all who have followed us and kept in touch. We aren’t the best communicators, which is why I started this blog to help with sharing with those who are interested but don’t get much communication from us. Thank you for sticking with us and being patient. Much love to all.

Sincerely,

-T. Sneaks

Inspirational Side Story

I met a guy today who just got to the hospital because he found his 17-year-old boy has cancer. It was a really unique and engaging conversation. The one thing that stuck out to me the most was the dad’s personal background. Imagine, if you will, a gentleman in his mid-30s with full-body tattoos. Talking, facial, neck, arms legs, etc… The gentleman also mentioned he was previously a heavy drinker and smoked a pack of cigarettes a day. The thing that stuck out to me was when he said: “I am so selfish. Here I am, born a healthy boy and now a man with nothing to show because I wasted my life on drinking, cigarettes, and partying. Then here is my son who has cancer and is battling just to be alive. I stopped drinking and smoking the day we found out my son had cancer. I can’t believe how I could be so naive and wasted my life when I am healthy and able to be so much more.” — That really tugged at my heart today.

I just want to leave all of you with this: Whether you have kids or not; whether you want kids or not; Don’t take your life for granted. If you’re healthy and able, be the best you can be and treat your body like a temple. We never know how much time we have here on earth but what we do know for sure is: NOW! – Now is the time for us to take strides to be better. Sometimes, the lord speaks to us in ways we could never imagine. This is just one of those stories where I felt God playing a role in our lives to reach out and share a light of life with those around us. Thank you, God.