Iowa and Cows

Ava felt much better with that stupid drain gone. I couldn’t believe the end that was inside her was about 7 inches long and curved at the end. She is much happier now.

We took a drive today out to my Mom and Dad’s. We only stayed about 20 minutes tonight as I knew she had to be hooked back up to TPN at 8 pm. I stopped, got out and took pictures of some cows. They sure said this to me….. “MOOOO!” Ava loved it.

I don’t think they liked their pictures taken! This is good, typical Iowa scenery.

Have you ever seen a cow up close? Sorry but he did not look happy to have his picture taken.

AND a baby calf I couldn’t resist……..

I did snap a few pictures at my parents house. Is she beautiful or what in that orange and yellow dress….pure sunshine!

She has been eating by mouth great. She is almost eating the amount she was before surgery. I also started g tube feeds at night….last night. (Doctor wanted to do this at the hospital but I knew it was too much for her after surgery.) Her heart rate tells me so much. When it is too high she gets an upset tummy and that is no fun. I still have her hooked up to a monitor at night. So little by little I am building her back up…the goal is for her to eat during the day and do g tube feeds to bump up her calorie intake, at night. She needs to gain weight. She weighs a tad over 25 pounds. She is so long and that throws her curve WAY off! So if we can get 1000 calories or more in her a day we can take out the central line. It is super important right now that she stays healthy and gaining. So I’d imagine we will keep it in a month or so….just a guess of course!

One more picture…….Ava loves the small bridge my Dad made by their creek. I happen to get a picture of Ava, my Mom and Dad. This picture is priceless to me. I am so blessed. My parents are the best and they do everything in their power to help us make Ava as comfortable and happy as she can possibly be.

I know this is my third update today but I just had to share more of our day since it became a lot better after the drain was removed. She seems to want to do so much more with that gone.

To our home to yours…….God Bless!

~Brian, Terri, Lexis, Emeline & Ava