Hope: Day 19

Hope: Day 19

Hope: Day 19

Hope: Day 19

Hope and mom

Hope's new friends: Christmas Bear & Kwanzaa Zebra

Hope and her Christmas Bear

Today was a very good day for Hope. She was weened off the Dopamine (for blood pressure) and did wonderful, keeping her blood pressure right where it is supposed to be!! Hope also had a very demanding respiratory day. The respiratory therapists were working hard with Hope today. After a respiratory treatment, they suctioned and they suctioned and they suctioned some more!! But is was very prosperous!! Slowly but surely Hope's lungs are starting to clear up. They suctioned lots of good gunk out of her lungs. And she has been reacting very well to the "aggressive respiratory treatment" today.

As you can see above, Hope has made some new friends. She now has two finger puppet friends to keep her company and tell her stories. They are "Christmas Bear" and "Kwanzaa Zebra". Yesterday, Kwanzaa Zebra told Hope all about zebras and safaris in South Africa, about how zebras run wild through the bush, and how someday when Hope is older, Aunt Em will take her on a safari and watch zebras. Christmas Bear told Hope about all the fun things that happen around Christmas time. Today Christmas Bear told Hope all about Christmas and how, just like Jesus, Hope is a gift from God.

Hope definitely likes her new friends, her heart rate stabilizing and her oxygen levels going up above the numbers her dad approves of. Her friends will be telling more stories tomorrow, but Hope has a fashion show tomorrow so there may not be as many opportunities for stories.

In other Hope news... The scoreboard has started. The game is between Hope and her dad. Only the beginning of a long running battle. Today's battle was with Hope's hat. Recently she had been fighting with her dad, dad puts hat on, Hope pushes hat off. Dad puts hat back on. Hope closes all her veins so she has to have an IV in her head, which means no hat. Hope wins. HOWEVER... we didn't begin keeping score until today, and today was a hat day. So the score begins:
Dad- 1; Hope- 0

Things to look forward to tomorrow:
another great day, Hope's first fashion show, an update on the scoreboard, a new rating system for Hope's days, a new rating system for dad's stress levels....