Surgery Postponed...

...for a few days.

I wanted to take a moment to update everyone on Gracie's surgery. Due to some ongoing cardiac issues (Gracie has had leaky heart valves since birth), Gracie's cardiologist has requested that her surgery be moved to the large university children's hospital instead of the specialty hospital so that the cardiac team can be standing by in case any unforseen problems should arise.

*Let me just stop here and say that no issues are expected and we anticipate an uneventful procedure. However, Dr. Braunlin wants to err on the side of caution, and naturally, we do too. So it was agreed that the best course of action at this time would be to change the location of the surgery.*

This all was decided around 7pm tonight, and I was notified that the surgery was canceled as I was entering JAX airport for my flight to Minneapolis. As of right now, we are thinking that the surgery will be scheduled for next week... we hope to know for sure by tomorrow. I postponed my flight (thank you for the full refund, Ana from Southwest!), and headed back home to Lake City in tears... disappointed that I would not kiss my baby girl tonight/tomorrow.

Gracie was mildly disappointed that her mom was not coming tonight, but she was also very happy to have a short reprieve from the impeding surgery meaning more time to play, mingle, visit, and explore the Ronald Mc Donald House with new friends, and also Minneapolis with her dad. Shout out to the RMH who have provided Gracie and her dad with 2 tickets to the Minnesota Twins game Wednesday night!!

However, there is a silent and unexpected hero in this story.  I waited for the bus to take me back to the parking lot, and when it arrived, it was driven by the same man who had dropped me off about 20 minutes earlier. He gave me a strange look when he saw me again, and as he helped me with my bag he looked at me sympathetically and said, "Did you miss your flight or was it canceled?" I told him that neither had happened, but that my daughter's surgery had just been postponed and I would need to reschedule my flight so that I could be there with her. He looked at me with wide eyes and said, "Thank God you found out BEFORE you boarded that flight!"  I realized that he was right, and imagined how I would feel if I learned about this after I had arrived in Minneapolis!  Thank God for the caring and conscientious nature of Gracie's team of physicians and their determination to ensure the best and safest care for Gracie, despite the major inconvenience it surely caused. Thank God for the timing of this news and how the physicians and nurses spent their extra time after-hours to determine this course of action. And thank God that the news reached me (through the persistence of my sweet husband) before I checked my suitcase and boarded the plane. And thank God for Brian, JIA bus driver, for reminding me about the silver lining of my dark cloud this evening. I needed help looking for the bright side, and he did just that.

So friends, stay tuned for an update on when the surgery will be! Also thank you to all who are participating and sharing the Get Well Cards for Gracie page. She and her dad bought a map of the world tonight along with some push pins. She has no idea why yet... :)

I'll post an update soon... please continue to keep us in your prayers.