Hip Hip Hooray - Another Good Echo

Clare had her sedated echocardiogram on Friday. There was (thankfully) a cancellation before us, so Clare got in earlier than scheduled, wihch meant our hungry, cranky girl had an hour less to wait. Although that created a mad dash to get out of the house, it started the morning on a good note.

Clare's echo was good news to us. That's where the hip hip hooray comes in! Her pressure gradients have not really changed since her echo three months ago. Her aortic arch (where her surgical patch is) is wide open. Her pulmonary arteries have even grown a little bit. And her cardiologist is talking about weaning her off those hated blood pressure meds! (See previous post! Which we finally got squared away, and Clare only ended up missing two doses. She did fine.) Clare did great with the anesthesia. No vomiting afterward. A little crankiness, but she settled down to nurse, then just wanted to go to sleep. The light at the end of the tunnel we've talked about is growing brighter. (I wasn't thrilled with Clare's weight gain-or lack thereof-but I am not allowing myself to worry about that until her GI appointment next month.)

The best news is that Clare does not have to return for another sedated echo for 4.5 months! That would put us in late October/early November sometime. Oh my goodness! We are so excited! That means a summer of rest, relaxation, and recreation. That means we can go to Ogunquit this year and truly have an incredible time. (Last year, we were making every effort to enjoy our beach vacation with Clare's pending cath taking place the following week.) In the meantime, Shawn is going to take Clare's blood pressure once a week. We'll update the cardiologist on Clare's numbers, and see if she can start to be weaned off the meds.

We have the best cardiology staff at our doctor's office. They really do take care of Clare and us. Our fabulous echo tech even set up a room downstairs where Jamie could watch videos in case he came with me and I was alone. Shawn came as well to the echo so we didn't need the room, but we appreciate the efforts everyone makes for us. Jamie doesn't often have the undivided attention of BOTH parents, so he was content (plus he actually turned out to be a little under the weather and developed vomiting and a high fever later on in the day, so he was very cuddly and clingy during our wait).

So, once again, hip hip hooray!