I just had to share these few pictures with you. Brynlyn was in such a happy mood today so I grabbed my camera and started shooting away.
Well, this is "the vest." It is a pulmonologist's treatment tool. It's very commonly used for kids with CF (cystic fibrosis.) I like to call it the "shake and bake" because it literally shakes the mucus free from the lining of the lung walls and so it can be deep suctioned out. We also call it "the motor boat." ha ha Brynlyn didn't mind it so much. She usually would just fall asleep while she was wearing it because it would just rock her to sleep. We put Lauryn on the vest also because she was fighting pneumonia at the time also. She thought it was great for the first 20 minutes, then she wanted it off. ha ha I really like the vest because it helped to cure both of these girls of their infections.
So I called Mike and met him halfway to the hospital and Mom came and picked up the girls. We then called the heart surgeons and they told us to go to their office before we went to the ER. They thought she needed to be admitted immediately, so they called PICU and found a bed for us. We were so grateful to be avoiding hours and hours waiting at the ER with many other sick, RSV kids.
At first they were concerned that she had a heart infection because the echocardiogram they did on her was showing that she was having lots of leaking from her tricuspid valve (which we had already known about.) So one of the cardiologists went over to the Mesa office to personally view the results of that last echo done in November just to compare the two. They found that it was not any different. Thank heavens. We were quite relieved because the treatment for a heart infection is 8 weeks of IV antibiotics. Whew...
So they continued to run blood tests, testing for RSV and other bacteria and viral infections. Everything came back negative, so they concluded that Brynlyn was just fighting an unknown viral infection and she would just have to let it pass.
They started with breathing treatments every 4 hours which includes CPT (chest pats) and deep suctioning of the lungs. They pulled out quite a bit of fluid out of her lungs, so that hopefully would help the passing of the infection.
She started to look better clinically so they released her from ICU on Friday and then released us on Saturday around 1:00 p.m.
She is very happy to be home and has slept almost nonstop. (I forgot how much sleep you miss by being in the hospital.) We are happy to have her home also.
The interesting thing is that Mike and the girls were all packed up to leave on Thursday to go to Utah for New Years. They were going to be leaving early the next morning. It is just another reminder to us that you just never know what's ahead in the future and you never know what's going to happen from day to day. You just have to plan as best as you can and "roll with it" when plans suddenly change.
Ya gotta love Christmas clothes. Brynlyn looked oh so cute in these clothes. We loved the touch that the red/white socks added to her ensemble. Christmas is such a wonderful day of the year, and a huge milestone for Brynlyn. We're so happy she is here with us and doing so well on this festive holiday.
Brynlyn does the funniest thing. She sticks her leg up in the air and just holds it there for seconds at a time. It's always the left leg, never the right. Since Mike is such a die-hard Seinfeld fan, he has nicknamed her leg "The Jimmy Leg" after a Seinfeld episode. He will say to her, "Brynlyn, show me the jimmy leg." And she will stick her leg up. It's such a crack up. I really think that these two need to take their show on the road! ha ha
I love these pictures. They were taken at Thanksgiving time. We were having a very large family reunion and unfortunately, Brynlyn could not take part in any of the festivities because she was being quarantined to keep any illnesses away from her. Well one night, all of my siblings and their spouses came over late late late to eat and scrapbook and play cards. It was such a fun time with memories I'll never forget! I took this picture with Brynlyn's back towards me because I had to show you how many people were checking her out and trying to get her to smile. That was the funniest picture of all! And Brynlyn was loving all of the attention.
(going clockwise from the bottom:)
Mike holding up Brynlyn's head, Aunt Sandy and new cousin Abby, newlyweds Robby and Emily, Aunt Connie, Aunt Barbie.
The bottom picture is Brynlyn and Abby. Abby was born 2 weeks before Brynlyn in June. So they are destined to be buddies. I was curious to see the size difference, developmental and behavior difference. Brynlyn was smaller than Abby and definitely not quite doing developmental things that Abby was doing. In the hospital, they told me that each day in the hospital, puts an infant about 3 days behind in development. I didn't believe them until I see it now. It's true the Bryn is behind. In fact, she's almost 6 months, but really she's doing 3 month developmental things. I know she'll catch up, and she's going to start getting physical therapy and speech therapy. But I do find it very interesting regarding the delays just because of the hospital stays.
Brynlyn can hardly wait until she and Abby can play together. I know they'll be fast friends.
I absolutely cannot resist this cutest baby! I love the little dimples in her elbow on her arm. It gives me so much relief to see "chub" beginning to form on her. I know she's gaining more weight and feeling better each day. I love how she holds her hands when she sleeps each night. I love that she still loves Piglet. (Piglet is a very loyal friend who has been by her side since the beginning.) I love this bunny that is laying on top of her head. It is absolutely the softest plush animal ever. And Brynlyn loves it and coos and kicks her legs whenever we rub the bunny ear up against her cheek and face. She also loves it when it is laying against the top of her head. It's the funniest thing, but when she was in the hospital, we would always lay a beanie baby up against the top of her head. She loved it and I think it gave her a sense of security. Ever since then, she loves it when something is laying against the top of her head. I love it that she sleeps with her mouth wide open. That is SUCH a Jensen thing. Daddy and Lauryn do that every night and love that Brynlyn gets that from them.
This has been another busy couple of week for our little superstar.
Nov 29th, Brynlyn and I were invited to be a part of a photo shoot down near St. Joseph's Hospital. They are redoing some of their billboards for a new heart campaign and they wanted Brynlyn on their billboard! Yeah! So Mike and I went down with her to have our picture taken with her. There will be an adolescent boy, heart patient, also on the billboard along with a woman who is a heart patient. They billboard will be at Central and Thomas. They will probably put the billboard up in mid to late March and it should run for about 6 months. SO...we were very honored to be asked and it was so much fun to go and be invovled in this photo shoot. We'll keep you guys posted as to when it's going to be put up, etc. We were thinking that the timing might be perfect if Brynlyn goes back in for surgery in March.
Nov 30th, she had her 4 month pediatrican visit and got another Synagis shot with some other immunization shots. Yikes, those really aren't any fun at all. You'd think after 4 kids I would be used to shot days. Nope, they still hurt just as much as they always have. The shots really throw Brynlyn and it takes her about 2 days to recover, poor thing.
Dec 6th, I was called up on Tuesday the 5th and asked to fill a guest speaker spot at a Heart Walk Kick off Luncheon down at the hospital on Wednesday, Dec. 6th. I was really nervous as I was preparing my remarks, but if there's anything that Thornocks can do, it is to TALK!!! We were all born with the gift of gab. ha ha So I wasn't nervous per se about the speech itself or the delivery. I just wanted to make sure I made an impact on these committees so that they would be inspired to go out and do fundraisers and raise money for the heart program at the hospital. They loved seeing Brynlyn and just oohed and ahhed over here when we introduced her to them following my speech. She was certainly the hit of the luncheon for sure! The photos above were taken following the luncheon at our house. (Check out Brynlyn's darling designer denim dress. Thank you to Angie Cook who went shopping for Brynlyn in NYC at H&M. Love it and we were so glad for an opportunity to show it off!!)
I felt the speech went very well and was very pleased with the outcome. They were quite receptive and it turned out to be such an enjoyable experience. I'm grateful for the chance I had to go down and thank them for the work they had already done and would continue to do.
Dec 7th, back to Dr. Stock, cardiologist, for EKG and follow up appt. He says her heart looks great and he doesn't need to see her again until mid January.
Whew...time to take a nap...ha ha
We have our very own beanie baby! Brynlyn's crib and set up is in our bedroom. And our room is the coldest room in the house. It gets very chilly at night, so we have started putting on this pink knit hat to keep Brynlyn's head warm. I can't say that she actually likes it and it is usually off of her head by the morning. But she looks so cute in it that I couldn't resist a photo shoot.Bryn is doing great. Last week she received her 3rd Synagis shot (to prevent RSV). She also received her 4 month immunization shots. She is weighing in at 12lbs. 12oz. She is 23 3/4 in. long. She is charting on the 11th percentile for weight and 10th percentile for height. Hey, she may be small, but atleast she's proportionate! ha ha They say she'll have substantial weight gain following her reconstructive surgery.
She is so happy pretty much most of the time and is generally good natured. She still sleeps so much each day. She gets tired really easily so her wake times are fairly short. She is doing well, so far so good. We are still very cautious about taking her anywhere. She gets to go to DR appointments and that's it. This is hopefully to prevent any wintertime sickness.
We're having a fun time with her, just trying to enjoy and take it day by day. That's the latest.
These pictures were taken by our very talented friend Joy Carmona. They turned out amazing and we just couldn't wait to share some of our favorites with you. Thanks for everything Joy. You are amazing and we are blessed because you are sharing your talents with us. Love ya...
