Post about a Post

Finally....

Finally this day is over and i can let out a sigh of relief. It was probably the most stressful day of my life. I know the stress is far from over, but this was the first hurdle we had to jump, and we cleared it with no major problems.

Im sure most (if not all) of you saw my sister Jen's facebook update saying she had made it. So i thought id give a little more insight to what happened and where we stand now.

Obviously she made it through the surgery and has the post in place. It sticks out of the skin alot more than i thought it would...but as long as it keeps her healthy i dont care. And she doesnt seem to mind it.

I always knew my baby was tough. But i realized tonight that shes not a baby girl anymore. Shes a champion. A stronger willed person than most people my age. She proved that 10 fold tonight to not only myself but every staff member that was in Pre Op, Post Op, and on the 7th floor of UC Davis.

It was pretty damn funny that before she was wheeled into the O.R. she had every nurse and doctor cracking up because of how silly she was being. But thats just McKenzie. Thats what she does. Takes a serious situation, lightens the mood, and makes you smile.

After the surgery was done, and i had paced the hospital 100 times, the nurse came out and said she was asking for Daddy. That melted my heart. I knew she was ok.

After she slept in recovery for about 30 minutes, they said it was ok for her to go back to her room. While we were wheeling her upstairs she woke up for a second and told me she wanted a chocolate muffin. So i ran and got her one and met back up with them at the room. The nurse asked me to carry her from the gurney to her bed. But thats not kenzies style. Shes to strong for that. So as i went to pick her up, she yelled at me and told us she wanted to walk. And she did. After having surgery, poked in the spine and in both hips, and just waking up from a drousy morphine high...she walked by herself and hopped into her bed. It amazed everyone standing there including myself.

The whole night she never complained about pain. They redressed her port with new bandages and took her last IV out of her arm. And she took it like a champ.

So as we stand now, her red blood count is at 8. Her platlets at 68. And her spirits at 110%. She did get her first injection of chemo yesterday, but goes in for her first full treatment today (Thursday). It looks like we will be here for another 28 days or so, and i will keep you guys updated every step of the way.

Again, thank you for all the thoughts and prayers and good juju. It helped my princess pull through the first real test in our journey.

Many more to go. But shes an Eckman. We dont give up that easily. And Grandma Gallant comes into town today so im sure kenz will be all smiles.