With tomorrow being heart surgery day, today was all about preparation...both for Hudson and parents. Given we will be unable to hold Hudson post surgery for at least a few days due to the sizeable chest incision, breathing tube and multiple other monitoring devices/IVs/tubes, Ashley and Jon wanted one full day of cuddling with their hero. Luckily for us, Hudson cooperated the entire time. We gave him his first "official" bath as parents. We saw him "practice" smiling and other fun facial expressions. We held and hugged him for hours. We even got in pictures we had taken with Harlowe and Oliver when they were same age. It was priceless time with our little guy ahead of open heart surgery tomorrow.
Hudson also provided some comedic relief today. Jon found out the hard way that Hudson thoroughly enjoys the "free air". After three diaper changes that also involved outfit and blanket changes, Jon finally realized you need to quickly cover Hudson's lower section with an extra diaper/cloth during changing to avoid uncontrolled airborn urination!
Tonight Hudson's blood oxygen levels started to dip a bit so they placed him on oxygen to ensure good saturation levels ahead of surgery tomorrow. The bi-lateral shunt being inserted in his heart is intended to help correct this by enabling blood to better circulate to the lungs for oxygenation. Ashley stayed the night tonight so she was able to capture the little man complying with doctor's orders and even holding the oxygen mask himself.
We are very anxious but also very nervous for tomorrow. We are confident this is the first step towards permanent fix for Hudson's heart, but at same time we know this is complex surgery given his heart placement, position and defects. We are praying more than ever, anxiously awaiting for the moment we hear the doctors say "it went great!". Thank you to everyone for continued prayers.
A tremendous thanks to nurses Sarah and Jocelyn for providing not only care to Hudson today, but also being a great ear to Ashley and Jon's questions and concerns. We truly appreciate it!