Fixing Emily's heart: Pre op day

Pre op day went very well:). All the tests came back perfect and Emmi was a trooper for the whole thing:). In typical riley fashion they made everything as seamless as possible for her... From numbing cream for the Blood draw, to iPads used for distraction. She even got a super cute build a bear out of the deal:)

We did receive some good news today.

1. First of all ( what emmi cares about). We got so much done today that we get to sleep in a whole extra 15 minutes:). Surgery starts at 7:15 with arrival time of 6 am. It's amazing how much better that sounds;) updates will be given every hour so check here frequently.

2. I talked at length with Dr. turrentine today (her surgeon) and right now they are not sure what kind of valve they will be putting in. He has 3 options so he can find the one that is the most perfect for Emily.

We will be praying that it is still one they can replace via cath

3. The surgery MAY be much shorter than we initially anticipated. If all goes well we MIGHT be done in 6 hours....I am thinking likely it will be longer knowing how things usually go. But even 8 hours would be so much better than 10-12

4. The shortened time will occur IF they are able to do the surgery withou completely stopping her heart. They are hoping to only put the side they are working on (the right side) on the bypass machine. That would be fantastic as it would make for a much easier surgery for her

5. If that can occur she may be able to come out of the OR extubated (no breathing tube down her throat) and awake! Huge advances from the last surgery that is for sure:). This would make her recovery much faster!

So while there are still a lot of unknowns, we have quite a few things we are hopeful for and ask for prayers for the best possible case scenario!

My sister Ellen arrived safely and in perfect timing to arrive back from the airport just as we finished for the day! Yay!! So blessed to have her here!

We were able to get into the Ronald McDonald house tonight too which is such a wonderful place to stay!

Auntie Ellen (and uncle Charles) treated all of us to a fabulously fun night! We went to a super fun restaurant in Indy which is a grown up chuckie cheese! We had so so much fun! We played and laughed and Emmi enjoyed her meal complete with a milkshake AND desert:)