PINK! is my favorite color!

Yesterday seems so surreal. We got the call at 2:32 am from the transplant coordinator telling us that the ideal heart was on it's way and that our OR time was around 8am. We got to the hospital at 3:13am. We clearly wasted no time. Ruthie was wide awake and smiling we we got in. Around 6am, after they had pulled labs and done all of their pre-transplant rundown, our nurse got another call from the transplant coordinator saying that 10am was our new OR time. A minor setback, but OKAY!
At 9am, we spoke to the surgeon, Dr. Huddleson, and signed the various consent forms. At 9:45 am, we were walking down to the staff elevator with Ruthie. We gave our kisses, said our goodbyes and of course cried. However, these tears were not tears of sadness but of fear and JOY. OH so much JOY! By 10am, we were in our surgery waiting room and waiting for an update. We finally heard from the nurse and she said that things were taking a bit longer with the donor heart so it wouldn't be until after noon that we would get started with Ruth. So at that point, Ruthie was resting comfortably and doing what she does best, waiting.
At 1:45 pm, Ruthie's heart transplant surgery began! From 1:45- 3:15, Dr. Huddleson worked on opening scar tissue and getting to her heart. By 4:30, her old heart was out and her new heart was about to be sown in. At 5:30 pm, Ruthie's new heart was not only in but BEATING! Her new heart was BEATING! HOW MARVELOUS!
At 6:30 pm, Dr. Huddleson was finishing up his very handy work and closing Ruthie back up.
At 8:20 pm or so, we saw the face of a miracle worker. Dr. Huddleson came in and talked to us about the whole procedure. He said Ruthie was doing fine and her new heart looked great. He told us that they were getting her settled in the CICU and that if we wanted to go to the 7th floor parent's lounge and wait, a nurse would be out to get us shortly.
At 9:10 pm, we saw a nurse looking around for a family. THAT FAMILY WAS US! She took Josh and I back to see our little pumpkin for the very first time after transplant.
I don't know if I can even begin to express the emotions that ran through me at that point. I was excited, I was nervous, I was happy, I was overwhelmed with joy and relief. It felt like I was seeing Ruthie for the first time all over again. We walked into the room filled with doctors and nurses (working hard to get her settled). She was of course on the vent and very much so sedated and relaxed.

Her color, though, INDESCRIBABLE! SHE WAS PINK! She IS pink! Her toes no longer had a blue, dusky tint. Her eyelids and lips looked as though she had been playing with my blush and lipstick. Her little fingers were no longer showing her blue, very blue, blood and veins. SHE IS A BRAND NEW PINK BABY!

I can't believe this day has finally come! I believe that yesterday we saw God. We saw God in the faces of our families, friends, nurses, doctors and staff. We saw God's miracle in Ruthie. She is a miracle. Her story is a miracle. We are so truly blessed.

She is now resting peacefully in her CICU temporary home. She is very much sedated and on muscle relaxers. Today, she will undergo plasmapheresis. They need to take out the antibodies from her plasma so that her body will not go into major rejection to the new heart. This should be started this afternoon. We are officially on the road to recovery for her new heart:)

I know I have made this a really long post, but there is a little more to this story.

Back on Jan. 21, 2010 Josh, Ruthie and I were all in the Heart Station at SLCH for Ruthie's pre- Cath work up. (This was when we were learning if the Glenn or a transplant were in our near future). We had to get an echo, ekg and various other assessments done the day prior to the Cath. As we waited in a rather busy Heart Station waiting room, we saw this story on channel 5 news:

http://www.ksdk.com/news/difference/story.aspx?storyid=193403&catid=180


At that moment, Josh and I had a feeling that we were in for the long haul. We knew that God doesn't place these things into our life without a reason and we felt that the news story was a sign saying this is what's to come.
Well, needless to say, we did hit the transplant path and waiting list on Feb. 3, 2010. I kept telling Josh how bad I wanted the dream catcher. I wanted Ruthie to have it so she could then get her heart. She really needed that good luck.

On July 1, 2010 Ruthie received the dream catcher. Our child life specialist had received it in the mail and it was addressed to Ruthie. God once again was showing me to have Hope. To know that even when you feel defeated that He will rise up and show you His light. I just felt a calming presence that day. I felt as though things were falling into place. Even though Ruthie's status had not changed, I felt things brewing.
5 days later, we got the call. We got the call that we had been waiting to get since Feb. 3rd.
Do you believe in miracles? I do! I am the proud parent of a living miracle.

Thank you for your continuous prayers. We ask that you not only keep praying for Ruthie as she recovers, but also for the angel donor whose family gave the gift of life. We pray that God grants them peace, understanding, courage and strength as they go through their grieving process. We pray that they will know how much their gift means to us.
Thank you God. Thank you for answering our prayers. Thank you for keeping our faith in You so strong. We know that you will provide and we rejoice in Your ways.

AMEN!