Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Harlie's Back!

Yes, my friends, my sweet, funny, joyful little girl is BACK!

Things started to change Sunday night.

A little background first... Harlie LOVES to count to 10.  I know that sounds weird.  But she learned to count to 10 in sign a little while ago.  And she tries to verbalize each number.

During her recovery we tried to get her to count, knowing that she loves it so much.  But she refused.  Just like she refused to sign anything, or communicate in any way.

Well, on Sunday night, we put her to bed and turned on the monitor so we could hear her while we were downstairs.  And then I heard it.  She was counting!!!  We could totally tell that's what she was doing!  Tom and I knew things were looking up then.

Then Monday and today things were just different.  She's laughing and smiling and interacting and signing and playing and being herself again!  Oh, what a welcome change!!!  Her being happy again changes the whole feeling of the house.  She was really bringing us down!

Last week I took her to see her pediatrician.  She cried when I parked the car in front of the building.  Which was pretty surprising, considering those appointments are usually pretty painless.  Her doc was awesome, he listened to her heart and lungs while she sat in the chair beside me.  He said he didn't even want to put her on the exam table.  Pretty nice, huh?

He also said that maybe she was depressed.  She certainly appeared to be.  And he said that adults can have issues with depression after a major surgery like that.

I can't help but wonder what she hears/understands about these conversations we have with her in the room.  Sometimes I think she understands more than I realize.  So many times I have spoken with a doctor about something that she was doing/not doing and after that appointment, she stopped/started whatever it was I was talking about.  It's almost like she likes to make a liar out of me!

And just a few days after that appointment, she is totally back to herself!!!  Weird.

We went to see her cardiologist today for another follow-up appointment.  That went well.  Her oxygen saturations are still in the 70s, which is definitely lower than I would like.  Her doc said we should give her about six more months to see if they come up.  If they aren't in the 80s by January-ish then we might want to do another heart cath to see if there is something else going on.  Maybe after hearing that conversation Harlie's sats will come up miraculously.  Ah, if only!  We see him again in a month.

At the appointment today she waved hello and good-bye and was generally her goofy self.  She even signed "potty" and when I took her, her diaper was dry and she peed in the potty.  Wow!  She is one crazy little girl.  As far as her potty training goes, I'm just following her lead.

Oh!  And to prove my point about her making a liar out of me... I mentioned to her doc that she still won't walk any distance (like from the lobby to the exam room, which was NOT far).  Then we leave the appointment, she gets out of the stroller to push the elevator button, she stands there to wait for the door to open, it opens, she gets in, pushes the button for the 1st floor, stands there, walks out when the door opens and continues to walk - halfway to the stinkin' car!!!!  I mean, c'mon!!!  If he had looked out the window and seen her walking through the parking lot I would have lost ALL credibility!!!

Sometimes I think that girl just likes to test me and push me to my limits!!!  Well, she's going to get it this time.  Last week I called her physical therapist and she's going to evaluate Harlie for physical therapy on Thursday. And if she thinks Harlie needs it, well she's going to get it.  That'll teach her!  Try pulling one over me, I don't think so.  You have to get up preeeetty early to trick this Mama!

Speaking of Thursday, oh is that going to be a killer day.  Here's our schedule:

9:30-10:30 - feeding therapy
11:00-12:00 - speech therapy
1:00-2:00 - physical therapy (across town!)

She is going to be one tired puppy that night!  And so will Brandy and I!!!  Those are exhausting appointments for spectators, too!

And tomorrow night Harlie gets a haircut.  Her hair is just too long!  Don't worry, I'll take pictures.  Before and after, of course.

Thanks!
~Christy

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am go glad that she is coming along so well. Everything in its own time. I know that she understands more than we thinks she does. I don't thing we give kids enough credit for things. They are such smart little beings. Love and kisses to all. Love Sue and Ron

Just Diane said...

So glad your girl is back!! That breaks my heart that she cried when you pulled into the parking lot. Gut wrenching, I tell you. My son used to do the same when we went to the peds office. He thought he would have to get shots every time we went. He would beg me to let his little sister be the one to get shots instead of him. lol. Poor guy.

Well, I am sure glad to hear that she is happier now. I do know that a depressed person in the house can really bring everything down. Bigs hugs.

Grandma said...

Please only take a little off her hair...please. Grandma loves her hair so much..maybe a few strands cut..just to shape it better. I am surprised Daddy allows this.

And I am so happy Harlie is back!!! God loves that little girl.

B-Mama said...

What joy to read this post! So happy for ALL of you, especially Harlie. It must feel good to feel like herself again! xo

Heather said...

welcome back Harlie! so glad you are feeling better and are back to normal! missed you!

Christy said...

what great news!!!!

Susan said...

I know Ainsley understands a lot more than I think. I bet Harlie understands a whole heck of a lot. I think her walking display proves it. I'm so glad she's BACK! I'm hoping those sats come up now that she's starting to acting like her regular self. I'm hoping its a sign her body is feeling better. Hope you all survive the therapy marathon.

Ms. Crabass said...

Yay! welcome back, Miss Harlie! That's super news, Christy. How'd her hair come out? Do you take her to a specific place? My boys have never had a pro haircut, but I've been considering it- especially since they still have that massive bald spot from their surgery.
You should try and catch her counting on video, I would love to see that.

xo

Robin said...

Took me awhile (a week or two) to catch up on all your posts for Harlie's surgery, but I love how much detail you give! I'm so happy for you that her Fontan is behind you and that she finally got back to being herself. We're planning to come to VA in October, maybe we can figure out a time to finally meet you! Probably going to be in Richmond one day to take Faith to the Feeding clinic there for an eval - it's the best in the country that I've heard of.

Tanya said...

I'm so happy to hear that your little girl is back!

These girls though... I hope they want to email or something one day because I see some great similarities. Meaghan used to make (suppose she still does but it's not so 'sneaky' now that she's older) a liar out of me too. She's done it with the pedi and when she scored 9m gross motor at 15m of age (not standing alone let alone walking) she got up that night and walked across the room. Don't tell these girls there's something they can't do! Love that spunk :-)

Heart Update

Hi. Here's another thing that's been on my mind - Harlie's heart. l think I'm just going to think out loud and hopefully it&...