Home Sweet Home

Doesn't she look better?
After 4 LONG days in the hospital, the doctor hesitantly sent us home. He said Grayce still had her pneumonia and didn't sound great, but she was keeping her oxygen levels up on her own and was starting to drink too. So, the official quote was, "We can't do anything for her here that you can't do for her at home." So, we grabbed our stuff, signed some papers, and ran out the door (actually Grayce got to ride out in a wagon). We (Grayce and everyone else) were all ready to go home.
Grayce has done amazingly well now that we are home. She has been eating well (she had lost 1 1/2 pounds - and for a 22 pounder, that is a lot!) and sleeping well, and is more and more back to her normal self again. It is such a great thing to watch (on this side of it anyway).
She has had two follow-up doctor visits in the last week and they both went really well. The doctor told us on Thursday that we are out of the woods with her now. However, his orders were to keep her away from other people for another 3 weeks. That means the kids' friends don't get to come over, no visiting teachers, no church, no taking her to the store, etc. It has made for long days of being completely stuck inside. I didn't realize how nice it was to get out of the house every once-in-a-while until I couldn't do it anymore. But, if it keeps her well...
Anyway, we just want to say thanks again to all of you that called, visited, helped us with our other kids, prayed for us, etc. You will never know how much help that was to us. We are truly blessed with great friends and family.

Grayce Update...

Well, I have to admit that I didn't think we would ever be staying in the hospital this long. But, we are seeing improvements. Grayce spent most of the evening yesterday playing on the floor and on room air - no extra oxygen. She had to have some oxygen during the night because everyone has lower oxygen levels when they sleep (we take shallower breaths). But, she only had 1/4 liter/hour. To put it in perspective, she had to have 2.5 liters/hour the first couple of days. So, we are looking better. They told us that she has to get better with her oxygen (than the 2.5) and drink more on her own before she could go home. She is still on IV, but they lowered that from 60 mL/hour to 40mL/hour. So, we are making improvements for sure. Nick and I are getting really good at reattaching the oxygen monitor, and have even had to reattach the IV connection. They have lovingly nicknamed Grayce "the tornado" because she is constantly getting her cords twisted and off. At least that means she is moving around. The first couple of days she was so lethargic and just laid on my lap. So, I don't care how many times we have to reattach or untwist cords/wires if it means she is moving and happy.
We finally have seen her smile come back last night and this morning. She is starting to seems more like her regular self again. :)
Thanks for all of the kindnesses - notes, messages, phone calls, visits, etc. It is so nice to have good friends and family that obviously care about us and Grayce.
The other kids are doing well. They are with Nick's parents at our house. They have been so good to take care of all of the other necessities of life for us at home. The kids are starting to feel a little anxious and I am sure they will benefit from Grayce being home and things getting back to normal too.
We are meeting with the doctor when he does his rounds sometime early this afternoon. Hopefully by then we will know if we can go home or not.
Thanks again for all of your concern and especially prayers on our behalf.