Thank God for IV Lasix. Ella’s labs came back this morning and her BUN was 24, even a touch more dry than the day before.

Even the resident that has been on shift this entire week could not believe the change in her. He witnessed our argument with the doctor the other day and was happy to see that the IV Lasix is working. The doctor from the other day never came around (he still seemed indifferent towards us on Friday), but that’s okay. He will not be on service anytime during the rest of this hospital stay.

When the nurses came in to give the IV Lasix at 2am, the catheter in the IV was kinked and barely viable. So, they had to hold her foot in a certain position and push the Lasix manually. It was the same routine this morning at 10am. By the time her dose for 6pm came up, the IV had gone bad.

Now we had a decision to make. Do we try for another IV and continue to give Lasix? or do we hold off and see what happens? Even yet, do we try another combination of diuretics? We opted to go for another IV again. Since we still had 4-5 days before surgery and she is doing so much better, we want to try and keep her dry and not lose the ground we gained in the last 2 days.

So, our nurse located someone from the flight team to try for the IV, and she tried two different locations without any luck. As 7pm rolled around, it was shift change. It was Saturday night, so we found Barb again (she was successful in placing Ella’s IV last Saturday night). And sure enough, success. Although this time, instead of her foot, it is in her left hand. Barb couldn’t believe how well Ella did with the IV process this time. She still fought the process but maintained and self-soothed a lot quicker. The difference: her BUN was 16 last week and she felt crummy. Today, her BUN was 24 and she was feeling much better. We aren’t usually proactively placing an IV when she is feeling better, so it was interesting to see how much that played a part in her behavior.

We dosed her IV lasix at 8pm tonight and she will get it again at 2am. Since we placed the IV late tonight, they drew labs again and told us we could skip labs tomorrow morning. Yeah, one day of no poking. That will be a nice break for the Bun.

Grandpa brought lunch for us today and stopped by for a quick visit. It was so good to see him. Although this was his first visit to see Ella during this hospital stay, he could tell that she was feeling better.

We have a potential renter viewing our rental home tomorrow. We’re still waiting on Him for the right renters; trying to be patient.

We’re hoping that the IV Lasix will continue to have its magic effect and that Ella will continue to stay dry and maybe even get a touch more dry as we enter into next week for surgery. Praying now for continued health, strength and restoration for Ella.

Also, please pray that the Lord will provide strength for me and Josh – – that He will prepare our hearts and minds for the emotional experience ahead of us.

Psalm 95:6-8
Come, let us worship and bow down.
Let us kneel before the Lord our maker,
for he is our God.
We are the people he watches over,
the flock under his care.