No Ordinary Goose!

**WARNING:  Long posts with no pictures...sorry**

Yesterday was our 2nd visit to Lebonheur to take Ella to get her MRI done. We really were not excited about this visit since Ella would have to not eat all morning and then be put under to complete her testing. It didn't take long for Ella to realize that she was not excited about this either.

Our plan was to wake her up right before it was time to head to Memphis and just change her diaper, put her clothes on, give her a sippy cup of water (that she could have until 7am) and put her in the car to go.

When we came downstairs and didn't head immediately to the breakfast table, she already knew something was up! She did fine once we got going in the car and even gave us a few smiles here and there.

Once we got into the hospital and were in the waiting room in Radiology, she figured out things were probably not going to go her way that day. I had to walk her around on my hip for a while to calm her down and everytime we would pass the receptionist, she would wave and say, "Bye-Bye" and then point to the door...like, okay, let's just go ahead and leave!

We had just settled down with a mursery rhyme book in the waiting room when they called us back, so that upset her right then (her reading was interrupted...what the heck was going to happen to Humpty Dumpty...did they put him back together again?). Needless to say, when we got back to the prep room, she had already lost it and there was no comforting her from then on out. People were coming in and out trying to take her vitals with no success, we had to change her clothes and put a little baby gown on, and most importantly, she had to lose her shoes...tragedy!

As the nurse was trying to explain to me everything that was going to happen, Ella was screaming at the top of her lungs into my ear. The nurse finally gave up and after what seemed like forever of trying to comfort her and calm her down, they decided to just hold her down to start her IV. Lee and I thought it would be best if he held her at that point.

Round 1:  Nurse 1 attempted to start IV in right foot while Nurse 2 and Lee held Ella down. Patient Rep 1 tried to comfort Ella with toys. I stood in the corner trying to keep my cool.
Results: Vein was about to blow in foot so they stopped. Ella won!

Round 2: Nurse 1 attempted to start IV in the left foot while Nurse 2, Lee, and Patient Rep 1 held Ella down. I again stood in the corner starting to cry, at which point they all made me sit down because I was pregnant.
Results: Ella's strength could not be matched by 1 grown man and 3 grown women. No IV. Ella won!

Round 3:  They decided to bring the anesthesiologist in to talk to us about risks and have him check her out to make sure this was going to work if they ever got the IV in and working. Nurse 1, Nurse 2, Patient Rep 1, and Lee held Ella down (whose face was beat red and who was still screaming and crying at the top of her lungs). Doctor attempted IV in her left wrist. I sat in the corner crying hard at this point.
Results:  Success!! IV was put in and then a board and lots and lots of tape were attached to her wrist to keep her from pulling it out.

At this point, Lee was holding her up and she became so stoic and calm that it was very eerie! She had no more emotions at this point and was completely exhausted. You couldn't get her to look at you or anything. If she could have formed a full sentence and wanted to, she would have said, "I hate each and every one of you and I curse the day you were born".

They only allowed one parent to go back with her for the testing and since I was pregnant, I had to stay outside (which was probably for the better). I went to the waiting room to wait for the estimated hour and a half that they said it would take for her to complete the testing and then wake up in recovery. But before I sat in the waiting room, I had to cry in the bathroom for a while, call my mom, and then cry some more in the bathroom. After I finally collected myself, I waited and waited by myself.

One of the nurses kept me updated after each phase was completed (testing and then recovery) and then before I knew it, the nurse, Lee and Ella (in her stroller) were all coming towards me after only an hour! She was happy to see me and wanted a big hug! Then she tried to get down so she could walk around, but the poor baby was drunk and wobbly and so groggy, but so cute!!

Lee said that she woke up after only 10 minutes in recovery and took one look at the nurse on one side of her and side "Hi" and waved and then looked at Lee and wanted to grab his ears (repeated game in our house)! Then she saw her shoes and was ready to go! Can you tell she really likes her shoes??

After we left the hospital, we had to run to Macy's at Oak Court in Memphis to pick up something for our upcoming open house that only that particular Macy's carried and we decided to get some lunch in the food court. They told us that Ella needed to only drink clear liquids and then if she could handle that, then go ahead with food. Well, once we sat down with our Chick-fil-A and gave her a sippy cup of water, she quickly realized how hungry she was and started devouring my fries before I even knew it. We decided it was just going to have to be okay. She finally got some water later after she had more fries, my chicken nuggets and a cereal bar. That's when Lee looks at me and says, "This is no ordinary goose". And in our eyes, he is completely right!

We find out the results of the MRI on December 9th when we meet with the neurologist again, but we are not worried one bit! Thanks for all of your prayers and good thoughts!