Tuesday update

The last couple of days have been tough for Theo.  On the bright side, Whitney was discharged on Monday and looks great.  She is still in the early stages of the recovery process, but she is making good progress.

Theo's recovery is also in the very early stages.  We were pleased to see him moved out of the pediatric

ICU today to a progressive unit.  But, like we were told to expect, his recovery has had a few setbacks.  The good news: His kidney seems to be working great.  His lab results continue to look as good as ever.  The bad news: The rest of his body is not cooperating.  His belly is still massive (he looks 8 months pregnant), his bowels have not started working again, and he is absolutely miserable.  Oh, and to top it all off, he has a UTI.  Poor guy.

Sunday update

Theo and Whitney have both made a lot of progress in recovery since Friday.  Whitney still has a fair amount of pain, and will likely stay another night in the hospital.  But compared to Friday, she is as chipper as can be and has made several laps around the floor without any trouble.  Yesterday, she even made it all the way to the Pediatric ICU to be reunited with Theo (and Dubya) for the first time since surgery!  Quite special.  She also looks HOT considering she had major surgery three days ago.  

Reunited!

Answered prayers

Yesterday was full of answered prayers.

Theo was prepped and ready to be transported to surgery at 6:45 am.  We thought we would not get to see Whitney, so were thrilled when Whitney was wheeled into Theo's pre-op room and we got the chance to give hugs and kisses.  Whitney was relaxed and calm, and never once seem hesitant about what lay ahead.  Theo was his typical self: all smiles, lots of flirting, and loving the attention.  At 7:45 am, Whitney was wheeled away for surgery, and Theo followed at 8 am.

Despite sending them both to surgery (with smiles, no less), the full impact of the day did not hit me until we got an update around 11 am that the kidney was being transferred.  When I heard that, I lost it.  I was just so overwhelmed by the magnitude of Whitney's sacrifice, and so hopeful that it will lead to a much better life for Theo.  We've been praying for this day for so long, and have been praying specifically for Whit's surgery for about a month.  

April 25th

It's hard to believe that we are almost there.  Transplant day!  We've been preparing for transplant for almost 17 months now.

Everything seems to be on track for surgery tomorrow.  Once Theo wakes up from his nap, we will be taking him to the hospital where he will have all of his final tests run (EKG, chest x-ray, lab work, etc.) He'll have his last night of dialysis in the hospital, and will be ready to go bright and early tomorrow morning.

Super Theo and Wonder Whit! (as a friend of mine said)

Whitney will arrive at the hospital tomorrow morning at 5 am to start all the pre-op work.  Currently, her surgery is slated to begin at 8 am.  Theo's surgery will start around 8 or 8:30 am.  It's been determined that Theo will get Whitney's left kidney.  We've affectionately named it "dubya" in honor of "W"hitney.

It's amazing to hear how many people are praying for Whitney and Theo.  Thank you!  It's pretty overwhelming, actually.  We are so touched.

As my grandma said to me earlier, Whitney and Theo are both extraordinary.  And they are.  Thank you for praying for them!

Love,
Natalie and Nick

Big News

Theo has something to share:

He loves his aunt.  He actually loves all four of his aunts (lucky him!), but today he is specifically talking about his Cool Aunt Whit.  On April 25th, Whitney, my older sister, will give Theo a better chance at a high-quality, full life.  That's right: transplant is scheduled for Thursday, April 25th!