On Her Way!

Good news! We were at the height and bustle of the lunch hour when the Espositos arrived. Loaded down with hugs and flowers and chocolate, kisses and prayers. Just in time! Mom's cell phone rang. It was Mom's nurse. The bloodwork came back fine, and they're ready for her to come back. Joy! Then a few tears of realization that this is really happening.

We hunted through the cafeteria to find Fred and Dad, who had gone off to locate provisions. We gathered in the middle of the lunch crowd to pray for Mom, and then she and Dad went back to Radiology.

We hope to be able to see her before they wheel her in for surgery.

The Wait

Hello Folks!
It's Dolly here....sitting in the cafeteria, waiting with Jack, Steph, Mary Kate, John, Joe and Janice. We're waiting again for the blood results to come back and for the surgeon to complete her morning emergency surgery. The table is loaded with wraps, huge sandwiches, pistachioes, chocolate, salads, coffee, cokes, chips....and I have to admit I'm geting a little bit hungry!
The company is great, lighthearted and the time is passing pretty quickly.....
so we wait.
Thanks for sticking with us!
We'll post again when something happens.....something that does not involve food!
Love,
Dolly

Waiting on Waiting

Turns out that the surgeon is occupied with an emergency surgery. They've taken Mom back to do her bloodwork to make sure that she's able to handle the arteriogram.

Waiting...

Steph and Kate are here! Mom checked in at 8:30, and she's first in line for brain surgery. Apparently, there are a lot of wrists and elbows in line in front of her.

On the road again...

We're on our way to Charlottesville. Everyone is in good spirits. We'll keep you updated...

Early-Bird News

One of the radiology nurses at University of Virginia Hospital called me a little while ago to tell me that we should be there at 8:30 AM tomorrow for the procedure. We were pleased that they could take me early in the morning when everyone (especially the doctor) is fresh!
So we're on for 8:30 AM. Look for blog updates as the morning and afternoon progress!
Thanks for praying.
Love,
Dolly

Thinking of Wednesday

For those of you who are curious about what Mom is expecting Wednesday, the surgery has two components. The first is an exploration and mapping of her brain to determine how her 12-year old anuerysm repair has held up, and also to learn some more about the nature of her second anuerysm.

If the anuerysm is repairable, then the surgery team will move to the second phase: filling the anuerysm with a coil of wire. This causes a clot to form at the anuerysm site which will allow the artery wall to then be strengthed at that location. Check out the picture to the left for an idea of what the coil would look like.

(I am just a juris doctor, not a doctor-doctor, so you might want to consult with an expert before you try this at home. Remeber, if guys like me don't do our jobs well, we just file an appeal.)

Something to keep in prayer is that Mom would be a candidate for the surgery. The anuerysm needs to be the right size and shape to receive and safely hold a coil of wire (and the resulting clotting and cell growth).