4 and a half weeks after leaving home...

It is now already 4 and a half weeks ago that we left home and luckily the first three really stressful weeks are over and our life is slowly getting back to normal…Ollie is doing really well and we are now busy keeping him from jumping off jungle gyms and climbing trees! Before leaving England last week to spend some time with family in Germany, we visited friends (thank you Claire and Neill and Bonnie and Johann for having us!), explored a proper English castle, went on a boat trip and had a couple of nice English beers. Making sure that the kids and we remembered something else but the hospital in Birmingham. 

Henry has said it before but I also want to say thank you for all the support that we got: from all our family (especially Rita and John as well as Waltraut and Ruediger), friends, colleagues, even people we have never met. It really means a lot to us! I also want to thank Jaco and especially Henry for updating everyone through the blog and taking care of the writing and posting.

We are really amazed how well Ollie recovered and how quickly he was back to his normal self after such a major surgery. That was mainly due to the professional and compassionate care from all the hospital staff we met: doctors, sisters, nursing students, physiotherapists and support staff. Everyone was friendly, patient, knowledgeable and really caring. From greeting us by name to excellent support and care to helping us look for a lost soft toy fox... We can only say that the Birmingham Children’s Hospital made a very difficult experience as comfortable as possible for us.

The final/ follow up cardiologist visit a week after hospital discharge confirmed that Ollie's O2 levels have come up to 90-91% and that the Glenn shunt is working well. We already knew that the mitral valve leak after the valve repair is still moderate and that a complete repair was not possible because of the size of the structures. The only new thing we heard was that the valve repair made the ventricular septum defect (VSD) smaller which is now causing turbulences through the VSD which were not there before. This is not a concern at this stage but we need to keep an eye on it as Ollie grows...

For now, we are just glad that our small super hero is doing so well. We love you lots and lots and lots Ollie!

Enjoying a boat trip on the Birmingham canals

These 2 are just too beautiful! Thank you Finni for being the best big brother in the whole world!!

They absolutely loved bus rides!

Just playing... Funny bunnies!

This is so Ollie...being happy!

Discharge notes and instructions

The news is official - Ollie has been discharged.  He slept with us for the first time last night.  Of course we were looking in on him ever so often to make sure everything was still going well, which it was.  For the first time in 9 days, Ollie slept without someone waking him to check vital signs!

Upon discharge, they reported that the consolidation in his left lung had improved much, but that some crackles and wheezes could still be heard.  The ECG also showed that he had some prolonging of the PR interval (so there is some delay in electrical conduction in the heart) but this will resolve with time.  On Thursday we see the cardiologist again for a final follow-up, to make sure that he can fly safely.  In the mean time we want to see some sights around Birmingham, then visit some friends around the UK (now would be a good time to switch off your mobiles!), try to go up to Scotland to rediscover the roots of the Annandale clan and relax a bit.  We are disinfecting hands and avoiding crowds as much as possible - mostly because of trying to keep Ollie and the rest of us healthy, but also because the South African gets a bit claustrophobic in crowds...

The last couple of weeks have been a journey in itself, also one of discovery of the importance of faith, friends, family and of the precious gift of life.  Thank you to each and everyone that have thought of us, prayed for us, prayed with us, sent messages, bought gifts, encouraged us, cried with us, hoped with us.  Without you, this would have been much harder, if not impossible! We have had messages and prayers from people we haven't even met, separated from us by thousands of miles, yet bound intimately to us by love.  Thank you so very much! We are humbled and grateful beyond expression!  

Finn and Ollie waiting to go home

Outside the hospital with Dr Bear

Birmingham Children's Hospital

Ollie, back sleeping an uninterrupted sleep in his own bed

And there (s)he goes!

Thank you Lord, we have been discharged! At about 6:30pm, Ollie walked out of Birmingham Children's Hospital, holding my hand and with Finn and Annett on the other side of him.  So, 1 week and 1 day post open heart surgery, we are leaving the hospital bed behind.  We have to go for a follow up with the cardiologist on Thursday before we are permitted to fly anywhere, but for now we have to unpack and settle into our new accommodation.

I will cut it short and post again tomorrow.  The most important thing is Ollie is out and doing well.  Equally important is our most sincere thanks for all the prayers and thoughts that carried us through the last couple of weeks.