Update

Yesterday was a good day.
--Emma Kate started to get her appetite back yesterday--she ate and drank more yesterday than she has all week.
--We had several visitors yesterday, including her siblings and my mom. She has perked up so much with them here. They have missed her and she is anxious to get home to be with them. Brooks' cousin and her fiance also stopped by for awhile. They all brought Emma Kate gifts that made her smile.
--Her personality is coming back slowly. She hasn't been talking to us too much lately, but yesterday was much better. She smiled more and was a little more talkative.
--She walked several times to the potty yesterday, went for a wagon ride in the garden and watched a lot of tv.
--She's taking her meds, but still complaining about it.
--Dr. Alsoufi discontinued the IV fluids.
--Her heart rate is much better, ranging anywhere from 105-120, depending on her activity.

This morning has been decent.
--Emma Kate woke up in a lot of pain. Her chest tubes are super uncomfortable. Today we are going to work hard at controlling her pain better by giving her something every few hours. Please pray that the pain gets less and less.
--She took her morning meds without much protest. She hasn't eaten much but is drinking fairly well!
--She woke up for about 30-45 minutes, ate a little, drank a little and then went back to sleep.
--When she woke up, her heart rate was 140s-150, probably because of the pain. After meds were given and she got situated, her heart rate is reading 114!

Dr. Alsoufi, her surgeon, has been great. He has come in every day during rounds and given an update on how he feels she is doing. She's definitely progressing in the right direction. Her drainage is good, but before the chest tubes can come out, it needs to slow significantly. It has decreased each day, so we can only expect that it will continue to get less and less.

Thank you all for keeping up with our girl and for all of your support and prayers!