We were introduced to Pauline. Pauline was Joe's cardiac Liaison nurse. Straight away I liked her... Her role was to make sure that me and Phil understood what was going on, and we could go to her if we had any questions. She said that she would put us on the waiting list for accommodation at the hospital and also car parking, but she could not guarantee if and when we would get them.
We asked Pauline if we could speak to an intensive care doctors in regards to where we exactly were with Joe and the operation. Pauline arranged this really quickly. We spoke to one of the intensive care doctors who explained every to us again, and we also spoke to Dr Desai (he is now Joe's cardiac doctor).
We knew that we had to make a decision about whether to put Joe through the operation, or to let him go, so we wanted to speak to every one possible to make sure that we had all the facts. Because of this, we requested that we also speak to the surgeon that would be doing the operation if we decided to go ahead with it. Pauline said that she would arrange this for us.
The frustrating thing about talking to the doctors was that no one would or could say for sure what the outcome would be if Joe did have the operation. Even with his kidneys or potential Brain damage, no one could say what would happen. This scared me as everything was "unknown". I could not get my head around having to make this decision without knowing what the situation would be after if we went ahead and had Joe operated on.
We spent the whole day with Joe. They had to put in a supra pubic catheter (a catheter that went into his bladder through his stomach), as his catheter kept blocking. This was not helping in getting rid of fluid.
The staff in the intensive care ward were fantastic. They would bring me and Phil cups of tea and coffee. I remember sitting at the side of Joe's bed and looking at all the lines going into Joe and to this day, when I think about sitting there, I can still hear all the bleeps from the machines that were keeping him alive.
Pauline came to see us to say that we had got accommodation at the hospital. I was so pleased about this as it saved us driving to and from Leicester every day. The parents accommodation was really nice, with kitchen facilities and so on. It was nice than some hotels that I have stopped in.
We decided to go back to Leicester and spend the night there as we had to pick up clothes etc. On the way home, we got a call requesting that we be back in Birmingham for 8am on the Tuesday morning as the surgeon wanted to speak to us.
So, on the Tuesday morning, we headed back to Birmingham , armed with clothes. I remember waiting ages to speak to the surgeon, but it was well worth the wait. The surgeon was called Mr Tim Jones. He explained exactly what they would do if they were to operate, and was honest in terms of Joe's chances in regards to making it through the operation. He explained that Joe was very poorly, and that there was a 60% chance that Joe would not make it through not only the operation, but the days after the op. I remember him drawing diagrams of Joe's heart and how they would change it. I could not take it in.. I remember watching his hands, not really listening to what he was saying.
After speaking to Mr Jones, I felt a lot more positive, even though there was a high chance that things could go wrong. It was just after this, that we decided to put Joe through the Operation. What was strange looking back, is me and Phil discussing this like we were discussing what we were going to do at the weekend, or what to have for dinner. I think we were both emotionally numb. I think though, this helped in some ways, as we were able to make a decision without being selfish. Neither of us wanted to keep Joe alive just for our sakes, we wanted to do what was best for Joe.
As soon as we had made the decision, we let the intensive care doctors know. Next thing, we were being told that Joe would have his operation the next day - exactly 7 days old, and on April Fools Day. We were told that he would be second, so would be after lunch, but there might be a chance that this is brought forward.
We actually got to hold Joe which was amazing, as neither of us had held him since the Saturday morning. The nurse looking after him offered to take a picture for us. It was the first picture of me, Phil and Joe together. It was so nice to be able to hold Joe, even though he was not awake. I was fully aware that this might be the last time that I get to hold him, so I made sure that I held him tight. I did not want to give him back!
I remember ringing my mum, and telling her, but that's all I really remember from the Tuesday. I remember going to bed in the parents accommodation, and laying there thinking that Joe was on the floor below us, and dreading the next day. 
This was the day before Joes Operation. This was the first time we got to hold Joe from when he was taken ill on the Saturday morning
This is the first picture of us three together that the nurse took for us.
This is Joe with his Lucky hat on the day before his operation.
He also has his sheep teddy that Phil bought for him when I was pregnant.
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