Saturday, December 22, 2007

Where I've been

WARNING: I change tenses all over the place in this post. Sorry.

Yes, I know, I disappeared again. As if this isn't already a busy time of year and as if I wasn't trying really hard to get myself established back at home after being gone for 2 1/2 weeks, we just had some more "fun"!




Monday - 4 p.m.

Micah (9 y.o) started complaining on Monday afternoon that his belly hurt. All day Sunday he had been pretty, uh, gassy, much to his amusement and his sister's dismay. When he complained on Monday afternoon I figured that he had more gas trapped in his system which can be pretty painful.

Monday - 5 p.m.

We gave him some anti-gas medicine and just watched him. He didn't eat dinner very well and spent most of the evening on the couch.

9 or 10 p.m.

Got out of bed and vomited 5 times. He felt much better, acted pretty chipper, and I thought we were done.

Tuesday - 1 a.m.

Micah's up again in more pain. I talk to Jim and decide to call our family doctor.

1:34 a.m.

Dr. calls back, suspects appendicitis, and says he should go to the ER. I get dressed (and made-up because I'm vain!), start the van to warm up, and make a snack for myself because I'm starving.

2:20 a.m. - 7 am

We arrive at the emergency room. There are 3 other kids there with the same symptoms. Strange. Micah gives a urine sample, get hooked up to an I.V., gives a blood sample, and starts drinking contrast for an upcoming CT scan. He didn't like it at all and it took about an hour for him to get it down. He's the fourth one of four kids that are getting CT scans so we have to wait a while for our turn. Meanwhile, his pain starts subsiding. The lab work came back and they said it looked okay. After for-ever he gets to go for his CT scan. He loved that part. He thought it was very cool! He even loved the feeling of the IV contrast entering his bloodstream. Weirdo! But I'm thankful for the small pleasantries along the way. It takes an incredibly long time for the doctor to get back with us. The other kids start going on home and I figure we're probably next...soon...sometime? The nurse pokes her head in and asks if the doctor has talked with us yet. I say, no. Later she reports that he is consulting with another doctor. Hmm. Interesting. then the nurse comes in and put a NKA (no known allergies) sticker on Micah's ID bracelet. Hmm. Also interesting. She leaves. I inform Micah that I think we are staying here and NOT going home. He starts getting a little upset at the prospect of surgery. I try to calm him down. Really, he's doing great and he's so brave. The doctor finally comes in and tells me that he's been consulting with another doctor and was waiting for a call back and he really wanted to wait until they had a complete picture before talking with me but it was becoming an embarrassing long wait and so he was there now to talk. The other doctor called back during our conversation, of course! Yes, it's appendicitis. They need to do surgery soon the only question is where. They were trying to find an open operating room at the St. Luke's in Meridian (where we were) or in Boise.

7:30 a.m.

Eventually we were admitted to the Meridian St. Luke's to await surgery. We were gurneyed to a way cool room in pediatrics. Awaiting Micah was a stuffed bear and a Sorry! game on the nightstand. There was also an extra hospital bed for me to sleep in, YEAH!!! I unpacked Micah's things from the bag they had given him, ate the other half of my sandwich, called Jim and other family members to update them and then laid down. Then the surgeon came in and introduced himself. We weren't supposed to have been admitted in Meridian. The surgery has to happen in Boise unless we wait until late afternoon which isn't a good plan at this point. He said that he told them not to admit us anywhere until he knew where he had an OR. Oh well, here we go again. He said that Air St. Luke's will transport us by ambulance (for free) to the other hospital. We will be delayed a bit by the paperwork necessary to extricate us from the Meridian hospital and get us into the Boise hospital. The 9am surgery he was shooting for may not happen until 9:30 but all is good. I've always been VERY happy with the service I receive at St. Luke's and I continue to be. I call Jim to tell him of the change in plans.

8:00 a.m.


Air St. Luke's people arrive and start moving IV poles and Micah onto yet another bed and get him all strapped down and get paperwork from the nurse. Jim calls back to remind me to take pictures with my cell phone! :-) I hadn't thought of that. I'm glad he reminded me. I'm offered a ride with Micah but I need to drive me van and not have the trouble of being at a hospital in Boise with my car in front of the ER in Meridian. Plus, the ambulance isn't stopping at Mickey D's. I am. I ask the nurse if we can take the bear and the Sorry! game. She says no problem! It's a good thing we did because the other St. Luke's didn't have that perk for him. I almost didn't take it because I figured we would end up with two. I'm glad Jim told me to take it. :-)



8:24 a.m.

Micah is loaded into the ambulance and I follow along behind with a slight detour to grab breakfast!






9:15 a.m.


I meet up with Micah again in pre-op. I bring him the blanket he left in the van. They give him drugs to make him not care a bit (even though he wasn't really acting nervous at this point.). Though he does remember this room with the Winnie-the-Pooh winter screen saver on their computer and the movie CARS playing, he doesn't remember leaving it. I remember him leaving. Good-bye, Micah, I love you.... Take care of my son, Lord....

9:18 a.m.

The screen in the OR waiting room reminds me of an airport arrival/departure screen. It states that he's in the OR as of 9:18. the surgery should last about one hour and recovery another hour. I will get to see him once he's assigned to and in a room. The screen will say when he's in Recovery I and then Recovery II and then at his final destination. I eat my breakfast, make phone calls, read and then sleep for about 10 minutes on a bench until the doctor comes out.

10:05 a.m.

It was less than an hour. Yeah! He has a good report. It WAS a nasty appendix and it's good they got it out. He showed me "lovely" pictures. They did the surgery laparoscopically which makes for a faster recovery.

11:30 a.m.

Micah is in his room where I've been waiting since shortly after he got out of surgery. He's sleepy and in and out of consiousness.






Rebecca & Adam visiting Micah


Well, that's probably enough to give you a really good idea what we've been up to this last week! Micah had lots of visitors, bearing flowers, candy, toys, and comic books. He didn't eat the candy until he was at home because even after they lifted the "clear fluids" diet he wasn't interested in eating. Popsicles, though, that was different. The first time they got him up walking was very unpleasant for him. He turned a dusky green and got really hot, sweaty, and nauseated and almost passed out. Each ambulation, though, was easier than the previous one. He rarely took pain meds after the first 12 hours or so, he got up and walked when they told him to (even though he would have preferred not to). He was a real trouper.

Jim stayed off work and on the home front keeping it together and I never left the hospital until I took Micah home Wednesday afternoon. I was very glad to get a shower and clean clothes!

I'm so thankful for: (in no order of importance!)

medical advancements
knowledgable doctors
antibiotics
pain meds
friends
nurses
nurse's aides
electricity
clean water
hospital cafeterias
extra toothbruses
pain (without it we wouldn't have known there was a problem)
insurance
sick days
my husband
God's hand in our lives
cell phones
popsicles
sterile hospital conditions

There are many places in the world where this little hiccup in our lives would have meant the end of my son's life. Does that make sense? It's really late and I'm expremely tired. I guess that is a combination of extremely and supremely. It fits so I'll leave it. In any case, I'm very thankful to live WHERE I live and WHEN I live. There is more to God's provision than I can go into at this time but it will suffice to say that God is good. All the time. Blessed be the Name of the Lord.

Sunday, December 16, 2007

♪ Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Songs ♪

O COME, O COME, EMMANUEL

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Refrain

Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.


O come, Thou Wisdom from on high,
Who orderest all things mightily;
To us the path of knowledge show,
And teach us in her ways to go.

Refrain

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny;
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory over the grave.

Refrain

O come, Thou Day-spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here;
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.

Refrain

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.

Refrain

O come, O come, great Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times once gave the law
In cloud and majesty and awe.

Refrain

O come, Thou Root of Jesse’s tree,
An ensign of Thy people be;
Before Thee rulers silent fall;
All peoples on Thy mercy call.

Refrain

O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind;
Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,
And be Thyself our King of Peace.

Refrain

Words: Translated by John M. Neale
Music: ar­ranged by Thom­as Hel­more
Source: CyberHymnal

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14

Friday, December 14, 2007

Quotable Quotes

I saw a great quote yesterday on The Anchoress's header:

"Having resentment is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die" -- Malachy McCourt


What shall I say? For He has spoken to me, and He Himself has done it; I will wander about all my years because of the bitterness of my soul. Isaiah 38:15

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

MIA

You may have noticed that I've been missing. While I have been missing I've certainly been in action! Here's a little recap.

My family and I left town early Tuesday morning, November 20th, to head to western Oregon for 5 days for Thanksgiving. I didn't return until December 8th! While we were on our way to Springfield I got a call from my mom that my sister, Junelle, who lives 1.5 hours north of Springfield was going to be hospitalized. She was in her 23rd week of pregnancy and her cervix was opening. Her midwife wanted her to go to OHSU in Portland for a cerclage. We suggested that she come down to Eugene as she would be closer to family for any support that she would need. Plus, her husband works in Eugene so it made even more sense for her to be there. Her midwife drove her all the way to Eugene and waited with her for HOURS! Midwives are awesome! Jim and I continued driving and got to town in time for my mom and I to go to the hospital. We listened as the doctor described to June and Rick (her husband), what the procedure would entail and the risks involved. Since the bag of waters was beginning to extend through the cervix it would have to be pushed back a bit before the stitch could be put in and could end up being ruptured which would end the pregnancy. If she didn't have the cerclage she would have to be on very strict bedrest to stave off labor and the doctor said she wouldn't last more than a month which would put her at 27 weeks. Still too early to deliver. They opted to have the cerclage. It was successful! Thank-you, Lord! After two days in the hospital she was allowed to come "home" to Mom and Dad's. On Thanksgiving Day! Bedrest was still part of the equation and she has a 3 1/2 year old son. Saturday, the day Jim and I were supposed to leave, only Jim and the two older kids went home. I stayed behind with the two younger ones to help out June and her son, Gabriel. Boy, I was busy!

I'm so thankful I have the flexibility to have been able to stay and help. I'm so thankful I have willing in-laws and friends to help out with the kids who returned home. I'm so thankful for a great husband who was willing to make the 8-9 hour drive last Friday to come back and get me and then turn around and do it again the next day to take us home!

Pray for June as she continues to take it easy and watch other people do the jobs she's "supposed" to be doing. She's to be on modified bedrest for about 9 1/2 more weeks. At that point they'll take out the cerclage and let nature "take it's course". Pray for Rick as he supports his wife though this trying time. Pray for Gabe as his world is upside-down and will continue to be until it's turn upside-down again when the baby is born. Pray for my parents as they continue to have extra people in their home and colds bouncing around from one person to the next and back again! Finally, give thanks with us that June is still pregnant and that God is so very good. All the time.

For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother's womb.
I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.

Psalm 139:13-16



Here's a peek at the frame being woven in secret:

Sunday, December 02, 2007

♪ Psalms & Hymns & Spiritual Songs ♪

COME THOU LONG EXPECTED JESUS

Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a King,
Born to reign in us forever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all sufficient merit,
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

Words: Charles Wes­ley, Hymns for the Na­tiv­i­ty of Our Lord (Lon­don: Will­iam Stra­han, 1745), num­ber 10.
Music: Hy­fry­dol,
Row­land H. Pri­chard, 1830 (MI­DI, score)

Source: CyberHymnal

I will shake all nations, and the desired of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,' says the LORD Almighty. Haggai 2:7