Sinking in the Shade

Luckily they had a special marker to locate her cyst...

 Kiersyn’s surgery is somewhat of a blur.  It was scheduled for 9:15 and we ended up being more than an hour later which was frustrating for Kiersyn’s sake since she hadn’t eaten since 4:15am. We spent that hour trying to keep her from realizing she was hungry. In between surgeries the doctor came and talked to us and marked her cyst which I thought was kind of funny. I know it’s standard practice but still. They finally came and took her – we didn’t get to go back with her this time which made it more difficult to just watch them walk away with her. They took us to our “private waiting room” which is was a tiny 6x6 room with two chairs and no window that would make any sane person go crazy. We left our things and waited in the main lobby with my parents who I can’t thank enough for being there. In an hour or so the doctor came and talked to us and a few minutes later we got to see her in recovery. For what I’m sure is a combination of many reasons, Kiersyn does not wake up well from anesthesia. We (being Danley and I + the nurses) spent awhile trying to calm her down. They are only supposed to have clear fluids in recovery but in an act of compassion (or maybe the crying was just driving her nuts) one of the nurses closed the curtains and told us to go ahead and try feeding her . Of course it didn’t help her calm down but I appreciated the gesture. Anyway, K finally slept in the car on the way home. She had a fussy day but was back to normal Saturday. She will have Steri-strips over her stitches for a couple of weeks and a small scar. Thank the Lord it’s over.

Waking up

Just to make things interesting on Sunday, we ended up in the ER. (Warning: baby poo talk ahead) The Codeine Kiersyn was on after surgery caused major constipation problems for the poor child who, after screaming for an hour and exhausting herself to the point of passing out on the floor, needed some intervention.  It was a very long day. Then yesterday she woke up with the opposite problem and projectile vomiting. Not 100% sure what’s going on but not. Fun. for anyone.

In other news, my mom had another procedure on her back yesterday. Please pray for healing and pain relief. Also, her sister - my Aunt Tonya, is in the hospital with an infection in her bloodstream. They had to operate on her hand on try to get the worst of the infection out. It stills seems like our family is taking one hit after another. We appreciate your prayers.

I’ll leave you with the words of a song I was immeasurably blessed by this morning – I pray you are too.

Gratitude - Nichole Nordeman

Send some rain, would You send some rain?
'Cause the earth is dry and needs to drink again
And the sun is high and we are sinking in the shade
Would You send a cloud, thunder long and loud?
Let the sky grow black and send some mercy down
Surely You can see that we are thirsty and afraid
But maybe not, not today
Maybe You'll provide in other ways
And if that's the case . . .

We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
For lessons learned in how to thirst for You
How to bless the very sun that warms our face
If You never send us rain

Daily bread, give us daily bread
Bless our bodies, keep our children fed
Fill our cups, then fill them up again tonight
Wrap us up and warm us through
Tucked away beneath our sturdy roofs
Let us slumber safe from danger's view this time
Or maybe not, not today
Maybe You'll provide in other ways
And if that's the case . . .

We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
A lesson learned to hunger after You
That a starry sky offers a better view if no roof is overhead
And if we never taste that bread

Oh, the differences that often are between
What we want and what we really need

So grant us peace, Jesus, grant us peace
Move our hearts to hear a single beat
Between alibis and enemies tonight
Or maybe not, not today
Peace might be another world away
And if that's the case  

We'll give thanks to You
With gratitude
For lessons learned in how to trust in You
That we are blessed beyond what we could ever dream
In abundance or in need
And if You never grant us peace

But Jesus?

Would You?

Please . . .

Psalm 18:28

Kiersyn did pretty well today.
She wasn't allowed any bottles after 4am and only Pedialyte or water until 7. Of course she refused to drink the Pedialyte and would only take a little water. I was afraid she would be starving by the time they took her back but she ended up being fine and only fussing a little before they took us back.
We actually got to carry her back to the procedure room and stay with her while they gave her the anesthesia and she fell asleep. I was thankful for that.
It was quick, maybe 30 minutes. When she was waking up from the anesthesia was the worst part. I could hear her crying and if I stood at the door of our waiting room, I could see her in post op. She was thrashing around and crying and I wasn't allowed to go to her. It was the worst few minutes ever. They're lucky they moved her to recovery when they did because I was coming for her, whether I was "allowed" or not.
She was upset for awhile but by the time we were allowed to leave half an hour later she was pretty much herself again.
She came home and did a lot of lying around and sleeping the rest of the day

Everything looked normal in her stomach and duodenum. Her Lower Esophageal Sphincter or LES was lax and stayed open, which only tells us what we already know - she has GERD.
They took biopsies of her esophagus, stomach and duodenum to look for other digestive issues - bacteria, malabsorption, gastritis, esophagitis, celiac disease etc. We should get the results Friday or Monday.

Thank you everyone for your prayers and encouragement.

Oh, and a funny thing happened tonight.
It rained.
It was short, just a few drops. It was dark and thundering but we went outside and listened and let the sprinkles rain on us. And then just a few minutes later in the midst of the storminess, a tiny part in the clouds opened and the sun shone glaringly bright through the darkness.