Recovery City, Population: This Guy.

Because of doing so well post surgery, we were able to leave the hospital after only one night and we have been at my (Jen's) parents house as Nathan continues to recover.  Overall, the hospital was a phenomenal experience.  They see probably 15-20 kids with Apert Syndrome a month, which means that for the first time in 9 months, Nathan's syndrome didn't feel like such an anomaly.  It feels like 9 months of adrenaline is starting to leave our bodies...


The first few days the pain management was pretty intense and Nathan was sick coming off of the anesthesia.  All of that has been very much within the expected range of a "typical recovery" though and his doctors here and back home have made themselves very available to help us keep his pain under control.  He really turned a corner yesterday so we are hopeful to be heading home at the end of this week.

Because Nathan's days are going so well (nights are still pretty rough) Jonny has been able to be working this week in some extra space at my dad's office while the kids and I get time with my mom.

We've also been able to see a few good friends along with my family in the evenings, which is deeply refreshing and fun for us.  It is especially helpful for Madison - as far as she is concerned this is just a great time with grandparents, her uncles and aunt.  Being the trooper she is, she even started clapping when we told her she was getting to go visit Nay Nay in the "Texas Hospital."








In fact, things were going so well yesterday that Nathan asked to go to the park to celebrate his turning 9 months old on Sunday! 


Comments

  1. HollyJuly 22, 2014 at 4:15 PM

    Jen, your kids are precious! Praying for a swift recovery & wisdom & grace for the road ahead! Love you, sweet friend!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Soul's PantingJuly 30, 2014 at 1:39 PM

    Praise God for this wonderful report! It brings many smiles. We are continuing to keep Nathan and y'all in our prayers. It will be good to see you back "home" when you are able to return. Many blessings!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Surgery in T-Minus 5 Weeks

Image
I’m not exactly sure what it is about me, but I just have not been able to bring myself to write this update.  It’s almost like a subconscious rebellion…  We’ve known this day would come since we were in the NICU in Ohio…  We thought it would come last year… And yet, the fact that it is finally time for the MOST major surgery/medical procedure in a series of major medical procedures is just a bit surreal.   As of this moment, May 7th is Go Day.   Just a dude and his dog :) This post will be pretty factual as I am still processing a lot of my own emotions.  At the same time, I am humbled and thankful to my core for the army of people who have and continue to love and pray for Nathan and our family.  There is only one path ahead for my son, for my heart, for our family.   In light of that, we want to share and ask for your prayers. On May 7th, Nay will have a RED device installed into/onto his face.  RED stands for Rigid External Distraction - You can click here to get a bunch of images
Read more

It's Been a Decade

Image
Some memories are sharper than others… February 9th, 2014 was my 29th birthday and Nathan was in the middle of a 7 consecutive week run in the ICU, for most of which he was intubated.  About 80% of his 4 months had been spent in hospitals and he had already undergone several surgeries of increasing intensity.   This stay was, quite literally, a fight for his life and the questions about quality of life were (understandably and appropriately) met by Dr’s with vague answers, no promises and even uncomfortable and compassionate murmurs of “IF he makes it past 2….”     That year, my birthday fell on a snowy Sunday.   I remember waking that morning and staring blankly out of the ICU window into the thick, cold, grey, relentless snow of an Ohio February.   The only thing more bleak was my heart as I called Jonny, cried and then let him go so that he could take care of Madison (not yet two) and then get to church…. It was, after all, a Sunday.   I’m not sure how much time passed, but it could
Read more

You Are Loved and You Were Wanted

Image
Little One, You are loved and you were wanted .  Let’s start there.  Your dad and I talked about you for quite a long time, actually.  After the first year/year and a half of your brother’s life and the intensity of fighting for both his life and quality of life it took more time, more conversations, more prayer to be sure that we were ready for a third child in our family.  Then, in ways that are more easily felt than articulated we both sensed a confident assurance that yes indeed, we were ready.  And so when a little plastic stick told us of your existence, we were ecstatic! The first time we saw you on a little screen we marveled and our vision blurred with rejoicing as we saw your little, tiny heart beating fast.  We knew how deeply we love your big sister and brother and instantly our hearts expanded as they filled with that same love for you.  Telling your 3 year old sister you were coming was pure joy!  She was so excited!  In fact, she would tell everyone (cashiers, stra
Read more