Category: Blessings

He is a Faithful God-an Isaac Update

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, Isaac Update

Whew, yesterday was rough!  Isaac was not feeling well, and was extremely agitated.  We couldn't really put our finger on the exact problem.

  • Was he having pain at the incisions sites – there are 2 on his belly and one on the back of his head (at least 3 inches long)
  • Was his system just "coming down" off all the meds and anesthesia from the surgery?
  • Was his new and improved shunt working too well, pulling too much fluid from his brain, resulting in a severe headache?
  • Was the acetaminophen taking its toll?  It does make him grumpy, and it had been alternated with Motrin since Friday.
  • Was he simply tired of being doctored and washed and bandaged and medicated?
  • Was he going through "Mommy-and-Daddy-in-my-room-ALL-THE-TIME" withdrawals?
  • Was he tired of the HAT?

We never did figure it out.  He was awake for 24 hours straight – kicking, vocalizing, slapping (not us, he habitually rubs/slaps his belly and thighs), whining, flicking his hands and arms – just generally not well and not happy.

It was frustrating and sad.

We talked to doctors and decided to wait the night out, and reevaluate this morning.

We did 3 things:  took off the hat, stopped the Tylenol and let him fuss without going to check on him.

At 11:30 last night, he was still miserable, so I asked friends on Facebook to pray especially for him.  And they did!  Shortly after midnight, he was asleep and slept until after 9 a.m. this morning!

He has been peaceful and happy and content all day.

I don't know which of those things helped, or if any of them made a difference.

The only thing that I truly know did a work in him was the prayer.  God's peacefulness settled in around us here in our home; and we all rested the night through.

I am so amazed – constantly – by the goodness of God.  I am always surprised when prayers are answered, and I don't know why that still is!  lol!  I have seen so many of them answered, you'd think I'd get used to it.  I'm glad, though, that I don't take it for granted; and that I am still in awe of the power of my God.

~~~~~

For those of you who have asked:  my back is still pretty bad.  I was able to get to the chiro yesterday.  I am able to walk – very slowly; I really can't do much for Isaac, except to hand things to Doug and help with Isaac's surgery sites.  I can sit for short periods of time in my wheelchair.  Thank GOD for that chair!  So…better than Thursday and Friday, although still not able to do much.  Sigh…  :o)

~~~~~

Thank you, again, for all your prayer and well wishes.  I don't know what we would do without family and friends who care enough to talk to the God of the universe about our small problems.  We are so grateful.

Blessings,

Alesha

So This is What Happened (or Isaac’s Epic Tale)

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, How Great is Our God, Isaac Update, What's Happening

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This was Isaac about 10 days ago, after getting his haircut.  This past Tuesday evening he started vomiting.  After determining he did not have a stomach bug, we got in touch with his gastro doctor. 

We changed some medication dosages, gave carrot juice (rather than Pedialyte) and watched him for about 36 hours.  That was when the gastro doctor suggested a trip to the ER.  We called his neurosurgeon before he and Doug headed out.

Isaac has a VP Shunt (link here), and it was determined after many x-rays, and MRI and an ultrasound that the tubing that goes from the shunt to the abdomen needed to be replaced.

The surgery went well.  The tubing had become brittle and blocked, and had to be replaced in its entirety.  There were some difficulties and some concerns about future surgeries of this kind for Isaac.  But those are tomorrow's troubles and we won't borrow from them today!

Naturally, my mind was elsewhere before his surgery, and so I have no pictures.  We do however have plenty of pics from afterward.

Isaac giving me the "I-cant-believe-you're-taking-pictures-now" glare, as Mojo the monkey looks on.

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Telling Mommy it was time for a lemon swab.  His mouth was very dry after surgery.

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Sleeping in a hospital is never a great experience.  The first night, Doug had the fold out chair, but when I got there, he turned that over to me.  I took a walk through the halls for the linens we would need, and I spotted a recliner.  I asked if it was being used, was told no, but to give them time to wipe it down, then they would bring it to us.

When I laid down at midnight – no chair.  I prayed myself to sleep, asking the Lord for a chair for my tired hubby.

At 1 a.m., no chair.  At 2 a.m.  At 3 a.m., the nurse came in for check vitals, saw that Doug was sitting straight up in a chair, sound asleep, and decided he needed a recliner.  In about 10 minutes, he was ensconced in this little beauty.

Answers to prayer are sometimes delayed, but when they come at last, they are very sweet!

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If I had to title the following pic, it would be "The Princess and the Pea"!  Only with 7 blankets, a sheet and two pillows did I manage to catch a few winks on this medieval torture device!

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I know this pic is very grainy, but it was too cute to leave out.  Isaac woke up at 4 a.m. as bright as a new penny.  Here he is grinning with that little smirk, and seemed to be feeling so much better.

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When you have neurosurgery, you follow up with lots of hair washing.  It helps get rid of any germs that might hide there.  You can see he thoroughly enjoyed the process and the attention!

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Then it was time to go.  Daddy got Isaac dressed in his own clothes.

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Then he got him comfortably settled into his own personal chariot, and away we went! (After the valet parking finally found our car that they somehow misplaced!!!)

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I usually don't include pictures of Isaac drooling, because I like to maintain his dignity as much as I can.  But this picture just had to be included!!!  He was so delighted to be on his way home!

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And how's this one for some beautiful eye contact?!!!  It's such a delight to his eyes open and bright!

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This is Mommy taking a picture of Daddy taking a picture of Isaac. 

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I can't imagine why he seems a little more spoiled than usual when we get home from the hospital!!! 🙂

Today (Sunday) he seems to be feeling the aftereffects of the surgery.  He is not quite so perky, and had a total meltdown while we washed his hair and applied medications to his surgery sites.  That's to be expected, but it nearly kills both of us to upset him.  Cleanliness is vital, though, to avoid infection; so we will aggravate him only when necessary for that process.

We have been abundantly blessed.  This wonderful outcome was by no means guaranteed, and so we are counting our blessings to be home today.

Thank you for your prayers, your sweet notes of encouragement and blessing.  I was overwhelmed by the response here and on FaceBook.  We feel very loved and very blessed.

Our God has done exceedingly abundantly above all that we could have asked.  He is so good to us!

May He bless you richly,

Alesha

Isaac’s Surgery Update

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, How Great is Our God, Isaac Update, Prayer Request

Isaac came through surgery really well. 

All of the tubing for his shunt had to be replaced, from head to belly.

He has a small incision on his belly, and one on the back of his head (about 3 inches), and a mean looking bruise on the side of his neck and over his collarbone where they "tunneled" the new tubing.

He is still quite drowsy, but is resting and is very peaceful when he wakes up.  The meds seem to be managing the pain quite well.

Thank you for praying.  Thank you for letting me know you were praying.  Reading those comments this morning was so reassuring to me.

I will try to get back regularly with updates.  It is possible that we might be let go tomorrow.  That would be good, but we do not rush things.  We'd rather stay a little longer just to be sure all is going well.

God bless you all,

Alesha

Blogging Bullets

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, Florida Weather, Isaac Update, Prayer Request, What's Happening
  • Our new a/c unit is up and running!!!  That should make our electric bill much happier!
  • My back has gone out again.
  • I made some new jewelry and sold some jewelry last week.
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  • I've made some jewelry repairs this week, too.
  • Isaac has been trying to vomit since yesterday evening.  (His previous
    surgery does not allow him to actually bring anything up.)  We think
    it's due to a decrease in meds (on purpose…we were weaning him off a
    gastro med), and we hope as soon as the levels go back up, he will stop
    trying to turn himself inside out with the dry heaves.
  • I got a new hair cut.  Here's some of those corny "taking pictures of myself in the car" shots:
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  • My mom and I were able to have brunch together yesterday.
  • The weather here is absolutely gorgeous right now.
  • This made me happy:

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  • Isaac made a new friend at church on Sunday.  She came in her wheelchair, and sat with him in junior church.  She was 8 years old and such a cutie!  He was really quite pleased about it too.
  • That is all I can think of for today.  It's hard to write brilliantly from a reclined position!

Spring is on its way,

Alesha

Blessings and Prayers

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, How Great is Our God, Prayer Request, What's Happening

The Lord has been good to our family this week.

Mind you, He is always good to us; but the blessings seem especially tangible today.

A wonderful friend of ours has completely rebuilt our old computer into something of a Super PC!  We have been wanting another computer.  You know the difficulties I've had with my laptop, this past year in particular.  

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We knew we would have no money for a new laptop, and so we put those desires to the back of our mind for a while.  Our friend, though, took my old desktop and (I think) just gutted it and started over!  It's bigger and faster and more advanced than my laptop, and will meet our needs and then some!  Doug is really excited to have his "own" computer, and I am thrilled to have something reliable.

Today, my hubby got the opportunity to help referee a high school basketball game.  That might not mean much to you and me; but to my hubby, it is very exciting!  

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What music is to me, basketball is to Doug.  He loves watching it, coaching it, playing it, reffing it, whatever…it makes him happy.  It has been years since he's been able to do anything even remotely involved with the game, and so today's opportunity really means a lot to him.

As he left, he poked his head back in the door, and said, "I'm going to go…have some FUN!" with a great big smile on his face. 🙂

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We learned yesterday that we will be receiving a healthy tax refund this year.  We are praying that God will help us to find a vehicle for Isaac.  Right now, we drive a '94 Ford Explorer.  It has been a very reliable vehicle for us; but it is not accessible.  Doug has to pick Isaac up and put him in his car seat, then lift the wheelchair into the back of the truck.  I am unable to take Isaac anywhere on my own.

We realize that to get a truly accessible vehicle will be well out of our price range, but we also know that we serve a mighty God!  He can help us to find something that will make our lives easier, AND that has an air conditioner that works reliably!!!  (Right now, we have to lift the hood and whack the fuse box for the a/c to work!) 🙂 We also have no door handles left – they have disintegrated into nothing – lol!

So, three blessings for us this week, and a prayer request of sorts.  We need God's leading and wisdom to find this new vehicle.  We'd appreciate your helping us pray.

Thanks!!!

Alesha

Whew What A Week!

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, Isaac Update, Prayer Request, What's Happening

Wow!  It has been quite the week for us!  On Tuesday, I came down with the dreaded stomach flu.  It was awful, and here on Friday evening, I am just beginning to feel a tiny bit "normal".  I think the fever was worse than the tummy troubles.

Isaac has continued to run a low-grade fever, which called for a doctor's visit on today.  He has a whopper of a sinus infection.  The doctor gave him a 20-DAY antibiotic prescription!  I am truly dreading the results of that medication on his gastrointestinal track.  It will cause GREAT havoc, I'm afraid.

Our radio's Restorathon is still going strong.  So far, they have had over $74,000 pledged to keep the station on the air for another year.  That is really exciting, and we're expecting tomorrow to be an even bigger day than the last two.  Praise the Lord for the work He is doing here.

Let me tell you, by way of personal testimony, the radio station is a real blessing to me!  I have spent the past 3 days in bed, and I was so grateful to have great Christian music and programing to listen to. 🙂

I pray ya'll have a good weekend,

Alesha

So, Bullets It Is!

by ObtainingMercy, posted in Blessings, Florida Weather, Food and Drink, Household, How Great is Our God, Isaac Update, What's Happening

Otherwise I will never remember to tell you everything! 🙂

  • Our Anniversary Sunday at our church was a wonderful day!  We had over 3700 is attendance, and over 400 professions of faith.  The first time visitors and those who accepted Christ will all be followed up by various members of the congregation.  The really exciting thing to me was seeing so many families that attended together.  You could see them everywhere after the service as they enjoyed the huge carnival that is put together for the children and teens every year.  It was SUPER cold that Sunday – so rare for Florida – but lots of fun!  We even took Isaac over for a little while, and he (and Daddy) managed to snag a rubber ducky with the winning mark, and came home with a cute stuffed duck! 🙂
  • Doug and I were able to go out Saturday by ourselves, a real treat for us.  We found a used bookstore, that only carried hardback books.  I came home with a couple of new (to me) mystery books.  We enjoyed lunch together and then bought groceries at the Wal-Marts. ;)  Such a nice day!
  • Grammy and Isaac had a nice time together, while we were out.  She brought over his Valentines Day card and gift.  Here they are, along with the balloon we bought him (and paid TOO much for!), and a little Valentine from his little friend at church who was so sweet to remember him.
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  • We took Isaac for his first visit to the Dentist yesterday.  And get this, his dentist name is Dr. Bopp!  Isn't that funny?  He had no cavities, and no issues at all.  We were so glad!  He does have plaque that is building up because he doesn't eat by mouth.  They suggested to brush his teeth 3 times a day, and that would help to prevent it.  We are going to do our best to keep up with that.
  • We found a HUGE Goodwill store, and had so much fun looking around.  We found some books, and a few shirts – one for Isaac and two for me.  $4 for a plus size shirt is a good deal, and Isaac's was only $2.  Gotta love Goodwill!!!
  • It is cold again in Florida…has been for several days.  I've just learned to dress in layers and have been comfortable in the house.  Our electric bill was astronomical for last month, but the Lord is good and provided the extra that we needed!
  • I am making vegetable soup today.  It smells really yummy, and I can't wait for the boys to get home so we can dig in. 🙂
  • OH!  I got a new garbage can.  Here she is…she is bee-yoo-tee-full!

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Doug's uncle Roger made this gorgeous creature!  We had one just like it for years, but when Isaac was in the hospital for a month, a sweet friend cleaned out our frig, but forgot to empty the trash.  We were never able to get the smell out of the wood, and so had to throw the trashcan out with the trash.  We were heartbroken!  Uncle Roger finally relented to get his tools out of retirement and make us a new one.  We LOVE her!!!

I guess that's it for my bullets.  I'm going to have to allow myself to post shorter blogs, so that I can post more often.  I always want my blogs to be ju-u-u-ust right, and so I put off blogging until I have more time.  It seems like that "more time" almost never happens.  So, I'm working on how to rectify that situation. 🙂

Blessings to you,

Alesha