Almost Good As New

Jackson is healing up so nicely! He came to Sunday school with us yesterday and played around while we taught the three year olds. Then, Jackson and I went home so he could take a nap. Then back again for AWANA Sunday evening. He has been very "go with the flow." I've just really been trying to make sure that he gets both naps so that he has time to rest.

Rivers started pulling up to walk this weekend. We discouraged it on Friday and Saturday, but watched to see what she was able to do on Sunday. She is mainly "crawling" (with one knee bent) or scooting to get where she wants to go, but then she'll pull up on a piece of furniture and walk alongside it. It makes me nervous, but Dr. Kim said that she knows her limitations and if something is painful, she'll stop. Her April CT scan will be a good indicator of whether or not her femur bone is staying in. God is in control!

We're Home

Jackson was released from the hospital yesterday morning, but we didn't make it home until late afternoon. We actually forgot that his car seat was in my car that Daniel drove back to Columbia. Thankfully, Charlotte isn't far, so he drove up midday, we all had lunch in the cafeteria, and then headed for home. Today, he's done so well! It's so amazing to me that he is crawling and walking and talking just like before. I was really expecting some setbacks for a few days or weeks. He isn't even taking any pain medicine. We are just so full of praise to God for how smoothly this week went! Daniel and I are so glad that this surgery is over and that he is healing so well so quickly. Thank you all for your thoughts, prayers, and well wishes this week!

Jackson's Recovery: Thursday

Jackson had a wonderful day today! When I got to the hospital this morning (Mimi stayed with him last night,) he tried to open his eyes and he could just barely see out of his left eye. He was so happy to be able to see again. Once again, his fearlessness returned. He sat up in bed and started crawling around and babbling. He was on the move, which made me nervous with all of the cords that had to be looked after. They capped off his IV and removed the leads to the monitors, so he only had the drain bag which we pinned to the back of his pajamas. He loved the Exersaucer that they brought to the room. I took him down to the play room, and he crawled and walked around while playing with toys. He was back to himself, and I couldn't be more happy unless we were able to go home today. The doctor said that he had too much fluid leakage yesterday to remove the drain, thus, they will determine in the morning whether or not he can go home. He didn't have nearly as much drainage today, so my hopes are high! I miss Daniel and Rivers and can't wait to get home so that we can all be together again!

Jackson's Recovery: Wednesday

Jackson has really come a long way in the past 24 hours. Although he looks really rough in the pictures below, we were prepared that the swelling would be at its worst today. I stayed with him at the hospital last night, and at times, it felt as though I was looking at someone else's child. But when I held him close, I knew he was mine. He woke up at 1:00 startled and very upset that he couldn't see. The nurse rushed in from hearing him outside the door and helped me get him up. He immediately put his hand on my face and put his lips against mine to see that it was me. It was absolutely precious! He has continued to be very easy to settle. When the doctors came in this morning, they removed the dressing on his head to reveal a bald little buddy with a zig-zag incision from ear to ear. It was startling to see, especially with his eyes swollen shut and protruding so much they were even with the tip of his nose. His neck was also very swollen. We've made a few joked about how he looks because if we don't find some humor in it, we'll cry about it. It really is sad, but we were prepared for this. I wasn't expecting the drain in his head to be a tube just below the skin that runs ear to ear as well. Despite the drama of his appearance, he's our same sweet buddy. He loves having his face tickled and rubbing his fingers on his blanket to soothe himself. This evening, he sat on my lap (supported) and played with some toys. He laughed once, and we laughed at him. He enjoyed the attention and kept on laughing like "Webster" used to on that '80s show. It was adorable! He got off of Morphine today, but his stomach couldn't handle Tylenol with Codeine or Lortab, so they're trying Motrin. Hopefully this will hold off any pain. He has really done wonderfully and is such a brave little guy! God has been faithful to provide in EVERY way for Jackson. This has really gone much more smoothly than I could have imagined. We're hoping that he will get out on Friday. I'm sorry that we couldn't post this sooner, but we've been having trouble with internet access and cell phone reception in the hospital.

Tuesday night: swelling getting much worse...

Wednesday morning...seeing Jackson's incision for the first time, swelling peaks by mid-afternoon...

Bless his heart!

Jackson's Recovery: Tuesday

Poor little guy! It's been a big day-and-a-half for Jackson, but all is going well. He got moved from the PICU to the eighth floor this morning. They removed his catheter, the PIC line in his neck, and the oxygen before the move. He still has a drain in his head to get rid of extra blood and fluid, but it is starting to slow down. Daniel and Mr. Crowson spent the night last night and said that he did pretty well considering all he's been through. He gets morphine about every 2-3 hours to control the pain. His eyes are getting more puffy and purple. They said that the swelling would probably reach its peak tomorrow. He's been a little bit upset and scared not being able to see us. He took a bottle of Pedialyte this morning and wanted more, but we have to make sure his stomach is settled. He's laying in bed listening to his little "Praise Baby" DVD, so he's resting pretty peacefully.

All in all, he's doing really well and looks much better than I anticipated that he would. Please continue to pray for his healing and that he would be comforted easily despite not being able to see us. Thank you all for your support during this time! Your calls and e-mails have been very encouraging. My cell phone died, so if you need to reach me, please call me on Daniel's number.

Boston Trip #4: Rivers Gets Her Cast Off!

When we stepped out of the taxi at our hotel in Boston, the first thing Rivers wanted to do was to touch the snow! It is the first time she has seen snow! It was terribly cold, and our suitcase didn't get delivered until the next morning, so we didn't have coats, but we paused briefly to take this picture.

Mimi took some pictures of me bathing and drying Rivers hair the morning of her appointment. Everything is just so awkward with a body cast. You have to find a new way to sit, bathe, play...everything which makes life interesting!

Just after they removed her cast, Rivers was testing her new found freedom and picked her right leg straight up off of the table. Then she bounced her hips up and down and tried to pick up her left leg, which came off of the table just a few inches. Usually, when she has her casts removed, she is very uncomfortable and has to take pain medicine for several days. We were thrilled and amazed that she could already move around a bit.

After they removed her cast, they cleaned out all of the Gortex and cotton on the inside, then lined it with a cotton lining and fitted her to be able to remove it. Dr. Kim said she should transition out of the cast and into her brace over several weeks. After she started moving around so much, I went down the hall to let him know what all she was doing already. He was so pleased and came back to see her. He said that she is to wear her brace 19 hours a day, but outside of that, she could move any way that she is comfortable. I have a feeling that she'll be walking in the next month! She is already talking about it.

After we left the hospital, we headed out to the mall and ate dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. Rivers was exhausted and slept in the stroller until about mid-way through the meal. A nice man outside said that he hadn't done his "good deed for the day" and offered to take our picture in front of the snow covered bushes. We paused quickly and hurried into the taxi.

When we got back to the hotel, Rivers took a bath! Yeah! Then I shaved her legs to get the sticky cast glue off. She has really bad rashes on the backs of her legs and her back, but they're beginning to heal up. 10 week is a long time to be covered in a material that doesn't allow your skin to breathe.
It felt so good to hold Rivers close! We looked at her legs in the mirror, and she laid down on my stomach on the bed and just smiled and laughed. She was so excited!


When we got home, she crawled after Jackson on the floor. Then we got her ready for bed and put her brace on. Daniel agreed with how good it felt to hold her close again! We also found out in Boston that her knee surgery will not be until July. Rivers will have a CT scan in April, and hopefully it will show that her femur is in place in her hip. They want to allow enough time for healing before they tackle another obstacle. Honestly, it's great to know we'll have a break from surgery once we get past Jackson's.

Jackson In Surgery: Monday

Well, they called out at about 10:15 and said that they were beginning Jackson's surgery. We put him into the arms of a nurse at 9:15. He went willingly in his sleepy "Versed" state of mind. He looked so cute in his little hospital gown with the back open and his diaper showing.

Jackson is such a sweet little boy! He had no idea what was in store for him this morning when we came to Levine Children's Hospital. It is such a beautiful place with lots of colors and fun things to distract you. He played contentedly in the pre-op holding room and walked around in his little blue hospital socks. The nurses, anesthesiologist, and plastic surgeon (Dr. LeFaivre) came in to talk with us and go over details. Jackson went straight to the anesthesiologist, which stole his heart. He sure knows who to get in good with, huh? The surgery should last until 5:00 or 6:00. We'll do our best to keep everyone updated...