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Surgery Update
On September 5 Brett had his 3rd set of surgeries. This one was a biggie, requiring a 3-day stay! Prayers were answered as the day progressed and our little trooper came through everything just fine. Dr Eppley, the plastic surgeon had a little trouble with the palate, since Brett’s mouth anatomy is very small. In fact, he almost aborted the surgery! Thankfully, he continued and Brett has a full palate! The other part of the surgery was a G-Tube insertion into the stomach, and a nissen, which prevents Brett from refluxing. We’ve had quite a bit of trouble in the recent months with Brett gaining weight partly because of daily refluxing. Amazingly though he has never gone backwards in weight!
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Our Riley Stay
Once again our experience at Riley Children’s hospital was a good one. The staff is so kind. Jan and I were both able to sleep in Brett’s room which was really nice. During the night the place was a maze of beds, but the staff worked around it and were able to get their job done. Brett spent 2 ˝ days inside an oxygen tent to help with his congested breathing. His SATS were fine by Thursday afternoon once he was taken out of the tent. We kept him on morphine for 1 ˝ days and then started to switch to Tylenol. We again were amazed at how quickly he seemed to handle the pain. He was pretty much sleepy from Tuesday afternoon until Friday morning but by Friday he was looking all around and wanting to be patted for comfort. Because of all his hook-ups, we did not hold him until Friday evening. We all enjoyed a round of hugs!
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We were glad the children, Jan's parents, and Brett's special Aunt Joan came to visit
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Brett's lips were quite swollen from being stretched so far!
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Feeding directly into Brett's stomach
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What’s next?
The G-tube surgery gave Brett a temporary feeding tube. Early October we will return to the clinic to have a “button” put in its place. Feedings will become easier as we won’t have to be careful about the “temporary” coming out anymore. Right now we must be very careful that nothing pulls the “temp” out, otherwise we are on our way to the emergency room. The hole must not close up! Feedings are going pretty well after a little “fine tuning” by the engineer in the family. We are using a pump system right now so that we can control the amount of feed at a rate that Brett’s small stomach can handle. Overtime, we’d like to stretch his stomach. We pray that the nissen will hold, and continue to prevent reflux for many years. The palate surgery requires no follow up. Down the road he will need to have the same surgery again as his mouth grows. But for at least 2 years we should be free of surgeries. The next would be a touch up to the lip and nostril area, maybe in 2008.
Looking to November
Lord willing we will return to Haiti November 6 and begin our work once again. All doctors have given us the ok, so we trust in the One who made Brett and gave him to us to care for. Thanks for all the love and prayers shown to us over the past year. By His grace we take one day at a time, waiting upon Him. Without the strength of Jesus and the prayers of our friends and family, at times I wonder where we would be. What an awesome God we serve!
In His Care, Jan, Val and Family
1 Pet 5:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you
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