Surgery, Recovery, and Life

October 21, 2014

Surgery, Recovery, and Life

The last six weeks have been different. Crazy. Busy. Emotional. Difficult. Precious. I could go on and on, but don't worry. I won't :). Jonathan made it through surgery and it was hard. The recovery was much worse than that of the recovery for surgery #1. He had reactions to the anesthesia, he had nausea, he had discomfort & pain. It was tough. Once we made it out of the hospital, we had to move his bed downstairs to our dining room and he had to adjust to sleeping on his back, and having lots more assistance with everything he once had complete independence.

There have been difficult days, but God has been so good. He has carried us through hard times and has blessed us with happy times also. We have realized once again how much we have to be thankful for and how much we take for granted. I have had reminders once again as a mom that I am to lose that selfishness of mine that I can so tightly cling to. One would think after five children I would already have learned that lesson!

During this time, we also have celebrated three of the kids' birthdays! Trey turned 18, Jonathan turned 15, & Elizabeth turned 6. Birthdays have been a great distraction through this. For Jonathan's birthday, we gave him lots of things he could do at the table, such as Legos and art supplies :). He has loved his projects! We also went on our annual beach trip with our homeschool group. It was sad at first to be there knowing that Jonathan could not swim. But we are so thankful that we went and were able to enjoy a change of scenery! There is something about the ocean air that just seems to clear my brain and help me relax :).

Working through selfishness, rearranging life and schedules, and minor inconveniences have been nothing through this whole ordeal compared to watching our son in physical pain and discomfort. Thankfully, once he adjusted to the cast, pain has been at a minimum. That by far, has been the hardest part through it all, though, when he was in pain or frustrated by discomfort of his cast.

One thing that has been on my mind lately is routine. So many days over the years, I have complained in my mind (or even out loud), when I had to play taxi to the kids for various activities. Granted, we do carefully choose things the kids are involved in due to logistics and just how we operate within our family. One of the activities Jonathan has been involved in since I was pregnant with Elizabeth (and now also where Rebekah volunteers) is the Wings of Eagles Therapeutic Horseback Riding Ranch. It is truly a wonderful facility that Jonathan has always loved. However, it is about a 45 minute drive from our home, and I admit that there were weeks I complained about the drive. This is the first fall since 2008 that we have not participated. On the opening week of the fall session, when we would typically have been driving to the ranch, I felt sad. Sad that our routine that was, could not be. I know it is not permanent. But, it made me think of the families with children in the hospital who would love to just one day, play taxi and get back into a normal routine. It made me thank God again, that we are okay and soon we will be back in our routine. It is that "dying to self" lesson again that I am being reminded of.

So, here I am on Monday night writing this as tomorrow is the day we have been counting down to on the calendar. Tomorrow is "cast off" day and I am so thankful. I am praying that his hip has healed properly. We still need to take it easy a few more weeks, but at least now he will not have on a cast and can take a nice long bath when we get home (which he is so ready to do :)!

Through this, I am thankful for friends that brought meals. I am thankful for friends and parents who sat with us during surgeries. I am thankful for family that came to see him, called, and texted to let us know they were praying. I am thankful for a church that prays & cares, pastors that hang out in the hospital, and a caring homeschool group that prays. I am thankful for friends who played with him to help him pass the time. I am thankful for siblings who were patient and kind when they didn't always feel like it and also prayed for him daily. I am thankful for a spouse who is a good daddy who is kind hearted and strong. I am thankful for parents who love us and love our boy. I am thankful to be the mama of our five blessings. I am thankful to be a mama of a son with Down syndrome. I am thankful for God's promises and His love for me and my family.

Here are a few photos of the last 6 weeks:

Before his 2nd surgery, he was SUCH a comedian. I was thankful the nurses, doctors, and his surgeon got to see his personality before the surgery.