Happy 2nd Birthday, Wesley!! (and other exciting news)

Wesley turned two on Thursday, so we had a birthday party with the Grandparents this afternoon. He still isn't into opening gifts, but I am sure by next year he'll enjoy it more. Wes loved the tickle me Cookie Monster Damon and I got him. We let Wes have his own cupcake, but he only had a few bites of icing. He spent a lot of time stabbing it with a fork though.

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As Wes and I were going grocery shopping on Thursday, I got a call on my cell phone from Cincinnati Children's. The call was from Wesley's surgeon's scheduler. She asked me if I could call and move up the MRI scheduled in mid-April to the first week of April. Before I said I would call and change it, she said that the surgeon wanted to meet with us the second week of April, then his surgery would be on the 17th. It took me a second to catch my thoughts, and all I could say was "the surgery on his esophagus?" The scheduler said "yes," and I know she was wondering if I was an airhead. Apparently the surgeon decided that we didn't have to wait until later in the year for Wesley's repair surgery!!
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Of course I was in complete shock after the phone call! We don't know at this point why the surgeon decided to move up the surgery, but he is supposed to call Damon. I wonder if is because we told the surgeon that we had already been working on teaching Wes to eat, so he thought - why wait? I'm curious to find out the reason though.

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It's taken me a while, but I've come to grips with the change again. So we have two months until NO MORE SPIT OUT WESLEY"S NECK!! I am not excited about Wesley having to go through a very difficult and complicated surgery, but I am excited for what his life will be like after the surgery. It will be a difficult few months after the surgery, but we'll make it.

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Please pray for us as we prepare for the surgery with work schedules, teaching Wesley to eat by mouth, Wesley's health before and after surgery.

a family picture (amazing - we are actually all smiling!)

blowing out the birthday candles (Grandma had to hold his hands back so he didn't touch the candles)

digging into the cake with his fork

the cake though - not so much

wiping the cupcake on his face

riding in his new wagon with his sock monkey

thank you!

Thank you everyone for your prayers and words of encouragement! I am feeling much more positive about the surgery change now. The more time I had to think about it, the more I realized that the fall might even be a better time than the spring. If the surgery were to be in late spring/summer, then how would I keep a two year-old down and resting instead of running around outside and playing?? In the fall/winter we stay home more than the summer, so it gives us time to rest and work on feeding by mouth. Damon and I are also desperate to go on a vacation (Ukraine was NOT a vacation by any means), so we'll have time to do that.
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Another consideration is that Damon and I will be able to use another 12 weeks of FMLA leave (Family Medical Leave Act) after mid-July. Damon used all of his time and I used almost all of my time with the adoption, so we can be sure that we have the time to spend with Wes after surgery and at home without rushing back to work.

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A later surgery date also gives us time to prepare - with our jobs and also with teaching Wesley to eat. The doctor thinks that the better he can eat before surgery, the less transition there will be after.

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So thank you to everyone who said a prayer for us! My attitude about the whole thing has been changed, and I am content now going with the flow. I know that God has everything planned out, and I am trusting Him.

feeling discouraged

I am just feeling very discouraged right now. We went to Cincinnati Children's Hospital late this afternoon for an appointment with the surgeon who will repair Wesley's esophagus. (Side note: since we had the last appointment of the day, we were able to spend a lot more time with the doctor - almost 45 minutes) Anyway...the doctor wants to do a MRI in early April and possibly a scope to determine how much esophagus Wesley has from the top down. Wes has nothing from the stomach up, so it's not likely there will be much from the top down. The doctor told us that he isn't sure that Wesley will be a good candidate for the stomach pull-up surgery. The other option (which may have more complications) is to use a section of Wesley's colon as his esophagus

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The doctor also wants us to continue to work with Wesley on eating. He thinks that after surgery the transition to eating only by mouth will be much faster if he's already used to eating. I was just hoping that Wesley would love to eat so much that he just picked it up...I know how important this is, but it is just such a hassle. To do it, I have to take off most of his clothes and get out at least five towels and washcloths. After he eats about two ounces (which takes at least 20 minutes, usually more like 30), he HAS to get in the bath (which takes at least another 20 minutes since he now loves the bathtub). I do know that the more Wesley can eat now, the better off he'll be after surgery.

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The delay of the surgery is hitting me a lot harder than I thought it would. It's just that Damon and I absolutely love to eat, and we want Wes to learn to like it as well. It's just so frustrating to go out to eat (which we do more than we probably should), and tell the wait staff "no thanks, he's already eaten" or that he'll have some of ours (and he doesn't). I know most of them think we are crazy. They probably think "hey lady, your kid wouldn't be so small if you let him eat at dinner."

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Please just pray for us (especially me) because I am taking this hard. I know that everything will happen in God's perfect timing, but to be honest, I like when my timing and God's are the same. Thank you for your support and prayers!!!!

Staci

Super Bowl Sunday

I love this picture - Wes looks like he's deep in thought. (He was actually watching a truck plow the parking lot)
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We're home from our Super Bowl party, so we're watching it at home (GO CARDINALS!!). I guess that's how it works with a two year-old! Wes started to melt down, so we decided to pack it up before it became a full-flown mess. He doesn't seem to get cranky when he's with us and he gets tired, but when he is around other children, he turns into a whiny mess. Not sure why...

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We survived the big snow here last week (probably only 8" or so, but the ice underneath the snow was the problem). Wes was supposed to have an appointment on Wednesday with the surgeon, but the hospital called and canceled it. We had already left to head to Cincinnati (almost three hours early), but they called us about 30 minutes after we left home (we were less than 10 miles from home). Our appointment has been rescheduled to this Wednesday, so hopefully we'll know more then. Here is what the roads looked like on Wednesday about 11am. This is actually a fairly heavily-traveled road...

I see that our poll on where we should adopt from next has closed. It looks like the winner is Ukraine or another Eastern European country with 55% of the vote. The runners-up were the United States at 31%, Asia at 11%, Africa at 10%, and South America at 5%. We actually haven't decided yet, but it is something we're talking about. I'll post when we've made a decision - please pray for us about this. It's such a big decision, and we don't take it lightly.

Wes hanging out watching "Super Why." His new thing is always putting his hands in his pockets like he's cool. Wesley showing me his sock monkey Wes and Daddy at dinner Friday night Katie with my scarf on. I put it on her because it just came out of the dryer, and she LOVES to be wrapped up in things that are warm.

Friday night I cleaned out pantry. I have actually never taken everything out and cleaned it! When we moved in, my Mom and friends put things away for us, so I had never had the chance to get it organized like I wanted. Now I know what food I actually have!!