Progress, Prayer and Praise

I'm sure that if Jacob could really put together full sentences at this point in his young life, he would certainly say, "It sure is great to be home." I know that Courtney and I thank the Lord daily that we are all back home together again. And while Jacob isn't busting out long sentences, we have seen his vocabulary grow a little each day. He especially enjoys repeating what his older brother says, and James is seldom ever at a loss for words.

Jacob is making good progress all the way around, but there are still some challenges. He's down to only three medicines a day, one of which is only required once per day. His right side pin site has healed well and does not require us to "burn" it any longer. With the help of a Physical Therapist and lots of extra practice, Jacob is now able to sit up pretty well on his own. He has also begun walking again with the help of a mini-walker. He seems to have a very strong desire to walk, motivated in large part by his older brother James. His legs are still a little bit week and his balance is still off, but he improves a little with each day. I almost can't wait for the day I come home from work and he is able to walk or crawl over to the front door to greet me. That will be a great day.

His SP tube and urine bag have pretty much worked as they are supposed to. We had a slight scare one day last week when it appeared that the tube had become clogged. We are thankful that it was actually the bag that was having the problem, and once we removed it, everything began flowing again. We still have to "probe" his stoma on a daily basis, however, we are thankful that the Lord has not only allowed this process to go smoother (i.e. it goes in easier and is slightly less irritating), but has also led several nurses from our church (and a home health nurse who comes once a week) to help relieve us from having to do this all by ourselves. These ladies have all been a blessing to us and we thank God for giving them the heart, desire and skills to help out us out. We have also been blessed to have several families from our church bring us dinner a few times a week. I would be remiss, though, if I didn't thank everyone who has and continues to pray for us each and every day. The Lord hears our prayers and uses them to His glory.

There are several things, though, for which we ask that you pray.

1. Jacob still has trouble sleeping at night and we can't always tell what might be bothering him. We think that often times it may just be gas, but we know that it could be a number of things. Courtney and I are pretty tired, but the Lord continues to be merciful to us and grants us strength, even when we're not sure if we can get out of bed in the morning.

2. Courtney just had surgery on a "bad" tooth today that had been causing her pain for the past few months. The Lord was gracious in that the tooth did not bother her much in Baltimore, but shortly after we arrived back in Chattanooga, the pain kicked in again. We ask that you pray for complete healing and that her pain will subside soon.

3. Courtney's grandfather (Gramps) passed away this past Sunday after battling several health issues for quite some time. Services will be this weekend. He was a wonderful example of what it meant to be a servant to others and we will miss him greatly. We are thankful, though, that he is no longer suffering and is now with his Lord and King in heaven.

4. We must still continue to "burn" the wound site that is located slightly above Jacob's urethra. This "wound" was the place where the false entry point was created back when we were having difficulty cathing him. The wound has "granulized" (not sure if this is the exact word) and we basically have to use silver nitrate to actually burn this tissue. It is a quick, but very painful process (for both us and Jacob). Please pray that this area will heal soon and no longer require this process.

5. It is hard for us to believe sometimes, but our older son James will be heading off to Kindergarten next year, Lord willing. Please pray for wisdom for us as we seek to find the right school for him. We have applied for admission into one of the Magnet schools located in downtown Chattanooga, close to where I work. Admission is based on a lottery system and we may be placed on a waiting list, but would sure like to have him in a good school, located close to where I work (so I can take him in the morning).

6. Lastly, we ask that you pray that God will grant us the wisdom and clarity of thought needed to take care of not only Jacob's needs, but also James and ourselves.

May God bless each one of you richly and may He grant you the peace that passes all understanding.

Daddy BA

Home at Last

After part of three days and two nights on the road, we ALL arrived back safely in Chattanooga yesterday afternoon. The trip itself, even though long, went well and everyone stayed healthy. I know that Courtney and Jacob were especially happy to be back in their own home again after being away for 100+ days. Please rejoice with us and give thanks to the Lord for all he has done.

There are a few challenges that lie ahead for us and so we continue to ask for your prayers. The catheter situation did not work out for us or for Jacob, so the doctor agreed to let us keep the SP tube and "pee" bag in place for the time being. The plan is to return to Johns Hopkins in early January for another bladder scope. We may then attempt to catheterize his urethra again and go from there.

In the meantime, we do have a pretty rigid schedule we have to follow that involves everything from wound care to around the clock meds to stoma care. Here are a few specific items for which we seek your prayers:

1. The transition back to home life for everyone, especially Courtney and Jacob. This may sound trivial, but there will likely be an adjustment period for all of us.
2. Jacob's stoma - we have to probe it twice a day to prevent skin from growing over it. While this is a quick procedure, it is painful for him and rough on us. The doctors tell us that if the skin were to grow over the stoma, it will require a pretty major surgery.
3. Jacob's urination and SP tube - we had a slight concern last night that perhaps the tube was becoming clogged with particulate of some kind. With instruction from one of the doctors, we were able to flush it out and things seemed to start flowing again. Please pray that the SP tube will stay in and that "pee" will flow out as it should.
4. Jacob's wound care - he has two wound sites that have been slow to heal and require us to "burn" them with silver nitrate to help them heal.
5. Jacob's fluid intake - it is very important that Jacob drink plenty of fluids to stay hydrated and to keep things flowing through the SP tube
6. Jacob's medications - at present, he is taking about four different medicines, some every four hours, in addition to Tylenol and Ibuprofen. Some of these meds will continue for a long time and others will require that we gradually wean him from them to try and reduce the occurrence of withdrawal symptoms.
6. James - it is important that we not allow all of Jacob's needs to completely overshadow James. Also, please pray for us as we look for a school for James (he will likely enter kindergarten next fall).
7. Sleep for all of us - please pray that Jacob will sleep well at night. He continues to wake up from time-to-time and we cannot always tell what may be bothering him. It could be gas or could be something involving his bladder or some other type of pain. Please pray that we will have wisdom in knowing how to treat these episodes as they come up.

Again, though, we are so very thankful for your prayers throughout this journey in our lives. God had definitely used them to sustain us. Please give all praise to Him for the great things He has done.

In Christ Alone,

Daddy BA

Prayer Request

Last night, we again had difficulty "cathing" Jacob. This morning, we took him to the ER to see the Urologist on call. He was able to get it to work, but it was not nearly as smooth as it was a couple of days ago. We even tried using a smaller catheter, which helped a little, but it was still difficult and very uncomfortable for Jacob. So, the doctor put a catheter in to stay until Monday afternoon, when we will see Dr. Gearhart at his clinic.

We don't anticipate having to extend our stay at this point (we hope to leave Tuesday), but we do ask that you pray that the doctors will find a good solution to these challenges we've been having with the catheter. In addition, we also have to "probe" his stoma once or twice a day to help keep skin from growing around it. We discovered this yesterday when we had a clinical visit with the General Pediatric Surgery team.

Praise the Lord, for His love and faithfulness endure forever.

Daddy BA