Praise

Jacob seems to be staying dry, now.  We will continue to monitor things during the night.  We are going to try to grab a little sleep, so good night to everyone for now.

May we ever praise Him, the Lord of hosts.

Mommy and Daddy

Prayer request

As we were looking at Jacob's incisions, tubes and very nice looking stoma, we noticed that he was kind of wet down below.  The nurse went ahead and changed out his bedding, but we are concerned that it may be leaking.  This area - his old urethra - should be closed off.  His output from the many other tubes is great, though, so please pray that this doesn't turn out to be anything significant.

May God sustain us according to His good purposes.

Mommy and Daddy

PICU tonight and visit from a good friend

Jacob really does look good.  Praise The Lord.  We arrived in the PICU at about 7pm, where he will stay tonight.  The original plan was for him to go to a regular room tonight, but the hospital is surprisingly full.

One of our most favorite nurses - Kiki (Karen) came by to see us.  Even though we do not have her as our main nurse this stay, it was great to see her and know that she is keeping up with us.  Jacob was even alert enough to let her give him a quick hug and a kiss.

Our main prayer request this evening is for good pain management.  There are several meds out there that will make him very hyper instead of helping him rest.

As you pray, though, please do give thanks to God above for bringing Jacob safely through this full day of surgery.

He is a good, gracious and merciful God.

Mommy and Daddy

Right down the middle

Dr G just left a moment ago and said that everything seemed to go very well.  We told him that there were many prayers going up during the surgery and asked him if he felt those.  He said that he absolutely did and that He basically "hit one down the middle for them."

There were a number of  praises mentioned.  First, they had just enough bowel/colon from where his colostomy prolapsed to augment the bladder and create a channel for his continence stoma.  This stoma is located in his belly button and will ultimately be where he starts to cath before too long.  Dr G mentioned that, because no additional bowel was needed, he should heal faster and be able to get the NG tube out sooner.

Also, his bladder grew a good deal, even since his July check-up, another indicator of the potential for faster healing.

Lastly, he mentioned that there was a good amount of skin and muscle in his abdomen, thus making the closure easier.  Also, he did not require any extra blood.

What's next?

We are waiting for Jacob to be released to recovery and Dr G thinks he can go right to his room tonight shortly thereafter.  He will likely remain in the hospital for 7-10 days - but we are not completely sure.

He has an SP tube, two urethral stents and the continence stoma.  As we understand it, the tube and stents will remain in place for about four weeks.  This will allow time for healing and for training on the use of the catheter.  If all goes as planned, he will eventually be down to just the catheter - no more pull-ups!

Please continue to pray for a fast but complete recovery and good pain management.


Thank you, thank you to all who have and continue to hold Jacob and our family up before the throne of our glorious Lord, Savior and King - Jesus.

On our way to see him...

He looks good - not fully awake, yet.



Mommy and Daddy

Closing time - an update

We just received word that the doctors are getting Jacob closed up now.  We expect to hear from Dr G very soon.

Mommy and Daddy

Hi

Still nothing.

Mommy

Empty waiting room

Here is the door we have been watching intently over the past nine hours.

Mommy and Daddy

Still no news

To quote a Tom Petty song - "the waiting is the hardest part".  Jacob is still in surgery - no further updates, yet.  Thank you so much for your prayers, FB comments and texts.  God has certainly used those to help make the "waiting" much more bearable.

Lord - grant us the patience to wait on your good timing.

Mommy and Daddy

No news yet.

Just to let you know, we haven't heard anything.


Mommy and Daddy

Update from Dr Lau

Dr Lau just came out and he has finished with the colostomy revision. He removed a section of Jacob's colon, about 5 inches, that Dr Gearhart will use for the bladder augmentation. He also reduced the size of his stoma by about 30% to help reduce the chance of it prolapsing so much. He was able to keep it in the same location, too, which we consider a blessing (moving it may have created challenges as their isn't much space in his abdominal area).

Through the power and strength of our Firm Foundation, Jesus Christ.

Mommy and Daddy

First update

One of the patient reps came by to let us know that the picc line was successfully inserted and Jacob is stable.

Mommy and Daddy

Underway

As of 7:50, the anesthesia kicked in and Jacob is alseep.  His Mommy and I were able to say a short prayer with him right before the meds went in.  God has granted Jacob great tolerance this time - he has handled everything very well so far.

Thank you for your prayers both today and in the coming days and weeks.


May the Lord work in and through this surgery, that which pleases Him.

Mommy and Daddy

A few more minutes...

We are in the pre-op room, checking to make sure we have consent in place for Dr Lau (colostomy revision).  The man with the plan, Dr G, just came by to say "hi" and introduce on of his fellow doctors who will be following us while in the hospital.  

Surgery Day

The day we've been praying for and anticipating is here.  The surgery is scheduled to start at around 7:30 this morning.  Jacob had a pretty good night, all things considered.   They expect to take him back in the next few minutes.  Please pray for everyone involved today - doctors, nurses,  technicians and other staff.

More in a few.

May God be glorified.

Mommy and Daddy