The Final Stretch?

Owen had another good day yesterday and got to go for a wagon ride with Melissa.  After work the kids and grandma's came up to visit.  Uncle Jake, Aunt Sue, and cousin Alex were there when we arrived.  Owen was excited to see everyone.

He was not so excited when the group left and Melissa went home as well.  Melissa had to work this weekend so she went home and dad took over hanging out with Owen.  He actually did pretty well and went to sleep shortly after they left.

He had a tough stretch from about 10:30 pm - 1:00am.  He was in some pain and when that happens his breathing starts getting heavy and the staff gets nervous.  The challenge is that each shift brings a new group of people who have not seen Owen and have to go through the motions to get familiar with him.  So this involves a wake up about every 20 minutes for a check, poke or prod.  Owen was not too happy which made the breathing worse which in turn makes the staff even more nervous.  The staff here is great so I do not want to make this sound like I am questioning anyone here.  It just seems a good night sleep would do him a lot of good.  After about 1:00am things settled down for Owen (dad is still so sleepy!).

This morning we received multiple phone calls from Melissa wanting updates and details.  All is good and still hoping to come home Monday (could turn into Tuesday if surgery team does not get down here to remove the chest tube and start the swallow).

Owen and I went for a walk in the wagon today and he loved that.  Went went outside for a while and got some fresh air.  Hopefully today will remain un-eventful and Owen can just focus on getting better.

The Comeback Is On!

Owen had another good day today.  When I (dad) arrived after work to Owen's new room he was sitting in the chair with Melissa.  It was nice to see him not laying in the bed.  They moved the Big O out of PICU and into a regular room.  He continues to improve and was in great spirits today.  His only frustration now is that he want to eat.  They are feeding him with the tube and the intake has been ramped up.  He still wants "bite".

The other great thing was Owen did not have an IV in either arm (it was a mistake to take the second out).  There is still a line in one of his feet so they are going to try and ride out the storm with the one in his foot and hopefully not have to stick him again.  He also does not have any wires connected to his chest so he is looking better all the time.  He still have the chest tube and we are hoping that comes out soon.  Surgeon does not want to take that out too soon just in case. 

Doctor on duty tonight told us that he will be here at least until Monday.  So it may be Dad's turn to stay at the hospital since Melissa is scheduled to work this weekend and we need the money!

The last several days have been mentally tough as I think about Owen when he had this same procedure in China.  According to the paper work he was in the hospital there for a few months.  The sad part is he had nobody to love him and comfort him.  He would have been there all alone with only the hospital staff coming to his room.  Melissa has never left his room since he got here. I know there are kids in this hospital who probably have no family or anyone coming to visit, it is just sad.

Keep praying and hopefully Owen will be back to normal and heading home. 

ALSO, we are so blessed to have two Grandma's so close and willing to help us.  They have been so helpful and we want to say, "Thanks". 

Prayers heard and answered

Owen had a much better day today.  He got his art line taken out and stayed off the oxygen.  He even got up in a wagon and went for a ride around the PICU.  He wasn't too thrilled about that.  He is still pretty sore when you have to move him.   The kids came up to see him and his spirits really picked up.  He is asking for "bite"  he  wants to eat.  They have restarted the tube feedings.  So far so good. 
Owen loved watching Grandma's IPhone.  Ansley put Bear in the Big Blue House on for him and he just loved it.  He also enjoyed watching Big Will make Iris walk on the ceiling.  Thank you Grandma's and Will and Jess for coming to visit him.  It really made his day.  His heart rate and respiratory rate have been very high the whole time he had been here.  Once his family came in the heart rate and respiratory rate dropped down to a normal rate and he didn't set off any alarms until the nurses came in to check on him. 
Thank you everyone for praying for our sweet boy.  Please continue to pray for him.

Hoping for a better night

I am asking for prayers for Owen.  He has really struggled today with the pain.  It is so hard to see your baby in so much pain. 
Owen's surgery went really well.  The doctor was very happy with what they found once they were inside.  It turns out my boy is 1 in a million (I already knew that).  He apparently had 2 fistulas not just one.  So it seems China did in fact do a good job fixing his fistula, only they didn't notice the second one.  Our doctor said it is very uncommon for a child to have 2 so they fixed the first one and didn't go looking for any more.  Surprise!  Doctor Schropp said this was in fact good news.  Now he is the first one to repair this fistula.  The chances for a re-fistulation are pretty high on a site that had been repaired previously.  Dr Schropp feels like he stands a very good chance of this finally fixing him.  Praise the Lord. 

So we are in the pediatric intensive care unit where they are taking very good care of him.  They are having trouble keeping his pain under control.  They don't want to give him so much pain medication that he stops breathing.  They do not want to put him on a vent.  He has a chest tube in so he is very sore.  He  wants to keep me in his sight at all times.  He will only calm down if I am holding his hand or rubbing his head.  So of course I am happy to do that for him. 
We are hoping he feels like having the kids come to see him tomorrow evening.  They are dying to see for themselves that Owen is doing alright.  We also have high hopes that he will be able to start the feeding tubes in the morning.  They tried to start him on it today and he just wasn't ready for it.   He is off the oxygen now and able to maintain his oxygen levels. He is also running a fever. 
Owen is such a strong little guy.  He just amazes me.  I am so blessed that I get to be his momma.  I get to be here to offer him all the love and comfort he needs.  The last time he had this surgery he was all alone. That just breaks my heart.  It is no wonder he wont let me (and his thumb)out of his sight.  
Now we are going to try to get some sleep before they come back in to check on him.  Please continue to pray for Owen and his healing.

Owen Has The Big Surgery Today

Owen had his Big Surgery today and is now recovering.  We arrived at the hospital at 6:00am for a 8:00am surgery.  He was in the operating room for 6 1/2 hours.  The doctor informed us that Owen did great and he was very happy with what he was able to do in surgery.  There was a lot of scar tissue from his previous surgery in China so that made the surgery last much longer than anticipated.

Pre-Surgery After Taking "Happy" Juice

There are a lot of details we discussed with the doctor but it is late and it has been a long day.  We will try to give more details in the coming days.  Owen is going to be very uncomfortable for several days.  The had to "move a few ribs" and that can not be pleasant.  Hopefully the can monitor the pain medication to get him through the tough times.  He was such a little trooper today!

When the surgery was finally over the doctor came out and said he was asking for his "Mama".  When we arrived back in recovery the first thing Owen said was, "bite".  That his his way of telling us he is hungry and ready to eat.

Owen in Recovery

It was amazing how many people at the hospital knew Owen and Melissa when we arrived.  This poor little guy has been through so much and deserves to catch a break with his health.  We are praying this is it.

Ansley Is Brave!

Tonight was a huge night for the Chambers family, especially for Ansley.  We all went to the swimming pool after work to beat the heat.  With not much encouraging Ansley followed dad to the diving board.  She did it for the first time!  And the second, and third!  We may have a little fish on our hands.

Ansley is very brave and willing to step out there and try new things.  We love you Ansley and are very proud of you!

Turn Up, The Radio.....

Today was a big day for Iris.  She now has hearing aids in both ears.  They are stylish and so far she seems to be doing fine with them.

Melissa took Iris this morning for the appointment and fitting.  As soon as they got home Melissa called to tell me how amazed she was watching the testing.  It was night and day when testing with the aids and without the aids.  How did we miss it so badly? 

We are just glad it was noticed before she starts school.  This will give her a much better chance for success and eliminate one more obstacle for her.

The other kids are doing great.  They are all a little bored and stir crazy with the hot hot summer, too hot to play outside as usual.  Ansley is ready for school to start.  Elliot is not sure about this "going to school all day long" thing starting this year.  Iris is so excited about starting Pre-K and loves telling people she will be going to Whitefield with Ansley and Elliot.  Everyone has new shoes and back packs and is ready.

Poor little Owen......  he is doing so awesome and is definitely figuring everything out.  He is so mobile and full of laughs.  He loves playing with the other kids and they love playing with him.  He has found his niche in the family.  His favorite thing is eating (feeding himself).  There have been no issues in the last several weeks with his eating and drinking.  It is almost like there is nothing wrong with him......  But come Monday he is not going to be happy.  He will have surgery on Monday and it will be back to the feeding tube for at least a month, no food or drink via the mouth.  He is not going to understand why this is happening to him.  He is going to be crushed.

We think Owen could be in the hospital for about a week.  Doctor mentioned a week or so but will have to see how the surgery goes.  Same with the actual surgery.  Not sure how long it will take and doctor said it will all depend on what they find when they get him opened up.  Maybe he will find a miracle when he gets in there and there is no hole!  It does not hurt to dream a little.

Followers, please start your prayers...............