Week #5

Can't believe we are on our 5th week of being here. Luckily time seems to be going by quickly. Trinity is loving her time here at Gillette! I have also had some really great opportunities while being here to share my faith with others, but to also listen and learn about others and their circumstances and then pray with them. It has been fun to see God at work while we are here!

Trinity with her new friend Carissa

Today we found out some good news. Surgery will be scheduled for August 8th, less than 2 weeks away! As of yesterday Trinity had reached her max weight for traction at 17lbs. Sometime I challenge you to pick up 17lbs in weight with just one hand and see how that might feel on your head. She's having a lot more headaches with this amount of weight, but she is impressing everyone with her perseverance through all of this. I am so amazed by how well she has done with the weight. Her curve has corrected about 15 degrees since starting the traction. They are happy to see an improvement, but I think they were hoping to see more. On the 8th they will put in a spinal rod. The plan is to have 2 ortho surgeons and a plastic surgeon in the OR at the time of surgery. Their biggest concern is that the skin on the back will not close, but they are working hard to come up with a plan that will hopefully prevent that.

Trinity with her friend Json and Pokey the Bear(Json bought it for Trinity)

We would appreciate your prayers as we anticipate the upcoming surgery. Praying that God directs the Surgeons as they make plans for placing the rod and are fully prepared for surgery on the 8th. Also that Trinity's skin would surprise everyone and not cause an issue after the rod is placed.

Playing in the water and shaving cream are her two favorite things to do with the nurses!

We are so thankful for all of you!!!

Week #3 Update

I could never be a writer because I struggle just titling our blog post! :-)

Things are going really well here. Trinity is just starting week #3 in the halo and is a rock star so far! Her current weight on the traction is 10 lbs and they hope to get another 2-5 lbs on there. Tomorrow she will have an x-ray that will hopefully show them how her spine is responding to the traction. In a couple weeks they may have a better idea of when the spinal rod could be placed.

So far we are adjusting well to our new way of life. My husband is amazing and brought me up my own coffee pot so I could brew my own right from the comfort of my room! The nurses are making comments about getting their morning coffee from our room. ;-) Aubree is staying with Trinity and I this week. Trinity has a lot of activities in mind for her!

We continue to appreciate all the prayers. This is definitely a trying time for our family to be apart, but God has already done some pretty amazing things during our stay here. Shannon has had the opportunity to pray with multiple families and a homeless guy during his run on Saturday. Our family was blessed to serve a meal at the Ronald McDonald House on Saturday night and it was nice to actually cook a meal and bless others.

Our family and friends have shown us so much love over the past 2 weeks. Trinity is fully stocked with coloring books, crafts and books to read. I have been blessed also with books and yummy snacks. Shannon and the kids are being very well fed while at home and have received some great gift cards to help with gas and food during their travel here. Our words of gratitude will never be enough to express how deeply grateful we are for the support we have felt.

Blessings!!