What We Read During Three Weeks in the Hospital
In the midst of trial, there was blessing. I spent many hours helping our daughter weather the needs she had: bathroom trips while attached to cords and drains, pain from abdominal surgery and two drain procedures, nausea and vomiting several times a day (I could relate to that- 'twas a lot like morning sickness), exhaustion because being in the hospital oddly prevents one from sleeping, and manic highs and lows as the morphine was bolused then diminished. But there was also quiet.  Time to think.  Time to read.  Time to look at my fifth child and study her. Friends came and read to her and had their own special books: Caddie Woodlawn, Little Men, the American Girl series, The Secret Garden, Mrs. Piggle Wiggle.  I remembered that she hadn't been old enough to listen in when we first read Emily's Runaway Imagination, and it seemed the perfect light-hearted little distraction.  Then a friend suggested Louisa May Alcott's  Jack and Jill, and I just couldn't get over what a perfect fit this book was for our hospital stay.  Its main characters both end up invalids after a nasty sledding accident, and what they learn in the process makes for priceless literature.  The kind you want your child to read and ingest. I read a book that breathed beautiful life into my own spiritual journey.  Lauren Winner's Girl Meets God is a breath of fresh air.  Like gulping in oxygen in huge doses after a long run.  Like an ice cold glass of water. I began Gary Thomas' Pure Pleasure: Why Do Christians Feel So Bad About Feeling Good?, and just like every other book Mr. Thomas has written, this one has been a blessing on every page.  I should have known I'd like this book, too; in chapter one he writes about drinking a venti chai tea latte.  The man speaks my language ;) Yet a third book impacted me while we were waiting for recovery.  It's Julie Ferwerda's newest book, One Million Arrows, and I'll be reviewing it for you soon.

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Reflections on a Daughter's Illness

Sisters

I knew from the very moment things seemed to go awry that God was going to teach us something.  Certainly, I haven't learned it all yet, and I suspect I've just barely scratched the surface of this trial.  But our daughter's ruptured appendix and recovery from septic shock has been the biggest trial of my life. The reasons are many, multi-layered, and very personal.  I'm not sure I can even sort through them yet.  I'm recovering from her recovery. In the forefront of lessons learned or yet to be learned is this: I'm sorry.  I can't do that. Thanks, Elizabeth.  You are a brave woman who has shown me exactly what I needed to see. ♥ A little addendum.  I wrote this post a few days ago, but on Saturday night our two-year-old had a seizure.  I know.  It was out of the blue, the first seizure any of our kids have had to our knowledge, and completely unexpected.  He spiked a 103 temp afterward, so we are relieved to know it was a common febrile seizure. Now the phrase, "I'm sorry.  I can't do that" carries even more weight.
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We're still in the hospital. Can you believe it?

Yep.  Today is day 19, and although we are out of the ICU, we are on the peds floor waiting for her fevers to stop and for her eating to improve.  That's been tricky; the antibiotics she's on are making her nauseated.  The taco she ate for dinner last night was a huge, big deal- the first thing she'd asked to eat-  but it didn't stay in her tummy :( Please pray that she'll just continue to improve.  Pray for my other kiddos, who have been sweet, kind, and understanding.  They're also missing their sister!  Pray for my husband and myself, who feel as if we're in an endurance marathon. Thanks!
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Our Favorite Whole Wheat Rolls

This recipe is our standard roll-from-the-bread-machine.  In fact, I rarely make bread in the machine because using it to make dough is so fantastic. 1 cup water 2 Tablespoons butter 1 egg 2 1/2 Tablespoons honey 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour 1 teaspoon salt 3 teaspoons yeast Add all ingredients to your machine in the order above. Turn on dough setting. When finished, divide dough into 12 pieces and shape into rolls. Place in a greased 9 x 11 pan. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes or until doubled in size. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. You can vary the recipe to your liking by adding a handful of millet for a little crunch and/or brushing the just-baked rolls with butter.
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Tuesday's ICU Report
I know it seems like prayer requests for our daughter have not stopped, but this is our 11th day in the ICU for her ruptured appendix. Over the past week she has developed a few fluid-filled infected areas in her abdomen and her surgeon has made the decision to go in and drain them non-surgically.  Sounds easy enough, but one of the areas is precariously located near some arteries, so getting to it with a needle/drain is complicated and risky. The procedure will take place this morning at 10:30AM (CA time) under general anesthesia. *Please pray with us for a safe and effective procedure. *Pray for safe anesthesia... going to sleep and waking back up. *Pray that they find the target and can drain the infections. *Pray that her organs and arteries are protected from injury. *Pray for peace while we wait to hear the results. We have no estimates on how long this procedure will take, how effective it will be, or when we will be home.  We have been told that due to the nature of the infection, it will be weeks to months before she is back to 100%. Thanks for praying!  I'll update here to let you know what happened!
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Update From ICU
From my husband: Healing has been slow for our daughter following last Friday's emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix and a septic abdomen. (Note: it was 15mins to locate and remove her appendix and an additional hour of cleaning her abdominal cavity of infected fluid). So, throughout the week, she has battled infections, pain and hints of pneumonia. Last night she had a follow-up CT scan and they found two more large abdominal abscesses. This morning her on-call surgeon and radiologist analyzed her scans and they debated a less-invasive drain procedure versus more-invasive abdominal surgery. We waited all day and about an hour ago we heard the conclusion: The infection is too deep and dangerous to try the drain procedure. At the same time they don't want to rush to reopen her with more surgery. Since she is showing slow/general improvement, they've added two additional strong antibiotics. The decision was to monitor her today and tomorrow. On Monday, her regular surgeon returns and he will consult with the on-call surgeon and they will corporately decide whether or not to do more surgery. She gets around pretty well, but she will remain in the ICU through the weekend. Thanks for praying. It has been a long week and will continue. We are looking forward to a bounce-back without surgery!
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