Follow-up Appt Today...Home tomorrow!

Paul is feeling a lot better and his energy level is pretty much back to normal. And that means Carl and I have to be alert at all times to keep him from hurting his mouth. Even with us watching him diligently, he has already had THREE bumps to the mouth...one of which was my fault when his head met my finger. Paul is definitely ready to be back at his house...as we all are. This is the difficult part of deciding to come to Columbus for surgery. Nonetheless, there have been many, many good things that have come from this decision to have Paul treated at Nationwide and Carl and I know we did the right thing.

I felt pretty scattered after the last surgery...but it was nothing to how scattered we've been after this one. Probably the lack of sleep is catching up with both of us...along with all the mental energy we are spending thinking about our upcoming job change and move. Anyway, immediately following surgery we started losing things...Paul's coat, his special spoon, a room key...not to mention how many times we got to the car only to remember ONE MORE thing we forgot to get from the room. So Carl has started a checklist...and every time we walk out the door we go over it. He's brilliant! And we seem to be getting along a lot better now. :)

This really has been a good trip, though. We got to see the Weiler family once more! They so love Paul and sure do brag on him. Of course, that makes US feel good. We have so appreciated their kindnesses towards us. And then we got to have time with Bernie!!!! He showed us so many neat places in Columbus...some of which I expect we'll visit every time we come to Columbus. But, as always, the best part of being with Bernie was sitting around talking! I can't wait until we see each other again in July at the family reunion. I'm counting the days!!! :)

Well, Paul's follow-up appt is at 2pm...and tomorrow (Tuesday) we head home. Carl will then hop on a plane on Wed and begin his weekly commute to Chattanooga until we get our house sold.

For those of you who don't know yet, Carl has received a new job at Alcatel-Lucent and we will be relocating to Chattanooga, TN. This is one of the hardest decisions we've had to make...and we still aren't sure if this is a good move for Carl's job future...but we are doing what we think is best for Paul...and our family. Ideally we would like to stay in Chattanooga...but you may hear in a couple years that we are moving again! Oh well!

Paul is doing good...

Paul is doing good...he's just ready to go home. He's been pretty wired today and as evening approached, he has become extremely aggitated. Mommy and Daddy are tired, but hanging in there.

Back at Ronald McDonald House

Paul was in a room by 3pm yesterday afternoon. Again, it was hard to see him for the very first time following surgery, but I was better this go around. I felt more confident. This is the part that is hard to explain, but maybe you can understand. His mouth is all stitched up and perfect under the circumstances...but it still saddened me. Little Paul's mouth looks different. Well, duh. All I mean is that it was hard to see his new lip. I loved his old one. He does look different. But Carl reminded me that when the swelling goes down, it will look worlds better.

Paul was pretty miserable as you would expect...same ol' IV, wires and arm braces as before. He was mad about it all. I can't tell you how many times we sang Jingle Bells yesterday and today to help calm him through some rough spots. His greatest displeasure was, of course, being awakened every three hours and having the blood pressure cuff velcroed around his leg. It wasn't long before the nurses picked up on the magical powers of "Jingle Bells" and they soon began singing to him too. Dr. Kirschner's assistant visited us around 7am, followed by Dr. Kirschner around 8am. Carl told Dr. Kirschner that I was somewhat saddened by the change to Paul's look and Dr. Kirschner said such a sweet thing. He said, 'Yeah, before I began surgery I said to the nurses, "I sure hate to sew him up because he just looks so darn cute as he is." He captured my feelings precisely! Dr. Kirschner told us that Paul has a wonderful disposition and that he so looks forward to watching him grow up. We talked for a while longer and I have to say this once again...WE ARE SO GLAD WE CHOSE DR KIRSCHNER TO BE PAUL'S SURGEON!! Thank you, Lisa and Greg!!!

We were released from the hospital at 11am. Just before we were released, Steve Weiler stopped in for a visit. He was thrilled to see Paul up and running around. And he thought Paul looked great. Once again, we are touched by the kindness of the Weiler family and are so grateful for these wonderful new friends.

Except for supper, we were in the car all day giving Paul time to sleep. Bernie got to Columbus at 1pm, so he drove around with us for most of that time before he had to meet his friends for supper. At the restaurant tonight we ran into the speech therapist who is consulting with us at Nationwide and we had a nice visit with her. She has gone above and beyond to help us and it was nice running into her tonight!!

I'm sitting in the dark typing as Carl is trying to put Paul to bed. Little man is rooting around in his crib like a little pig. He can't get comfortable. I think my turn to try putting him asleep is approaching. So that's all for now.

Thank you for being a part of this with us.

Surgery completed...

All of Paul's doctors have come by to give us a briefing...and all gave us a good report. He is now in recovery and we are waiting for him to wake up so we can go be with him. Dr. Kirschner said Paul's face will be swollen and bruised for a few days because of the work he had to do on his nose, but other than that, it shouldn't take long for him to rebound from this surgery. I asked the doctor if Paul cried before surgery or seemed scared and he said "not at all." He was fine. Just sat in their arms before surgery looking around the room. This is a big day. No more surgeries for us, Lord willing, until Paul is 8 years old. It's a very big day. Thank you all for praying for us for the last 5 months. We feel such a relief now having all of this big stuff behind us. Bernie should be arriving today to keep us company while Paul begins healing. Steve Weiler said we could also expect a visit from him today. Speaking of Steve, we had a wonderful visit his family last night at their home. They so love Paul and we feel so honored. I have to admit that Carl and I were cringing a little during our visit - Paul was in RARE form. He had two big dogs to love on and both of Steve's daughters showered him with attention...so he was milking that for all it's worth. From our perspective, he was a wild man - but Steve and Mary were bragging about how good he was. I suppose that we should not expect him to act like he is at a state dinner in someone else's home just yet. :)

In surgery...

We got to the hospital at 7:15...Paul was a little bit cranky at having to get up so early and go without breakfast, but he eventually calmed down and got happy again. All of the doctors and nurses checked him out and everything looks good. They just took him into surgery at 9:15 Eastern. We expect him to be in surgery for about 4 hours. We will post an update when we hear from Dr. Kirschner after his part of the surgery is complete.

All looks good!

Paul got a great report from our surgeon this afternoon! Dr. Kirschner was very pleased with how well Paul's mouth and palate have healed from surgery #1. He and the speech specialist were also happy to hear Paul talking up a storm! They said he sounds GREAT! Not much of a nasal tone to his voice, which means the surgery did everything it was supposed to do! Paul was a real crowd-pleaser...all day! He started entertaining guests at Ronald McDonald House over breakfast...then he put on a show for all the doctors at his appointments today. He's been a happy guy all day...which is making our job so much easier. We have to be at the hospital at 7:15am and Paul should be in surgery by 9am. It is a 3 hour procedure. During surgery the ear doctor is going to check his tubes...

Our new friends, the Weiler's, have invited us over for supper. We are so looking forward to our visit. Paul is going to LOVE playing with their sweet pooches! We're headed over there in just a few minutes.

Please continue to remember us in your prayers.

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

We are getting a beautiful snow this morning!!

Back in Columbus!

We arrived in Columbus yesterday evening about 6pm. Paul was great on the plane! He even let me change his diaper in the plane restroom without a meltdown! We thought for sure he would nap on the plane - and he did...the last 10 minutes of our flight! We picked up our rental car and headed straight for supper at the Rusty Bucket! Have to thank our friends, the Weiler's, for telling us about that place. It hit the spot! Got to Ronald McDonald House around 7:30...immediately started getting Paul ready for bed...he went to sleep with no problem!

Carl, on the other hand, barely slept. He has a cold that is just miserable enough to make sleeping difficult. Today we had breakfast at a deli near RMH, went to Target, drove around while Paul napped, Carl dropped me off at Marc's (YEAAAA) while Paul napped, then we all went to Border's books (going out of business sale), back to the same deli for lunch to go and then back to RMH. Paul has been healthy and injury-free since the day we got him - that is, until TODAY! He fell in Border's books and gave himself a bloody nose...Carl had to take over. I was worried that the blood was coming from the conformer in his nose pulling at the stitches...it was hard to tell. But it eventually stopped bleeding...he just has blood caked all around the conformer! Then at supper he was playing around in his high chair and banged the side of his head on the table. He gave himself a really good bump - so he's going to look good and beat up when we go to the dr tomorrow!!!

I told Carl that driving through Columbus releases endorphins in my brain! It just feels so much like Cleveland and as I mentioned in earlier blogs, Cleveland was my second home growing up. That's where my grandparents (dad's parents) lived and I have so many good memories of that place. One added advantage of coming to Columbus for Paul's surgeries is that we will have to make an annual trip to Columbus for Paul's check-ups and THAT gives me an excuse to drive up to Cleveland and show little man around. Of course, he won't get to see Cleveland at its finest, and he won't see our grandparents' house the way it was when Grandmother and Papa were there, but it doesn't matter. Cleveland will always be special to me.

The weather here is about as gloomy as it gets and there is a prediction of snow. But we are thankful to be here and thankful all is going well.

I'll try to keep up the posts every day.

Now time to get back to the room and put Paul to bed! Good night!

Please keep us in your prayers

We leave tomorrow for surgery #2 in Ohio. Please pray for our safety and for Paul's quick recovery. I've got it in my head that this is going to be an easier surgery for Paul to endure, so I haven't been as nervous this go around...and I hope I'm right.

Thank you to everyone who has offered to help us prepare this week. We are just overwhelmed by all the kindness that has been extended to us. It makes it so much easier on us when we know we have so many people looking for ways to help! We must also say thank you to the Giesecke Shuttle Service for the ride to the airport tomorrow! :) Charles and Shirley, once again, we really appreciate this.

We are looking forward to having my cousin, Bernie, come down from Cleveland for a visit with us while we are in Columbus! What a treat! Paul's surgery falls on Bernie's birthday, so we'll have to find some way to celebrate...

The hospital has contacted us this past week asking if they can do another interview. We already knew they would be taking more photos. This time they would like to feature Paul in their upcoming telethon fundraiser. All so many neat experiences...

Carl and I are busy running around cleaning and getting packed. Paul is fussy because he has no idea what's going on but he knows SOMETHING is going on. It's too beautiful to be inside all day. We will have to take a break sometime and enjoy this gorgeous day. I'm having to rush through this post...Carl is downstairs folding clothes with little man yanking on his pants leg whining for full attention! :)

Thank you for keeping up with us and for praying for us. This has meant so much to us. I feel bad that my posts are rather uneventful but, as you can imagine, I just don't have the computer time that I once did!!! :) And my creative juices are flowing rather slowly these days!

What an exciting January! Carl's mother, Mary, spent almost the entire month with us! What a blessing! Paul had so much fun with his granny! They bonded quickly and I soon became jealous at how easily she was able to get Paul to go to sleep! :) I FINALLY learned how to make Mary's turnip greens and... BLUEBERRY cobbler!! Thank you, Mary! We so appreciate all the help you were to us and I'm so glad you got that precious time with your new grandbaby!

January has been full of some exciting events for our family - some of which I can tell you about and some of which I'll have to tell you later (just to add an element of suspense to the blog!) Paul started speech therapy twice a week - he has mastered the word "more" and is coming a long way on other words - "cow," "no," "cat," "car" and a few others. We have started going to storytime at the library. On Mondays I take him to 1 year old story time and on Wednesdays I take him to 2 year old story time (which also happens to be the same day as speech). I've also started back to my job on Tuesday evenings at Cooper Fitness. (I work in childcare) What is so cool is that Paul gets to go with me to work and he loves it! He plays well with the other children...loves all the cool toys and play equipment...and it's just good exercise since it has been too cold to go out for quite a while now. Paul also has started going to bible class now! The other big event in the month of January was Paul's 2nd birthday...January 14. Granny was here to celebrate, but we kept it very simple. The big thing for Paul was the cupcake he got to have after supper. It literally caused his eyes to roll back in his head! Ha! He loves him some red velvet cupcakes!

The great thing for us is that Paul is finally starting to get a routine...but the bad thing is that we are a mere 3 wks from disrupting that routine once again for surgery #2. Please pray for our safety on this trip back to Columbus and for the success of Paul's surgery. This 2nd surgery is to finish the repair on his lip.

On another happy note, my mom and dad are en route as I type to visit us from Alabama. This will be my dad's first visit to our home so I'm especially excited about that. I feel another visit to the JFK museum is on the horizon...:)

Carl and I still have to pinch ourselves that we get to be parents and that Paul Daniel is our little boy. He is so much fun. So happy. So eager for us to teach him new things. We so enjoy watching him...watching him figure things out. Watching him grow. We've said it 100 times and we will say it 100 times more. God has blessed us so much. It's amazing to look back at how scared we were - and to think we might have missed this blessing if we had not trusted in God's power to guide us through the unknown. And please know the emphasis of that last comment is not on our faith...but on God's power.