Preparing for Surgery

 Saturday, May 3rd we drove to Redmond, WA to stay with my parents for Silas' open heart surgery.  We arrived 3 days before.  So we were able to visit a bit and relax.  When we arrived we weren't sure how long of a stay it was going to be.  

My parents were so excited to have us there and they took such good care of us all.  

 Monday, May 5th Mark, Silas and I spent the entire day at the hospital doing all his pre op appointments.  I hate this picture but wanted to share it because Silas was such a trooper that day.  They took X-rays (that's what Silas is doing in the picture), did an EKG, took blood twice! and did a physical.  It was a long and busy day.  

 Here's Silas' weight....it's about 13.9 lbs.  He's gained almost a whole pound since his hospital stay for pneumonia 7 weeks prior.  

 We did this a lot!  

 Another picture I don't really like but he did so well!!!  

 Then after all the poking and tests we enjoyed a hospital cafeteria lunch.  Silas was a happy boy again. 

 Here we are waiting for our last appointment of the day with anesthesia.  They did another physical and determined he was healthy for surgery.  Praise God!

They required us to give Silas 3 baths with some special soap before surgery.  Two were the evening before and one was the morning of Surgery.  Since we had to be at the hospital at 6:15am his morning bath was around 5am!!!  Again he was such a trooper. 

Surgery Date

This past Friday we found out that Silas' open heart surgery is scheduled for Tuesday, May 6th 2014.  We need to be there Monday, May 5th for pre op so we will be traveling to WA state a few days before.  

O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! Psalm 34:8 

Mark and I do feel so blessed to be going through this "trial" with Silas.  It's amazing how God takes care of us and it's so true that when we are weak He is strong.  I honestly can smile through this entire  thing because of what the Lord is doing in our family.   I can't wait to share with Silas someday how God was using him and working in him from such a young age.  

Easter 2014

 Happy Easter!  

This is the day the Lord has made let us rejoice and be glad in it!!  

We didn't make it to church because we are still keeping Silas away from the public until his open heart surgery.  Since we had pretty new Easter outfits we got dressed up for some pictures.  

Happy 7th Birthday Lulu!

 Our sweet little Lulu turned 7!! We are so blessed to have such a loving daughter who loves to serve.  She loves the Lord and has a heart to share the gospel with the lost.  She can read and loves doing her homeschool activities.  Lulu helps make breakfast almost daily and can sew many different things.  She helps me stay organized and knows where everything is in our house....something I don't even know.  When she grows up she wants to be a wife and mommy.  

 For her birthday we got her a porcelain doll.  This doll was a fun surprise for her because a few months earlier she saw it in the window of our favorite thrift store.  The store was closed but we were doing some window shopping.  She just loved it and I knew then I had to go back when the store was open to get it for her birthday.  So a few days later I went right when the store opened.  There was a lady in front of me and she went right to the doll, looked and walked away!  So I got the doll and looked at her to make sure she wasn't broken.  She was in excellent condition and came with her original doll box and stand.  A week or so later we all went to the thrift store and Lulu didn't say anything but I saw her looking at the window where the doll was.  She was a bit sad to see someone had bought the doll of her dreams but she was ok and didn't think much about it after that.  So on her birthday morning she was thrilled to see the doll sitting in the living room waiting for her!!  

For all the kids they get the amount of balloons for their age on their birthday. 

 The past couple birthdays Lulu has wanted chocolate cake and chocolate frosting.  I used to make fun themed cakes but it's hard to do that with chocolate frosting.  This year she asked for the same chocolate on chocolate.  I then said "would you like a surprise cake" and then she got excited.  So I made her a doll cake.  I got this doll cake for her 1st birthday when we had a luau and made a hula girl.  I still had the doll and cake pan.