Recovery and Tender Mercies

We saw Gideon about 6:00 PM and he looked just as sedated as he probably did in surgery.  His numbers we all good.  They were just letting him wake up naturally and it was taking a while.  They left the breathing tube in to make sure he could breathe on his own before they took it out.  I left the hospital about 8:00 PM and Deanne stayed.  He was still not awake before I left.  I just called her about 10:45 tonight and she said he woke up enough to remove the breathing tube.  So he is totally on his own - no life support of any kind.  He still has a bazillion tubes and wires connected to him, but his heart and lungs are working on their own.  He was even awake enough to call for me.  (He always calls for whichever one of us is not that at that moment.)  They will keep him calm through the night with doses of morphine as needed, but he should be pretty awake and alert sometime tomorrow morning.  We really hope his appetite returns quickly to expedite the recovery time.

Plugged in.

Right after surgery.

We have recognized the Lord's hand in this process that has taken place over the last 3 weeks.  It was Wednesday, January 22nd, that he woke up bloated with fluid.  (I will dedicate another post in the near future to all the angels who have supported our family in our temporal needs.) I don't know how many tender mercies we have recognized and not recognized, but there were a few today worth mentioning. 

#1 - We had some friends call last night to say that they were going to be in the area around noon today and they wanted to bring us lunch.  When they asked what they could bring, I told Deanne that we should request sandwiches from Village Baker (our favorite sandwich shop), but we didn't feel right about having them go out of their way by asking for something specific.  So I told them just to pick up something fast and easy, figuring they would stop at Wendy's or the like close to the hospital.  Out of all the options between South Jordan and Primary Children's hospital, they showed up with sandwiches from Village Baker.  Does the Lord really care what kind of sandwiches we eat?  Today He did...

#2 - Deanne has been struggling with a really sore upper back and shoulder blade for a few days from sitting and holding Gideon so much.  She had no idea how to get a chiropractic adjustment with our crazy schedule right now.  She knew the chiropractor we go to in Herriman, who is a friend of ours, would have come to the hospital for her, but she didn't want to ask him to do that.  So she figured she would just have to suffer with it until Gideon was home.  However, she befriended the mother of a baby in the ICU who happened to be going through surgery right after Gideon this afternoon.  We we were in the waiting room together and since their baby was going through a very risky operation, they must have had over 20 family members gather to support them.  One of the men was a chiropractor and when Deanne mentioned the pain she had, he offered to adjust her on the spot. They pulled over a couple of ottomans sitting around the waiting area and he fixed her up.  That started a series of adjustments for other people in the waiting room unrelated to them.  He was a very generous guy and Deanne said it was one of the best adjustments she has ever had. I didn't have a photo of Deanne getting adjusted becuase I had my nose in my phone or computer doing surgery updates or work so I just took a picture of one of the other impromptu patients.  Does the Lord care about when Deanne got to the chiropractor?  Today He did...

#3 - We have been trying to figure out Heavenly Father's will through all this.  After a prayerful request to have some insights, Deanne was searching scriptures last night and her eyes were directed to the lines on the first page she turned to that felt gave her that insight.  It helped us deal with the surgery today and all the possible outcomes.  If the Lord chooses to have Gideon with us a long time or a short time, either way, that scripture helped us ready to make the right decisions for him.  Does the Lord answer prayer immediately all the time?  Today He did...

Bonus Tender Mercy for the day - We have a fantasitic nurse tonight to help get Gideon's recovery started as comfortably and as quickly as possible.  Deanne said she is perfect for this stage of the game.  We have really had some great nurses and they all love Gideon -  even though they see his stubborn side once in a while. :)  Does the Lord care about the nurses' rotating schedule?  Today He did...