It's A Wonderful Life

This is how all of Gideon's pants fit him. We had to put Bria's old size 2 leggings on him today in hopes they would stay up. Even then they were about an inch too big. Gideon also loves to throw things over the stair rail. If we are missing something the first place we look is in the landing. What a precious little one. Notice the pink in his face. What a blessed site. Gideon LOVES fries. If I had a hard time getting him to eat at the hospital all I had to do was order fries. What do teenage boys do on a Sunday afternoon? Sleep. Even if you are visiting your brother in the hospital. I'll give Pierce the out. He took over at home during the days while we were gone. He did a fantastic job. Today he said he made a terrible homemaker because he couldn't seem to keep the house clean. I know exactly what he meant and Gideon was not even there. I am just glad the he is doing online school this year. Tyler and Jessica came to visit on Sunday...

Amazingly, Gideon was released from the hospital this afternoon. There was a possibility of being released Sunday but the Cardiologist on the floor wanted to get another Echo done to be sure the surgery was holding up well. While we waited for the Echo Gideon went into VTach twice. I'm not sure what it stands for but it is when the heart starts to beat very fast. This was not a good thing and worried me considerably. Another Cardiologist that specializes in the electrical system looked things over. The information that she came back with was yet, one more surprise. Gideon has two right Atria, the top of the heart. Not a right and left but two right, one on the right and one on the left. Why I didn't suspect this after finding out he has two right lungs I don't know. We also found out that Gideon's spleens, yes multiple, are working. Yeahhh! No antibiotics for life. This Heterotaxy is a very weird disorder. As I talked with the care professionals at the hospital I rea...

Gideon is out of ICU 48 hours after surgery.  Another amazingly quick step in his progress. The ICU nurse didn't want to let him go because she loved him so much.     Yeah - I'd cry to if I had to just lay there with stuff all connected to me for 4 days.  He had much more of the smiles on the right than the other on the left... Tubes and wires, but they all came out yesterday!!! His last meal in ICU.   Just before the final disconnections.  There was about 1 1/2 feet of that larger drain tube inside him.  That was not fun for him while it was being pulled out.  Showing off his strength so he can get out of ICU.  This was Saturday about 11:00 AM.

Miracles happen!! Today Gideon has made such great progress that the doctors and nurses are excited and astonished. Gideon has had many of his tubes and wires taken out today. He is now on 2 medicines, Tylenol and a narcotic for pain. That is it! He will be getting his drain tubes out in the morning as well as a couple of wires connected to his heart. These wires are connected to the heart and come out the lower chest to be connected to a portable pace maker if Gideon's heart went into arrhythmia. By late morning Gideon was asking for water again. The doctor had said that as soon as he woke up a little he could have any amount of liquid he could tolerate. Gideon proceeded to drink over 16 ounces in an hour. He was then supposed to eat some fat to make sure his heart didn't act up afterword. We ordered up 2 orders of fries and as soon as the fries were even near Gideon he started shoving them down. He ate every fry! No one could believe it. While Gideon was eating his fries...

As Deanne mentioned in the update from the waiting room, Gideon did great during surgery.  His heart was taken out, some plumbing was re-routed and it was put back in.  All in about 3 hours.  What an amazing miracle.  And to facilitate that miracle, as a partner with God, is a deeply religious, sober man who has an incredible understanding of his responsibility to save and extend life.  I want to share some thoughts about the surgeon, Dr. Kaza.   He has a rich brown complexion giving away his ancestral connection to India.  Large, dark brown eyes that are bright with knowledge and wisdom, but seek for further enlightenment at the same time.  His physical stature is far from intimidating.  His hands are small, narrow and soft - the perfect tools for the delicate operations he performs on the smallest of God's children.  One of the signs of one who possesses great understanding, is the ability to explain compl...

We are in the surgery waiting room and just got an update. Gideon is doing well. They are done with surgery and bypass is off!  He is still alive and will hopefully live to see many more days. :) They are in the process of sewing him up then will come and talk with us. We do know that he did not require his valve to be fixed so things were the least invasive of our options. We are so grateful for the outcome so far. We have felt a sense of peace today and God has given us some support and distractions. Doug's sister came to see us and brought some food, music and a book. She was very inspired as to what to bring. While she was here I saw some friends come into the waiting room while waiting for their son to get hernia surgery. We were able to talk with them for a while and only a few minutes after Doug's sister left another friend sought us out to talk. This friend has also adopted many special needs kids and surprisingly he was in the Cardiac waiting room last night becau...

OK, so most reading this will not see it until it is tomorrow but that title is the best I could do. Yesterday and today have been full of ups and downs. I will cut and paste a copy of an email Doug sent out to family yesterday then go from there. I have not been able to blog everyday because Doug and I trade off who stays overnight at the hospital with Gideon and Doug doesn't think about blogging. Sorry. "Gideon made it through the catheter procedure with a little excitement.  He didn't go into cardiac arrest, but his heart went into arrhythmia 4 times to the point they had to shock him out of it.  A normal heart can take the stimulation of a catheter just fine, but damaged hearts don't always.  The reaction he had shows how close he has been to heart failure.  They said he is quite a fighter.  They had more details about the construction of his heart and it seems the more they find out about the defects, the more they...

Today was Gideon's Echo. Just as I thought, as soon as a medical professional that could do something saw him he would be in the hospital. I was not surprised, but sadly unprepared, when the doctor said they were going to admit Gideon. We spent the day in the hospital to monitor his heart and get some other things done in possible preparation for surgery. It all started at 6:30 am when Gideon and I had to leave for the hospital for the Echo. Doug got all the kids off to school and met us at the hospital. I think we have mentioned that Gideon hates the doctors. It was no different this morning. We got to the room and he cried hard. They were going to sedate Gideon for the Echo so they could get pictures without him crying but when they got his oxygen saturation level they quickly decided that sedation was not an option. He has been in the low 70's when healthy is in the 90's. Gideon's levels this morning were in the 50's. NOT GOOD. We got into the room for the ech...

We got into the doctor this morning. The doctor I went to was a referral from the cardiology group at Primary Children's Hospital. They like this  doctor because he works well with the heart doctors and knows what he is doing. I am so glad that I found him. He was knowledgeable and even in his temperament. He looked Gideon over and was happy to see how healthy he really is especially for having heart issues. Because the doctor has other heart children he didn't get overly concerned and put Gideon in the hospital but felt that Gideon needed that down time. It was a relief that Gideon has more time to adjust and get used to all the new things around him. It is obvious that Gideon has been to doctors in the past. All we have to do is take him near a place that looks like a doctors office and he screams. He cried very hard for most of the visit but allowed us to do everything that was asked. He is tall for his age but very lean, as the doctor put it. Gideon is at the top of the ...

Last night Doug and I decided that we would wait two or three days to take Gideon to the doctor knowing that as soon as he was seen he could be admitted to the hospital. We wanted to give him a chance to rest and recover from the trip as well as adjust just a little to his new surroundings. After Gideon being asleep for 14 hours I started to get a little concerned but that was wondering if he would sleep tonight. Soon after Gideon woke up in a panic from his heart. He has never woken up with that problem since we have had him. He usually goes to sleep when his heart calms and rests it off. At about 16 hours of sleeping I decided I better try and wake him up but was still not too concerned about his heart only changing his sleeping pattern. I took Gideon out to the family room and tried to get him to wake up without much luck. My brother and sister-in-law came over and I continued to try to get Gideon awake. I thought that the noise his cousins and brother and sister were making woul...

Friday was spent packing, changing money and taking care of a sick little boy. Gideon was having a lot of trouble again that day. We got very concerned about putting him on an airplane that evening to go to Beijing where we would stay overnight and catch our next plane at 8:30 am for Seattle. We prayed much and so did many of you. We thank you for that. Miracles do happen and Gideon was a recipient of one this weekend. Not too long before our Beijing flight Gideon started doing better. From that time on he had no more problems. In the two weeks that we have had Gideon he didn't go a day without heart issues. Before we got him they were giving him oxygen every morning when he would struggle. We have seen the same pattern of heart and breathing issue every morning as well. We have now gone two days, or one very long one, with no breathing trouble. While on the plane his color looked the best it has been and not once did he get even a little blue. This is truly the work of God. Onc...

Today we had our Consulate appointment. This appointment is to clear all adoption paperwork done by China and start the process to get Gideon his Visa. We had to be in the hotel lobby at 7:45 am to go to the Consulate. We were a bit confused because I was sure the appointment was for 10:00 am but Doug knew we were to be in the lobby at 7:45 to meet our guide. Come to find out our appointment was at 10:00 am  but the guide didn't want to have to make two trips that are only 15 minutes to bring 2 families at different times. We were the lucky ones that got to wait without being told. We got to the Consulate and had to wait in a large area that was open to the wind. It was cold and we hadn't brought Gideon's coat. We had no idea we would be waiting there so we weren't prepared. We waited for an hour and a half with no seating. China does not believe in seating. No matter where you go there is no where to sit, even in the hotel lobbies. I've never seen anything like ...

See the pink lipstick on Gideon's cheek? My evidence of a kiss he asked for. Yep, we had a better day. He also asked for me to hold him after being in the front pack with Doug for about 2 hours. These next two pictures are of the dining area for the adoptive families at the Garden Hotel. They set up tables in a hallway and when it gets too full they pull in patio chairs and continue down another very cold hall so the children are not in the main dining area. We are treated like second class citizens. The difference in service is amazing from the main dining area to the halls. They hardly clean up the plates or even acknowledge our existence. This area is where all the cleaning up of the tables takes place. We have to walk through it to get to and from the food and tables where we get seated. Every day they have tried to seat us in the coldest hall but I have had to ask, well force, them to seat us in the warmer hall. Gideon just can't do th...

We want to wish you a happy birthday Niya. We are sorry that we aren't there for you but we are thinking of you. We will celebrate on Sunday OK? Make sure you have your list of food so I can go shopping when we get home.

Today was a tough day for Gideon, or as many know him, Bergen. I understand that it was posted on the LWB Facebook page that Gideon is on his way home. Yes, Bergen is now Gideon. Well, Gideon woke up with a smile but very soon after started to fuss and get cranky and blue. That's somewhat normal for him in the mornings so we didn't get too concerned. As the morning went on he started to wheeze and be out of breath most of the time. We were scheduled for a shopping trip and because these symptoms have been pretty common we didn't get any more concerned than normal so went went anyway. We were on Shamaian Island for our second stop and while there Gideon went up and down a ramp 3 times. it was maybe 4 feet long. After the third time he sat down on the steps and played for a couple of minutes. He stood up and started to cry a little and all of a sudden he cried out in panic and started to sway. I grabbed him as fast as I could before he fell down (he falls A LOT) and hand...

Today we just hung around the hotel most of the day. Doug was able to take advantage of some time to do a few things for work. As we sat around Gideon interacted with me, Mom!  He would sit on the couch next to me, lay his head on my arm or play with me. He did so well. I am surprised at how the day had gone. There was even a time that he wanted mama not baba. Yesterday he made some good progress but I expected him to back track today. Thankfully he only went forward. Gideon hasn't had a meltdown for a couple of days but today he decided it was time. We met a couple that picked up their son today. We went to check on them and see if they needed anything. Sometimes the new child has such a hard time that you can't leave the room but on that first day you still don't have water or food. We got there and their son has done great so far. They were having trouble connecting to the Internet so we offered for them to use our computer to talk with their kids at home. They called...