Thank you so much for all the prayers for Anna. Surgery went very well and she is resting comfortably in the PICU.
The transformation in her head size is nothing short of miraculous. Basically, the doctors took off the majority of her skull, cut it, and reshaped it over her head. Prior to surgery, her head circumference was 57 cm. I don't know exactly what it will be once the swelling decreases, but it is obviously much smaller. It should be so much easier for her to lift it and hold it up once she has healed.
She is not as swollen as we all expected, although she will probably continue to swell. She can open her right eye, but seems to want to sleep, which is exactly what she needs.
Hopefully tomorrow she will be moved out of the PICU. If all continues to go well, we hope to have her home by the end of the week.
Saturday, November 9, 2013
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Anna's Upcoming Surgery
My last post addressed how well Anna is doing in so many ways. Now I get to share even more praises!
Her recent lung CT looked good. She is no longer on oxygen at all.
She now weighs 40 pounds, up for 22 pounds when we brought her home in April
She had a swallow study done and it showed that she swallows completely normally: no aspiration! This is such an answer to prayer. This means we can began working with her on eating in earnest and that God led us to the right decision not to separate her stomach and esophagus (yes, the doctors wanted to do this to prevent reflux). She is eating very well in speech therapy. It will be a long road for her to make oral foods a major part of her diet, but we have loads of time!
Her neurosurgeon and plastic surgeon have determined that we should go forward with reducing the size of Anna's head. This is called a cranial vault reconstruction. They will remove a large portion of her skull and reshape her head. It is major surgery, but it could make such a difference for her! She might very well learn to sit up on her own and one day stand if she did not have to hold up her heavy head. The surgery is this Friday, November 8, and we would so appreciate your prayers. I promise to do a better job keeping the blog up to date!
Life with Anna is a million times more simple than I thought it would be. Her health has improved so much! I think more people would be willing to adopt children with special needs if they could experience our day to day with her. Our church has even started a special needs class so that she has a place to go during worship. What a blessing!
Some other families who adopted children from Anna's orphanage are struggling right now. I ask for your prayers for them and their precious children.
I am also reminding everyone that sweet Giselle is still available and has a large grant to help with her adoption expenses. I would sure love for her to have the same happy ending as Anna!
http://reecesrainbow.org/12884/giselle901
Her recent lung CT looked good. She is no longer on oxygen at all.
She now weighs 40 pounds, up for 22 pounds when we brought her home in April
She had a swallow study done and it showed that she swallows completely normally: no aspiration! This is such an answer to prayer. This means we can began working with her on eating in earnest and that God led us to the right decision not to separate her stomach and esophagus (yes, the doctors wanted to do this to prevent reflux). She is eating very well in speech therapy. It will be a long road for her to make oral foods a major part of her diet, but we have loads of time!
Her neurosurgeon and plastic surgeon have determined that we should go forward with reducing the size of Anna's head. This is called a cranial vault reconstruction. They will remove a large portion of her skull and reshape her head. It is major surgery, but it could make such a difference for her! She might very well learn to sit up on her own and one day stand if she did not have to hold up her heavy head. The surgery is this Friday, November 8, and we would so appreciate your prayers. I promise to do a better job keeping the blog up to date!
Life with Anna is a million times more simple than I thought it would be. Her health has improved so much! I think more people would be willing to adopt children with special needs if they could experience our day to day with her. Our church has even started a special needs class so that she has a place to go during worship. What a blessing!
Some other families who adopted children from Anna's orphanage are struggling right now. I ask for your prayers for them and their precious children.
I am also reminding everyone that sweet Giselle is still available and has a large grant to help with her adoption expenses. I would sure love for her to have the same happy ending as Anna!
http://reecesrainbow.org/12884/giselle901
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