Gavin's surgery to move his pacemaker over is now scheduled for Friday, June 1st. I have to take him on Thursday for the pre-surgery work-up and then the surgery will be on Friday. I pray that this visit is VERY short! Please join us in praying for this! He's been told that we are just going to say Hi to all the great staff that we met there, but that we are headed home real quick!

He has had a better day today than the last few days. I am thankful for this! He even gave me a couple small smiles this evening! Yay!

Keep those prayers up! We appreciate you and them so much!

Love, Alicia and Family

Hope you all enjoyed your memorial day weekend! We thought we would have a boring one stuck at home, but Gavin is always so thoughtful in making sure that we are kept busy and full of excitement. He decided Saturday that he had had enough of his feeding tube and while momma was in the bathroom he yanked it right out! This used to be no problem when the end of the tube was in his stomach, because then I could just put another back in. This tube is placed just past the stomach and needs to be placed under x-ray to make sure it's in the right spot. So, we spent half the day at the hospital waiting to get it replaced. Jacob and Nolan were away for the weekend, but we had Caleb with us. His summary of our trip to the hospital? "That was a lot of fun!" Well, at least one of us thought so!

Gavin has been more fussy than usual and still not smiling much. It's beginning to wear on me! I pray that after these next surgeries, he will be more comfortable and happier. He does still sleep through the night, which is a saving grace! Without this sleep I think that I would be a wreck considering how worn out I feel from everything else.

We hope to find out when he'll be having the surgery in Ann Arbor tomorrow. We'll let you know when we do.

Thanks for your continued prayers! I feel I'm really needing them this weekend! Pray that I can have the energy (physical and emotional) to do all that is needed to be done right now. Pray that Gavin stays healthy and is more content. Pray that his surgeries are scheduled soon and that they go well! We appreciate all that is being offered up for our family! THANKYOU!

Jacob said something that lightened my heart today. He said that just like Joseph in the Bible had to go through stuggles, our family has had to go through them with Gavin. He also said that just like Joseph's struggles brought about great things, he sees great things happening to our family through our struggles with Gavin. He said he sees it everywhere. He is right! We are struggling, but we also know that God has a purpose for all of this, just like He did with Joseph! This gives us great comfort! Sometimes children are smarter than us adults! I really needed to hear this today! I thought I would share this with all of you because maybe you could use a reminder too!

Love, Alicia and Family

A change of plans again! There will be no surgery on May 29. When I cancelled the G-tube surgery, everything was cancelled! I guess Dr. Bove was going to do his part of the surgery (moving the pacemaker) in the stomach surgeons O.R. room and because that was cancelled so was the pacemaker surgery since there aren't any available O.R. rooms on that day. So now we wait until Tuesday to find out when it can be scheduled. Hopefully it can be done soon because we have a tenative date set for the stomach surgery to be done here in G.R. in the beginning of June. AAAGH!!! I know, there's a reason for this. I'm praying for patience!

Gavin had a regular check-up yesterday and is doing well. He got some immunizations done. Poor little guy! As soon as they rubbed the alcohol wipe on his leg he knew something was up! He knows from MANY needle sticks that being rubbed with an alcohol wipe only means one thing...trouble! So, he started whimpering right away. It broke my heart knowing that he knew what was coming from all his experience. He only cried a little, but today he's been more fussy and running a slight fever from the shots. He is behind in his immunizations because they don't give them in the hospital. He'll be caught up to date in a couple of months. Of course, that's if he stays healthy and out of the hospital! This is our biggest prayer! They say any little illness could put him over the edge.

Have a great weekend! Thanks for your prayers! Hope you are all doing well.

Love, Alicia and Family

There's been a change of plan. Gavin will still be getting his pacemaker moved at the U of M on May 29, but not the g-tube placement. I have been on the phone what seems like most of the last two days trying to get these surgeries in order. I'm ready to scream! I am quite frustrated! It all started when I received the info in the mail from the pediatic surgeon this week. It showed that they didn't have Gavin scheduled for everything that needed to be done. He is in need of a G-tube, but also a stomach wrap to prevent him from refluxing. This is the part that they didn't have scheduled. If they were to do this as well, we would have to reschedule the pacemaker movement surgery and make 3 different trips to Ann Arbor to have everythig done that is needed to be done. So, I've been calling around trying to figure out what can be done locally. We've decided to go ahead with the pacemaker surgery and then have the stomach surgery done here in G.R. What a pain! Plus, now Gavin will need two surgeries! I feel it is the best choice though because the surgeons in G.R. do the G-tube placement with a small tube that looks like a beach ball stem that you blow into. In Ann Arbor they put in a tube that hangs out the abdomen 6-8 inches. I feel there will be less of a chance that the tube will be pulled out if it doesn't hang out so far. Also, it will be easier on our family life if we don't have to make so many long distance trips. So many decisions! I have faith that the best one will be made, knowing that God is guiding us in these decisions being made. There's always a reason for everything and we just have to have patience and faith! Pray for these for our family!

Gavin is doing well despite all this craziness. He just sits back taking it all in! He still isn't smiling much since before he was last intubated with the ventilator. This really saddens me. He probably doesn't have much to smile about in his poor little life. I've been giving him a talking to again. I told him Momma really needs to see some smiles and that he owes me at least a couple a day! We'll see. I'd appreciate some prayers on this matter too. I would love to know that he is happy sometimes. He does look content most of the time and gives us looks that he is happy, but a little more reassurance would be great!

Thanks for your continued prayers and support! We REALLY appreciate them! Hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend and remember all the men and women who have fought for our freedoms in this country! May God bless them and their families, as well, as all of you!

Love, Alicia and Family

Gavin continues to do well at home. He's more fussy than usual the last couple of days. I think he's beginning to get spoiled. He's fine if someone is holding him or giving him attention. I asked for it though! I wasn't happy when he wasn't crying, right?! He's still a very good baby, but just showing us a little of that attitude again.

As for his brain function, we still don't know how much was lost, if any. He's not quite back to his self before the seizures, but definately getting closer. He still takes anti-seizure medicine and hasn't had anymore seizures. He goes in for an appointment with the neurologist in July for a follow-up. Only time will tell. I would probably put him at a level of a 3-4 month old. He is 8 months now. Whether this is due to brain damage or just being sedated and ill for so long, we don't know. Keep this matter in your prayers please!

Have a great day! Thanks for your support!

Love, Alicia and Family