Backing up a bit......

The Monday night before surgery we took Nathan to his very first Braves game. We were so surprised about his excitement and interest in it. He watched every single second of the game. I wish you could have seen him in between innings. They put the t.v. cameras on the crowd and look for people dancing and so forth. Nathan was so set on getting on the jumbo tron that he danced as hard as he could every time they played music in hope to make it on the big screen. Didn't work BUT............the best was still to come.

Waiting for the game to start!!!

What a big boy!!!! He picked out that braves visor the minute we walked into the stadium. I think he looks pretty cute, don't you?!?!?!?

When I was at Auburn University (years ago I might add), I was part of a group called the Diamond Dolls. We were the "official" hostesses of Auburn Tiger Baseball. By doing that I made some great friends with all of those girls and also made some wonderful relationships with some of the players. Two of the guys I got to be friends with are now playing for the Braves, Tim Hudson and David Ross.

Thanks to Kim (Tim's sweet wife), we got to go down after the game and see Tim and David. They were so nice to take time to sign a ball and Nathan's visor. It was great getting to see those guys and catch up for a short while. Nathan thought it was the coolest thing EVER.

You should have seen him wearing that visor into the hospital the next day, showing it off to all the doctors and nurses. He thought he was hot stuff.

Thanks Tim, Kim and David for making Nathan's first trip to a Braves' game so special!!! (sorry I didn't get a pic of David --oops! He came out a little later, after my camera was put up).

If you have a moment please check out The Hudson's Family Foundation (http://www.hudsonfamilyfoundation.com/) , they are doing some great things with the blessings God has given them....truly "paying it forward".

Home Sweet Home

We are finally HOME!!!!!! We went to see Dr. Jones this morning and had the drains removed - whoo-hoo-- and he told us to head back to Auburn. We will return back to ATL on Monday for stitches removal around the ear -- can't wait to actually see the beginning of Nathan's new ear. Rod will have to work on Monday but my mom will go back with Nathan and I for the appt.

What a relief it was to hop in the car and know we were headed home and not back to a hotel or hospital. :) Nathan was pretty excited too! The first pic below is him giving me a thumbs up, telling me "let's go home!" The second pic is of his "I'm tough" look.

We always knew Nathan had a low pain tolerance for just about anything, but considering what he has just gone through --- I think HE IS PRETTY TOUGH!!!! Way to be a trooper big guy!

When we pulled on to our street we were greeted by some neighbors and a banner that was signed by most everyone on our street -- how great are our neighbors? :) Thanks guys!!

When we made it inside, Nathan quickly went to his room to check things out.....and this is what we found....................................

Some of the kids (and a couple moms) had decorated Nathan's room with streamers and balloons. They wanted him to know what a celebration it was to have him home from the hospital.

The next pic is of two of the rascals that did the decorating.....Sweet Rosemary and Katie. Thanks girls (Mrs. Jennifer, Mrs. Jackie, Talon, Taylor and anyone else that was in on this), you really made his homecoming special.

And of course the reunion we were most excited to see was of Nathan and our other little guy, Wilson. We sure missed you buddy and are glad to be home!!!!!!

Getting a little lovin' from Wilson!!! Now we just have to teach him to be "gentle" around Nathan for the next couple of weeks. :) Good luck with that !

Recovery Day 1 and some Visitors

Sorry for the delay in posting an update but I had some important matters to tend to today. :) Like taking care of this sweet boy, who even in his pain could muster up a smile when the camera was brought out. It might be forced, but it's at least a smile and not tears.Last night was pretty rough. We were up at least 4 times in the night trying to make him comfortable. Thank the good Lord above for pain medicine, and strong medicine at that. After a couple doses of Demerol and Tylenol w/ codeine we got a couple hours of sleep.
The morning started at around 5:45...........it too started off kind of touchy. When I told the nurse we were supposed to be discharged later in the day, she looked at me like I was crazy and said "he is NOT ready". I agreed..............at the time.
After FORCING him to get up out of the bed and walk around some he started acting more like my Nathan. We went to the big aquarium in the lobby (which is actually a TV that has big buttons you can push to learn about different sea creatures), the outdoor playground (not much playing was done), made a few laps around the hallways, and stopped at the playroom for patients. He did perk up some with only a few grimaces and tears in between.

He even took some time to take some pics with the special visitors that came to see him and try and put a smile on his face.

Nina & Papa (my mom & dad, for those who don't know them)

Pops & Grammy (Rod's dad and his step-mom)

Ali & Brad (Stirling was also in tow but they decided she might be a little to "wild" for this type of situation so she stayed in the lobby with Nina & Papa)

After receiving a phone call from Dr. Jones and speaking with the nurse. The progress he had made throughout the day led them to believe that Nathan was ready to be discharged. We could help control his pain from the hotel the same way they had been helping him during the day (w/ Tylenol and codeine) and he would be MUCH HAPPIER knowing no one with "needles" was going to come in his room :)

So here he is waiting to have his IV taken out. Check out those cute pjs. Our friend Nicholas's grandmother ( he is one of our microtia friends--check out his mom Christie's blog from my sidebar) made these especially for Nate. Thank you Weiss Family, they fit perfectly!!!

We left the hospital around 4:45 est. time and are finally settling in to the hotel. We will go see Dr. Jones in the morning around 11:30 and have the drains removed. After that-----WE ARE COMING HOME!!!!!!!!! We hope to be in Auburn mid to late afternoon. Can't wait to be in our own beds and with our other sweet baby boy. Wilson we have missed you terribly.


Right now this is what Nathan is up too...........Leapster, dot-to-dot books, picture find books and watching a movie. He is a little bossy right now but we are going to give him a free pass for now :), that is until he starts to feel better. :)

Finally!!!!

We are all finally together. It took a while for him to come to us from recovery. When he finally woke up in recovery he got really upset and was complaining of a good amount of pain at the rib sight. They had to give him so pretty powerful pain meds and get him calmed down before they could transport him to his room where we were waiting. As you can see below, the first picture was while the meds were still helping him sleep. He only woke up for a minute, felt his head bandage and asked me " is this the big band aid you were talking about?" :)

He is now awake and watching a movie. Still is a bit confused and sits up abruptly wanting to know what is going on but other than that he is okay. Love to all of you and also tons of Thank Yous!!!! Your prayers have been powerful and we appreciate all of them. Now let the healing begin.

In the pictures, the tubes attached to his bandage are his drains. They should come out on Thursday----they will NOT be coming home with us. :)

Finished!!!!

Dr. Jones just came to see us. He is out of surgery and is in the recovery room. We have still not seen him. Very anxious right now to get to him. Thank you all for you sweet comments and prayers throughout the day. Keep them coming. We are going to need them tonight.

Update #3

O.R. just called again.........it's 2:45 est. time, Nathan has been gone from us over 3 hrs. He is still doing good. Dr. Jones just finished carving the new ear and is getting ready to place it at the "sight"........which means under his "little ear". We feel your prayers and THANK YOU!!!!!

Update #2

The nurse just called from the O.R. and said Dr. Jones had just gotten done taking the rib cartilage graft and was preparing to start making the ear. Please keep those prayers coming. This is one of the hardest "waits" I have ever had to do.

Started....update #1

OK.........now that I have gotten composure over myself and dried the tears I just wanted to let you know that they took him back at 11:15. It was hard for Rod and I to watch him go......even harder than I expected it to be. I know God is good and will watch over him (and us). I am going to try and close my eyes and imagine God holding Nathan in his protective arms throughout the surgery. ----Thanks Christie for this suggestion, it can only be a calming image.
I will update you as we receive updates from the O.R.
Rod and I are going to try and find something to eat, so bye for now.

P.S. FYI--- for those who were planning on coming to the hospital on Thurs., it seems b/c of insurance we will only be staying tonight and through the day tomorrow. They will only keep Nathan for 24 hrs. after surgery and then they will discharge him (unless there is some unforseen complications). We will still be in ATL but we will be at our hotel waiting to see Dr. Jones on Thursday for drain removal. HOPEFULLY, cross your fingers we will be able to come home late Thursday. So please don't kill yourselves trying to come here and see him. Wait and see us when we get home.

Pre-Op Fun

So far this is what we have been doing. Just getting checked in and playing the waiting game.

This pic is of Nate "playing" with the mask that is going to be used to put him to sleep. They let him check it out before hand and actually let him blow bubbles through it. It was pretty neat. They made a game out of it so he would know that it isn't something to be scared of.

Kissing that "little ear" one last time!

Not too much longer! Stay tuned..................................................

2nd Day--- Pre-Op Appts

We had our pre-op appt this morning bright and early. Nathan did great! He got to pick out a toy for Dr. Jones to bring to surgery tomorrow. As you can see he picked out a cute little horse, this he told us was dedicated to his "girlfriend" Isabel. Susie, if you are reading this I hope you are laughing just as much as I did. :)

Dr. Jones did his usual assessment and talked to us about after surgery care, prescribed us some different meds, did some measuring, and then made a tracing of Nathan's "big" ear (that is his normal one for those who don't know my terminology). He will use this tracing in the O.R. to make the new ear the same size --- or at least as close as possible. It's just amazing to me that God gave the knowledge to someone to come up with this procedure. All the glory goes to Him. Thanks for you prayers, we definitely feel them.

The guys are out swimming so I am going to go get some much needed rest before we head out to the Braves game. Pics from that adventure will come later in the week. Love to all of you! I will keep you updated tomorrow throughout the day.

1st Day in Atlanta

Our adventures in Atlanta have begun. We arrived this afternoon around 2:30 and checked into our hotel. We stayed just long enough to unload luggage and then we headed to Six Flags. Wow!!!! What a day...............Nathan absolutely had the best time, and his daddy and mommy enjoyed themselves too. :)

When we first got there Nathan's eyes were as big as saucers, watching all of the "big" roller coasters soar above our heads. We quickly assured him that not only was he not going to have to ride those but he wasn't tall enough anyway. He was oh so happy to hear that ;)

He did ride his first ever "roller coaster"-- the Mine Train, do any of you remember that one? He was so proud and actually said he liked it BUT "that's enough of those roller coaster rides"......on to those things that were more his speed. We tackled the log flumes, monster mansion, thunder river, the bugs bunny world (which had great kid size rides), and the list goes on.

Of course my camera battery died before we ever even got to use the darn thing so the pics are from Rod's phone.........so sorry for the graininess.

All in all the trip to six flags was a huge success. Of course, when we got in the car I was quickly brought back to reality. In the dead silence (due to our exhaustion) Nathan says, "mom, it's not much longer before Dr. Jones starts to fix my ear, right?" The fun lasted all day, but I guess it's still in the back of all of our minds.

Check our the loot Nathan came away with. Those dad gum carnival games will suck you in if your not careful. Sleep tight everyone................I am off to try and get some rest. Check back tomorrow for more :)

A New Chapter Begins..........

5 Years has come and gone, and I absolutely cannot believe it!!!! It seems like yesterday that we were saying " oh, we've got 5 yrs before we have to worry about his surgeries". Well guess what folks, it's time!!!!



We leave tomorrow for Atlanta. Our Monday morning is full of pre-op appts and we report to the hospital bright and early on Tuesday morning. Nathan's surgery is scheduled for 11:00 est. time. Now, don't think we aren't going to do this trip up.......six flags first thing on Sunday and the Braves game Monday night. We decided we needed to make it fun for him as long as we could.

Nathan says he is excited about getting his ear fixed, which is definitely a different tune than what he was saying a year ago. It's his mom and dad that are a wreck. Please pray for ALL of us!!!!



This past week we made a trip to the hospital where I work so Nate could see how people in the O.R. would look.....my sweet coworkers sent him home with a mask and surgical cap to play with. It was great, he now knows it's just a "costume" that the doctors and nurses are wearing and nothing to be scared of.


We have packed our week FULL of pool time because after this week, Nathan will be on "activity" restriction for about 4-6 weeks :(......it's going to be hard to keep him calm and not to active but hopefully we will prevail.

Everybody take a good look at the next picture......this is probably one of the last photos you will ever see of Nathan's little ear ( as it was when he was born). I have been kissing on that little ear ALL WEEK......as funny as it may sound, I am sure going to miss that little earlobe.

I hate to make this post too long but a lot of people have asked me what this 1st surgery consists of so I am going to share a little bit of what Nathan is going to go through.

The 1st stage of surgery is called The Rib Cartilage Graft, the procedure usually lasts 4-6 hrs. They will make an incision in his chest wall and harvest some of his rib cartilage. After doing that, the cartilage will be molded into the shape of his new ear. They will then slide the cartilage underneath his existing skin around the earlobe. That is the "basics" of what will happen on that surgery. Surgeries 2,3 and 4 will happen later in the year.

Lastly, before I quit typing, I must say we are so blessed to be surrounded by people who love our little boy. We have been a little overwhelmed by the outpouring of love in the past few days as we have prepared to leave for Atlanta. Nathan has had so many presents and goodies dropped by our house that I think he thinks it's his birthday :) I can't thank each and everyone of you enough. One day I hope to repay the favor in some form or fashion.

Something else I want to share.....my good friend Jennifer C. has gotten together a prayer vigil for Nathan starting at 5:00 Tuesday morning, lasting the rest of the week. How AMAZING is that!!!! Thanks Jen for everything......on that note, if you think about us on Tuesday morning and have the time to stop and say a prayer for Nathan, myself and Rod, we would greatly appreciate it. To everyone who is a part of the prayer vigil....THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART!!! To know that because of all of you, Nathan (Rod and I) will be covered in prayer as he goes through his surgery is so comforting. I know God will have his protective arms wrapped around my baby and I believe God will bless each one of you.

And if you have a second moment, say a little prayer for this little guy. Wilson is not going to know what to do with himself with Nathan gone. He loves his big brother SOOOOO much. He will be in great hands, but nobody puts a smile on his face like Nathan can.