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.