Elijah Update (April 12)

Thank you all for your prayers. Elijah did well during surgery. He had some problems in the recovery process but recovered himself without a need for machines. He is in pain right now and we are treating it with Tylenol. Please continue to pray that this procedure works. One end of a shunt was put into his chest cavity, the other end into his abdomen. In the middle is a sort of reservoir that has to be pumped every hour. Our nurse carries her timer on her scrubs to know when to come back. This fluid is being pumped from his chest cavity into his abdomen in hopes that this will go back into circulation. Please pray that Elijah does not swell too much and that this fluid....which is precious fluid with all his proteins and antibodies.......does go back into the blood stream. Pray that the blockage in his thoracic system will dissolve QUICKLY and that his body can get back to "normal". Pray for his pain. Pray that it will go away quickly.
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Nine hours after the surgery, Elijah is doing well. He wakes up every now and then with a little grunt, sometimes a cry and then goes right back to sleep. Once in a while when he wakes up he looks around. If we are standing nearby he will look at us for a little bit and then drift off to sleep. Sometimes his eyes look focused and alert and at other times they look drowsy. I believe he is still feeling a little bit of pain, but not as much as early afternoon.

We haven't been able to talk with the surgeon today, she came by while we went grocery shopping (We have finally decided that we are going to be here more than a couple of days and the Ronald McDonald House doesn't feed us like the one in Kansas City.) The surgeon left both right and left chest tubes in Elijah. This afternoon the right tube was pinched closed so the only way the fluid could leave the right side of Elijah's chest was through the shunt. Now she has opened the right chest tube. I'm not sure the reason. Hopefully we will find out tomorrow.

Joel plans to go back to Ness City tomorrow to take care of taxes and some business. However it is supposed to snow tonight and it may be snowing in Ness City as I write this message. So we will see what actually happens. If Joel does go home he plans to return Saturday night or Sunday morning. So Judy will be alone with Elijah for a couple of days.

For any of you near a Ronald McDonald House a great project for your church or Sunday school class is to provide one meal for the occupants each month. Once you start this then challenge other churches or classes to do the same. At Children's Mercy in Kansas City we found this service to be so helpful during a difficult time. We have enjoyed all the volunteers at the Ronald McDonald Houses and Ronald McDonald Rooms inside the hospitals. Our first night back here at Wesley a weeping mother and father went into the Ronald McDonald Room just down the hall from PICU just to cry and hug each other.....the volunteer came up to me and said "Oh, let me make you a pizza, you NEED to eat!" Very wonderful staff.

Thank you for all of your prayers. Please continue to pray for little Elijah. Specifically the requests we mentioned. Thanks.

Love in Christ,

JJ and E

Our address in Wichita is
Ronald McDonald House
Room 4
520 N. Rutan
Wichita, Kansas 67208