One Week Left...

I took Annie for her last pre-op appointment today.  She's currently healthy and well!  And now that I've given her a haircut, I'd say she's officially ready for surgery next week!

Annie still has a bit of lingering phlegm from her viral infection, but nothing that is requiring suction or that is too out of the ordinary for her.  She also has a canker, but that is inevitable with her biting her lips with her seizures, so I hope that's not a reason to cancel surgery, otherwise we'll never be able to do it!  Her urine analysis came back completely negative which we're thrilled about, but her white blood cell count was 16,000 which is slightly above normal.  But she has no symptoms of illness, so again, we'll keep our fingers crossed that she checks out well enough for the surgeon to give us the green light for next Monday.

Annie currently weighs 64 lbs!  Ever since the orthopedist told us to start preparing her for this surgery last January, we have been trying to pack the pounds on Annie.  We've successfully managed to get 10 extra pounds on her this past year!!  I think my back is actually looking forward to having her lose some of this weight after surgery.

We're now down to the final week.  Each day closer makes us a little more nervous as the reality and magnitude of it all sets in, but at the same time we also have peace that this is the best thing for Annie.  She has been home from school and in isolation since October 25th, so we are ready to move forward and get this all behind us.  We are so grateful for the power of prayer and priesthood blessings and the comfort that they have brought us.

Molly and Lexie seem to be doing well.  We've had a lot of discussions about what is going to be happening and exactly what Annie's surgery entails.  We've also spent a lot of time in Family Home Evenings talking about eternal families and the plan of salvation.  On Thanksgiving as the girls were asked what they are thankful for, Justin and I were so touched to hear both Lexie and Molly tell us how grateful they are for Annie in our family.  They are sweet girls and they truly love their sister.

I've felt bad that Lexie will be celebrating her birthday while we are with Annie in the hospital.  And ironically, I realized that earlier this year we celebrated Molly's birthday while Annie was in the hospital also.  Poor girls!  But they have really positive attitudes and are very understanding.  I often worry about how they handle situations like this, but I realize too that this type of life is all they've ever known and is normal for them.  I am so grateful for sweet daughters who even pray not just for Annie, but also for Justin and me when they sense that we are overwhelmed and stressed.  I'm grateful we could have a quiet and calm Thanksgiving at home.  We truly do have so much to be grateful for!