A Day Worth Celebrating

We spent today in Portland visiting the Ronald McDonald House, the place we stayed two years ago when John was having his open heart surgery.  It is a day we celebrate God's healing over his body.  There is so much I could write about all that happened, but sometimes pictures say more than I ever could. 

John and Brian just before John was taken to surgery.  He was only two months and three weeks old.  He was so happy that morning, so sweet and trusting.  We praise God for the amazing surgical hands that took care of our little guy.

This was in the Pediatric ICU after surgery.  It was so hard to see him like this, but at the same time there was so much peace in knowing that the life threatening complication  in his heart (coarctation of aorta) had been successfully fixed.

This was just after John's breathing tubes were removed.  We were so glad to see him improving so steadily.

With my brave boy!  He was so amazing through this whole process.

His first bottle feed after surgery.

Such gratitude to God for saving John's life.

Brian was the first to hold John as more wires and tubes were removed.  It was also his first time to feed John since he was still nursing.

Christmas morning 2011.  The best Christmas present we could have ever been given.  John was moved from the PICU to a regular room.

Gramma and Pepa.  We could not have gone through this without such amazing support from both sets of parents.

Nanna and Poppa.  We were so blessed by our parents making a trip to be with us at such short notice.  We all had a days notice to get to the hospital, and both sets of parents were able to find flights from Texas in order to be with us.  It meant the world to have them all there.

John's recovery was so amazing.  He spent his days after the PICU smiling nonstop as if nothing had ever happened.

After five days in the hospital we were given the go ahead to go home.

So happy to be leaving.  We still had a couple of months of regulating blood pressure and three doctors appointments a week, but God got us through it all.

John's recovery went so well and he continues to be strong and healthy with each checkup with his cardiologist.  After two years of visiting every few months, we were just recently given the clear to wait a year before his next visit.  He still has two issues with his heart that are being monitored, but as of now his heart continues to function just as it should.  We are so thankful to remember what God has done for our son.

We have made it a tradition to visit Portland each year on or around the day of his surgery, December 23rd.  The children's hospital has moved from where we were when we are there, so it is all very different now.  But the Ronald McDonald House is just as it was when we were there, and we have loved being able to visit and bring some things for the other families that are having to be there because their child is in the hospital.  It is an amazing organization to care for families during their time of need to allow the families to solely focus on their child.  This was the first time that John was old enough to really be a part of going back to visit.

The girls remember our time at the Ronald McDonald House and enjoy going back each year.

Statue in front of the RMH.

Our healthy boy in the coveted spot in the RMH dining room: the remote to the train overhead.

Unending enjoyment of the remote control train.

Our hearts have been made more full because of all that we have gone through with John.  We are so grateful to all who walked and prayed with us throughout this journey.  We are so thankful for the excellent care he received at the hospital, as well as the hospitality of the volunteers and staff of the Ronald McDonald House.  But mostly, we praise God, the ultimate Physician, the ultimate Healer.  We praise Him for our son.  We celebrate this day that He saved John's life, and we look forward with anticipation to the day He saves his life for all eternity.