PRAYERS!
We leave tomorrow (Wednesday) for Ann Arbor, Michigan with our littleLover in tow.
We will meet with Dr. Kileny who will perform an
Electric Auditory Brainstem Response test: EABR
Our littleLover will be put under general anaesthesia and a fine needle will be inserted through his ear drum and will directly stimulate the inner ear and hearing nerve with electrical impulses. Responses will be recorded from the hearing portions of the brain through electrodes.
Please pray for:
Safe travels and that our little boy will enjoy his very first airplane ride!
Kara will be keeping sweetLove...please pray for their safety and lots of fun!
Please pray for the anaesthesiologist and a routine, everyday, peaceful sleep for our little boy.
Dr. Kileny and his staff before, during and after the procedure.
Me and Chris as our little boy is out of our arms.
PLEASE PLEASE pray that the results are definitive. NO ifs or maybe's.
Finally, please pray that as parents,
we are able to push aside our wants and fears and that we hear God's direction.
Our wants:
We would love for our little guy to hear.
To lead as normal a life as possible in a hearing world.
For him to be happy and most of all, to fulfill the calling that God has of him.
Our fears:
More surgery.
Possibly taking any risidual hearing away due to an unsuccessful implantation.
Being different and what that life will look like.
In the last 3 weeks, we have spent time learning about deaf culture.
Chris and I are in the midst of sign language classes and are loving it.
We are learning, as a family, how to communicate and embrace the gift that God has given us.
For me, this trip is more about knowing we got as much information as we could
to make the best decisions for our little guy.
I am not anxious for a yes or no answer concerning a possible implant.
As his momma, I am 100% content with the possibility that he will never hear.
Did you know that 80% of parents with deaf children never learn sign language or to communicate with their own kids. After meeting with and talking to many deaf individuals I believe this percentage is accurate.
Not this momma...
I will learn.
His daddy will learn.
His sister will learn.
Regardless of him being implanted or not.
He is deaf.
I believe that others who love him...will also have the desire to learn!
Here is a funny story:
When I called to make an appointment with Dr. Todd at Emory the earliest they had available was a couple months out. After I contacted a few connections I have made through this process, they told me to call his office, ask for a certain individual and tell her Dr. Todd wanted to see him ASAP. I did just that. I got this response...
"What is so special about your son for Dr. Todd to want to move his appointment"
I responded...I could tell you a hundred things that make him special, but I am sure you are not interested. I am just doing what I was told. She then told me she would have to confirm this statement with Dr. Todd himself and get back with me. I heard from her less than an hour later and she asked if I would be available the following Monday...three days later. I laughed to myself and told her we would be there...and of course gave her the most sincere Thank You she had probably heard all year!
We are in one of Dr. Todd's rooms and we could hear the nurse inform him that our little boy was in room 12. We then hear..."ah, yes...I know all about that little boy!" I remember looking at Chris (being that he had never seen our littleLover or talked with me and Chris) and saying..."I'm not sure if that is good or bad?"
He suggests the trip to Michigan.
I am calling to schedule with Dr. Kileny's and after his secretary learns we are coming from Atlanta she asks us when we were looking to make the trip. I respond AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. She informs me she would get with Dr. Kileny and they would look at his schedule.
She calls back the following day, and no lie this is what she says...
"Your son must be one special little boy.
Dr. Kileny re-arranged his surgery schedule to get him in by the end of the month."
I simply responded...YES, HE IS SPECIAL!
...and if you wouldn't mind to take a minute and leave us a comment if you are willing to offer up a few prayers. One day he will read this journey and I know he will be very humbled by the many who have supported him and our family through this journey!
THANK YOU!
THANK YOU!
