This Afternoon

Thought it would be appropriate for Nels to wear his
"Every good and perfect gift is from above" onesie today!
He truly is a gift to us from GOD! 

It is with thankful hearts that we report that all went well this morning with Nelson's procedure. The Lord went before and behind us and made our path straight. After we got called back to a room, Brandon asked the doctor if it would be alright if we prayed over her once we were getting ready to start - she said that would be fine. So when the doctor came in and her team of five people - she said, "Alright Dad, you're up"...meaning, time for you to pray! So Brandon got to pray for the Lord to work through the doctor and team's hands. At the close of the prayer he said, "OK, we'll look forward to you coming to get us when it's over"...(because we had heard that it was common for the doctor to ask the parents to step out since it's hard for the parents, especially the mom, to see the baby so upset)...but our doctor said, "Oh no, y'all stay. And mom, could you go stand by Nelson's head so that he will see you?" WOW! I wasn't planning on that but sure was honored to get to stand there next to my precious son and look into his big blue eyes every step of the way. I held both of his hands and didn't take my eyes off of him the entire time - and yes, it was very, very hard to watch him cry and cry so hard - but I had to keep reminding myself that this was for his good AND he would not remember any of this!! 

The procedure went smoothly and the doctor did what she came to do - thank you, Lord! And then after that they put his fifth set of casts on. That's not ever a fun process for him due to the fact that he is a mover and a shaker and he has to be held down and still for a couple of minutes - but he made it through and was such a warrior! I kept remembering how a dear friend had prayed over me when Nelson was in my belly, that he would be a warrior for the Lord...and that no weapon formed against him would prosper. I was clinging to that today!! As soon as the procedure and castings were over, they put my precious boy right in my arms for me to nurse him. That consoled him immediately and then he went into a peaceful sleep. Not too long ago, he woke up after a three hour nap and ate again and I could tell was a little more fussy than normal which was sad to see, but the Lord blessed me with the most dear little smile from the precious fella, which reminded me that he is OK and that this is all part of the process. He is now back to resting peacefully again and smiling here and there while he sleeps...so cute!! The next step is for him to wear this set of casts for the next three weeks and then we will go back in to check on the status of his feet and more than likely move him into the shoes with the bar. 

Words cannot even express how much the messages, emails, calls, and texts meant this morning. We could feel the army of prayer warriors of dear family and friends surrounding us and lining the walls of the room where the procedure took place. We have had the song "10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord)" by Matt Redman on our lips all morning and all day long. Brandon and I were singing it in the room before the surgery took place. You can click here to listen to it and read the lyrics. Thank you again to each and every one of you for lifting up our precious Nelson in prayer today and standing beside us throughout this entire journey. I will close by saying, it's amazing how God gives you the strength and grace when you need it. If you had told me even a month ago that I would be looking into the face of my child while he bawls his eyes out, I would have told you that I would bawl my eyes out too. But today...we had to be strong for Nelson...and through the strength that the LORD gave us, it was possible! We'll keep you posted on our little man's progress!