Homecoming

In one of the most momentous chapter changes of his life, Eli has made it home!

Only 2 weeks after we were told he wouldn't be headed home before his second surgery, this very event actually happened. Ironically, Paige's visit to the ER was while we were dealing with Eli's discharge, only a couple hallways down the way! We didn't expect him home before October, following recovery of his second surgery. Only 6 days ago, he was in the PICU. He's made it into the step-down unit on several occasions, only to get sick every time, and escalated back into the PICU. We've begged the doctors not to send him into the step-down unit, which is a floor filled with sick kids, but lacks the isolation and control of the PICU, but this just wasn't possible. Discharge directly out of the PICU just isn't something they do.

So we changed our tactics, and took an extremely aggressive, active role in his care. Praise to Tanya for being there many, many hours this last week to care for Eli, so the nurses didn't have/get to. Praise to her for managing anyone who walked through his door, and their santitation practices. Praise to her for convincing the doctors we could do everything they're doing, at home! So they sent us home with all his meds (down to 9 of them, 6 by the end of the month), some oxygen bottles, and a monitor.

He's been home since Friday evening, and everything's gone really well. Doctors orders are extremely limited/controlled visitation. He's still very fragile, and any sickness will send him back to the hospital. This morning, we took a big risk, trusting God would bless our intentions and keep him healthy. Today, there were baby dedications at church. Our church represents a couple hundred people who have been supporting us so dearly, and blessing us. We trusted God would honor our desire to bless them with a chance to finally meet the boy they've been praying for, and have seen only through photos shared here. The fact that today is also Father's Day only made it that much more poignant for me.

As we begin this new chapter, we need to clearly reiterate that we're going to have to limit visitation to a very small, select few. We hope this doesn't create animosity or offend anyone, but we need to limit him to as little exposure to potential hazards as possible.

Please pray that he continues to stay healthy, grows stronger, and continues to be used by God to bring glory to his name.