Surgery Day - 4:30 pm update

Hannah is out of surgery! Praise God! She is resting comfortably in the PICU. More details later.

Surgery Day - 1:30 pm update

The Neuro team has almost completed the removal of the tract and tumor. They will begin the reconstruction of her skull shortly.

Surgery Day - 11:30 am update

The nose polyp has been removed. They are now working on removing the skull bones to gain access to her brain.

Surgery Day - 10:20 update

Surgery started at 9:40 am. Everything is going well. They plan to update us every two hours.

Surgery Day - 7:30 am update

We arrived at the hospital (OSF) at 5:30 am. There was some confusion and miscommunication regarding her preoperative MRI. She was taken back for the MRI at 7:30 am (1 hour late).  We will let you know when we hear more news. Thank you for your continued prayers.

Hannah's Surgery

We would like to share that Hannah will be having surgery Wednesday, September 16.  Although some people know of her surgery, we have debated about whether to share all of the details.  It is her history after all.  We have decided to share the details for a few reasons.  First, we know that there is power in prayer and we humbly ask for prayers for the surgery.  Second, we are told that Hannah's condition is very rare, so we are hopeful that we can help other families by sharing.  Third, we seek to glorify God, because He is the Great Physician!

The Details:

It is no secret that Hannah has a lesion that comes off her nose.  The question was whether it is a superficial nose polyp or has a connection to her brain.  Hannah has gone through extensive imaging since her arrival in the U.S.  Her records have been reviewed by doctors all over the country in addition to our local doctors.  Here is the conclusion: Hannah has a rare case of mid-line birth defects.  The lesion on her nose has a connecting tract that goes through her skull bone to a tumor in her brain.

Hannah's condition requires surgical intervention because the nose lesion provides a direct path for infection to get to her brain.  The surgery is very invasive and will have a lengthy recovery.  The surgery will involve a large surgical team that is led by a neurosurgeon and plastic surgeon.  The surgeons will make an incision from ear to ear to gain access to her skull.  The front portion of her skull and tops of her orbits will be removed.  Then, the surgeons will work to remove the nose lesion, tract and brain tumor.  Once removed, they will work to reconstruct her orbits and skull.  The surgery is expected to take up to 12 hours.

Photo credit: https://wiki.uiowa.edu/display/protocols/Cranioplasty

(Warning: Link contains graphic images)

Photo credit:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craniofacial_surgery

FAQ:

How long is her hospital stay?

She is expected to be in the hospital around 5 days with the first 2-3 days in the ICU.

Is Hannah covered by our health insurance?

Yes.

How will we prepare Hannah for surgery?

Hannah has adjusted very well in her four months with us.  We are praying that God will give her some understanding and peace.  She understands most of what we say to her.  She is starting to speak English in the last couple weeks and is able to make 3-4 word sentences.  We will do our best to explain going to the hospital (which she has done many times before) and the doctors' special job.  We will also went on a tour of the hospital to aid in this discussion.

Did you KNOW (she required a major surgery)?!

Does it matter if we knew?  Would we "change our minds"?  No and No.

You see we KNEW that Hannah was our daughter within moments of receiving her file.  Did it have unknowns?  Yes.  Did we go against our agency and doctor's opinions?  Yes.  Through prayer and many God winks along the way, God gave us a peace.  He led us to our sweet girl despite scary unknowns.  God knows!  He knew that Hannah was meant to be our daughter.

We also know:
Hannah is WANTED!
Hannah is SO LOVED!
Hannah is SPECIAL!
Hannah is a CHILD OF GOD and FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY MADE!

Prayer Requests:
We need you, prayer warriors!  Please lift up Hannah to the Lord!

-Please pray for Hannah to have an understanding of her hospitalization.
-Please pray for the surgical team, the details of the surgery and her post operative care team.
-Please pray for the unknowns of the surgery.  May God give clarity, direction and stamina to the surgical team.
-Please pray that Hannah will have limited complications, manageable pain, and quick healing.
-Please pray that Hannah will not have regression in her attachment, developmental milestones, or language.
-Please pray for our family's anxiousness and nervousness regarding the surgery.
-Please pray for Nathan, Micah and Claire while we care for Hannah.  We praise God for our family's availability and willingness to travel to our home and help care for them.
-Please pray for all of the grandparents to have safe travels and a sweet time with their grandkids.

Thank you for praying.  We will post as we have additional details and updates.  We are grateful for the support of so many!

"The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."  Exodus 14:4

Four months with Hannah

Hannah has been with us for four months!  She is doing very well and learning so much!  With school in full swing and activities started, we are trying to make the most of our family time.  We are especially trying to make the most of our time with Hannah.  Her surgery is this week and we know that her recovery may be long and unpredictable.  A detailed post about her surgery coming soon!

Here is what we have been up to!  At the end of August, Matt's Uncle Johnny tragically passed away.  We loaded up in the car and headed to his burial at the National Cemetery in South Dakota.  Although it was unfortunate circumstances, we were grateful for the opportunity to see Matt's Mom's side.  Hannah was finally able to meet Grandma and Grandpa Marquette.  She approves!  It was a sweet time with our extended family.  

Over Labor Day, we headed up to Chicago for a night.  Matt had a surprise in store!  We went out to dinner, went to see War Room (highly recommend it!), and stayed overnight at a hotel (without kids!) to celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary.  We were so thankful for that time together.  We reflected on all that God has done in our marriage.  We pray that we He will be glorified with all that we do.

One of our favorite Chicago restaurants and also where we had our rehearsal dinner.

This weekend we spent (freezing) at the big kids' first soccer games of the season.  Claire scored two goals for her and Micah's team.  Nathan scored three goals for his team.  They are very excited to be playing soccer this Fall! 

We also made our annual trip to Tanner's Orchard.  There was apple picking, the Back 40, horse riding, goat feeding and FUN!  It was a beautiful day and the kids had a blast!

Thanks for checking in our family!