2nd stage Ear Surgery

Well, the alarm went off early this morning and we all got a good nights sleep to prepare for the long day ahead of us. Graci woke up smiling and ready to put behind her, yet another surgery that would have her closer to her "New Ear".

We arrived at the Surgical Center at 6:30 am with gear in hand and angels watching over us. Graci and I had on our matching monogrammed t-shirts on so we could feel connected to one another. The surgery that Graci was having was 2nd stage Earlobe Transposition. Dr. Brent was going to reposition Graci's earlobe by releasing the earlobe surgically, moving it lower and placing it in the correct position. Many families that we had talked to stated that 2nd stage was a breeze. However, anytime your child is having surgery it tends to be difficult, regarding how much of a breeze the surgery is. It wasn't until Graci crawled up in the bed with those lovely hospital PJ's and looked at her Daddy with huge alligator tears that I lost it. For that split second, she was actually scared and reality had hit that she was going to be taking away from her family for three hours to have surgery. After a couple of rubs on the arm, hugs around the neck, kisses on the cheek and the liquid Valium...she was fine. She knew that we would anxiously be waiting for her in the waiting room waiting for Dr. Brent to come through those double doors.

While waiting in the lobby I was able to relax with coffee and doughnuts. I completed my Children's Book, "An Ear for Graci". I also enjoyed watching Griffin color picture for his sweet sister while she was in the operating room. They certainly share a unique bond of love and friendship. The two of them share respect and joy for each other. Griffin is so happy and excited for his sister and the journey she is experiencing. Griffin sees his sister as a superhero and a forever friend. She truly is his best friend. I know one day they will grow old; but, I hope they will always have that close relationship.

It was that time when Dr. Brent came through those double doors smiling from "ear to ear" as he always does with camera in hand. He explained that surgery went well and Graci was once again a real trooper. She showed us pictures of what was now a ear with an earlope. It was phenomenal the work he had done in less then 3 hours. He was happy and so were we.

Graci woke up in recovery grumpy and fussy but her first words were, "I want to go home". Once the nurse heard that she knew Graci was feeling fine and much eager to get out of recovery. We changed her clothes and got her already to leave. She was such a trooper and a brave girl....so eager to leave just hours after having ear reconstruction. She is truly an amazing little girl. We headed to Walgreen's to get some goodies and things that would make her happy for the day. We had to get stickers to cover that lovely head piece that I think she had forgotten she was going to have. Once we entered in the apartment she immediately ran to the mirror to look at herself and stated assembling stickers on the bandage and then slowly drifted off the sleep watching Hannah Montana.

We are truly indebted to the numerous of people all over the US for making this dream come true for Graci. We have certainly reached yet another milestone and we are half way there. A special thanks to friends and family, thank you once again for all your prayers, love and support during this second phase of our journey. As you know the journey doesn't end here because we return to this wonderful state of California again in February for 3rd stage......until we meet again!

2nd Stage of Journey

Preparation for this trip required little thought. We were only going to be gone three nights so we were trying to pack as little as possibly. The main things were coats and goodies for the plane ride. We didn't prepare for the cold weather last trip, and we needed more things to keep the kids busy for the 6 hour plane ride. Graci never once stated that she didn't want to come to California for surgery; however, she was just dreading the long ride (along with Mommy). I think Graci is a lot like me and has difficulty sitting still because we always feel like we have to be doing something. Well, Me Me had bought Graci and DS Nintendo and Mommy had gotten Graci a new vera bradley. So, we stuffed it with lots of candy, markers, pads and makeup all given from a formal teacher of Graci's. She had plenty of things to keep a girlie girl busy.

The plane ride was just like any other plane ride, crowded with lots of smelly people. I enjoy my space too much and I have a issues with smells. There were people every where falling asleep with their mouths open and all these weird smells all around me. Anyway, Griffin watched movies and Graci kept herself busy playing and she even sat beside a Spanish girl and they colored and laughed together. It was really sweet watching two innocent girls who didn't even know laugh and smile together. One would giggle and then the other would giggle and their smiles were contagious. They had everyone around them smiling. In the meantime, I was actually able to relax and read a book. "A Flame on the Front Line" written by John Weaver, my dear brother. The book explores his aspects of life as a child, teenage and then discuss his journey from America to Afghanistan. He now shares God's love in Afghanistan and has been helping Afghans for over 25 years. If any of you are interested in learning more about this remarkable man, please consider purchasing a book from amazon. Anyway, this book got me thinking about my very own child hood. My child hood consisted of growing up with three older brothers and a younger sister who is now my best friend and the divorce of my parents. John's book took me back in to my life making me realize all my earthly struggles, painful experiences and disappointing failures. But now I stand proud of the mom and wife I have become and all my dreams I am fulfilling. I say all that to say, that I don't want Graci to have the child hood that I had. I don't want her to experience the things I did at such a early age; I don't want her to look back at her life and regret things that she has done. However, the sad thing is that she will face and have obstacles that I never had. Each year of her life will consist of surgery, new doctors, therapy and hospital stays. I know that this will only make her stronger. However, It is hurtful to know that she will look back at her childhood and have those types of experiences to share. I just want her to know that her family has always put her first and the joy that she has brought to our lives is unmeasurable. Graci, you brighten my day and warm my heart each day I am alive. You are full of beauty, forever beautiful and truly amazing. God made you exactly the way he wanted and placed you in our lives for a reason. You have brought so much sunshine in my life and each day you fill my heart with love. Ok, you can see that every time Graci has surgery it saddens me. My heart rejoices because it is just one step closer to the completion of this journey; but it never ends for Sweet Graci. I am so thankful that God has given me such a strong and determined little girl who NEVER lets anything or anyone stand in her way.

We arrived in California and was immediately hit with the cold chill in the air. However, the strong chilly wind moved my spirit and I was trembling with joy. I was so happy to be with my family, away from all the hustle and bustle back in Wilson and the stress at work. Well, the cold wind brought us closer and we all began to hold hands and walk together. It certainly brought back memories of of our first journey together. We got settled in our same little apartment that we had last time and enjoyed the evening together. After being up for over 24 hours and with little rest from a busy week we all crashed before 9:00. We woke up early to grab some breakfast and thank God for another day and headed off to the city before Graci's pre-op.

We decided to hit China town just to say we went. Well, it was the most hectic mess of confusion that I had ever seen in a city. People every where, cars pulling out of alleys, people begging, fruit markets on every corner, jewelry and pocket books galour. Graci and I did get us a couple of knock off pocketbooks while Thomas stood there holding Griffin looking like a tourist watching the people go by. We didn't stay too long, due to the lack of walking the children wanted to do so we headed to Pier 39. We had visited there before so we were all excited about looking at all the gorgeous attractions right on the San Fran Bay. We ate at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Restaurant and enjoyed the scenery and walked around for a bit. As Forest Gump said, Life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what you are going to get. That has certainly been a reality for us these past three months.

Off to the gorgeous city 0f Mountain View for Graci's pre-op which is about 40 minutes from San Fran. The city gets its name from the views of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Looking out at these mountain views makes you feel good all over. It is such a unbelievable picture that I can't even describe. We may not be able to conquer a mountain but we can conquer ourselves and that is exactly what Graci is doing. The dream of having two ears and we have kept her dream alive. We have achieved this dream from faith and the belief in God. Also from Graci's hard work, dedication and determination. Remember all things are possible for those who believe. At one point we didn't even know how to make this dream come true. Thanks to all of you her dream has come true and this journey will have a happy ending...............