Back to Reality.... and surgery date

We had a great little get-a-way this week. Me, the girls and my mom headed to Fort Walton Beach to my aunts house. I can't thank my mom enough for making the trip with me and I can't thank my aunt enough for hosting us. We got to play with our cousins and some friends, enjoy the pools and a lazy river, look for sea shells and build sand castles. Some much needed stress relief for me and Emmie. Unfortunately, we headed back to reality on Thursday. I guess I can't whisk her off to a Caribbean island and pretend she's not sick, because that's what I really want to do. Instead, I was greeted with a large packet of information on MOTT Children's Hospital. It is really happening, ugh! To be honest, my gut reaction was to vomit, and burn it :(

Emmie will be admitted to MOTT Children's Hospital Sunday. She will undergo a few tests on Sunday & Monday, and should be released on Tuesday. She will have a nuclear test of her kidneys, which shouldn't be a big deal. She doesn't have to go under anesthesia for this. Should take an hour or so. The second test is an angiogram of her renal arteries. This is a little more difficult for her. She will be under anesthesia. It's done in the cath lab. They go in through her leg with a catheter and inject dye into her renal arteries. They want a very clear picture of what they are dealing with in order to decide on the best course of action. She will need to be monitored after this test, so she will stay the night, and we will come home sometime on Tuesday. 

Right now her surgery is scheduled for November 29th. (It could possibly change after they see the images of the angiogram) It will be a 6 to 10 hour surgery. The first few days after surgery will be rough for her, and for me. She will be in a lot of pain, and I won't be able to take it away. The recovery should get a little easier as each day passes, but it will be long and hard.

Specific prayer requests we have right now.....

1. That the testing this Monday will go well, no complications, and Emmie will not be too anxious.
2. That we will be able to work things out with our insurance. Right now they are telling us the hospital is out of network, which means that 30% of the bill will fall on us.
3.  That my anxiety level will come down a little. I've not been this emotional about surgeries and procedures with her for a very long time. I know it's due to the difficulty of the surgery and the recovery, plus its a new hospital, new team of doctors, new everything. We've never done a surgery like this, I have no idea what to expect from Emmie afterwards. I had grown "comfortable" so to speak with Riley, our team of doctors and what to expect out of Emmie, this feels so foreign to me and I'm really struggling with it. As I struggled this evening even writing this post. I began searching for verses of comfort. 1 Peter 5: 6-8 says "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Satan is preying on my weakness right now. 

4. Pray for the surgeons. We are handing our daughter over to them and we are trusting them. I pray for a clear decision on what is the correct procedure, steady hands and focused minds during surgery.

I know whose daughter she is. She is a Princess. She is the daughter to a Heavenly King. He goes before her, he will be with her, and he will never leave her.