Mayla Day 9-Quickie, really

Mayla's first full day following surgery has been such a blessing. She continues to show her strength while God continues to show His love. This morning Mayla was extrabated (oxygen/breathing machine removed). She is still on a small amount of oxygen but otherwise breathing on her own. The aid of oxygen is largely due to the fact that she is still slowly coming out of sedation. The meds have been significantly reduced, including pain meds like morphin, and she continues to rest peacefully. Her blood pressure seems to have stabilized and she was awake for quite a while this afternoon (which at this stage means 30-45 minutes). This evening was the first lengthy "tummy time" she has seen since the day she was born. Being on her tummy makes it easier for her to breath on her own. The doctors and nurses are all very pleased with her progress and we continue to be pleased and blessed with the tender care she is receiving in the ICU. By God's grace we have been able to get some needed rest ourselves and look forward to a bit more tomorrow. We continue praying for her recovery and specifically for self-sufficient breathing, her coming out of sedation and fully awakening, all of her vitals being stable (blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen levels, etc), and the edema (swelling) going down; she looks a bit related to the stay puft marshmallow man or the Michelin man... Perfect!!! As we rest and discuss our journey, we continue to be amazed at how God has orchestrated all the events over the last 9 days, but more than that, how he has prepared us for this over the last nine months and beyond. He truly is in control of all things and we continue to submit to His plan; ours would have had us in a lot more difficult situations. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. All our love and gratitude go out to each of you, and may you all be blessed by Him who is the giver of grace and peace.

Imagine she is saying something like, "Daddy, what in the world just happened to me? I feel like I got hit by a mail truck or had my chest ripped apart..." What makes this funny is her daddy got hit by a mail truck, hahahaha.

We so much enjoy reading to her. Can't wait to read Waterski Magazine to her for the first time...

Tender love of a mother...

Daddy adoration