What a day, what a week!!
Ray made it through the transplant at 3:15am. They did
not COMPLETELY get the old liver out until 11:00pm last night, a full 12 hours.
It was truly a race against the clock as the new liver is generally only good
for 14-15 hours on ice. Ray was in surgery a FULL 16 hours.
I cannot tell you all HOW MANY PEOPLE were PRAYING for him and were prayer
warriors. People from everywhere were praying, praying, praying...praying all
day and praying all throughout the night. Let me testify to you know IT WORKED
and if you didn't believe that God provides miracles before today then Ray is
living proof. God DOES work in his own way, at his own time and did work last
night and worked through and with the AWESOME team of surgeons that worked
tirelessly on sticking with figuring out a very complicated situation. It was a
touch and go situation yesterday. Even through the first transplant (which was
12 hours) I never felt like Ray wouldn't make it or that I would be left alone
with Jackson. When I got the update yesterday at 5:00pm-6 hours into surgery
that they didn't even have the old liver out I was very concerned, I became very
frightened, very scared and couldn't just help but think "Lord what am I going
to tell these children if something happens to Ray"...that was the first time my
mind ever went there. I know that God doesn't give me the spirit of fear but my
brain and my heart couldn't remember that yesterday for quite sometime. When the
nurse came out at 11:00 to tell us the old liver was out me, my mom, Rays mom
and all the "greenville girls" who were sitting with us just cheered! There were
smiles all around! The LORD has spoken to me in SO MANY small and large ways
over the past 48 hours and Lord I am listening.
Dr. Sudan came by this morning and this evening and said she was pleased
with Ray today and how his first day out of transplant went. His BP is still low
but that is to be expected. His liver numbers look GOOD and already his
billirubin is down in the 2's. His creatine (kidney function) was 1.9 earlier
today and this evening was up to 2.4...we want that number to go down. The
kidneys certainly bore the brunt of a HUGE tiring surgery and they need some
TLC. I ask that you pray for God to continue to heal Rays body and especially to
hold Rays kidneys in his hands and work out all the kinks and help them to know
that they don't have to work as hard anymore, there's a "new liver in town" to
help them.
Tomorrow they hope will go as good as today. That he will continue to get
strong, heal and that the kidney numbers will trend down, the liver numbers
continue to stabilize and that tomorrow he will be able to get the breathing
tube out. If tomorrow he continues to be stable and the breathing tube can come
out then he can go to step down unit. There he could have to stay 3-7 days.
I was able to get an apartment today for Ray and I and it had a real
"homey" feel to it. It is a two bedroom has a washer/dryer, sleeper sofa, a play
area in the complex and two pools (which Jackson was excited about!!) So I will
move some things in tomorrow and begin sleeping there tomorrow night. I hope
that in a week Ray will join me there at our "vacation home" for the
summer....doesn't everyone vacation in Durham...it's the new hamptons!
Thank you to everyone for the calls, text and emails. I love and appreciate
them all and you all more than you know. It is hard to talk to everyone in a day
and respond to all emails and texts but know I READ THEM ALL and they fill my
heart with such hope and joy, especially all the scripture you all text to me!
It gets me through the day. I will make it my job to try to send an email out
each day to give you an update, maybe each evening.
THANK you to my Mom who is my rock. I love and admire and appreciate her
more than she will ever know. Thanks to my daddy who I know is loving me from a
far and keeping watch over the animals, praying for Ray and I and is taking his
sweet granddaughter to a father/daughter breakfast tomorrow, thanks to the BEST
girlfriends Christy, Jennifer, Kim, Deborah (and in spirit Kamara) who when I
called and was over the edge and needed my girls they piled in the car and CAME.
WE had a big ole Duke slumber party last night. I LOVE you girls! Thanks to
ALDRIDGE CAMP who are taking such good care of Riley and Jackson, while they may
miss us a "little" they are having a ball! Thanks to Rays co-workers Thad and
Ivan for coming to sit with us and helping Rays mom with a hotel room close to
the hospital. Thanks to our sweet church family for the continued prayers and
for the visit on Wed and Thursday. Thanks to my sweet, sweet principal and
friend who came and sat with us for a bit on Wed during surgery. and for Rays
mom for rallying around her son all day.
Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone for the prayers. Keep them up
and keep em coming strong!
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