Spring and Surgery

Here's our last few weeks in pictures.....

Loftin turned 9! He seems so big and for his birthday Lee took him hunting with his first real gun-he is in heaven in this picture

Off to Disney World for spring break

MG was mesmerized by all the princesses

Just look at their faces-not sure MG could smile any bigger

Riding Dumbo-girls favorite ride :)

Watching parades, lots of parades

Elsa and Anna

Fun meeting lots of characters and getting autographs

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Loftin and Pluto at Epcot

Snow queen

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Look who's in their hands

This happened most days-she usually slept in her face paint and clothes at night 

Disney=total exhaustion

Family pic with Mickey

We had the best trip-the kids love everything and despite a few melt downs, they did so well and we were sad to leave. Flying home we almost missed our flight-Lee and I were both completely exhausted and neither of us even noticed we had been sitting for an hour at the WRONG gate and then we hear "Sheppard party of 5, you have 1 minute to board" it was insane. We made it though and are now over Disney detox and kiddos went back to school today. 

And now, onto MG's surgery....she will have her left hip operated on this Thursday, April 9th here at Children's. She is first case, so probably around 7:30. The doctor is not 100% sure until he gets in what he will need to do, but he will most likely build the socket up with a graft and put the ball/hip back into the socket. He also said there is chance he will have to cut her femur in half and put in a plate and screws in order to get it in the socket at the right angle. We are really praying that the femur part does not have to happen. It will just mean more hardware in her body, more reason for infection, more pain, etc. Then she will be casted from the waist down to her left ankle and right knee for 6 weeks. I'm keep trying to figure out how this is going to play out, and it makes me sad and tired to think about it. There are many unknowns and that makes me fearful. I think because, even though she had this done at 8 months old, now she is 4 and walking and moving and doing so much, she has come so far in these 4 years. She still struggles with back pain and not sure how that will effect her without being able to change positions and move around.  It will be a hard season, but I'm trusting in God's promises.

A week ago this was the Call to Worship at our church taken from Isaiah 43...
"Let us worship God, who has done great things. We rejoice in our God, who has made a way through the desert of this world. Let us worship God, who has caused streams of mercy to flow in the wasteland. We are the people God has formed through Christ; we worship him, and we rejoice."

These promises of God are so comforting, I feel a little like we are about to enter the desert, but he will bring streams of mercy, he promises. They are new every morning and we will take this one day at a time. Below is MG this morning waiting in carpool to go to school, she just ate a blue sucker-can you tell? She is so happy and joyful these days, and I think that is what is making this the hardest for me to think about putting her through this. But we know it needs to be done to prevent major pain and arthritis at a young age.

So, we ask you to pray for the surgery, no complications, no respiratory issues, her recovery, her pain and our everyday life with her in a cast. For Loftin and Lucy and them having to watch her go through this and just the effect it will have on our whole family. Also, mostly for her little spirit. I have told her about the surgery and she is anxious now. She said she didn't really want to have hip surgery, but I told her she could pick out the color of cast, she picked pink. Pray for God's mercy to be evident-He always amazes me with His grace and love. Thank you all for praying for our family!