Brady Update, Day 9

So, yesterday was tough. We had been told he'd get off the vent, and that didn't happen. We were left with one non-sedated, pissed off little baby. I was so thankful that Brad's parents came in for a little while so that I could get a rest from patting Brady's chest and singing to him. Brad went back to work this week, so there were times where I really was reaching out to anyone around us for personal interaction, and as a result have been able to connect with the families in our sleep room suite. Most of them have children in the Cardiac Care Unit as well, and it's nice to pray for someone else's baby, knowing that we have so many praying for us.

This morning, I woke up, determined to just get this day done, and not have a bad attitude about it, no matter the outcome. After the doctors did their rounds (I swear, Brady was the last kid they came to today!) they decided to take his breathing tube out! It was great to see his little face, and he calmed down immediately after being freed of that thing.

The doctors monitored him closely, and although his blood test showed that he was properly oxygenating his blood on his own, he looked a little labored, and they put a mask over his nose and mouth to help his breathing. This wasn't as invasive, and with the help of a little sedative, he seemed to tolerate it well. I was a little crestfallen, however, as I had hoped to be able to just hold my little man again.

My folks had come in, so my mom sang to Brady while my dad held his hand, and they got him off to sleep... Again, I wish I had inherited my mother's singing abilities! They come in handy once again!

Now, the best news of tonight. When the doctors came through on their nightly checks, the attending physician a)thought I was a nurse b) asked my opinion on if I thought that he still needed this much breathing support. I had no idea he thought I was a nurse, all I knew was that Brady was not settling down with the face mask, so I told him so. So, he said, "ok, get respiratory in here and let's take this mask off." I then told him I wasn't a nurse, just mom. He faltered a little bit, then said, "Well, what you said is still true. How about I get respiratory in here and we'll take off this mask?"

An hour later, his tests came back that he was in good shape, and we were free and clear of the breathing devices! The real nurse and I gave him a little sponge bath and tucked him into bed, and for the first night that I can remember, Brady fell asleep on his own, thumb in mouth and blanket in hand.

Your encouragement today came at all the right times. Thank you.

God has put such joy in my heart today, and has blown me away by the witness that Brady is to His glory. That little boy has touched so many people, not because he's this baby prodigy, but because of the love he evokes from those he encounters. People I haven't spoken to in years are praying for this little one. The kingdom of God is one that is connected and real. It prays together, serves together and lives selflessly together. I have heard stories of people I don't know fasting for Brady's health, waking up in the middle of the night to pray for us. Painting walls. Lifting up our families. Gifting our nursing staff. And while the focus of the prayer is on Brady's health, it is Christ who is reflected in all of this. If Brady can help show Christ in those he touches, I am so thankful to be his mother. I expect that he is going to keep reminding me into my old age about who we are to model, and at times, put me to shame. Our culture makes it easy to be selfish, materialistic, lazy & complacent. But being Brady's mom hasn't, so far. I can't be selfish when I look at the moms and dads in our sleep room suite who have a much harder situation than us, and still have a positive attitude. I can't be materialistic when I step back and see that everything I need is provided for by the Hand of God. Nor can I be lazy or complacent when I know that people are being so diligent on Brady's behalf- I can be fighting for him too!

So thank you all for reflecting that to Brad and I, whether you mean it or not. It's just the affect that Brady had on people.