A busy few days and a few more to come

On Saturday night Luke slept really well and his fever seemed to be getting under control. We returned to the hospital on Sunday afternoon for a followup. They were so busy and Luke was doing better, so they just removed his IV and gave us a prescription for an Antibiotic. We were in and out in 20 minutes. WOW!

Last night was a rough night, as Luke did not sleep very well and his fever seemed to return. Now today, his fever is again under control. His doctor called and said he has the beginnings of a trach infection.

Tuesday morning we are taking Luke to the hospital very early to have his G/J tube replaced, as it has been leaking. This is totally unrelated to the sickness. Please pray that his fever will remain in check and they will be able to start an IV without any problems. Later in the day, we have an appointment with his pulmonologist. We are hoping that we will get the go ahead for Luke to begin using a Passy Muir. A Passy Muir valve is a one way valve that allows him to breath in through his trach and out through his vocal cords and out his mouth. Because the air passes through the vocal cords he can make noises and potentially talk. The Passy Muir is one of the first steps toward removing of the trach.

Katie mentioned reading about climbers on Mt Everest using portable Hyper Baric chambers to deal with altitude sickness. The chambers are in essence the same thing that Luke goes into for HBOT. The main difference is because they are portable, so they are made of light weight materials, think of it being made of a inflatable plastic bag, kind of like the jumpy toys you see at fun parks for kids to jump on. The chamber Luke enters can withstand a much higher pressure, up to 3.0 ATA (Atmospheres). Luke dives to 1.5 ATA and the portable chambers can only go to 1.2 to 1.3 ATA. Due to the experimental nature of HBOT, there is differing opinion as to the most effective depth. Generally, 1.5 ATA is standard protocol. Could Luke benefit from a portable chamber, answer, most likely. I am sure many of you watched the Super Bowl and Terrell Owens who plays for Philadelphia broke his leg about 6 weeks ago. Owens purchased a portable HyperBaric chamber to put in his house to help him with the healing process. I wonder if TO would like to donate his slightly used chamber to a little boy in Washington :)

Last Thursday night and then again on Sunday night I typed out a blog only to have blogger swallow it before I could save or post it. I really think that someone doesn’t want me to blog. Well, here goes one more time. Last week I was talking with a friend at work and they told me they had a dream about Luke. In their dream Luke was walking around and playing with the other kids at a park. He was talking, smiling and having fun. I asked them how old he was in their dream and they thought he looked about 4. There have been many people that have told us about dreams they have had of Luke. I find them encouraging, because it gives me hope that God will heal Luke and that we will see these dreams become real before our very eyes. I think about what it will be like to witness him walking again and talking and smiling that beautiful smile. Those will be awesome days of rejoicing and praising God for what he has done. So in advance, Thank You Lord for saving Lukes life and healing his little body. May he know you and serve you with his whole heart, mind and soul, forever. In Jesus name. Amen.
I find that the dreams help me to keep my eyes on who will heal Luke, you see it is not doctors, or therapies, or medicines that will heal Luke, but it is God Himself that will heal Luke. He may use doctors, medicines or therapies as instruments in Luke’s healing, but it is God that does the healing. I wait for that day with great anticipation to see what and how God will do it. One key to all of this is prayer, and there are so many of you that are involved, I am truly amazed. Recently we received an email from a couple that we have never met they have been following the blog from the beginning. Each day they rise very early at 2:30am to get ready for work and part of their routine is to pray for Luke and the Searles family without fail. I must admit when I read that email, tears filled my eyes to realize how much God loves me, that he has people praying for us. The really awesome thing is He loves each of us the same, nobody is more special then the next. God loves You! In the email they talked about how while Sue and I are Luke’s biological parents, they have adopted him into their family and in their hearts. God has entrusted Luke into our care and I count it a great privilege, just like I do for each of my seven children.