(warning – this update is long 🙂
Whew… well, the doctors have been monitoring Robyn and all feel the same way. The best course of action is to keep her admitted at UCH a minimum of 4 weeks. She’s been there since Thursday already, and they want to monitor her 24/7 at least until she’s 28 weeks, and then see what from there. If the twins can get to 28 weeks it’s a much better situation on birthing – although obviously we’re hoping they get much further than that. Let’s hear it for 37 weeks!
The doctors will reevaluate at 28 weeks and hopefully let her come home (still on bedrest) then. These few weeks are critical for making sure the twins are developed and strong. They check the babies’ heart beats and check for contractions multiple times daily, as well as have these [very sexy] giant plastic boots Robyn wears which apply pressure to her legs to keep her circulation good while laying there all day… what a woman to be able to put up with all this! She’s bored out of her mind and misses Ezra and I, but we’ll do what we need to do.
To top off that situation – we’ve got no maternity insurance. And definitely not from lack of trying/preparation. After Ezra was born (which we paid out of pocket, and was no big deal), I called well over a dozen companies to make sure we were insured for the next babies whenever we got pregnant again. NONE of them would offer ANY maternity coverage for Robyn until 3-5 years minimum after the previous C section. Something about higher costs and risks. And our income is too high for state/federal coverage… with Ezra that all worked out, as there are many funds specifically for pediatric cancer, but with Robyn we’re gonna be stuck with some whopping medical bills, and no visible way around it. I’m looking into some organizations… let me know if you have any thoughts here.
Ezra’s needle biopsy for the liver lesions is scheduled for this Wednesday at 3. We should know the next day or Friday what the results are, and be able to move forward with a plan for his continuing treatment based on the results of the biopsy. Praying they’re either benign or not even tumors…
I’m good here at the house with Ezra. Kim and Kalisha (for all you Tampa folks who know them) are setting up a schedule of people to bring Robyn dinners, help watch Ezra for me so I can still work in the mornings at least, and all around help out a bit. We’ve kinda settled into a schedule of having someone watch him from 10-2 while he’s awake, then he naps from 2-5, and after that I take him to go see Robyn. So I wind up with a decent work day, and Robyn gets to see us both as well each day.
Its tough to balance everything – making sure Ezra is seeing us, making sure work is getting done, and making sure we’re all sleeping… but we have such a great group of friends around us supporting it’s been 100x easier than it could have been. And a ton of people praying. I run into people at the grocery store, Starbucks, Target… all over saying “hey, aren’t you Ezra’s dad? We’re praying for you, hang in there..” etc. We really appreciate everyone’s encouragement and help.
Working for churches off and on in some capacity for well over a decade I understand it’s easy to get jaded and caught up in the pettiness of people’s focus. Too often I see people (and catch myself) more worried about who gets what building at what time and if someone is behaving/talking/looking the “correct” way rather than realizing God’s mindset, intention, and M.O.. Moments like the past 5 months for us are refreshing reminders the heart of God is still vibrantly active, necessary, and effective. As much as these situations cause doubt and hurt in us, they keep showing us how prevalent the needs are around us and how powerful helping is. Robyn and I’s hope is our rough times would not be pointless struggle, but would challenge folks to see the needs around them and make conscience efforts to address them wherever we can. You gain a little perspective on what matters when it’s put in jeopardy – a life centered only on your own needs will never satisfy you like one in which your aim is to be purposefully attentive to the world around you. Whether that means something as crazy as moving to Africa to teach basic health, Bible, and sustainable economy among other things (looking at you, Mike and Deb!) or just grabbing the door for the lady who’s got two bags and a kid in her hands at the mall… it’s all the same mindset.
Back to work…