Another operation?!?!

Zem has had a pretty tough day. He had a high temp and heart rate earlier in the day, which resulted in him being placed on a drip. He has antibiotics being poured into his body. For the most of today, he has been quite bubbly - signing, talking and finally getting some appetite back.
In yesterday's operation, some Cerebral Spinal Fluid (CSF) flowed out on the right ear - which was supposedly fixed. However, Zem still has some fluid leaking from his nose when he sits up straight. (something that we expected to happen for a couple of days).

CSF coming from Zem's nose is not a good thing however, it increases his chance of meningitis which is dangerous enough on its own.

But, just in case that the amount of fluid coming out doesn't fix itself, he has been booked in for another operation tomorrow evening. It is a bit unexpected and is placing more stress on an already stressful week. But God knows what each of us can deal with...and there will be some purpose to this I am sure.

Still, I hope that the leak has fixed itself by morning so that there will be no need for the extra intrusion. Please continue to pray for us. It allows God to work overtly in our lives. Our gratitude goes to all of you.

Zemiel received his cochlear implants today. In her debrief, the surgeon told us that the operation was a success. The 'Stealth' technology that they had hoped to use to great benefit, failed due to unexplained inaccuracy. However, we have been told that all the implanted electrodes are firing. Zem did have some cerebral fluid flow out of his right ear, however, we are confident that it will not continue to pose a problem. We spent most of the day in the hospital. Sharlene has spent the night with Zem in the hospital. He came out of the general anesthetic pretty well. The result so far is better than we expected. We truly believe that God has poured his blessings into our lives. Here are a few pics of Zem just after the op.

Zemmy's Operation

We will be taking Zemiel to hospital early Monday morning. He will be receiving his cochlear implants. The process will involve him getting a CT scan and then taken into the theatre where both devices will be implanted. The total procedure is expected to take from six to eight hours. Zem is expected to stay in the hospital overnight for recovery. Sharlene will stay with him on Monday night. Hopefully, he will be well enough to be taken home on Tuesday. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers for his safety and the surgery's success.

These are some of the last photos of our family before the operation.

Big shoes to fill

In a way, I think Sharlene and Adrian have never grown up. Take these photos for example. They still want to dress something - it's just that they have moved from doll babies to real babies. In any case, Zem seemed to love it.

Another car

We've finally bought and recieved our new (not-so-new) car. It is a 2001, Subaru Liberty. Much bigger than our previous car, and we are pretty happy with it at the moment. Hopefully, that sentiment will last. Here is a pic that Sharlene took this morning, just so you know what it looks like.



Sharlene made an observation some time ago, that when we had our little blue Mira, a white car hit us - and our next car was white. A silver car hit our white car - and our next car is silver...any guesses as to what the next colour might be?

Puppy play

Zem had an opportunity a few weeks ago to play with some Jack Russell puppies that our next door neighbours had for a short time before they were sold. He loved it! He would sign 'dog' each time he looked at them. Some were a little boisterous and gave him a shock or two but generally a great experience! Here are some photos...

Second MRI and second-hand car...

Zem has had his second MRI in preparation for his cochlear implants. The whole thing was over in 40 minutes (with more time for recovery). He went in about 9ish and we left the hospital about 12:00. We now are waiting for December 8th, when he will have the implants put in.

After the MRI, Sharlene and I drove to Adrian's place where he met us and we went down Parramatta Road (where there are scores of used car dealerships). After spending several hours wandering and discussing, Shar and I agreed on a 2001 Subaru Liberty. We put down the deposit and Sharlene will pick it up Wednesday or Thursday, next week.

Zemmy pictures

Due to popular demand and in no way connected with the current 'credit crunch', here are some recent photos taken of Zem.





Check out the size of this silver beet leaf!


With some recent rain, our gardens are flourishing. Here are some shots of our top plots.

Big Camp

Recently we went up to NNSW Big Camp. It was a fantastic program, and the quality of the speakers was generally pretty good. There was only one real downside, and that was that we were involved in a car accident. Our car, as far as we know, has been written off. We are generally fine. Sharlene recovering from bruising and whiplash, I will be getting x-rays for my wrist and Zem only got a small bruise on his shoulder. We were very fortunate that this is the extent of our injuries, and we were blessed to have been near the campground and we had many offers of aid.

This is what the front end of our car looks like now.


Whilst at camp, I decided to take some photos of the sunrise over Grassy Head beach.

Zemmy's MRI - New Date

Well, the boy was supposed to have an MRI this Friday, but by the looks of things, he's caught a sniffle bug and apparently that's bad. SO...the new date for his MRI is the 7th of November. Please keep this new date in your diaries - and to pray for his health as it is important that he gets this done.