Home again!

We feel so blessed as we see Ricki's amazing recovery. We have felt the strength from the many prayers offered in behalf of Ricki and know she has been blessed.  We were thrilled to come home last night.  The ride home was painful and she had a rough night. But, she was up again this morning trying her best to put a smile on her face. Each day she amazes me with her strength.   It breaks my heart to see the depth of her pain and frustration as she fights the pain and tries to handle it...Some times it hurts so bad she becomes agitated and then later she feels bad for the way she handled the situation. She will apologize and then I see her handle it the next time with the determination to be kinder.  It amazes me that as young as she is she can stand back and analyze her situation and become a better person from it. 

It is so good to be home again!!!!  Ricki's amazing neurosurgeon Dr. Bollo is optomistic that it will be awhile before she has any more surgeries. We are so relieved! 4 surgeries in 11 months has been taxing in many ways and we are all so ready for a break.. She still will have MRI's every 3 months, and Doctor Appointments, but no surgeries in the near future looks pretty good! 

A friend posted a beautiful picture on Facebook recently with the caption "difficult roads lead to beautiful destinations". It has been a difficult road this past year since Ricki was diagnosed with NF2 or Neurofibromatosis type 2.  Through the difficulties we have gained greater testimonies of our Savior Jesus Christ and his love for each one of us.  We have felt such a peace and assurance as we have faced each new challenge.  We have seen our prayers answered many times...sometimes the answer has been what we wanted and other times...(like the time she lost the hearing in her right ear) the answer was not what we wanted. Yet, our prayers have been answered through kind words, acts of kindness, others sharing talks that have given perspective and just what was needed, all giving us assurance that our Heavenly Father had a plan and that all of this was part of Ricki's plan and purpose in life. 

"Happy"

Ricki got to have a visit from the therapy dog "Happy". He definitely brought a lot of smiles to the faces of the kids at Primary Children"s Hospital today. Happy weighs 220 pounds and looks like a snugly jumbo brown teddy bear! 

The beginning of a peaceful night

Today has been a roller coaster ride filled with a great deal of pain, tears, and challenging things for Ricki.  But, we are finishing off the night on a peaceful note.  Tonight I noticed something that Is a small thing but big thing at the same time. As I looked at Ricki sleeping peacefully I realized this is the first time since her surgery that she has been able to wrap her arms around and snuggle up with her stuffed animal. Yes, we are so grateful for the small and simple things.

A Snoopy Day

The bright spot of Ricki's day was when Snoopy the therapy dog came by. It was fun that Ricki had brought a stuffed Snoopy with her to the hospital. Ricki has been thinking she would like to train a therapy dog to help others.. As we were visiting with the owner we learned about the Charles Schultz foundation where they help train service dogs. They also told Ricki that Intermountain Health has a program for training Therapy dogs. Ricki was excited to have something to dream about doing some day.

 It is a sweet thing to see how Heavenly Father is involved  in the small details of our life -even about having a Therapy Dog with the same name as your stuffed animal...

Restful evening

Friday started out a little rough. This has been a little different from her brain surgeries in that we have a doctor that specifically works with Ricki for her pain management.  She was in a lot if pain until later this afternoon.  They seemed to find the right combination of pain management and Ricki was able to have a peaceful nap later this afternoon.  The rest of the evening she has been in pain but it has been a little more manageable.  She has even had a sense of humor...her heart monitor was showing a pretty fast heart rate and I asked her if her heart was racing. ...Without even missing a beat she said yes, and it is going to win the Indi 500!  it made us all laugh - mostly because her response was so unexpected. 

 She has enjoyed a few visits  from family and one from a sweet worker here at Primays that holds a special place in our heart.  She took such good care of us almost a year ago when Ricki was life flighted here to Primary Children's.  Bailey went above and beyond in helping us through a tough time. 

The evening was peaceful and she slept peacefully until about 2:00 which is an improvement from the night before. Each day continues to get a little better.  Tomorrow should be an eventful and good day.

Miracles that are easy to see

Some miracles are very evident and easy to see.  Other miracles require time, patience, and a humble heart to be seen.  Over the past 11 months we have been blessed with both types of miracles. Today has been a sweet experience to watch some of those miracles in the life of Ricki unfold.  Yesterday we came down to Salt Lake and had an enjoyable afternoon but after finishing up her lab work for her surgery she just came unglued. She began crying and couldn't stop.  We texted one of our sons to see if he was available to help Rick give her a priesthood blessing.  He came right away and helped give Ricki a blessing. A sweet peace came over her and she has remained peaceful and calm ever since.  Even when the nurse called to update us from the surgery room she mentioned how calm and peaceful Ricki was this time.  She had been Ricki's nurse two other times and recognized a difference in Ricki.  The surgery went perfect and she responded well to the doctors care.  In post op when we first arrived she was in a lot of pain but once the pain medicine kicked in she was alert,smiling, talking and even wiggling her toes and feet. She has never been like this so quickly after any of the surgeries she has had.  She was moved to her room and was doing well but was getting progressively worse. Her pain was increasing, her face became pale and swollen, and she was sweating and cold to the touch. Ricki's Dr came about that time and was instrumental in getting things turned around. There has been a sweet spirit in her room and she continued to handle the hard things with patience and grace. There have been many praying for her today and we received a day of miracles that were evident and easy to see. I also witnessed a small miracle that has required time,  patience and a humble heart.  The grace Ricki has displayed today was a miracle that has been made manifest over a period of time as she has learned patience and an inner strength to face the challenges placed before her in her life. Today we have felt so blessed and are grateful for the many miracles and tender mercies in our life. 

Upcoming surgery

It is quiet in our home tonight and no one is packing for tomorrow.  None of us really want to face the reality of another surgery. This will be Ricki's 4th surgery in 11 months.  We will be going to do

her pre-op stuff at the hospital tomorrow afternoon and then surgery Thursday morning to remove the 2 tumors inside her spinal cord.

  Instead ...we are enjoying looking at pictures of the past few weeks and enjoying the fun memories.  Feeling blessed.