Steve in Spokane

Made it to Spokane ... waiting!

Hello Friends,
wow.... I am still reeling from how surreal this all has been. So, the Dr.s at St. Lukes all agreed that Steve needed to stay in the hospital as long as possible before being transported to Spokane. We were relieved to hear that. At this point, our plan was stilll to travel domestically via Southwest. I had a check in my Spirit about that. Our prayer has been that we are not living by fear, as God does not give us a spirit of fear...but that we walk through the doors that God has opened, and have discernment to make decisions that God is leading us to make.
Our flight was to leave on Sat. night at 7:35. Dr. Field (cardiologist on call) didn't feel confident in us flying domestic. He suggested Steve be Medivac'd. This was good!! He also suggested that I would probably not be able to go. I accepted this.... with lots of tears. It wasn't about me, it was about getting Steve where he needed to be. So, my dear sweet brother, Tracy, and my sister in law Jori, made arrangements that if I should need to fly domestically... my brother would fly with me, and help with luggage, and then fly back. WOW!!! I am so blessed!!! Well, when Dr. Fields saw the tears, he had mercy on me, because he strongly suggested that Spokane send a plane that I could fly along with. We waited to hear back. We knew we would not be going Sat. night for sure. And that is all we knew. Most of you who know me well, know that I am a planner.... 3 years ago, this would be eating me alive... not knowing what would happen even tomorrow. But, I believe that God has been shaping me for this race for 5 years. International Missions has taught me patience. You have no idea what will happen from one moment to the next when you travel Internationally. It's moment by moment, step by step. And that is EXACTLY what it has been. We were so very blessed by the St. Lukes staff. Each time, when there was a tough moment, a painful night for Steve, etc. God would send an angel in the form of a nurse. There she/he would be, in the doorway. And, the Chaplins, they were such a blessing. Thank you Pastor Dave, for doing communion with us. So, I thought that what most likely would happen, was that we would fly to the airport from St. Lukes, and then on to Spokane. Shawn and Sherry suggested us looking into an Air St. Lukes membership. I figured it was a little late to get a membership... but... God's favor had been upon us thus far... I'd check. I asked Ruthie, one of the nurses, about it. She said she thought there was a waiting period of 3 days to a week. Without my knowing, she called and asked the appropriate people, who then called supervisors, and they waived the 3 day waiting period. I would urge you all to look into it.... we found out that a 50 mile trip via "Life Flight" is about $13,000.00. They make great gifts. So, I figured that covered us on this end, what about the flight FROM Spokane? So I called Sacred Heart, asked who they used for medical flights, and called. They said that it was a 7 day waiting period. PERIOD!! Bummer. Okay... so, I went down to fill out the membership, and get things rolling for the St. Lukes membership at least.... and I looked down at the pamphlet.... and (praise God) the St. Lukes membership... is in partnership with the company that I had just gotten off the phone with. We were already covered. I then went back up to see Steve, and the sweet nurse Shosta, told me that they were almost positive that I could go. She also said that the Spokane Dr.s require their respiratiory therapist, and nurse come directly bedside to get Steve. They would make an assessment to be sure I was sane enough (stop laughing people) to travel. They didn't want anyone who was intoxicated (ha) or an emotional wreck to get on the plane with them. We became fast friends. Steve got to see the Apache Helicopters on the heliopad, and the military planes on the tarmack.... he was happy!!! So, our medical flight was an hour. And as soon as we got to Spokane... they started tests. They have been doing test after test since yesterday. The plan is that the transplant team will meet on Thurs. and that is when they will decide if Steve is a candidate.
Dr. Icenogel is a Christian. He is the transplant surgeon. He and Steve bonded right away. He says it like it is for sure. But, then again, we don't need any of this sugarcoated. He has involved another Dr., Dr. Rick Jensen... who is a pediatric Cardiologist. Because of the nature of Steve's heart defect, and the procedure that he had done when he was 6 weeks old, Dr. Jensen was recommended to take a look at how Steve's heart is working... etc. Dr. Jensen is also a Christian... and he prayed with us today.
I will be honest with you though... this is really tough. The Psychiatrist came in today, and started talking with us. That was overwhelming. In the book of Daniel, we learn about Shadrach, Meschach, and Abendigo(sp?), and how they weren't delivered until they were actually in the fire. We are in the fire, and we need prayer. We are being cradled in the arms of Jesus right now.
Pray.... my dear friends.... Pray.......
Be Blessed!
Steve and Mon