Merry Christmas Eve!!

Hi and thank you for waiting. I apologize for the slow communication since yesterday. We'll try to be better about that. So on to the news. And all of it is good news. We were moved out of ICU last night (Sun 23rd) around 4:00 PM. The baby has no more lines or IVs hooked up to her although she does have one unused IV still in her foot. They will keep it there for emergency purposes until we leave the hospital. Speaking of leaving, Dr. Doherty is the neuro-developmental specialist that has followed the baby's case since January and has stated both last night and this morning if all goes well, we may go home tomorrow morning. Talk about a Christmas present!! The baby is recovering well and her appetite is still increasing. She is almost back to where she was before in terms of sleeping and eating schedules. Sadly, her hair is gone but it is already noticeably longer than after surgery last Tuesday. We think she is dealing with a little bit of pain from sutures, blisters, and the nicks and scrapes she got during surgery. She has been given pain meds but nothing worse than baby Tylenol and a few things a little stronger than that. Mom and I have traded off getting sleep and holding the baby and are enjoying the more relaxed unit we're in now. Visits are welcome but you may have to make those visits in Monroe (smile) if it's after today. Last night we were very blessed to have Pastor Gini Smith from The City Church visit us for awhile. That was very enjoyable and reminded us that you never know who is watching your witness or praying for you in the midst of trials. Pastor Wendell preached an amazing message yesterday to always rejoice whether in feast or famine, gladness or sorrow. Last Wednesday I went Christmas shopping for Beth and as I was in line to pay, the person in front of me began complaining to the cashier how her December was so terrible and Christmas was awful. She railed about how she had only had 6 days off so far in Dec (correct me if I am wrong but wasn't there only 6 non-weekdays up to that point so far) and she had a slight cough and had not gotten a lot of sleep. The cashier expressed a little sorrow about this and asked if her family was ok. "O yeah, my family is great and I get to see them next Tuesday, and Christmas has been so easy to plan this year......etc. etc.......but December has been terrible." I started thinking. Have I been complaining to God that my December is bad because my daughter is in the hospital?! She is healthy and safe, ALL our bills are paid, my whole family is here, AND we get "Chrithmith prethenths" (credit goes to Pastor Smith for that.) I only ask that you look around you and see how many people really ARE suffering this Christmas. I hope we all enjoy an amazing holiday season but take a few minutes to reflect on the true blessings God has given you this year. 2007 - The Perfect Year. Merry Christmas.

The "List" continues:
This is a list of churches and/or groups that we know are either praying for Aimee or have directly supported us during our hospital stay. If you know of any others that are not listed please email a list of them to me at lynn.heinemann@gmail.com

The City Church - Kirkland, WA
Today's Church - Everett, WA
D Co. 1/168th GSAB & FRG Group - Ft. Lewis, WA
Amazing Grace Fellowship - Twin Falls, ID
Heritage Alliance Church - Twin Falls, ID
The Reformed Church - Twin Falls, ID
Hill Country Bible Church - Georgetown, TX
Nampa Lutheran Church - Nampa, ID
Mountain View Community Church - Ft. Collins, CO
Lighthouse Church - Twin Falls, ID
Immanuel Lutheran Church - Hood River, OR
Trinity Lutheran Church - Rupert, ID
Lutheran Church of the Incarnation - Davis, CA
Harvest Community Church - Alvarado, MN
The Men & Women @ www.Runryder.com