Last Piece of Our Family Puzzle

For the longest time, Mr. J and I felt that we were only going to have 2 children.  Miss E was well over 3 years old and there was no pregnancy in sight. And the one that I did have, didn't last for more than 8 weeks.  And then Mr. H blessed our lives.  We had a boy! 3 months after his arrival, a tumor was found inside my brain. I underwent 2 surgeries to take out the mango-sized tumor.  Then we were convinced that we were finished having children.  We had 2 girls and a boy, we were set for experiences with both genders. However, Heavenly Father had other plans for us. On July 7th Little Miss Ruby Louise was welcomed into our family at 2:34am bouncing in at 8 lbs 4 oz and measuring 20.5 inches in length!  What a blessing it has been over the last 10 days to have her in our lives.  She is the final piece to our family puzzle.  She is loved by all, sleeps really well and lets her feelings be known about when she is hungry.  She is such a special, sweet, calm presence in our home.  I am still in awe that Mr. J and I have been blessed with 4 little spirits to watch over on this Earth.  Going from 2 children to 4 in less than 2 years is unreal.  I feel nervous about being entrusted with the duty of raising them, but I know I will do my best and pray for the  mental strength to handle them.

Six months post op

Six months ago, I went in for my very first MRI (certainly not my last). After being home for only 45 minutes, I received a phone call, "Ms. Jensen, you have a tumor." The words sent me into a trance and sounded like a terrible, scratchy broken record! It was roughly the size of a mango. I would not only need to undergo surgery, but undergo TWO surgeries! I panicked! What had I done wrong in my life to deserve a brain tumor? I knew I wasn't perfect, but a brain tumor...REALLY?!?! I was scared. I was scared my babies were going to grow up without me. I was scared I wouldn't be missed if I were to go. I was scared there were people who would be happy to see me go. I was scared of DYING!! I was simply...scared. After receiving a priesthood blessing, I felt at peace about going into surgery. I knew I was going to make it. On February 8th was the first surgery. The second was on March 22nd.

The outpouring of service that we received was remarkable! I didn't realize how much people cared! From meals to babysitting to household items to prayers and thoughts to love. I cannot fathom the amount of people who were praying for me and my family! People I didn't even know!! Even today, six moths later, I still hear the words, "I said a lot of prayers for you!"  I VERY much appreciate the prayers that were said on my behalf and wish I could send out a GIGANTIC thank you and give everyone a hug!! 

As my birthday is approaching, I can't seem to feel anything but grateful! I think back to my first visit to the neurosurgeon, where he stated, that if I did not have the surgery, I had 3-4 weeks to live. I am humbled and grateful that I am alive to celebrate my coming birthday!

A little over 4 weeks post op

Every morning when my eyes open after a nights sleep, I thank my Father in Heaven for allowing me to continue living. I could complain about what is wrong with me, the left side of my face is numb, my mouth is 1/2 numb, I have double vision, and at the end of the day, the upper left side of my head hurts. But what good would complaining do! My face being numb doesn't bother me, my numb mouth helps me keep my weight down and I've been to an eye doctor to help correct the double vision, and tylenol helps a headache!  I am alive and all of those "problems" I can live with!

I am very grateful for those that have provided any of the following:

meals
prayers
hugs
flowers
good thoughts
a listening ear
baby-sitting

I thank everyone of you from the depth of my soul!! The last few months went by smoother because of your help!! Thank you!!!!

Home, Sweet Home!

Around lunch time, today, Sarah came home from the hospital. She was in the hospital less time for BRAIN surgery than for a C-section. Amazing!

Sarah is resting well and enjoying the chance to sleep in her own bed. Meemaw, Pawpaw, Nana, Papa, Aunt Mandie and Uncle Gary were kind enough to take the three little ones away for spring break. So, while they are having fun it gives Sarah a chance to finish recovering in the peace of her own house. 

The doctors made it possible for us to get a disc of the MRI images. So, we thought we'd share the before and after. No more tumor! Gotta love it. 

Thanks to Darci and Josh for dinner tonight on short notice and the chance to sit and talk for a while. 

Have a great night everybody!

Ding Dong, the tumor's gone!

Well, it is snowing here in Normal, but Sarah is doing awesome! We got some fabulous news today. The tumor is completely gone! The doctors called it a "total gross resection". Sarah is 100% cured!

The incision is hidden just behind the hairline and goes from the middle of her head to the bottom of her ear. There are 61 staples on the incision...I counted. They also said she has some 400 stitches under the skin used to close all the layers of muscle and such.

Dr. Nardone was very happy with her progress today. She is walking on her own with no walker. She walked down the hall and up the stairs this morning with physical therapy. Her strength is great in both arms and legs. She's doing so well, in fact, the doctor said she can go home tomorrow.

The doctors gave us a CD with the MRI images on it so we can see the images. As soon as we get them on our computer we'll post the before and after. It's pretty amazing!

We're excited to start planning for this summer, getting back into our normal lives and having fun with all of our family and friends! Thanks, again, to all of you for everything you do for us!

Round 2: An Amazing Day!

Today has been a quite amazing and unexpected.

For those of you that are friends with Sarah on Facebook, you were able to see just how well she is doing today in her own words and from her own hand, "Happy Saturday!!! Surgery yesterday was a success! I feel GREAT!"

Yep, she is already back on her phone and posting to Facebook. We were expecting her recovery to be very similar to the last. She really didn't open her eyes or talk much for a week. This has been very different. She is talking and asking for REAL food, not just the liquid diet they have her on right now. Hopefully, soon they can give her real food. She is walking on her own without a walker, too. Her eyesight is doing very well, also.

The one thing we still don't know is the result of the MRI. When the doctor comes in tomorrow morning we should be able to find out. We are continuing to pray that it is gone entirely and radiation won't be needed to zap remaining pieces.

Sarah is sleeping peacefully and, hopefully, can get some solid hours of sleep tonight.

These past two weeks have been a little rough as doubts had snuck in and tested our faith. Could we really still be blessed with another successful surgery as successful as the first? I had a good friend remind me where those doubts come from. It's amazing how sly and slick the adversary is. All he needs is the smallest crack in your armor of faith and he can turn it into a gaping hole.

I've been reminded of the scripture in Matthew 17:20 that says "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." I often question how much faith I really have. How can it be measured? How much is enough? I am just a man and a very imperfect man, at that.

What I do know is this. Our Heavenly Father loves each of us. He loves us, listens to us and wants the best for us just like I do for Luci, Eva and Henry and any parent wants for their children. He is our Father. He has told us that if we ask we shall receive. I know I've been asking for Sarah's safety a lot lately. I know many of you have been doing the same. And like any good parent, He has listened and blessed us with a healthy and happy Sarah.

It takes faith to pray and know your prayers are heard. Many may say it is coincidence or just highly skilled doctors. That's fine. But I know what I know. I know the Holy Ghost has filled my heart with the knowledge that the tumor was discovered when it was discovered for a reason; that we were in Normal, IL to be able to have Dr. Nardone available to help Sarah; that we have been blessed with great friends, who are neurosurgeons themselves, to answer questions for us, ease our minds and counsel us; that we have friends and family who love us, who pray for Sarah's quick recovery and who have given of their time and talents to bless our family. And I know that Heavenly Father has sent his angels to watch over Sarah and guide the doctors hands.

So, as I'm writing this, I'm kind of answering my own questions, I guess. All our Heavenly Father asks is for us to ask His help and place our trust in Him. Then, be prepared to listen for the promptings of the Spirit for guidance and do all we can...and he'll take care of the rest. I know He does because right now I'm sitting next to a beautiful LIVING example of it. During the times it felt so out of my hands I know it was in His.

Now, this may sound strange to some. If you may be one of those and have any questions about what I'm talking about please feel free to drop me a note. I'd be happy to talk to you.

On behalf of our family, I want to thank all of you for your constant support. We have felt it. Your prayers and well-wishes have been awesome! Thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts. We are so blessed to be surrounded by such amazing people.

We hope everyone has a great night. We'll continue to keep you up-to-speed on things as we know more. We love you all!

Round 2: Recovery Day 1

Good afternoon, everybody! Hope everyone is enjoying their Saturday.

We were able to see Sarah last night and she was alert, awake and ready to sleep. She was using sign language to talk to us. You could tell she was ready to sleep. She doesn't have as many tubes this time. She has her main IV line, Arterial line to monitor her blood pressure constantly, and a drain coming from her head. It has a little rubber ball on the end of it to collect the fluid so they can monitor the amount of fluid and pressure.

She was tired, so we only spoke with her for a few minutes and then we let her sleep. This was at around 10:30 or so. The nurse was kind enough to let her sleep the night.

One of Dr. Nardone's residents spoke with us last night to let us know they would be monitoring her for a condition called Diabetes Insipidus. She was urinating a lot during surgery and her sodium was a little high. They weren't too concerned with it, but just wanted to watch for it. I just spoke with the nurse and it seems to be under control and really not a concern anymore.

We also spoke with Dr. Nardone this morning and said she is doing great. She can feel her tongue completely now and the numb area on her face has gotten smaller. The only double vision she has is in her left eye and only when she looks a certain way! So that is better too!

Sarah had a nice, restful morning. She just had her MRI to see if they got all of the tumor. Hopefully, we'll know soon if they got it all for sure. They have moved her from ICU to PCU, where she won't be monitored as closely. It is the actual neuro wing of the hospital. The nurses and techs are very knowledgeable on things and just got done doing there assessment of her.

Sarah and I were just talking about how different this round has been. She doesn't have as much pain, is more alert and talkative. She's looking at her phone and drinking on her own and was happy to have the catheter removed so she could move around better.

I love seeing her bright eyes and personality still. It truly is an answer to my prayers. I'm so grateful for doctors and staff who have helped her so much. And for all of you—our friends and family—who have been so supportive. We are forever grateful to you all for everything you do for us.

We hope everyone enjoys the rest of their weekend and we'll keep you in the know on how the day continues!