Surgery #1 Scheduled

Just a quick note that Reid will have his first round of surgery on Tuesday, Nov. 20. This will be done in Cleveland by a fabulous Plastic Surgeon that we have good faith in. It will not be easy to see Reid go through this...but we know that he will be watched over and prayed for by all of YOU! He will be admitted and probably will be spending 2-3 days there. Our Thanksgiving plans will be different this year. I truly will know the meaning of Thanksgiving this year....as we know how thankful we are to have Reid in our family. We will hopefully be staying in Clevenand again next week. We will wait and see if there is a place for us to stay at Ronald McDonald house again so we don't have to make the constant trips to and from Cleveland. The actual surgery is to move the growth (premaxilla) towards the center of Reid's mouth. They will then attach his top lip on the right and left side to the growth. So, his lip will not be repaired in this surgery...but moved over more so in preparation for the next round of surgery. It is truly important that this surgery go well...because in his case, his right side does not have a lot of lip to attach to the growth. He will need to be tube fed again for a time because he will not be able to suck due to the surgery. They will watch him closely because he could tear if we are not careful. Healing time will be important to just take it little by little. We know that we are in good hands...and so many of you have asked about what is next and what our plans are. This is it for now. He did see the facial/surgery/dentistry team yesterday and molds were made of his palate. A possible prosthesis will be made if needed to fill the gap in his palate..but that will come later. Again, thank you for keeping so up to date with our family. It is so nice to feel watched over by so many amazing families. We are blessed and grateful for you all. Please keep us close in prayer next week....and I will update you soon to how things go. If I don't write again....please have a blessed Thanksgiving with those you love. We are thankful for all of YOU.