Pray For Clay

Blogging Friends.... I have been busy lately. Very, very, very busy!! So, I cannot find the time to completely catch-up on everybody's Blogs.... Because, believe me, I have tried!! {Oh, yeah. And I promise you some Rose stories on this Blog about my dog!! Soon!!}

 

   Update. In the other day's post, I confessed that I'm a chocolate addict. Ten days have now passed by since I quit my binging habit, and cut back drastically on sugar, as well. Ten long days. I do not miss the sugar. Honest, I don't!! The chocolate? That is another story. I have freakin' chocolate cravings daily. Daily!! They are very, very, very strong. And, at this point, I do not miss the jittery, edgy, hyperactive I-can-achieve-anything surge of energetic high that a ton of chocolate gave me. How did I ever let my addiction get this bad, I oft question? Now, lest anybody wonder. I am not, by any means at all, chocolate-free!! Nor do I want to be!! Because, one thing I have learned during these past ten days, is this. Life sans chocolate entirely? Unimaginable!! Chocolate sweetens life up!! However. I can count on one hand how much chocolate I've indulged on since quitting my binging ways. Wow. As resulted, I have lost a little weight. But not nearly enough!! Here is a Word Document journal/diary entry from Sunday, September 15th. I made some changes, of course. Because, as a writer, that is what I do!! Yeah. I double as an editor!!

 

        Well, yesterday was my first cosmic test against temptation. Our preborn niece's baby shower. It was arranged like a family birthday party. More of these tests shall come, I'm sure!! For dinner, there were various chips to nosh on. And, I am also watching my junk food intake. Surprisingly, those chips actually did tempt me a bit!! There were lots and lots of barbequed hamburgers. And hotdogs. I ate one juicy hamburger with nothing on but mayonnaise!! Just the way I like it!! There was lemonade to drink. Plus iced tea. I love lemonade!! But there were also luscious strawberries available, plus other fruits. I inhaled those as if my life depended on it!! I love, love, love strawberries!! There was also baby carrots {plus other vegetables} and buttermilk dip. I enjoyed some baby carrots, as well!! Then dessert. It was not chocolate cake, as I had originally hoped for. However. After spending all morning battling strong feelings of withdrawal yesterday--like some demon--I was actually secretly relieved that there wasn't any chocolate cake!! Yes, relieved. I wanted to raid Dairy Queen of every "Chocolate Lover's" Blizzard that day, they were such intense withdrawals!! Okay. Heaven knows that I can be a jerk, especially lately during strong chocolate withdrawals. Now. I think that it is downright rude to attend someone's party and not enjoy even a thin slice of homemade cake!! After all. They did lovingly take the time to bake it!! So, after my oldest brother's best friend's wife lured me toward the cake, I halfheartedly said this. "You don't need to encourage me!!". Then. One thin slice was cut for me!! Which felt weird to this sugar-crazed girl!! I wanted a bigger piece!! It was this made-from-scratch vanilla cake with blueberries layered inside, where, usually, more frosting would be. Icing, plus sprinkles were on top. Then. After arriving home that night, it felt weird, so weird, to not be on a sugar high. See. Usually, on days of birthday party-like events, I drink more than one Sprite. That is 38-plus grams of sugar freely being poured into my system. And I eat way too much cake, whether or not my taste buds even like it. Especially if there's chocolate!! When I return home, it's usually late evening, and, by 10:00 PM, Parkinson is performing some sold-out concert within my chest. I think he must play for Bruce Springsteen!! I possess a jittery, edgy, hyperactive I-can-achieve-anything surge of energy. Because. I. Am. High. Insane, I know. But last night? To the contrary!! I was actually exhausted, after a long day of resisting Dairy Queen chocolate Blizzard robberies.

 

Now, enough about me!! One of my dear sweet precious C.D.H. Buddies, Clay, is in serious need of prayer right now.

 

It can be a congenital diaphragmatic hernia parent's worst, most darkest fear. Reherniation. You already watched your child battle for his/her little life, often on the brink of death. So naturally. Nothing comes even remotely close to the thought of reliving that hell. Nothing. But it can--and does--occur, as reherniation for a baby born with C.D.H. are as high as 60%. Well, get this. Clay already reherinated. That's right. The hard to kill little dude already put his poor Mommy and Daddy through C.D.H.-related hell twice. Yesterday, Clay's parents attended an appointment with surgeon Dr. D. to discuss what could be causing their only son's ongoing vomiting problems. Some chest x-rays later, Hannah and Eric were thrown an unexpected nasty curveball. Clay had reherinated. Again. Apparently, the gortex patch which doctors made to "seal" Clay's hole in his diaphragm {Mine was corrected by sutures. We think!!} during both previous operations gave way right in the middle of Clay's diaphragm, below his sternum. Now. Clay's g-tube is working as somewhat of an "anchor" for his stomach, so it is only partially elevated in Clay's chest cavity. However. They could visibly see stomach in Clay's chest based on the x-rays. Like when my left lung collapsed, Clay has been acting as though nothing occurred and all of his organs are where they belong. Pictures on their Blog show a very happy boy!! Clay's breathing has not even been labored, plus he's still ventilator and oxygen-free!! Clay is scheduled for his C.D.H. repair surgery next week on Thursday, September 26th. The hospital will not release Clay until one week's time. Please, please, please pray for Clay, Hannah, and Eric!!

 

 Their Blog address is this. http://breathingforclay.blogspot.com/ . Be sure to swing on by, and send your love for Clay!!