Maryn's Ear Reveal

Well it's been just over 3 weeks since Maryn's otoplasty and I think it's time for some before and after pictures!  She has done so great with everything, praise Jesus!  There are still several sutures in place, a tad bit of swelling left, and a few more weeks of healing ahead, but everything is pretty much the way it's going to look.  As you can see, the growth was very complex.  It's just amazing what the surgeon was able to do without a skin graft.  Thank you, Lord, for such a successful procedure and a skilled surgeon!  I apologize that the before pics aren't very clear, I took them with my cell phone.

Before:

After:

Seven Months Old

I can't believe that seven months have come and gone!  Just yesterday I was looking at Maryn and all of the sudden I realized how big she has gotten - and then I cried!

Not many new things to report with Maryn these days.  Her ear continues to heal.  Hopefully she will only have to wear her big bandage around her head for another week.  Everything is starting to itch - both her ear as it heals, but also her whole head from being covered all the time.  Poor baby is always trying to scratch her head or get the bandages off.  But she loves getting her head shampooed when we change the dressing.

She still loves sitting up and playing with her toys.  She recently discovered she can bang two toys together and make lots of noise!  Still not very enthusiastic about solid foods.  She tried oatmeal this morning and seemed to like it; she usually only takes three to five bites of whatever we give her.  But that's okay, she still gets all the nutrition she needs from breastmilk.  She is also teething - one incisor has come in on top, and I think she's simultaneously working on the other three, so lots of drool and occasional fussiness these days.

As always, Maryn is such a joy and we are thankful for another month with her!

Surgery Update

We wanted to let you all know that Maryn's surgery went very well and we are home recuperating.  Every specific prayer request we had about the surgery was answered abundantly.  A big concern was whether or not she would have to have a skin graft, which would have meant a longer, more serious procedure, and a trickier recovery.  Thank the Lord, no skin graft was required; the surgeon was able to close up the skin beautifully without it!  Maryn's surgeon was very pleased with the outcome; he expects a very speedy and simple healing process.  She did so great with everything; she wasn't even fussy before the surgery, even though she wasn't able to eat.  She was all smiles.  Anesthesia and all that entails went smoothly as well.  Wow, was it hard to say good bye before they took her to the operating room, but what a joy 3 hours later when we got to hold & kiss our sweet sleepy (i.e. drugged, haha) girl after hearing such great news about the procedure.  And then we all got to go home a few hours later!

Today we had an appointment with her pediatrician for a post-op follow up.  It was really our first time to completely see her ear.  Everything looked good!  There is still some swelling, which is to be expected, but things seem to be healing well.  We go back again in one week; it will be easier to tell at that time exactly what her "new" ear is going to look like.  I may post a pic of her ear after that.  It is just amazing what the surgeon was able to accomplish!

Continued prayer requests would be for a smooth healing process, that the swelling around her ear would subside, that there would be no infection, and that her discomfort would be minimal.  And that we could continue to find creative ways to keep curious hands away from the large dressing wrapped around her head!  :)

Pre-Op, in her little hospital gown

The first moments we got to see her

So sleepy!

Feeling better at home!

Crazy post-op hair!

We have to get creative to avoid her from removing the bandages - which she has done!  The mittens worked for a while...we had to upgrade to big tube socks.  :)

Through all of this, the Lord has been so very good to Maryn and to us.  To him be the glory!

Six Months Old

Maryn had her 1/2 birthday last weekend!  What a blessing the last 6 months have been!  We went to the doctor today for a check-up (and vaccines...sad).  Everything looks good & she continues to grow.  She weighs 14lbs, 13oz (25th percentile) & is 25.5in long (30th percentile).  Lots of big milestones lately, as you have seen in recent posts.  She's sitting up well, trying out food, & becoming much more vocal.  She still isn't quite sure what to think about food.  We've been giving her rice cereal around lunch time & a veggie in the evening.  So far, she isn't showing very much interest, but we're trying not to push it & just let her experiment with new tastes & textures.  Most of it gets spit back out, haha. I think she actually stores everything like a chipmunk in those big cheeks of hers & then spits everything out at once! She's still sleeping well at night, although lately she occasionally wants to wake up earlier to eat, around 6:30am or so.  But unless it's a day I go to work, we both go back to bed after that feeding & get up around 9am.  She nurses/takes a bottle 6 times a day usually.  One great thing we've noticed is a mysterious lack of spit up these days - only very small amounts every 4 or 5 days!  That esophogeal sphincter must be developing well!  ;)

Stuff Maryn likes: Graycie, books, the exersaucer, zerberts, reaching for things she can't have, her thumb (she's always biting it, & occasionally sucks on it), the church nursery (she just loves watching the big kids), Old MacDonald, her feet, baths, arching her back & throwing her head backward when she gets mad (yikes), Sophie the giraffe, shaking her head "no", her squeaky hippo, hooting like an owl, grabbing hair (ouch!), and watching Daddy make her stuffed Tigger dance.

Six months does mean that it's time for Maryn's surgery, so please be in prayer for her & for us.  She is scheduled for surgery in Grand Rapids, MI on February 4th at 7:30am (the date was changed).  We are very nervous, & it will be so hard to let her go back for the surgery, but we know the Lord is good & loves Maryn more than we ever could, and we are trusting him to care for her & heal her.  Of course we'll keep everyone updated when the surgery occurs.

Surgery

Most of you know (but a few may not) that Maryn was born with a large skin tag overgrowth above and behind her right ear. It pushes on her ear and makes it fold kind of inside out. You can see it in the above pic (isn't she such a cutie pie?). Nothing serious, purely cosmetic; but it does need to be removed. Last week, we had a consultation with her plastic surgeon in Grand Rapids, MI. To our surprise, he wants to go ahead and do surgery in January (we thought he would want to wait until she is older). Thankfully, he is very experienced and we liked him a lot; one of his specialties is pediatric ear reconstruction. He assured us that the procedure would be fairly simple; she should heal quickly, and will have to wear a mold on her ear for a little while to reshape it. But the thought of our little girl having surgery and all that entails - general anesthesia, needles, intubation, hospital stay - is so scary. It's very difficult for us not to be fearful and in dread; we are trying hard to entrust her care to the Lord. Thankfully, she is perfectly healthy; there are so many parents who are having to deal with a sick child or life-threatening surgeries etc. But just keep us and Maryn in your prayers, especially on January 26th, that in all things we would glorify Christ, that the procedure would go well, and that we will not give in to a spirit of fear. Pray Philippians 4:6-7 for us. We'll keep you updated.