Hi All!
I wanted to let you know that Mark got out of surgery about 45 minutes ago. He did AWESOME! They were able to repair the pelvis with a plate in front along with 6 screws (they gave me x-rays and it's way cool), along with an additional BIG screw through the side of the hip into the sacrum. They were also able to get the knee done today. The x-rays on that are pretty wild. Lots of screws, a huge plate, and a bone graft. They will watch it very carefully in the days to come. There is a window of about 2 weeks or so that he is at risk for infection at this site because it was an open fracture, so please continue to pray regarding this. So far, thanks be to God, it shows no sign of infection whatsoever. :)

Because the surgery went about 6 hours today, plus the 1 hour filter placement this morning, they were NOT able to get to the ankle today. Dr. Rusnak (the orthopedic surgeon) said that they will do that surgery either Friday or Monday, depending on swelling, schedules, etc...I trust the Lord with that decision and while I am not looking forward to Mark going through surgery again, I know that Drs. being fresh and Mark getting some rest before the next surgery is definitely wisdom!

Mark's parents and my Mom were here all day with me, which was great. My friends Jim and Kris continue to be angels on assignment. I will spend the night here tonight, just because I want to be close. But tomorrow I will plan to get back into the night and morning routine with Christian. He is doing great and had a wonderful day at Resurrection Fellowship, where he goes to preschool. He misses Daddy, but so far he has been a very happy and content boy. Thank you for your prayers for grace for his heart, and for wisdom for me, as I balance these worlds.

On a FUNNY note...The nurses here are an absolute blast and so much fun. And in honor of April Fool's Day, the respiratory therapist got the idea yesterday to hang one of these glass bottles they use for a certain type of drip from the IV rack and put oxygenated water in it, along with three goldfish for when the 10 or so Dr's came in to do their rounds this morning. It was hysterical as the Doc's one by one saw that thing hanging with fish swimming around. They all broke out their phones and started taking pictures. We even labeled it "Omega 3." A little comic relief in the midst of a trying time, which I know Mark will get a kick out of later. I attached a picture of the IV stand and you can see the little fishies swimming around. The respiratory therapist (Kevin) bought Christian a whole goldfish kit, so we could take home the fish for Christian! So thoughtful. I found out just minutes ago that he is a Christian, as he had seen me lead worship before at Resurrection Fellowship. Too cool!

Welp, that's it for tonight. I'll continue to keep you posted as we approach the next surgery. We have a long road ahead, but our God is already there.

Love & blessings to you,
Shannon