LET THE SUN SHINE...LET THE SUN SHINE IN...

Okay. The sun can shine now! As most of you know, I was praying for a cloudy day today. That's exactly what I got. In fact I got clouds, rain, and last night a little bit of thunder in Rochester. Faith had her eye exam under anesthesia this morning and I am happy to announce that ALL WENT WELL! Praise God from whom all blessings flow! Yesterday we saw Faith's oncologist who did a blood test on Faith and then a pre-operative exam to make sure she was healthy for her exam today. All that was fine. Once Faith is about five years old she will no longer need the blood tests quite as often, which will make Faith happy to not have "pokes" any more!

Today was her eye exam. We arrived at the hospital around 7:30 AM and Faith was taken to the operating room around around 9:30 AM. Of course, she fought the eye drops given in preparation for the exam. In fact, she fought them a LOT! It took four of us to hold her down for the first set of drops and then three of us for the second round of drops. She is one STRONG little girl...even with a sedative! I am always allowed to go with Faith into the operating room while they put her to sleep. I recite to her the story, "My Many Colored Days" by Dr. Seuss. I started using this same procedure with Parker every time he got put under and it works like a charm. It's such a soothing story and if you whisper it just right, even the doctors and nurses get quiet and listen. One time, when Faith fell asleep before the story ended and it was time for me to go, someone in the room said, "But she didn't finish the story yet!" Anyway, Faith fell asleep beautifully as I cuddled her and rocked her. Fortunately she was only under for about 20 to 30 minutes and I was allowed to go to her very quickly. The results...BEAUTIFUL EYES! Her doctor said that both eyes looked great! That in turn meant that there was no laser or cryo treatments necessary! Again...PRAISE GOD! However, even with only being under for no more that 30 minutes, the anesthesia, combined with the sedative typically make her very sleepy...no matter how long she's under! The nurse and I gently tried for two hours to wake her up. Faith just kept snoring! Finally, after a little nose tickling and little tiny pokes here and there, she finally responded "yes" when asked if she wanted a Popsicle. But when that Popsicle got there, she gobbled it right up, had some apple juice and wanted that IV out...but chocolate pudding first! Shortly thereafter, she was dressed, bundled up in her stroller and we were on our way to the car. We were home shortly after 3 PM. Even better news is that Faith's doctor said she doesn't need to be seen for six months. Now, you must understand that this is good news because the longest she has gone between exams in three months. Six months is quite a huge step in a positive direction!

So many people have prayed for Faith in the last couple of days. So many people pray for Faith on a regular basis. It's awesome! I find myself praying for Faith in a number of ways...by praying for her doctors and nurses, for her comfort and peace in the midst of her anxiety, for comfort and peace in the midst of Scott and my anxiety, for everything to run smoothly at home and school for Parker, for safe travels, for comfortable beds at the hotel...AND for cloudy, rainy weather so it's not so hard on Faith's eyes during the drive home.

Now, as the song goes, "Let the sun shine...Let the sun shine in...The sun shine in!"

The SON has shone His light on us!
Amen.