Monday, December 7, 2009

Practicing and Praying

Our six-month follow-up with Dr. Stefanelli is this Friday, the 11th. Beyond the typical worries about Luke's heart health comes an additional worry this time: Will Luke cooperate during this long appointment? His doctor anxiety has sky-rocketed the past couple of months due to, I'm sure, three flu shots in two months. At his dietitian's appointment last month, you would have thought he was getting a tooth pulled — without Novocaine! — rather than getting weighed and measured.

In anticipation of Luke's anxiety during the appointment, Rog and I rigged up some supplies to play "EKG" and "Echo" with his stuffed friends. As you can see, Luke loves to put stickers (post-it notes) and EKG wire clips (clothes pins) on all his friends to check their heart rhythm.

"Hold still, Elmo," Luke instructs.



We also have an empty roll-on deodorant bottle that we use to perform echocardiograms on Luke's friends. We are hoping and praying that this doctor play will help him feel more comfortable when it's his turn!

We are also praying for another good report from Dr. S., that Luke's heart will be strong and healthy. Will you pray the same with us? Thank you!

I love that praying for Luke's physical heart so naturally leads to praying for his spiritual heart. Last night in the car, Luke and I were listening to the Selah Christmas CD. Song number six is titled "Joy" and it is by far Luke's favorite. In what I thought was a tender moment, I told Luke how I pray that he has the joy of the Lord in his heart his entire life; that he is constantly overwhelmed with how much God loves him. I think I said a few other things and when I was done I hear this from the backseat: "Mama? Where's Costco?"

My devout boy. I think he totally got my message.

4 comments:

  1. We'll be praying for a cooperative Luke and an awesome cardiology report!

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  2. Luke is so lucky to get to play with sticky notes and clothes pins. Great idea. I'm sure Natalie would love to do the same, but I'm not sure I could trust her with the clothes pins. Last time she had one of those, she was biting down on the tail end and then pinched her finger with the clippy end. It is amazing though how these toddlers perception of doctors vacillates so much.

    Can't wait until Natalie talks more. She is picking up more words all the time, but still says a lot of "eh?". Her latest cute one is saying her name-Laddalie. Enjoy all that personal time with your oldest. It's precious.
    Angie

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  3. Jesse,
    Excellent plan! Even if he still has a tough time at the appointment, I bet it's better than it would have been. Can he take one of his friends and their medical gear with him?

    Your story reminded me of a day in the car with Web - only he was about 11. He asked me a question that prompted me to start the "talk" (you know, the TALK!). I rambled on for a bit, and when I finally wound down, I asked if he had any questions. His reply? "Yep. When did you get those shoes?"

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  4. What good preparations for Friday! Looks like Nemo and Elmo were pretty good sports about everything. :) We will pray for an excellent report this week! Elijah is super duper anxious when it comes to anything doctor-related lately, so I know your anxiety about this very well.

    Praying!!!

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