OT: Samuel update

[Falconer]

I meant to get this up during the bye week, but it just didn't happen. Sam had an awesome summer. We took bike rides which he loves (thanks to all of you here), and we went to a small carnival and he loves riding the Tilt-a-Whirl.

Unfortunately our fall has not been as good. I noticed that one of Sam's legs was about an inch longer than the other. After taking him to Children's it was determined that the shorter leg was a result of his hip coming out of its socket. The other hip was doing the same thing as well, so it was determined that he had to have surgery. They released soft tissue on both of the hips, and on the left one they had to cut the femur and insert two steel plates to get it to go into the socket at a better angle.

He seems to be getting over the surgery now. It has been just a little over two weeks now. Those first three days without even a smile were gut wrenching. The problem is that he cannot eat without vomiting it all back up. It is to the point that he no longer eats anything by mouth and is strickly being tube fed. Even then he is still throwing it all back up. This is the most worried I have been about him in a very long time.

The doctors did not expect Sam to live past two, and here he is now four years old. He is a strong little boy who only knows joy. Please pray for him to get past this latest obstacle.