We've been living at our friends the Gerhardt's for the last 5 or so weeks taking care of our goats so I haven't had convenient access to the internet!  But I am still here!  The Gerhardt's are the dear family that has been taking care of our goats since we moved back to the Central Coast. We bred all of the goats and wanted to be nearby during the rush of kidding, milking, and bottle feeding.  So, not wanting to miss any possible new and grand adventure, we moved our 5th wheel trailer onto their 2 acres just a few weeks after our thumb experience.  All 4 of the goat mamas have now kidded and we have 8 babies, 5 bucks and 3 does.  We will probably stay there a few more weeks until we sell off all but 2 does and 2 of the mamas.  Anyone needing any goats just give us a buzz 805-528-8480.

Living in a trailer really puts in perspective how much unnecessary stuff we cling to.  It seems necessary to fill whatever size space we happen to live in.  We then end up having a garage sale every few years to sell off much of that stuff.  What a waste of time and money?!?  I heard a saying once, "Don't keep anything in your home that you don't KNOW to be useful or believe to be beautiful."   I think it's easier said that done, for some of us at least.  My husband would just rather get rid of it all : ).

The thumb saga is coming to a nice end.  Mikhail had the pins removed on Thursday that were imbedded in his bone to help stabilize the reattached thumb.  The thumb is healing great, but it has a "bone ache" since the pins were removed. 

Blessings!

Hello, Everyone!!  Praise the Lord we are home and all is well, including the thumb.  We came home on March 1st after Mikhail and his thumb did fine after ceasing blood thinners, anticoagulants, and blood expanders.  Mihail visits a hand therapist 3 days a week and it will be a couple of months before he gets his splint off.  He is feeling fine physically, but his hemoglobin count is still low, therefore he gets tired easily.  This only means that he runs at about normal speed now. 

Our whole experience was quite a wild adventure.  The Lord showed himself in some of the most precious ways. One evening my dad, who drove up from Sac at 1:00am to be with me,  mentioned a place called Ruth's Chris Steakhouse.  I had heard about it on radio commercials and it had sounded so delicious.  It was 5:00 and just about time for us to eat before visiting Mikhail at the hospital.  I didn't even think there were any of this steakhouse on the westcoast as all of the commercials were based in New York. As we were driving back to the hotel from Golden Gate Park looking at the map trying to figure out which way to turn, we passed right by a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. I laughed until I cried.  It wasn't any big deal, but of all the streets in downtown San Fransisco, we happened to drive down the one street with the exact restaurant we had thought about!   Anyway, just a big little blessing.

My dad went home after Mikhail was stabilized following his first blood transfusion.  A couple days after that Mikhail was feeling weak again and just a bit depressed.  The Lord just told him to start singing, so that's what he did.  He just sang, and sang, and sang.  After about a half hour of singing, he felt so much better.  The nurse walked in to take his vitals and not only did Mikhail feel better, but his temperature went down to normal, his blood pressure stabilized, and the readings on his thumb's circulation went up.  A joyful heart is good medicine!!! Praise God!

We had some wonderful visits from many wonderful friends and family, and two special visits from Mikhail's sister Faith, her husband and baby Noah, and Mikhail's sister, Charity. Thank you for all your prayers.  We have been very blessed. 

Hello again,

Just received another phone call from Keena. She is doing well, her father is still with her, and things are overall going well.

Mikhail is still in critical care. The morphine is making him very sick with nausea. He is very weak and is having a difficult time keeping anything down. But if they lower the dosage too much, the intense pain causes his thumb to spasm causing the blood vessels to constrict restricting the blood flow to his thumb, which can not be allowed to happen for obvious reason.

Keena asks that you all keep praying, and please pray specifically for Mikhail to feel better and for the morphine to not have so negative an effect on him.

She also told me to post the hospital phone number and to tell friends that they can call and ask to speak to him if they would like to. She thinks he would appreciate knowing that all of you are praying for him. The nurse will decide if it is a good time to put your call through, if not, she will take a message if you leave one. The number is 415-600-5375.

Hello ~

This is Sarah, on Keen's xanga.  I am posting an update for her on Mikhail's thumb. There were no vascular specialists at either Santa Barbara or Santa Clara, nor were there any available helicopters or planes that would fly in the weather last night; so they put Keena and Mikhail in an ambulance and raced them, along with the thumb which sat at Keena's side, to a hospital in San Francisco in the Castro district.

They did not begin surgery until 1:30 a.m., which gave Keena concern because when she called here at 9:30, she said it wasn't looking too hopeful due to the lapse of time passing. At that time, she said there was a 50/50 chance that the doctors could re-attach the thumb.

She believes God worked a miracle because they were able to re-attach it, and were successful with vein and artery and tiny tendons and the such which the doctors had apparently said they might not be able to do successfully. I received a call about an hour ago and Keena said that so far, the thumb looks good, and they are all very hopeful.

Mikhail will have to stay in the hospital for at least five days. He is in intensive care today because they have him on blood thinners, which risks a high chance of pneumonia, but is necessary to ensure that the blood flow through his newly attached thumb.

She is so thankful for all of your prayers, and asks that you keep praying because the thumb could still "go bad" which would entail more surgery and the obvious loss of the thumb. Please pray, also, that God protect him from pneumonia, and that Mikhail will have a speedy recovery.

I am here until Thursday, the latest I can stay. After that, the children will most likely stay with Mikhail's parents until Keena can return home. She is very glad that she is with him, and also glad that her father drove up last night and got the two of them a hotel room. He will stay with her while she is there.