Follow the Red Footprints

The past week has consisted of tons of lab work. Poor Eli has had blood drawn almost every day since we found out about his condition. He is a pro now. I’m becoming a pro now. I can do this in my sleep...Sign in on the iPad with your name and number. Wait in the lobby. Phone rings. We are asked to come to door #? Once we enter they ask to see my drivers license and insurance card. I’m asked to sign some paper giving them permission to bill our insurance. They print the orders and hand them to me and say, “Walk down the hall to your left and it will be the third door on your right.” Once we enter that door, there is another waiting room. When they call our name we walk through the door and they say, "follow the red footprints." Sometimes we follow the yellow footprints.

Eli hops up on he table and they ask him which arm he would like them to stick. His response, "it really makes no difference to me." In which they stick the right arm every time. :)

So here is this handsome fella. Some days he is just your normal kid, asymptomatic. Some days he pretty much sleeps all day because of his levels being so out of wack. Some days I look at him and think there is no way this kid is in stage 5 kidney failure. How in the world did we not know this until 3 weeks ago?!?

But his kidney's are failing none the less and his levels keep creeping up. We were hoping not to have to do dialysis but it was becoming apparent to us that this was the next step. So Craig and Eli are actually at Vanderbilt right now getting a port put in to start dialysis. Then they will be transferred back to Knoxville where he will do dialysis every Monday, Wednesday, Friday until we find him a kidney.

The process of getting him on the list for a donor is not as simple as I thought. He had to be up to date on a few vaccinations and have a dental check up. We took him to his dental appointment yesterday and wouldn't you know it?! They found two cavities. So those have to be filled before he can get on the list. Not a big deal but I wanted him on the list like yesterday. God has this right?!?

Even though he isn't on the donor list yet, people can still see if they are a match to be a living donor. If you would like more information on how you could become a donor for Eli, click here.

So our lives have adjusted a little bit more. The last three weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions but we find that there are days that we can actually breathe and focus. The blessing in all of this is that we are becoming closer as a family. We have the sweetest blended family! And we have the best head of household. Craig leads us with such confidence and grace as he puts God first in his life. The journey has just begun. There is tons more the Lord wants to show us. So we will follow HIS footprints and may all this be to HIS glory!