Well... as I type this I am totally consumed by joy and gratefulness. We are back home from Bristol and Henry is doing very well!!
I was meaning to post a blog before now, but it's taken a few days to ground ourselves and sort through everything. Also, it's felt pretty surreal and been quite hard to believe that the Bristol 'chapter' is now over, especially after waiting so long for it!
I had been meaning to try and blog while in Bristol, but as I expected, I didn't really have the energy or time to invest in to it, and for that I'm sorry! But I do hope those who were following were able to check out my daily updates on Instagram and Facebook stories. I'm going to put together all the images from the stories in to some type of slideshow gallery if folks want to click through and see the journey. However, I am planning to type up a larger post eventually to share what happened as there was a lot more I wanted to share throughout but it was emotionally difficult, and we had a lot to take in and process ourselves while being the best care for Henry.
We have said to several people that the 10 and a half weeks we were in Bristol went super fast. It was a constant rollercoaster of emotions. There were extremely dark moments filled with pain, confusion, anger, anxiety and fear... but then there were also moments filled with overflowing joy and peace. And in every single one of those moments, no matter the emotion, God was there. God was carrying us every single minute and we learnt so much more about His love, His truths and His power. There were things that He showed and spoke to us that He could only do when we were going through the valley, the storm, because that's when we would be in a posture to listen and look for the only one who could save us. The only one we truly needed. Our faithful God. And He was beyond faithful, even though we felt so undeserving. He reminded us that we are His children, and while our hearts were breaking, His was too. Our souls have been truly awakened through this time, and even though it was the toughest thing to go through, we are thankful to God for bringing so much good from it. And all of this is what I want to share with you all when I get time!
Since coming home, Henry has been doing extremely well. We weren't sure how he would be back at home, if he would remember things, but he amazed us. As soon as we pulled up in the car on Wednesday to reverse in to the driveway he started saying 'beep beep beep' as our car beeps when we reverse close to objects. Then once we parked, he said 'yay' with his arms up in the air. I could have cried with joy!
At Clic House in Bristol, we had been trying to get Henry walking again as he hasn't been able to due to the hard treatment he received. We didn't want to straighten up and let us walk him while holding his hands. However, once he came in to our home, he slid off the sofa and let us walk him! I'm praying that it won't be long until he walks on his own again. He has been so happy and playful, always smiling, as if he knows he is getting better and God is healing him. We are so so thankful!
Currently we are going to the Royal on Monday and Thursday mornings for blood checks and reviewing his medication. We are giving him meds every morning and evening through his NG tube. The doctors will eventually start weaning him off these, but this will take a lot of time as his blood counts still have to come up more. However, everything is heading in the right direction and the medical teams are so so happy with his progress. Please keep praying for protection and that he continues to do as amazing as he is doing. We thank God constantly for his healing and we praise God for all He has done and will do in Henry's body and life. There are big plans ahead for him! I'm so sure of this!
I will most likely blog now once a week to update you on how things are going, maybe try some video updates again if there's any quick news or prayer points. But I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has been praying and walking with us through this valley. Your prayers, messages, support and love has helped us more than we can explain. Knowing we could contact you guys, day or night, while in Bristol meant so much and made us feel stronger. You have loved us so well and I'm in such awe at your continued kindness. We are also so thankful for the medical teams, in Bristol and Belfast, and the team at Clic House, and the donor!! You are all amazing, and have all given my son a second chance at life. We knew the seriousness of what we were facing, but being in Bristol made the reality and risk of it all hit us so hard. God has worked through so many people to bring about this miracle. Thank you so much everyone.
So for now, we are enjoying time at home together, and loving life with Henry and seeing his smile all day. We need to keep as safe as possible, and I pray you are all safe and well also. Covid is getting pretty bad again, so please be careful out there!
