Post Surgery Update #1

Tracie Rocks!!

We have been given clearance to move to the fourth floor! This means mama has been a good girl. She has gone for two laps around the I.C.U. already and would do more but they won't let her. Today has been a day of medication and relaxation. Tracie gets to have the cool pain button and to be honest I'm a little jealous. The nurse we have is from Haiti her name is rose and she is 9 months pregnant and due in two weeks. So, if a nurse that is that pregnant is here to help you there are no excuses. Rose has been right on top of things and her laid back nature has been good for a day of rest. No more tubes have come out yet but Tracie is anxiously awaiting a clear fluid banquet. She is now only qualified to eat ice and relishes every cube. She is doing great and she and I are getting to spend some quality time together. We do exciting things like nap, watch t.v., check fluid levels, you know the good life. She itches all over from the pain medications so they give her a little Benedril to compensate. So we cycle, itching, Benedril, drowsy nap then back to itching. We are waiting for a room to become available so we can move. We don't know when that will be but we will keep everybody updated. There is no phone in the I.C.U. so if you want to speak with Tracie your gonna have to be patient. We are about to meet with the doctor so gotta go.

Surgery Update #2

Tracie got out of surgery at about 10:30 P.M. I spoke with Dr. Belnap who said the surgery was a tricky one but said that it went well. He removed four of the tumors and there hasn't been a discussion yet about the remaining ones. There were no major complications but she lost a lot of blood during the surgery which they replaced. Because of the blood loss, Tracie spent the night in the I.C.U. I was able to see her right after the surgery and she was of course groggy and tired but she and I were able to talk. She wanted me to tell her children that she loved them and was concerened they all made it to bed on time. I spoke with the nurse this morning and she told me that Tracie would probably be moved to a general care unit sometime this morning. They already removed one of the many tubes that are running to Tracie. Every tube that goes away is one step closer to going home. We expect to be staying in the hospital until Sunday or maybe a little longer. Tracie will set a goal of getting out as soon as possible and my money is on her. The nurse said she didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I am hoping that once we move to the other unit she will be able to rest more. I will be able to visit her again around 8:00 this morning and I will have more information about the stats on the tumors and what to expect for long term recovery. Please don't call Tracie at the hospital. I am possitive that when she feels better she won't be able to stay away from the phone and will want to speak to all of you. Thank you for all of your prayers and support. Tracie is one seriously tough gal and will be doing the usual amazing things we all expect from her in no time.

Surgery Update

Surgery Update:

Tracie is still in surgery. I am hoping to see someone around 9-10 P.M. The surgery lasts at least four hours, but could go five or six depending upon what the doctor sees. We are blessed to have the only board certified surgeon who does liver transplants in Utah working on Tracie. We keep hearing he's the best and we have full confidence in his ability. The procedure will be the removal of Hemangiomas' that are growing in and on Tracie's liver. Dr. Belnap before the surgery said he wasn't sure how many of these he could take out at this time. He was hopeful he could remove all seven but, was not sure. If anyone wants to learn more about what an Hemangioma is go to this link http://www.novanews.org/LiverHemangioma.htm. I think they describe it pretty well. We elected to have the surgery because in some cases there is a risk of rupture and internal bleeding. Sometimes this can be serious and even life threatening. Two of these tumors are very large and do have this risk potential. Just before surgery Dr. Belnap said there might be potential for Tracie to spend a little time in the I.C.U. We won't have the answer until after the surgery. Just after they wheeled Tracie into surgery and I was herded into the waiting room, the seriousness of this surgery sunk in a little bit. This woman is everything in this world to me. There is nothing more important or holds more value in this life than her. Having said that, being able to do nothing is not fun for a guy who would walk through fire to make her comfortable. Please include her in your prayers this evening I am confident that our heavenly father protects spirits as strong as hers, but a little help from our friends I am sure won't go un-noticed. We love and appreciate all of you. We are grateful for your support and don't know how to re-pay all of your sincere kindness. I will update you as soon as I can after the surgery. Talk to you soon.

Hey,

We are at the hospital. Tracie will go into surgery in 10 minutes. Updates on exact procedure will be coming soon.

Pre-op Surgery visit

Most of you know that I am having surgery tomorrow. I am having some hemangioma's (benign liver tumors) removed. I have know about them for about 4 years but when we checked them recently they had doubled in size. Therefore, they need to come out so they don't rupture or burst. Anyway, my Dr. who is a bit odd but a surgical genius, hasn't told us all the details, other than expect to be in the hospital for five days, and he will take good care of me. We know of his reputation and know that he is the man for the job, so we are trusting his expertise.

Anyway, surgery is scheduled tomorrow after 2 pm, and is scheduled for four hours. I will be be at St. Mark's Hospital. We don't know where the incisions will be and what will exactly be done. We will be able to speak with the surgeon tomorrow before surgery. Jared will update things when he is able, tomorrow night. So check things out tomorrow. Wish me luck, and keep us in your prayers. Thanks so much for all your thoughtfulness and concern. We appreciate all you do for us.

Fillerup Family Christmas

We spent the day at home. Adam got up at 5am, Madi up at 5:30, and Drew at 6:3o and we woke up Luke at 7am. Since the rest of us went to bed at 1 am we were a little tired. The kids had a great day and they got almost everything on their lists. Luke was so cute and after a little coaxing knew just what to do. He loved it. We had a big breakfast of muffins and Egg Stuff-eggs, potatoes, ham, onions and peppers.

We spent the day watching movies we got for christmas. "Chronicals of Narnia: Prince Caspian" was our favorite. We pretty much lounged most of the day, until Jared had to put the Prime Rib in the Oven so it was done for company coming at 4pm. There was a lot of snow, so Jared had a lot of plowing to do. Grampa Mc, Grandma-Great Willey, Grampa and Gramma Fillerup, and Amanda and Jordan (Jared's sister) were the first wave for dinner. It was delicious as always. We had a ton of food, so we invited my brother and his family over as well as Gramma Mattie.

We finished the day by cleaning up, and watching a movie together as a family. We love watching movies. It was a very festive day and one that was filled with lots of family time. We even finished the puzzle strarted Christmas Eve,with the help of Grampa Mc, Grampa F, Amanda, Jordan and the rest of us. The kids thanked Santa several times, and were pleased with all of their gifts. Which makes Santa very happy. It may have been a scaled down version of the usual present "load" but everyone didn't notice.

We hope that your holiday was a happy one filled with the spirit of christmas, and the hope that comes with it. May you have a great New Year.

Christmas Eve at home

We spent Christmas Eve at home this year. Usually we spend it with the Fillerup's, but had already had our get together earlier this week. The Mc side of the family had our get togehter on Monday for family night so we were not obligated elsewhere.

This week has been busy with family parties, last minute shopping and me sewing for last minute Christmas gifts. I made a gift for Madi this year, and taught the boys to sew. Drew made pajama pants, and Adam pillow cases. They did a good job, and I didn't have to do help too much. So it was a great relief to have everything done, except for the wraping by noon.

A tradition that I have had since I was a kid, was to attend a movie on Christmas Eve. It started several years ago, when my dad would usually get his christmas bonus on christmas eve or the day before. My parents needed time to shop and wrap, so we, all eight kids, would go to the movie. I remember seeing, Popeye, and several Disney movies. So this year, the older kids and I decided to go with my brother and his family that live nearby, and my mom saw the Tale of Despereaux. It was a cute show. We had read it a few years ago and knew the story. Jared and Luke stayed home, so Lukey could get a nap.

After the movies, we ran a few errands and returned home to a ham in the oven. It still had a few more minutes, so I got to rest a bit. I have a good husband. Well, it started snowing again, so Jared went out to plow, and the kids went to join him. They were going to sculpt an snow angel, but the snow was to dry. We put out the luminaries and then went in for dinner. We started doing luminaries about three years ago. The nearby town advertises them, so we buy a kit and put them out. I love them. It symbolized lighting the way for the Christ child. Luke was a good helper, and Jared lit the candles with a blow torch of all things. It was snowing by this time, and it helped get them all lit quickly. They were beautiful.

We had a cozy dinner of Ham, sweet mashed potatoes and salad. The kids wanted candleligt, so we did candlelight. We played christmas music, started a puzzle, and opened two gifts (Drew's and Adam's). The boy's were quite pleased with themselves and their gifts, and Madi and Luke loved the surprise. Especially Luke. He has a new pillow, and loves his new fish printed pillowcase. The kids left our cookies and a note to Santa and went to bed about ten. Relatively late for them, but considering they were bouncing off the walls, not bad.

It was a nice day/night, and we really enjoyed talking with each other and spending time together. It is great to have extended family traditions, but even better to have you own.

Madi and the Highland Youth Choir

Madi had her first choir recital today. She was very excited, until we had to put the white robe on. She was scared and didn't know what to expect. I did have to push her onto the stage and walk away fast, unitl she just went with it. Her conductor, Kerilynn, is in our ward and a very talented woman. She has done a great job with those little ones to keep them on task and teaching them great things. The young singers range in age from 4-7 years old. The older kids were 8-12 and the older girls were 12-16. Madi has sung a little at home, but not much of what they were singing, so we didn't know what to expect. We were very impressed. Madi was so cute in her robe, up-do and she was beaming. She sang so cute, enunciating every word and getting it just right. I could tell she had a great time. Check out the video clip. Grandma and Grampa Fillerup, Grampa McIntire and Grandma Mattie were in attendence. It was held in the beautiful Provo Tabernacle. They were accompanied by a piano, violin,, and a flute. The older group sang with a harp as well. Adam and Drew both asked to be in choir next year. We'll see. Enjoy the clip. (I thought they were longer, I will try to get a better one later. )

Piano Recital for Drew and Adam

Today is the beginning of a very busy week. We start this week with a piano recital for both Adam and Drew. Their teacher, Aimee comes to our house once a week for their lessons. Adam has a 15 minute lesson and Drew has 30 min. Drew started taking piano when he was 7, from Art City Music Academy. We started in Orem with a fantastic teacher, Abby. We did enjoy art city, but after two years and a few different teachers, it got difficult to continue. I had to attend every lesson, and find a sitter for our other children. After I had Rhett, it became to much, and so we took a two year hiatus. We found Aimee, through my sister in Spanish Fork. Aimee is from there and a BYU student studying music. She is fantastic. Drew learned the solflege method of piano, where they learn do-re-me.. instead of C-D-E.... The transition has been great, and Aimee has helped him see his potential. He is often not willing to challenge himself. And it is nice to see him being challenged. He is better than he thinks he is, and she is very encouraging. His recital piece was changed about two weeks before the recitals because he didn't think he could pull it off. I think he would have been better off sticking to it, but he needed to feel better about things. I think that he will play that piece for the spring recital. He did okay with his new piece, "German Dance in G major." He was very nervous. He also had a duet with another boy. They did great with that. Their teacher was so cute . You could tell she was so excited when they did well. They did great with the duet. Adam was also nervous, but did great. He had his songs memorized. He was very sober, and quite serious. His duet he played with his teacher was "Jolly Old St. Nicholas", and his other --Q!q1Q1 (Luke was helping) --song was "Classical March." We were very proud of both of them.

Fillerup Family Debut

Well, we have joined the world of blogging. We decided that this would the best way to keep everyone updated with what is going on in our lives. The older the kids get the crazier things become. We hope you enjoy being part of our lives.