Homeward bound

Sorry it has been so long since our last post. We have been quite busy. Initially we thought we would go home on Wednesday the 29th, but the doctors wanted to be sure of Josephine's Degoxin levels before they let her go. (Degoxin is a medication that helps her heart beat.) Their decision to wait was confirmed when Josephine began to have problems with vomiting. After tests, it was determined that her duodenum is a little malformed and has a tendency to twist, causing it to become obstructed. In normal situations, this can be remedied with a simple surgery; however, we have opted not to do the surgery. Josephine's preliminary results for her chromosome scan have come back positive for trisomy 18. This is the reason why we have opted not to do the surgery. It would not prolong Josephine's life and would only cause unwanted pain and suffering on her part.

We did opt to place her on an IV last night so that the nurses could administer pain medication as needed. This is not a permanent thing because we will be taking Josephine home today. We are very glad for this because Marian and James are on their way here right now. It will be good to have all my babies together again. Our social worker, Dasi, gave us a tender little book to help us help Marian and James understand what is happening. It's called "We were gonna have a baby, but we had an Angel instead." It is a very touching book and let me tell you, it will make the roughest old trucker cry.

Last night I received a call from my sweet sister Jeanne Mitchell, who has offered to make Josephine a little white dress. Clara and I had been looking at holiday dresses, many of which are mostly white, but they were all too big. Since we had planed to to be home for Sunday we initially thought to give Josephine a "Name and a Blessing" then. However we felt impressed to do it last night. For those of you who don't know in our religion we perform an ordinance in which worthy holders of the priesthood will call on our Heavenly Father and give the infant a name by which they will be known in life and on the records of the Church, followed by a blessing for the child. When we first came to Columbia I had made a call to Bishop Jones and asked his advice on whether or not we should go ahead and perform the ordinance. He told me to do what the Spirit directs and then give him the details later. My good friend Clark was able to assist me in the ordinance. Once again I am so greatful to him for letting his light shine.

Well I need to go because my kids just got here. James is so excited to see his mom and sister. (and maybe a little excited about Mom's leftover cake;)

Thank you for the continued love, prayers an support.

You are in our prayers.

Jonathan Bennion