Late Wednesday Night - A Josiah Update

Josiah's condition seems to have stabled over the last hour or so. Never under estimate the powerful combination of prayer, food, and a diaper change! :) Anyways, I so encouraged that Josiah's seems to have hit his stride. I've been praying a lot while I read beside his incubator (I'm reading a $2 pick-up from the House of James used section called Archeology and the Bible written by Donald Wiseman and another guy who's long last name starts with Y!)

I've been praying that God will be directing people to pray for Josiah throughout the night. So, for those in time zones on the other side of the world this is do-able news. For those in North America, I don't apologize for your disrupted sleep if God so moves you!!!

I've also been praying that Marie is sleeping peacefully. I suppose the fact that I haven't heard from her means that she is resting. I got coffee @ 9:15 so here's hoping the wake up juice and my experience in youth ministry allows me to stay by Josiah's side into the early morning (I think all-niter is out of the question though!) Hmmm ... I think Marie left the MP3 player in the locker. Now if I only had a Gameboy with Tetris I would be set! :D

Sigh. I think one sign of God's presence is a sense of humor even in precarious times. Or maybe I'm just tired and weird.

May God bless you with His love and presence as you bless us with your prayers, concerns, and encouragement. We love you!
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah

Wednesday Night - A Josiah Update

Hello Everyone

We need your prayers. For the last two hours at least Josiah has had a really hard time breathing on his own. His sats and resps are up there, but so is his heart rate because he is working so hard. We just need you to pray so much for our guy, that his breathing will no longer be constricted. He's getting a feeding right now which will help him settle a little (and be less cranky), but its obvious that breathing is taking a lot of work. If breathing continues to be this difficult, Josiah will tire out and a breathing tube will be inserted again. It's a vicious cycle he is in (can't breathe on his own because the tube causes irritation) and we know that God can bring him out of this.

Marie is wasted. She trainwreck of emotion and can't take this yo-yo stuff anymore and has left to sleep. This is the earliest she has gone to bed in months. Please pray for her. For the strength, energy, courage and faith to face whatever this week and lifetime might bring.

I'm not going to be leaving Josiah's side tonight (or at least for a long time).

In God's awesome Peace & Grace.
- Andrew, Marie, & Josiah

Wednesday Afternoon - Josiah Update

(Josiah Andrew Haak @ 5:00 PM Wednesday, February 28th)

... he's got his 'thinking' pose going!

Josiah had his tube removed around noon today and he seems to be doing pretty good! Thanks for your prayers! Our first impressions (and same with the doctors) is that he's responding better this time than on Saturday when they took the tube out then. He's still a little fussy - who wouldn't be?! - and I think every once in a while he cries/coughs and gets a little fluid out. He's probably in a little pain - a tube can't be comfortable! - but he seems to be resting well as he can. The doctors have a little oxygen hooked up to his nose and the most encouraging sign is that Josiah is breathing predominantly through his nose! Praise God! Up to now he's been mostly a mouth-breather, but baby's are supposed to breathe through the nose so that they can feed. This is a really encouraging sign.

Thanks to Joanne L., Theresa D., and Ellen F. for hanging out with us today! And thanks again for everyone in our church family who keeps sending us notes of encouragement. We really appreciate you and thank God for you all.


Marie and I are getting out of here to find a mall :) Time for some financial therapy!



Please keep on praying for our boy. We are hoping that by tomorrow he is out of his distress and is even more relaxed. Thanks everyone.

In God's Love.
- Andrew, Marie, & Josiah

Pic & Vid Problem

I'm having some troubles @ the host site where I have stashed the pics and vids of Josiah. I'll let you know when it's working properly again.

- Andrew

Tuesday Night - Josiah Update

Just wanted to let everyone know that the doctors are planning on taking the breathing tube out of Josiah tomorrow. We aren't really sure of the time, but the doctors' rounds are from 8-10 AM so it'll probably happen sometime after that. The doctors have been given him steriods today so that his airways will be (hopefully) more open tomorrow. (Steriods, of course, is often the active ingredient in the puffers asthmatic people use). Steroids! As if he isn't strong enough already, eh?! :D

So, if you could be praying this evening and tomorrow morning that his swell will have gone down in his trachea, that it is opening up and that there is no mucus obstructing his breathing that would be great!

Also, I decide to make things really simple for everyone who wants to download pics and vids of our Josiah. I have established a link in the right side-bar of my blog. The link will take you directly to the site - just remember the username and password (or write it down first!).

Anyays, I'm going to go hang out with boy. Sigh. I'm in love. Thanks for Cindy S. and Trina U. for coming over to hang out (wow - indian food!), and for Grandpa and Marie H. coming out this evening.

In God's precious peace.
- Andrew, Marie, and Josiah

Laaaaaaate Monday Night (Early Tuesday Morning!) - New Pics Posted

OK. I'm heading to bed ASAP, but the last of the new pics have been uploaded to my host site (read blog entry below for directions). All the pics and vids now begin with the label "Josiah" - should be easy for everyone to remember! - and it all begins on the second page (click the blue '2' in the top right corner of the file manager).

Marie will hurt me if she knows I've been up this late ;)

Good night!
- Andrew

Late Monday Night - Update on Josiah & Everything Else

A cheery & weary hello to everyone :)

Sorry that I haven't posted an update in a while. I was 'offline' for some time, and since there wasn't anything immediate to communicate, I decided my time was best spent 'chilling' (aka resting ... but is there ever rest for a parent?!)

Anyways, you're not reading this to see my babble - you want to know about Josiah. Josiah seems to be a lot more stable today than yesterday. Sunday morning they did put a tube down his trachea again so basically a machine is breathing for him. For about 12 hours over Saturday night and Sunday morning the doctors let Josiah take his best shot at breathing on his own, and it was pretty hard for him. So respiratory assistance was needed.

As you know, Josiah was born with narrow airways (nasal and throat) and this problem has been compounded by all the tests and scopes that were performed on him at the end of last week. Obviously when you stick something down your trachea it's going to swell a little and your body as a natural response generates mucus to protect your airways. So narrow trachea + floppy trachea (yeah, the docs say his trachea isn't as firm as it should be I guess) + swelling + mucus = difficulty breathing. Very hard to take and see, especially since Josiah breathed fine on his own for 3-4 before he had these tests.

But, as I mentioned above, Josiah appears to be more stable today. I haven't talked with Marie since I left (around 1 PM-ish), so I'm just going on what I know from this morning. Josiah really appears to be more relaxed. A couple of body signals are his unclenched hands (he often has really tight fists, a sign of hyper-tensive) and his relaxed eyelids. Usually his eyes are so clenched that you can't see his eyelashes, but today we definitely could so we take it as a good sign!

The doctors are planning on leaving the tube in until mid-week when they re-evaluate. No tests are planned by the specialists until the end of the week and they aren't expecting to gone his throat anymore which is really REALLY good!

Of course it's really difficult as parents to see him in this state. Because he has a tube down his throat, he obviously can't be very mobile. Marie might have been able to hold him tonight if he had a good day. We aren't really supposed to touch him much - because any stimulation will wake him up and remind him of his discomfort - so it's best right now just to let him sleep a lot ... which is so hard to ask parents because all you want to do is rub him up and down!!!

So, as far as prayer requests go ...

• Pray that his trachea will heal and open up so that he can breathe comfortably and consistently
• Pray that his epiglottis will develop so that when he is ready to eat, food won't go into his lungs
• Pray for Marie as she is finding this EXTREMELY hard, especially when her cuddle time with Josiah is basically nil

Right now we just want our boy to be able to breathe and eat. We can deal with whatever other complications Pallister-Hall Syndrome might bring in his future ... we just want to know that he will be able to accomplish the basics of life.

But you know, I'm being daily reminded of how good his situation is. Obviously God have been revealing his divine timing and provision all along the way. And even looking around the NICU there are so many families going through rougher times than our own and we are just so glad to know that Josiah is a strong kid, a fighter, and that our God is looking out for him just as He's looking out for all the children in the NICU.

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Other things to note ...

HOST SITE & PICS OF JOSIAH
Hey, so next time my host site shuts the door on you guys because I've exceeded my download limit let me know!!! Sheesh! It only cost me $5 to open it up again so yes, we're back in business. I'll be adding some more pics to download as soon as I'm done this blog.

Please let me the next time anyone has trouble download from that site.

For those who don't know what I'm talking about, I have a host site that in the past I have used to store youth ministry resources online. I have been dumping pics and vids of our Josiah onto that site for people to download and enjoy.

Website: amd.streamload.com
UserName: andrews_friends
Password: ypinabby

All the pics/vids of Josiah where labeled by my camera and begin with a "DSCN". Just click on the green arrow for the download. After uploading some new pics, I also hope to label them properly.

CONTACTING US
If you are trying to get in touch with Marie or I, there are a couple of options:

• My Hotmail account (andyman_sdg@hotmail.com) - checked periodically in the day
• My Cell number (ask around if you don't have it)
• Easter Seals House (604-736-3475) - you can leave a message if we're not there (we usually go to bed around 11 PM-midnight and wake up around 7-8 ish

There is also a phone number for the receptionist @ the NICU, but I'm not comfortable posting that on the net. The number for the hospital is 604-875-2000 and I'm sure you can be directed to the NICU from there.

If you are wanting to visit us, call us a day before so that we can set a time and keep an eye out for you.

OTHER STUFF
My sermon and our AGM (Annual General Meeting - that was tonight) went well. I blubbered my way through a Josiah update at church on Sunday, just dealing with the emotion of it all (of course) and trying to (feebly I think) share our deep appreciation and love for all the church has done for us. I was totally ready to cry ... it's a good church to cry in front of! I was then able to keep focused during the sermon which was good.

I'm going to get a few things done around town tomorrow and then I'm back to Vancouver for the night. I'm still not too sure how my duties as a father and husband will balance with my responsibilities on the job, but we'll be taking that as a week-by-week basis I think.

Thanks for those who have visited us: Grandpa & Marie, Rob & Leanne D. & family for hanging out with us, and for Trina U. for having a sleep over with Marie tonight! Thanks for all the cards and help (especially you church family!)

In God's Grace & Peace ... and HOPE!
- Andrew, Marie, and Josiah

Saturday Evening - Josiah & Specific Prayer Requests

So I just off the phone with Marie a few minutes ago. It appears that Josiah did have his breathing tube taken out, but the doctors are now considering putting it back in for the third time because he is having a hard time breathing on his own.

This is so hard to take. There was a stretch of two days when Josiah breathed fine on his own and now he's had three days in a row where it's been such a struggle to get enough oxygen in. The doctors believe that his difficulty with breathing is do to his narrow passage ways (as mentioned before) and that his trachea (ugh, spelling help anyone?) is kind of floppy (I don't know if that's normal for preemies or not). And to top it all off, he's had two days of doctors putting tubes and scopes down his throat which certainly must cause some irritation and blockage of the airways.

Marie and I of course try to take this best we can, but it's pretty hard. It's enough to know that your offspring faces a life of uncertainty with Pallister-Hall Syndrome; it's double hard to see him struggle with something so basic as breathing.

So, we're asking for God to do a miracle. A miracle to heal his airways, to open them up so that Josiah can breathe comfortably and consistently on his own, and that the epiglottis behind his tongue would develop to the point that Josiah can swallow without food going into his larynx. If you could pray specifically with us to that end, we would really appreciate it.

On a happy note, Marie was able to hold Josiah for half an hour today. I so wish it could be more ...

Thanks everyone. You are the dispensers of God's love to us on earth.
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah

Saturday Afternoon Update

This one will be brief.

I've been in Abbotsford for most of the day, getting ready for preaching tomorrow and doing some things around the house (ie. laundry and dishes ... oh yeah, and eating and chilling). The sermon prep is coming along pretty good. I'm kinda surprised at how well the thoughts are flowing, but I guess my mind has been in this passage already for a few weeks and I know people are praying that I'll be able to do my best tomorrow :) Right now, it looks like I'm going to have to do some serious chop-chop to my manuscript - it could be way too long!

I don't know what's up and new with Josiah today, but Marie did email me earlier to say that the nurses were planning on taking out Josiah's breathing tube and IV sometime today. Yay! It seems that Josiah is a fighter and is too strong, giving the nurses a heck of a time with all those tubes and wires around him ;) In fact, it takes two nurses to change his diaper, one just to hold him still as he thrashes around! Don't blame him, those tubes have to be annoying and he's got a lot of 'oomph' to kick around. I think he takes a little after Marie ... Oh, and Marie will probably be able to get to hold him today which is the best news I've heard all day.

So, have a great day everyone. Thanks for coming back here often to see what's new. Thanks to Uncle Lorne & Aunt Lydia and Marie's cousin Kim for visiting us last night. Thanks to Nels for the CD and tee from the S'Foot concert! You rule, man.

Grace & Peace.
- Andrew

U2's Miracle Drug Story

I bookended one of my previous blogs with two U2 quotes from their latest album, the latter quote a line from their song 'Miracle Drug'. In the comments that followed my sister (Danelle) asked if there was any special significance for me picking that particular song, and I had mentioned that the lyrics were rooted in a really neat and appropriate story. Anyways, I found the original interview in Blender Magazine where Bono talks about the person who the song is about. You can click the link to read the whole article, or read just the portion about Christopher Nolan below (in Bono's words):

“We all went to the same school and just as we were leaving, a fellow called Christopher Nolan arrived. He had been deprived of oxygen for two hours when he was born, so he was paraplegic. But his mother believed he could understand what was going on and used to teach him at home. Eventually, they discovered a drug that allowed him to move one muscle in his neck. So they attached this unicorn device to his forehead and he learned to type. And out of him came all these poems that he’d been storing up in his head. Then he put out a collection called Dam-Burst of Dreams, which won a load of awards and he went off to university and became a genius. All because of a mother’s love and a medical breakthrough.”

Pretty neat, huh? It inspires me.

Grace & Peace.
- Andrew

Late Friday Evening Update

FYI, Prisilla and my USB cable have been FOUND! :) Both were hiding in the deep recesses of our car, in places that we certainly don't remember putting them in but 'what-ev' - we've doing and saying things we can't explain this week already so it all just falls in line. Lack of sleep and a baby can do that to a couple I suppose ;)

So, here's hoping that Marie will have a better sleep tonight with her Pound Puppy by her side, and I'll be adding a few new pics to the host site either tonight or tomorrow. I've toyed a little with my sermon too while Marie was sleeping here's too not freaking out tomorrow or being struck by 'analysis paralysis' as Rob so accurately puts it. But I don't think that's going to be a problem: I'm too tired and joyful to be a perfectionist right now ;)

Cheers. Thanks for all the love.
- Andrew

Later Friday Afternoon - A Josiah Update

Josiah has come out of the OR 'a-ok'. He'll probably have his breathing tube in over night, but he's steady.

Briefly, this is what we know: Josiah has been diagnosed with something that is call Pallister-Hall Syndrome. There isn't much research available on PHS because it is a very rare condition. The condition ranges from mild to severe, but a very small percentage of cases are severe. It is impossible to know at this time where Josiah fits on this range, but there are indications that he lands more on the mild side. In this situation, this genetic incident would be described as an 'irradic mutation'; basically something that 'just happened' on the gene level and wasn't something he necessarily got from his parents.

Some of Josiah's current breathing struggles are related to PHS. There are some minor abnomalities that could end up not being a big deal at all, but we'll only know through time how he is affected. Other key indications of PHS that Josiah has are his horseshoe kidneys and his 6 toes (and the webbing between some of them). There are some other more concerning key indications of PHS which Josiah does not have which is a big blessing from God.

We have been given some of the best information and links available on PHS, which we will be processing and gleaning from over the next few weeks.

At this time there are obviously a lot of questions and a lot of "What if's?" that we all want answered, but the most important thing is that God is in control and that Josiah is doing well. Josiah will be kept here at Children's Hospital for at least another week just to observe his breathing and to allow some specialists to examine him. As we have known all along, Josiah's challenges can only be determined as he develops and grows older. We could be facing many years of check ups, hospital visits, and roadtrips but God is good.

We just want to thank God so much for giving us a beautiful and wonderful boy who is bringing us so much joy. God is loving and has brought Josiah into this world for a reason, sustaining him and developing him so much this week. Thanks again for everyone's prayers and visits and concerns and comments. We love you all and are so excited to have you walking with us and Josiah at this time.

PS Josiah is a week old already! WOW!

Loving God's Grace & Peace.
- Andrew, Marie, & Josiah

Friday Afternoon - A Josiah Update

A few things have developed. The ENT doctors have decided to get Josiah into the OR to scope out his throat (no surgery necessary). Josiah will be going in pretty much ASAP (praise God for the space!) and the procedure could take between 60 and 90 minutes. Josiah will be given anesthtics (ugh! my spelling!). The doctors are hoping that he will be able to breathe on his own for the entire time, but they will be putting a tube down his throat just in case and also to help him out. The scope is just to make sure that there are no abnormalities that they have missed; they are specifically going to examine his breathing/swallowing reflex cleft to make sure it's not miscommunicating and they will also be looking at his vocal chords. The passageways are quite narrow in Josiah, but the doctors are confident that they will be able to get their scope to go where they need it to. They are prepared for any potential troubles, but they don't forsee anything going wrong (Josiah has maintained a strong heart, etc). We trust them and we trust our God.

Also, the geneticists finally came looking for us ... but we were at the cafeteria eating!!! GRRR!!! So, we're not going to be following Josiah to the OR, but staying here in the NICU so that we can finally sit down with them and get some answers! Then I'm taking Marie back to our room so that she can rest and I'm going to look up 'n down in our car for the USB cable for my camera and Marie's Priscilla that has gone MIA :( ... just when things couldn't get worse, eh?

Thank Pasty B. and Troy U. for dropping by to visit. Trina, we hope your surgery goes well and that you can recover and regain your life back!

Thanks so much for your prayers, guys. We really are leaning on God for this one.

In God's Love.
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah

Friday Morning - Josiah Update

**** This post was written Friday morning, but wasn't posted until the afternoon because we had a visitor.

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Not a whole lot to say, but I need something to do while we wait for our meeting.

The ENT (ear-nose-throat) technician checked out our little Josiah this morning. They wanted to make sure everything was alright in the nasal passage. The technician hasn't given us his findings yet because he needed to check in with his supervisor first, but the good news is that they were able to get Josiah's nose tube down his left nostril (nurses haven't been able to yet because it was so narrow). Oh, and the tube is just for feeding because it's more comfortable than going through his mouth. Josiah was pretty upset about the tests and took a little while to settle down, but he should have been fed by now and will be doing better.

Marie's pretty tired. You can pray for her. Obviously she finds it hard to leave Josiah's side and she definitely needs to make more time throughout the day to sleep. She was able to hold him a little already this morning which is HUGE (as all you mother know!), especially since no one was able to hold him yesterday because was D-sating too much (desaturating, which means the levels of oxygen reaching the blood was dropping every once in a while).

I'm going to tinker with my sermon here today (ie outline, intro & conclusion) since the meeting with the geneticist is taking so long. I'm not even sure yet if the doctors have made their rounds yet this morning. Grr. So frustrating. I'll be driving back to Abbotsford early tomorrow and will be typing up the sermon all day and then staying the night back in our house (which will be SO HARD, but a lot better than having to make the long commute tomorrow morning). This is going to be my first sermon that Marie misses (which is going to so suck - I LOVE having her there as support!), but I really want her to stay with Josiah. Immediately after church on Sunday I'll be weaving my way back here.

Hmm. What else? Had dinner again with Marie's family last night and got see Emily (her sister) one last time before she heads back to Calgary. I think Chris (Marie's brother) is heading back on Saturday too. Last night we were offered some Harlem Globetrotter tickets - which would have been so sweet! - but we needed to eat and couldn't make it. We've made arrangements with Easter Seals House to stay for a few more nights, up to Sunday night for sure.

Last night was pretty hard for Marie and I. We had a few cry-fests. It wasn't easy to see Josiah D-sating so much and not being able to hold him. The worst moment for me was watching/listening to him cry for two minutes and not being able to do anything for him. That absolutely tore me apart inside and out.

We been fortunate to have nice weather every day! It's so good to be able to walk to 'n fro with the sun and blue skies. My parents will probably be coming down again next week for a couple of days - crazy farmers :D

Thanks for those who have visited this week: Loralee H. & Sandi G., Jeral & Leanne K., and Kari D.

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I'm stopping this draft here, posting it, and then starting an 'afternoon' post.
- Andrew

Thursday Afternoon - Short Josiah Update

Hello Hello ... I'm at a place called Vertigo ...

Well, Marie just told me that we're not going to get the 'heads up' today on the good and/or bad news that the geneticists have uncovered. One person is sick and the other one is too busy, so we're going to have to wait tomorrow. I guess that gives us another day to pray and another day for God to do his thing!

Josiah had visit by an occupational therapist (OT) today just to observe his reflexes and how he can handle breathing/drinking/sucking all at the same time. The OT believes that Josiah has good coordination, but there is something wrong with his nasal passage (a blockage, narrowing etc). So hopefully we'll be getting a scan specifically on that area soon. That's another thing to pray for!

Sorry I haven't posted any new pics in days. I kinda have misplaced my camera USB cable :( I was warned to never lose it because it's expensive! Yikes! Oh well, it would be nice for it to turn up somewhere.

Well, I think it's time for me to go read another story to Josiah. Marie and I will most likely be staying at Easter Seals House until we know for sure where they are going to have Josiah for the next couple of weeks. I'm preaching this Sunday - I know I know, you may think I'm an idiot but all the studying is done; I just have to piece together my manuscript and besides, it's a healthy distraction to pour my energy into - so I'll be in and out of Abbotsford over the next couple of days working in the office. I'm willing to battle the insane-o Port Mann traffic to spend my mornings and evenings with Josiah and Marie, but we'll see what happens.

Freedom has a scent like the top of a newborn baby's head.
Thanks everyone. In God's Grace & Peace.
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah

Wednesday Night -- Josiah & a Guy Named Pat

Sorry I didn't get around to posting anything yesterday. Or did I post something yesterday?! Shoot! I can't remember!!! Aaaaah ...

Whatever. No biggity. So, the big milestone of the day was seeing Josiah open one of his eyes and look at us for a good long time!!! It was so amazing! Marie's folks were in again this evening and they were able to hold Josiah for the first time, another notable marker in his young life. Chris & I also read Josiah his first and second story ever. I felt that Robert Munsch was a good choice; although his characters are often dysfunctional, it's a pleasant dysfunction that often comes to a happy resolution!

I can't remember if I told you about Josiah's eyes being scanned, but the technicians did look at his eyes yesterday. They were concerned that his eyes might be small, but they are totally normal and healthy! Josiah just has a habit of scrunching up his eyelids really tight, so tight that you rarely even see his eyelashes!

Tomorrow we are meeting with the geneticists (time unknown) and we would really like your prayers leading up to this. In good news and bad, we know that God is control and that he made Josiah the way he did for a reason. And we also know that if the doctors bring us discouraging results, we know that our God is not bound or far away but can work the most wonderful miracles in even the most tragic and unreversable circumstances. We've been so encouraged with Josiah's progress and his strength, and we trust that God will continue to 'support' and 'heal' him as he was so aptly (divinely?!) named.

OK. Time for a funny story. So, my dear cousins Rick & Rachel are due to have a child in March, about a week or so before Marie was due. They already knew they were going to have a son, which was going to be the first great-grandson in the Haak family (that's a big deal!). Yeah, we kind of beat them, eh? So sorry guys, but we couldn't do anything about it!!! And to make matters even more humourous/ironic, "Josiah" was one of the two names chosen for their boy!!! Seriously! It's more amazing than sad because "Josiah" is not that popular of a name! Well, we haven't talked to them directly but I think they are OK with having to go to their other name choice, but I think it will be a long-lasting family joke. FYI, "Josiah" in their name book means "Yahweh heals". Wow eh? God is good AND pretty cool. You can pray for these guys as they are getting ready to have their son. Every mom and dad and need and deserve prayer!

Another story: last night Marie and I were walking home from the hospital to the Easter Seals place where we are stay - WHOA. I just connected something. Is the Easter Seals place the same thing that you support with those seals that you get in the mail?!?!? OK. Sorry random tangent ...

Anyways, we're walking to our place and stopped in at a gas station for some snacks (Jalapeno chips and chocolate milk!). I asked Marie if we could walk around Safeway to 'feel normal again'. Sometimes you just need to get in touch with something that is a symbol of routine outside of the hospital life.

So we're leaning against the Safeway wall finishing our snacks when a homeless guy bikes up with all his bottles. We get to have this really amazing conversation with this guy whose name is Pat. He's got just an incredible story of his life: used to live in Nova Scotia, once was a steel engineer and built big things in Ontario (such as the Skydome), competed in mountain bike, broke a vertabre in a freaky bike accident, and has been on the streets ever since. He's not really homeless (he's got a one room place with its own bath ... of which he is SO EXCITED!) but he's not paying a whole lot for it so you can imagine it's a dive.

He collects bottles all day to survive (because his pension isn't enough) and in a day can easily make $80 from working the same 4x4 grid of streets each day. Pretty incredible. He takes a dirty, no-respect kind of job and turns it into a honest and do-able way to live.

It was pretty neat to hear how he really credits God (and the BC government!) for his new lease on life because he is able to live and move with his new back parts (he also was quite honest with the fact that drugs he has been prescribed he didn't like and so uses MJ to get rid of the pain!!!)

So after about a 10 minute chat we were cold enough to go inside and pace around Safeway (and he needed to get his bottles in before they closed), but I was able to see him tonight and it was so encouraging that he was totally excited to see me again and - get this - he said he prayed for our Josiah! (which, in his words, was a pretty big deal because he hadn't prayed for such a long time!)

This was definitely my most positive experience with a 'homeless' person. Of course, with every encouraging experience you may get two or three negative or scary experiences, but the good ones are so incredible that they keep you going even through the discouraging ones.

Tangent Alert: The main speaker this year RUSH seems like a pretty good guy. I read an article about him in the latest Relevant magazine and - if I remember right - he makes it his life living with people on the street and ministering to them. He actually worked along side Mother Theresa for a bit!

I like Pat. I think he would make a good friend and I hope one day he can find a great church and a group of friends to support him.

Please pray for Pat (and people you may know like him), for Rick & Rachel and for our boy Josiah, and for my Marie. Tomorrow if there is any difficult news to to take, I think it will hit her a lot harder (and longer) than me.

Loving & Living In God's Presence.
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah

Tuesday Morning - Josiah Update

I'm passing through one of the rites of fatherhood: all the days are blurring into one and I don't know today's date ;)

So we just had the radiologist and ultra sound technician come in to see Josiah. They examined his brain and abdomen. We won't have any official results until this afternoon (which I think is a pretty short wait!) but this is what they can see right now:

Josiah's brain is looking good except that his opennings are a little bigger than normal. This sometimes happens with babies who are pre-mature and there can be a million reasons for this. The doctors will have a closer look at the images and will let us know what they think.

In regards to his abdomen, all of his organs are doing great. Josiah does have a horseshoe kidney (2 kidneys that are attached) but it's no concern at all since they are placed higher on his body and won't cause any problems. Josiah does have some small hernias in his groin area and the doctors will let us know what they would like to do about that. Because they are small, most likely the doctors will let the hernias work themselves out. Finally - I don't think I mentioned this yet - Josiah's testes haven't dropped yet (don't snicker! - OK fine, snicker if you want ... it is a funny word!!). This happens with newborns and premies so we're not concerned. Often they drop on their own and if they don't, doctors can do surgery down the road.

So, there you have it. That is the latest and greatest on Josiah's medical condition. We not out of the dark yet, but we've been really encouraged through all of this. Josiah is continuing to eat and breathe well, but he is still in an incubator. I can't remember if I mentioned it, but Josiah was moved into another room down the nursery hallway because he was doing well and didn't need the special level of care (they also need his space in the NICU). We are still in the same area/lobby so don't feel like you're going to get lost again trying to find us!

I also think I forgot to mention this: the meaning of Josiah's name! We always like the name Josiah, but we never had it on our 'short list' because there are already two Josiah's in our church. We had long list of potential names but none of them did it for us and we starting to get a little flustered as the clock continued to tick. Last Sunday we said "Who cares!" and we decided that if we had a boy we were going to call him Josiah Andrew (the middle name wasn't as hard to come up with!) Just in time eh?!

Well, we never bothered double-checking the meaning of 'Josiah', though we did know that it had biblical origins. So Friday evening after Josiah was born, I quickly flipped through our baby name book when I scooted back to the house to pick up stuff and drop off the car. I was SO ENCOURAGED to discover that 'Josiah' means "the Lord supports"! How cool is that?! God is so awesome. It was a huge reminder to us that Josiah is really in God's hands and that will be taking care of him.

Anyways, I'll try to give you guys another post this evening after the doctors get back to us with the ultra sound results.

If you are planning to come in, you can always try our cell phone. If you get the mailbox, just leave a message because we'll try to check it once in a while. Another idea is leave me an email at my Hotmail account (andyman_sdg@hotmail.com) since they have a computer here in the lobby and my cell phone has to be turned off here.

Thanks again for all your prayers and visits! We feel so loved.

Grace & Peace.
- Andrew, Marie & Josiah

Josiah Update - Monday Morning

Hello Everyone

I realize that it's been over 24 hours since I have posted anything. Sorry to keep you out of the loop. It was a quiet day yesterday for Josiah as he continued to demostrate strength and resolve to live :) Thanks for all the overwhelming love you have been sending. We are touched to tears for all your concern, prayers, and provisions.

So ... what's new. Josiah is now completely off IV. Woohoo! For the first couple of days his food (breastmilk through a tube) was being supplimented by IV (basically sugar & water) but this morning he has reached the point where he is able to take in just milk. Yah!!! Of course, the pressure is now on Marie to 'perform and provide' but that hasn't been a problem yet! She has been getting quite sore from the breast pumping so she could use your prayers as this is something she'll probably be doing for a while. Josiah won't be able to breast feed until the doctors figure out what's going on with his recessed jaw (his jaw is small and set back a little). At this time, it would be really hard for him to latch, and because of the position he would have to be in it could also narrow his airways.

Josiah will probably be moved into a crib sometime today. The temperature in the incubator is as low as it can go (28 C) and he's having no problem maintaining his body heat - a very good sign. Marie and I can pretty much hold him anytime we want to now because he's doing so well. I think Marie's looking for ways to have him glued to her chest ;) I haven't held Josiah yet, first because I was a little apprehensive about working around all his tubes and now secondly because I have a bit of a headache and tight stomach (this is how I deal with stress I guess!). I just don't want to take any chances if I am fighting something, but it is really good just to hold his hand, head and bum :D

Today the doctors will begin the genetic testing on Josiah's blood, as well as taking the other scans and tests that he needs (ie. his brain, eyes). Usually the chromosone results can take up to 5 days to get back, but Cindy Shaw (our doctor, baby-catcher, friend, and 'insider-who-pulls-strings'!) thinks she'll be able to get them in sooner. This is of course the 'biggie' because although Josiah is healthy, we need to know if there are going to be any challenges on the DNA level that he'll be facing. We don't know anything at all (ie. if it'll just be a physical challenges, mental challenges, potentially fatal or what), but we do trust our God who is good and loves Josiah so much more than his mom & dad do combined!

Josiah hasn't really opened his eyes yet, though we've seen just a couple squints. He's crying every once in a while which is so cute, but for the most part he is in a good resting state. He doesn't seem to be as tense as he was the first day, and starting this morning he has been able to lay on his backfor long periods of time because he lungs are strong to push up his chest.

Thanks SO MUCH to all the churches and groups of people who have been praying around the world. This is so neat you guys, and Marie & I wish that every baby born could have the same prayer support as our boy Josiah has been receiving. We know people in Calgary and Saskatchewan have been praying for him, and there's even a group of people in Australia praying for our champ because my cousin Jessica over there! Thanks for the email and thoughts Jess! (Your mom forward it to us)

Marie & I are blessed to tears for all the love and attention our church family has been pouring on us. I was supposed to preach on Sunday - I was soooo looking forward to it too! - but instead the church played one of our videos and spent the rest of the time in prayer. Wow. You guys are amazing. Thanks so much for taking care of us, all the vistors and all the gifts and cards. I wish we could have been there with you, praying along side of you, crying with you and handing out a lot of hugs! I heard we generated a few laughs with our sleeping humor and responses ;)

Thanks again to everyone who has dropped by to see us! Let's see if I can remember you all: Leanne D. and Mary Lu L., Uncle Gord & Aunt Chrystal (hope I spelled your name right!), Mom & Dad Haak, our bro & sis Chris & Emily N., Mom & Dad Neufeld of course (just in case I haven't mentioned them yet, which is funny because they've been here the most!), and then ALL YOU CRAZY YOUNG ADULTS & SR YOUTH - Luke & Kari W., Adam & Angela W. (and Ryder!), Kevin & Dana H., Cindy & Alex & Kelly S., Allysan R., Torey & Alexa F. (I get your name right when I type it!!!), Travis V., Chad & Ryan R., Ryan F., Sam M., and Jenny L. Wow. I don't think I forgot anyone! You guys were known as the 'train' but everyone thought you behaved quite well ;)

Sorry Ryan, Nelson, and Tyler that this changes (just kinda huh?!) our Switchfoot plans for today. And I hope your mini fiasco gets remedied quick, Ryan.

OK. We have some more visitors (Trina again and Rose E.) so I'm going to go play host. I'll let you know when I post some more pics & vids!

Thanks everyone!

Resting in God's grace & peace.
- Andrew (and Marie and Josiah)

Comment on Video & Pictures

Hi Guys

I just uploaded another video and some more pics of our baby boy. Right now I'm wishing I took pictures of all our visits, but hey we can't do everything! Keep going back each day for more pics & vids. Make sure you click onto the second page of the 'File Manager' @ my AMD host site or else you'll miss out on the new stuff.

OK. NOW I'm going to bed. I promise. No really ....

Thanks everyone :)
- Andrew

Pictures & Video & an Update

Hello everyone. It's almost midnight Saturday and we're pooped :) Josiah is doing SO WELL right now, thanks so much for your prayers. This is what has been happening this afternoon/evening:

Marie has been able to hold Josiah. She only got him for a few minutes last night, but tonight she held him for at least half an hour. She can't leave him! She's totally lost her world of love (like any good mother is!) and is probably still in the nursery with him, completely oblivious to the time ;)

Josiah is completely breathing on his own! The nurses have removed the resporatory assistant from his nose and he's going solo and breathing strong! He still has a very small tube down his throat but that is strictly to help him get his drool out ;) Josiah has also been able to get some 'sucking' practice and is doing a great job suckling a soother. This is good for so many reasons; we are very relieved and are so enjoying his progress!

The ultra sound scan was also done and there doesn't appear to be any problems with his heart! Praise God! His vitals have obviously been strong and consistent through this time. He has has been feed twice now breast milk through a tube which is also very very good. He can grip your finger now and was making little noises when he was with Marie! We can't wait for him to open up his eyes.

So, we have been overjoyed with Josiah's strength and progress today. We serve a good and faithful God and all you pray-ers are fantastic! Monday will be our 'gut-check' time as that's when we discovered if there is any wrong on a genetic level (extra chromosone or something for example) and scan the other organs (brain, etc). Really, these physical abnormalities can be minor, or could point to some more serious (a mild retardation, etc). So we continue to trust God.

Marie will most likely be discharged from her room tomorow, but of course we'll be hanging around the hospital for most of the day. Unless plans change, we will probably be staying with Marie's folks in Surrey. We won't be making any long term staying plans until we know what Josiah might be dealing with and how long his stay here might be.

My parents came out from Enderby which has been good. Marie's folks have been here a lot and look completely exhausted :) Marie's brother and sister (Chris & Emily) should have also come in from Calgary this evening (it's their reading break).

VIDEO & PICTURES INFO
On my other blog (ypinabby.blogspot.com) I have a Youth Ministry Resource Vault which is linked to on the left-sidebar. I have used this host site to dump a bunch of pics and video of our boy Josiah. It's not an ideal set up, but this public computer is kind of limiting. Tomorrow maybe after some more sleep I'll be able to set up something better.

If you would like to access pictures and video of Josiah, please do the following:

Website: amd.streamload.com
UserName: andrews_friends
Password: ypinabby
(name & password fields are at top right of screen)

All the files with Josiah begin with 'DSCN" (that is just the file name they were assigned on my camera and I haven't renamed them yet). Just click on the green down arrow icon and you will download the image/video.

OK. I'm tired. Time to find my wife and get some Zzzzz's.

In his grace & peace.
- Andrew

PS Thanks to the Langs for dropping and hanging out with us tonight! Hope you feel better soon Jenny!

Visiting Josiah & an Update

I know some of you live in the Fraser Valley and may want to come say hello. You are more than welcome to visit us! We are pretty sleepy and of course our minds are most of the time in totally 'nother place, but having people stop by is very encouraging and helps us to cheer up and focus our thoughts.

So if you are interested, we should be @ BC Children's/Women's for a couple more days. It probably would be best to call BC Women's to see Marie is still admitted, and if you want you can reach me on my cell which I usually have turned on in our room (I don't want to post my cell number, so if you don't have it please just ask around).

And Josiah is doing well. They have removed his breathing tube and have a resporator attached to his nose just to help him along. It took him maybe 1/2 an hour to get used to breathing through his nose, but he's doing great now and is stable again. We are hoping to be able to feed (through a tube of course) sometime this afternoon and maybe even get to hold him. Hopefully also we will be getting a ultra sound of his heart. Marie is doing well, feeling a little nasueous and tired ... which is expected eh?! And it's definitely time for me to have another nap!

Thanks for everyone who has visited us already and for your gifts! (Mom & Dad N., Grandpa & Marie, Sam M., Aunt Betty-Lou & Meagan, Aunt Lydia, Patty E. & Trina U., Sandi & Kelly G., Rob & Leanne D. & girls). Your presence, kindness, and prayers is a cherished lifeline.

In love,
Andrew

PLEASE PRAY

Around midnight on Friday morning, Marie started to go into labour. Around 4 AM she realized that this was probably more than just a bad 'bowel movement' and at 7 AM we called our doctor (Cindy Shaw) who told us to get into the hospital right away. We arrived around 8 AM expecting that Marie would just be assessed and sent home, but at 9 AM Marie was 1-2 cm dialated and we knew there was no turning back - baby was coming!

The baby was 35 weeks which of course concerned us a little, but we knew that minor complications with 'pre-mies' were normal and that this boy or girl would be a good weight.

Marie's labour went fast! :) While she was just 3 cm around 2 PM, she quickly moved up to 4 and then 7 ... and we had to wait for Cindy to come back (she was picking up her girls Alex & Kelly - two of our youth - who wanted to observe the delivery!)

Marie did a fantastic job through the labour and delivery (and really grew fond of the gas!). It took her around 6 contractions to bring our little boy into the world.

Josiah Andrew Haak was born @ MSA Hospital in Abbotsford @ 16:16 February 16th. He weighed just under 6 pounds (5 pounds and 11.9 ounces).

We knew that he would have to be taken to the nursery immediately for examination, but in time we disovered there were some unknowns and concerns that needed to answered.

Josiah has narrow airways through his nasal passage. It could be because he has a slightly flattened nose (genetic or result of delivery) and so breathing for him was labourous and he was given oxygen. Also, because of his larger head, his chin often tilted forward blocking even more of his airway. A few hours after delivery he was given a resporatory tube to help him breath (so he wouldn't tire out and would be able to relax) as well as help him get the carbon dioxide out of his body (he didn't have the strength to push the used air out). While his airways are narrow, he has a very strong set of lungs, so much so that the doctors are going to try and take the tube out this afternoon to see how he responds.

Josiah also has some other markers which the doctors will be examining over the next few days or weeks. It appears that his kidneys are attached (it's called a horseshoe kidney) which happens sometimes and people can live through it. The doctors were also concerned that his ears may sit a little lower on his head and that his nose was a little broad. And lastly, Josiah has 6 toes on each foot!

This physical markers may be signals that something isn't quite right on the genetic level. On Monday Josiah will have his chromosomes checked out, as well as his eyes, head, and heart thruogh ultra sounds just to see if there is anything obviously wrong.

Josiah last night was transferred to BC Children's Hospital in Vancouver so that he could receive the best attention possible. The nurses and doctors have been fantastic. Marie is doing very VERY well - mobile, alert, eating, and getting enough sleep - though the reality of our son's challenges is starting to sink in and cause her great grief. She's very excited though because she might be able to hold him for a while this afternoon (she only got him for a few minutes last night). Marie is staying in the BC Women's Hospital which is attached to BC Children's. She (and presummably I as well) will be here for at least a couple more days until the doctors are able to interpret the results from the tests and scans.

The joy Josiah has brought Marie and I and the love that we have for our son is overwhelming. It truly was love at first sight. There are has been lots of tears and lots of prayers and we would really appreciate it if you could also pray for our son. We know that the next 48-72 hours are critical for our son, but we trust that God knows best as Josiah's life sits on the bubble.

We are confidence of God's presence with us as a family at this time, and we are assured of his deep love for Josiah. We know that God is good and merciful, both Creator and Sustainer of life. We have been encouraged by Josiah's strength: his heart and lungs are both strong, and his vitals have remained strong this whole time. Almost too good: the nursery's would appreciate that he would breath less!

We also believe that God has his reasons for bringing Josiah into our arms and world 5 weeks early. It seems that Marie's stomach was at a 40-week size because of all the fluid that was in her uterus, a large percentage of that being the baby's urine. The baby seems to be have urinating more than normal, probably because of his kidney condition. It is quite probable that God said "Now is the time!" because the amount of urine could have reached a toxic level if this baby waited until 40 weeks, boding ill for both our children and Marie.

So, thanks for everyone who prays and passes this along. Later in the day I hope to post pictures and maybe even video!

We love and are loved by a good God.

G&P
- Andrew

Holographic Ads

I just had to post this news bit. A Canadian company (woot woot!) has come up with technology that allows 8-second holographic video images to be manufactured paper thin. The immediate idea is to create moving, holographic movie ads, but I think the technology (like so many others before) will soon be exploited and brought into other mediums ...


.... and in the back on my mind I reminded of the frenetic scenes of Minority Report where humanity is pummelled by holographic/live-action ads everyone ... [shudder shudder] ....


Cheers.
- Andrew

Forced Change

I wanted to see how long I could go before I was coerced into using the 'new Blogger'. I got as far as today :) So, you may see a few changes here and there over the next couple of weeks as I discover what I can do within this new framework. Thankfully, I didn't need to create a new Google account as was able to using my existing Hotmail address instead. At one time I was interested in switching over to GMail, but seriously Google has taken over enough of my life as it is!

Cheers.
- Andrew

PS I posted once under the 'new Blogger' and then it took me a whole 'nother day to get this post up (some internal errors). Yeah, that's not leaving a good impression Blogger/Google ...

Time Definitely Wasted

Want to watch cheese age? Go for it. Slightly better than watching paint dry, but less interesting than watching grass grow.

Cheers.
- Andrew

Internet Anagram Generator

Bored? Type in your name (or really anything at all) and see the plethora of options unveilled before your eyes!

Best Results for "Andrew Donald Haak":

• A non-dead hard walk
• Ha! A nonwadded lark
• Darn! A hawk loaded 'n'

(we're talking hundreds of options here ...)

"Jefe, would you say I have a plethora of pinatas?"
- Andrew

A Morsel of Truth?

Mutemath Concert in Vancouver

Heads Up! Mutemath is coming to Vancouver on April 20th (Friday). Find this info @ the band's MySpace site. Wow! These tickets are cheap! But I'm guessing it's not going to be an all-ages show (sorry youth).

Anybody wanna come with me?! :D

Cheers.
- Andrew

UPDATE: I just checked on Ticketmaster and the tickets are not yet available for purchase (the concert wasn't even listed yet).