We are all settled in and admitted at Children’s Hospital and ready for an early morning pre-op call at 6:30 am tomorrow. Macy is hooked up to fluids, has had labs drawn, a chest x-ray and signed surgery consents and taking it all in stride. Erin and her husband Matt are at a hotel across the street and prepared to check in to pre-op at 5:30 am. But before we embark on this next adventure, it’s important to celebrate.

When we left the hospital in Chicago back in 2011, about 6 weeks after Macy’s first transplant, her team told us that her kidney from Miss Kathleen would only last about 2 years. There were complications and disease recurrence and she was not responding to treatments. But God had other plans. That very special kidney has lasted just 22 days shy of 14 years!!!

We are so very grateful for the gift of life that Miss Kathleen gave our then 5 year old daughter. She gave her a childhood mostly free of hospitals, the ability to attend school, enjoy friends, participate in activities she loved and even the chance to serve others. Today and always, we celebrate Kathleen and that gift that just kept on giving. Thank you Kathleen, for your unwavering support not just in the form of a gifted organ, but in the way you continue to bless our family. We love you and your family SO BIG.

But it wasn’t just God and Kathleen, we also must celebrate Macy and her hard work day in and day out. She kept Kathleen’s kidney…a foreign object, happy and healthy inside her body and beat the odds. She drank gazillions of liters of water, she took timed medications multiple times every single day to prevent rejection, she endured side effects and co-morbidities of those medications, she made sacrifices all the time to keep her kidney happy, she navigated the emotional aspects of receiving another human beings organ and dealing with medical trauma, she pushed through the ups and downs with grace. She did that! Macy Grace you did that for 4,726 days…Most don’t understand what that took, but we do. We could not be more absolutely proud of her diligence and grit. And…AND…tomorrow, she’s going to do it all over again, zero days off. We have no doubt that she will do her very best once again.

It’s hard to explain what it’s like going into a 2nd transplant. Macy is ready to get it over with so she can move on with her adult life. Brandon and I are processing a lot of past trauma we didn’t realize was still buried inside. We are well informed, yet know too much. Max is once again on the outside looking in. It’s a mixture of readiness, excitement, gratitude, fear, exhaustion, and anxiety. Some moments it’s too overwhelming and other times we feel at peace. Erin sent me this photo a couple of days ago and I keep going back to it. Faith.

We covet your prayers tomorrow. For all the many details. For Erin and her family, for the medical staff, and for Macy. We are feeling so much support and love.