CC Here we come...maybe...

This week has been a whirlwind so let me unfold it a bit...

Monday - We called Cleveland Clinic (CC) to update our insurance information. We were able to make the changes but the appointment offices were closed so we were told to call back on Tuesday.

Tuesday - We made the call again and were transferred to the nurse for the neurosurgeon. They told us that it would be 24-48 hours to set up a date. We were expecting a call on Wednesday or Thursday but were thrown into this whirlwind when they called at 5 pm. The nurse asked, "When would you like to have this done?" I jokingly said, "If you told us to come in 2 days, we would make it happen!" Then she surprisingly responded with, "I have an opening on January 11th!"

WHAT?!? Next week?!?

She also told us she had an appointment open for the 25th but we decided to take the 11th. Maddy's seizures have been more consistent and multiple in a day so we thought it was better to try to get the earliest appointment and then if it didn't work because of insurance at least we tried. The nurse told me they would schedule us for January 11th and we'd need to arrive on January 10th for pre-op. Due to the quick turn over, the nurse did say there was a chance that the insurance would get delayed and we'd end up having to go to the 25th anyway but we would try to make the 11th work. She told me she'd call with a confirmation at the end of the week hopefully but it may end up being Monday morning. If Monday morning, we'd literally get the call and then jump in the car to go. We updated Maddy's page and we made all the calls and texts to family. I immediately got on the internet to look up the Ronald McDonald house and started the process to request a room for our family, my parents and Nathan's dad. I also contacted Maddy and Emma's schools about upcoming absences and emailed the nurse the homebound papers so Maddy can do schooling at home while she recovers. So began the next phase of waiting...

Wednesday - CC called at 5 pm and it was the financial office saying that there were some hiccups with insurance that may cause a delay. I inquired about the delay and they told me I could call insurance to see if I could straighten it out. Apparently when CC processed the insurance, they requested to be added into network since they were out of network. The problem? CC IS in network. After I brought this to the attention of the rep she got her supervisor to fix the error in the computer. She then told me that on their side the surgery was approved and that their problem wasn't with the approval of the procedure itself but with the specific request the facility had made. She then gave me an approval number. When I got off the phone, I emailed the nurse from CC and gave her that number and hoped that this insurance reps approval number really meant that all was approved.

Thursday - The nurse from CC emailed me back and said she sent that number through to the pre-certification office and she said "We should be good to go." With that, Nathan booked a rental van and we began moving forward. We haven't gotten the official call but we are moving ahead as if we have. Once we get the call, we will let you know.

Thanks for your prayers and encouragement through this whole process. We are ready to help our little girl get better. Here's some practical prayer requests we have:

1. Next week is Emma's birthday. We had to reschedule her birthday party for the following week since it was originally planned for January 14th. She was very sad about having the reschedule but knows that this is necessary for our sister. Please pray that we can make the day special even when we are in Cleveland. I'm hoping she'll see some snow and that we can take her somewhere fun while in Cleveland. I do know that she will enjoy being able to take care of her sister.

2. Safe travels. We will be leaving on Monday and driving 9/10 hours to Cleveland. We will be taking 2 vehicles. Pray for alert drivers and no car troubles or issues along the way.

3. Emotions - We wanted to whole family to be there during the procedures and after so that we don't have to feel torn communicating back and forth and can have plenty of support. When both our girls were born and when Maddy was in the hospital the very first time for her seizures, we were in China so we didn't have the luxury of family around. We want to be sure that during this time we do have plenty around. With that, we will also have our kids with us to. Pray we can be transparent about our feelings but also not scare August and Emma. Emma is very sensitive and already takes a lot of responsibility on her own to take care of Maddy so pray that doesn't get too much for Emma's little emotional self.

4. Obviously pray for steady hands and that the whole surgery will go smoothly. The surgeons name is Dr. Bingaman. Pray for him by name. May his hands be guided and his thoughts be alert and fresh as he operates on our sweet girl. We don't have any details for the surgery yet but will get that info on our pre-op on Tuesday.

5. Recovery - They said that they normally tell people it takes 7-10 days from arrival to departure but that depends on the patient. Pray all will go smoothly and Maddy will recover quickly. The nurse said that she will be able to start back to schoolwork via the homebound program at 3 weeks post-op and may be able to go back to school at 6-8weeks. Pray for our new normal with Emma in school and Maddy and August home.

We will keep you posted as we hear more. Thanks, again, for being such a great support! Keep those prayers coming!!!!