The staff at Ranken Jordan determined a second goal prior to discharge was for Nathaniel's trachea to be evaluated and stabilized. Nathaniel had been scheduled for a bronchoscopy in July prior to placement with us, but the test was canceled due to a fever. It was rescheduled for the first week of August, which ended up being our third day at Ranken Jordan. At 5 p.m. the night before his Children's Division case manager canceled the test because there was no court order on file for him to receive general anesthesia. The test was rescheduled again.

I needed Nathaniel. It’s all sugar sweet and lovely to think about adoption simply as orphans needing families and loving families stepping in, but there is more to the story.

We are headed out the door to St. Louis Children's Hospital this morning and it seems the perfect occasion to share who currently makes up Nathaniel's amazing team of doctors. Collectively, we have about two or three doctor appointments a month.

The ambulance man in the white shirt asked me to promise one thing as we entered the emergency room garage - that I not take the baby home again until the nursing agency found a new night nurse. I promised. Then back doors opened and hospital fluorescent flooded what had become a calm space.