Our 3rd dry run

We had our 3rd dry run today for transplant. We got the call at 2:30 am and by 9:00 am they decided the lungs were a little too big for me. Sitting next to me waiting for the same lungs was a guy who had CF as well and he was the one that ended up getting the lungs. We were happy for him! It was interesting, and nice talking to someone who was in the same boat as you. He is 25 and he has a younger brother who also has CF. (So thankful there is just one in my family) Anyway, he wants to stay in contact and let us know how he does and give me a heads up on what to expect. We are not sure why God continues to have us wait but we are hopeful it will be soon. Thanks for your continual prayers!

~Emily

We are home

Praise God we are home! We got home yesterday but I've been really tired and weak so I haven't got on the computer till tonight. I will continue on I.V's for at least another 10 days but at least we are home. Thank you again for all your e-mails and encouraging words.

~Emily

Update from the hospital

Thank you all for your continual prayers. It's been a long week and my spirits are better but I'm still ready to go home. We are still waiting for the test cultures to come back and show what infection I have and what meds should work. I think I have been labeled one of the difficult patients on the floor but like Jason says I just have some spark. (More like loose wires going crazy!) I am so thankful to have my sister here though, she has been taking care of Faith and bringing in down here so I can spend time with my sweetie. I'm also thankful for God's mercy towards me and giving me grace when I don't deserve it. He has given me some good verses of hope. Thanks again for everything you all do! We are hopeful to be going on by this weekend.

~Emily

"We have troubles all around us, but we are not defeated. We do not know what to do, but we do not give up the hope of living. We are persecuted, but God does not leave us. We are hurt sometimes, but we are not destroyed." 2 Cor. 4:8-9

"So do not lose the courage you had in the past, which has a great reward. You must hold on, so you can do what God wants and receive what he has promised." Heb. 10:35-36

In the hospital

We continue to need your prayers. I am in the hospital again but in Birmingham this time. My doctor in Cullman was out for a missions trip so my only other option was to call our doctor in Birmingham (CF clinic). And of course they require their patients to be in the hospital for several days while on I.V's. I have been very blessed or spoiled in doing my I.V's at home so I hate having to be in the hospital. (It seems so pointless to me) I think infection has set in again and so it's good that I'm getting on meds again but it's just been a very discouraging day and I feel very weary in every aspect. Please pray for me as I always have such a hard time being away from Faith, pray the meds help and that I can go home soon on home I.V's, and pray for Jason and Callie as they go through all of this too. Despite the hard day we still have lots to be thankful for, we have been blessed.

Thank you for your support and prayers.....Hope you and your families are doing well and had a good Thanksgiving!

~Emily

Praise

Hey everyone~

Just wanted to share a praise with you all. I went to the doctor on Wednesday and my left lung has re-expanded, praise the Lord. We just pray it will continue to stay up. I am now at the top of the list for my blood type so they are hopeful it will be soon. Thanks again for your prayers.......

Here are some pictures of our little ballerina and riding in the car.

Love~ Emily

A sweet ladybug

Hello Everyone~

Well, we had a very cute ladybug this year for Halloween. We went to the fall festival at our church and she was pretty overwhelmed by all the people, lights, and noises. She just sat frozen in her stroller for a while but then she loosened up when she found candy in her little bag and decided to eat through the paper to get to the candy. And as you can tell in the last picture she was pooped at the end of the night. It's hard being a cute ladybug.........

I went to the doctor yesterday and took another x-ray and found my left lung has collapsed again about 20%. The doctor didn't want to put another chest tube in if at all possible so she said if my pain continues to get worse then go in to the ER but hopefully it might heal by its self. Please pray God will heal the hole and my lung can re-expand by its self without the help of a chest tube again. Thanks for your prayers!

Love~ Emily

Staying another day....

Hey~

The doctor clamped the tube yesterday and was hopeful my lung would stay up so she could pull the tube today and I could go home but there was a little bit of a pnuemothroax (collapse) still in the top part of my lung so she wants to go another day to see how it does. As much as I want the tube out I like the doctor want to make sure it's the right time to take it out. So, maybe tomorrow we will get to go home...........

I told Jason I hope the next time I have a chest tube is when I have my transplant. (Which they tell me I will have 6!) All I have to say is they better have some REALLY good pain medicine! Well, we will keep you updated........

~Emily

Hospital update

We have been in the hospital a week today but I think I'm slowly making progress. The doctor took off the suction on my chest tube tonight so we will see if my lung can stay up without it, if it can they will then clamp the tube for 24 hrs and see how the lung does and then maybe pull it out. The doctor wants to make sure it is totally closed up before she pulls the tube! Which I fully agree, don't want to have to re-insert the tube if at all possible! Thankfully Jason is still here and I think he will head back to TX on Saturday because my mom is coming in for a couple of days. Thank you all for your encouraging e-mails, phone calls and prayers! Love ya......

Love~Em

In the hospital

Hi to all~

Well I'm sure word has got around I am back in the hospital. Christie (sister in-law) took me to the ER last night due to more pain in my chest and not being able to breathe. My left lung collapsed again but 30% this time and so I had to get a chest tube. It was a very draining night emotionally and physically to say the least and I know it was the prayers of so many of you and the Lord's mercy that got me through last night because I had nothing left. Thankfully the lung re-expanded when the doctor put in the tube but now it is a waiting game like last time until the hole closes up. Jason flew in today and my mother in-law is here helping with Faith so we have good support. Having the chest tube should not effect me going through with the transplant if it should come soon. We just continue to try to focus on all our blessings and believe God to walk us through this very difficult journey. Though my body is ready to have "new" lungs I try to treasure the time in waiting too, more time with my baby girl, time with my sister and always learning new things from the Lord. I also can't help but think my waiting might have something to do with my donor or their family. God might not be done working in their lives and finishing His plan for them. When it gets really hard it helps to remember I can only see one side of the coin but God sees all and just like a puzzle He fits and works through our lives and the people that intertwine with ours. I have had my share of tears this week but again I appreciate your prayers and support to us. Your e-mails, phone calls and prayers really do mean so much! We'll keep you posted on how things are going.........love you all!

Love~ Emily

Pumpkin Patch

We got to go to the pumpkin patch on Saturday and pick out the perfect pumpkin. Faith enjoyed pulling the pumpkin seeds out and of course tried to taste them. I found her with some slimy pumpkin stuff in her mouth!

I'm doing ok, my left lung continues to give me pain and shortness of breathe. Life can be heavy with all that is going on so I very much enjoy the times Faith and I get to go out and do some fun things. Her hugs, kisses, and smiles keep me going........We love you all!

love~ Em

Left lung collapsed

Hello to all~

I was walking out of church on Sunday with Faith and my left lung (the good one) collapsed for the first time. Praise the Lord it only went down 10% so I did not need a chest tube at this time but the doctor wanted to watch me for a couple of days just to make sure it doesn't get worse. We were disappointed this left lung didn't hang in there longer but I guess it once again shows me these lungs are giving out. The nurses were happy to see Faith again though! :-) We are hoping to go home today. Jason flew in late Sunday night so it's good to have him home. We know you all pray for us so we just wanted to keep you updated. Thanks for your prayers!

Love~ Em

It's fun to explore.....

I thought I would send some pictures of some of the busy activities Faith does throughout the day. As you can tell she is in the stage of exploring everything and leaving a nice tornado trail behind her. I know you must be thinking, "where is your mama while you are doing all of this?" Well lets just say as long as it is safe and keeps her entertained for the moment while I cook or try to do other things I am more then happy to let her have her fun. The life of a toddler is so busy, just wish I could transfer some of that energy to myself! Hope all is well with you and your families!

Love~ Emily

Happy 1st Birthday, Faith!

Well.......it's hard to believe we are already celebrating Faith's 1st birthday. God has been so good to us and we are just are so thankful to have this sweet, funny, silly & crazy little girl. We had a party for her last night and as you can tell she had lot's of cousins and friends to celebrate it with. She wasn't quite sure about her cake at first, she kept looking at me like, "Are you really going to let me eat this?" She would get a little bit of frosting on her finger and then suck it totally dry! She has NEVER had that much sugar before! It was a great party and lot's of fun but mama is little emotional about her baby growing up. =) I guess they all grow up whether we want them to or not. =)

It was good we had the party yesterday because today I had to go visit the ER again due to pain in my chest and so I am back on some IV's. My right lung has pretty well had it and so it has a very hard time fighting off any form of pneumonia or virus. Also, Jason heads back to TX tomorrow so we would appreciate your prayers for him and us. It's been a rough go in TX with the CFA there and it's going to take some time and a lot of hard work to get it in even some kind of order. The CFA store is in very bad shape and the crew there is NOT welcoming to Jason and Brandon so they could use your prayers.

Hope you and your family are doing well and thanks again for your love and support!

Love~Em

Our first call

Hey Everyone~

I know most of you got word today that we got our first transplant call. We got the call at 6:30 this morning so we headed to Birmingham and got there by 8:00. After some testing on me and the donor's lungs, the doctors decided to cancel due to the quality of the donor lungs. It has been a long and crazy day but we know your prayers were answered because the Lord gave us peace through it all. Yes, we were disappointed it didn't work out but we also know God has the right time and the right lungs for me. We are taking it as a practice round which is good. We now know what to expect and understand the process a little better. Pray the next time will be the real deal and hopefully sooner then later. Jason heads out to Tx on Saturday so I would appreciate your prayers as we get him ready. Thanks again for your support and prayers! Love you all!

~Emily & Jason

Iowa Trip

We got to go to my great Grandma's farm in Iowa to celebrate my Grandparent's 50th anniversary! It was a wonderful time and very special for me to be able to take Faith to see her great-great Grandma & great-great Grandpa as well as spend time at our favorite farm! Much to Jason's dismay my Grandma's farm has LOTS & LOTS of cats and she always has a fresh litter of kittens and as you can tell in the picture Faith befriended them very quickly. Also we were able to get the 5 generation pictures!

I'm off the IV's for now and there is no new changes with transplant.

Hope all is well with you and your families and that you are having a great summer!

~Emily

Our website

Hey Everyone~

We wanted to share with you a website some very special friends here in Cullman have put together for us concerning the lung transplant. They still have some things they are working on but for the most part it is done. It will be a good way to keep people informed when transplant comes. We again just feel so blessed to have friends and family who love us, support us, pray for us and encourage us.

~Emily


www.emilysjourney.com

Bows & Pickles

Thought you might enjoy things everyday pictures. We had to take a picture of some of the things Faith loves, bows and pickles. (Not usually together but she enjoys them both) Ryan is staying with us for a couple of weeks and he and I enjoyed putting the bows in her hair. Surprising enough she didn't notice them in her hair until one fell out and then it was over after that! And as far as the pickle, she loves to chow down on one! She loves sour things!

Quick update on mama~ I'm doing ok, I'm back on some IV meds (which I went for a couple of months without them so that's good). Hopefully it will help clear some of that junk out. We have not rescheduled the sinus surgery as of right now, and we just continue to pray and wait for some good lungs.

Hope you all have a great day! We love you!

~Emily

First July 4th!

Hi Everyone~

Hope you all had a great 4th of July! Fatih enjoyed her July 4th eating watermelon and watching daddy set off fireworks. (We thought her bow looked like a firework on top of her head, sweet little american baby!) It's always fun to introduce little ones to traditions and new things in life. Well, hope you all are doing good and we always love hearing from you.

Love~Em

Update on the Mulkeys!

Hey Everyone~

Wanted to just give you all a quick update. I am scheduled to have my sinus surgery next Thursday, the 28th of June so we would really appreciate your prayers for that. It should be a simple procedure but because of my lungs they want to keep me over night. We also found out that I am number 2 on the list for my blood type, which means we could get a call anytime. Could be today or 6 months from now. We feel excited and nervous but we have peace the Lord is with us each step of the way. So many of you have written me with updates on your families and encouraging words for Jason and I and I want you to know how much I appreciate it and that I haven't forgot you. With a little one it just takes me longer to get e-mails out these days but I am trying to get caught up on writing personal e-mails out.

As you can tell by the pictures Faith is pulling up and going everywhere. It's amazing how they become mobile over night!

We'll keep you updated on how the surgery goes and again we thank you for your prayers!

Love~ Em

My first water park!

We had a nice holiday weekend at the water park and then right by the water park the annual hot-air balloon festival was going on. I thought since Faith loves her bath time she would embrace the pool but as you can tell by the pictures she wanted nothing to do with the cold water. Maybe it was just the cold water that turned her off to the idea. She did however look very cute in her bathing suite and hat. She perked up though when we watched all the hot-air balloons as you can see in the last two pictures.

We hope you all had a nice weekend being with family or friends! Love ya!

Love~ Em

On the transplant list

Well, we never thought we would make it on the list but they should put me on the list in the next couple of days. The doctor's appointment went well yesterday and they are ready to get me on the list. However, they would like for me to go ahead and do the sinus procedure so that should take place in the next couple of weeks I assume. We are very thankful to have finally made it on the list but with it comes lots of different emotions. They would let me know where I fall on the list but because of my CF it makes me a higher priority. We appreciate your prayers during this time. We love you.

Love~ Emily

Update on ENT visit

Hey Everyone!

Just wanted to give you a quick update on the ENT appointment yesterday. We saw the ENT Dr. and he said he could tell by the CT scan my sinuses were filled up but after doing a scope on me he didn't think I had a fungus in my sinuses. However, he would like to do a local sedation and go in and get a sample to make sure everything is ok. He is suppose to talk with the transplant doctor this weekend and let us know on Monday what we need to do. So, once again we are waiting. We are beginning to feel like we will always be in the waiting mode. We trust the Lord though and know He is working even when we feel we are being put on hold. "I am still confident of this; I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:13-14. When we were at the doctor's offce a saying I wrote down kept coming back to meWhen we cannot see our way
Let us trust and still obey;
He who bids us forward go cannot fail the way to show. Though the sea be deep and wide, though a passage seem denied, fearless let us still proceed Since the Lord vouchsafes to lead.

Thank you for your prayers!
Love~ Em

P.S- The first picture is Faith's favorite thing to do when she is investigating something new. She will tilt her head or bend over to get a better look at something! I guess she thought she needed a different angle to look at the camera, silly girl!