A letter from my mom:

Dear Friends and Family,
As I write, I am sitting next to Carlee as she sleeps in room 435 at
Providence Medical
Center in Anchorage. This is a Catholic hospital, and they open each day
in prayer over the loud speaker. That was a comfort yesterday morning as
we began what was a very dark day. I know you were praying, and words
cannot express our thanks.
Carlee was wheeled to surgery at 9:45, but, as we learned later, they
never actually started surgery until 11am. The Dr. said a minimum of 5
hours for surgery, so we started looking for her at 3pm. We never actually
talked to her until 7! Those last 4 hours were excruciating emotionally as
well as physically. We had some visitors during the day which helped very
much. The actual surgery took 7 hours, which was a long time for her to be
out.
Dr. Whitcomb said things went well, and there were no surprises. Carlee
lost alot of blood, and had to be given the unit she had donated before
surgery. Besides the bilateral mastectomy, she had an axillary section
(removal of lymph nodes) on the right side, and removal of two lymph nodes
on the left. Everything has been sent to pathology, and we'll have those
results the first part of next week.
We were finally able to see Carlee at 9pm in her room. She was pale,
groggy, and very thirsty. After some ice chips, she got pretty nauseated,
so had to be given Zofran for that. I left about 10pm-thankfully,
Nathaniel was able to stay the night with her.
When I came in this morning, Nathan said it had been a fairly good night.
Carlee said she didn't feel like she really slept, and it seemed she was
looking at the clock every 3 minutes.Today she is still very groggy, and
they gave her benedryl for some torso itching she's experiencing. That
always knocks her out!  Her blood volume level is as low as they can
permit it to go, so if that doesn't improve by tomorrow, she may need a
transfusion. Also her pulse is very low, she is weak and uncomfortable.
She's not in alot of pain, although of course she's on pain killers. So
we're grateful for that. She'll be in the hospital at least through
Sunday. After that, she'll transfer to Hickel House for 10-14 days to
recover before flying back to Nome.
Here are some specific ways to pray:
1. That Carlee wouldn't need a transfusion, her pulse would increase, her
blood count would increase and the swelling in her arms would decrease
(complication of something that's lacking in her blood-not sure what it
is)
2. For quick healing, both physically and emotionally for Carlee
3. For strength for both Carlee and Nathaniel. That they would be able to
rest.
4. For emotional strength for Nathaniel as he sees his wife suffering.
5. No blood clots or other complications of surgery.
6. Grace and energy for Danielle and RuthAnn in Nome as they care for the
little Hobbits. (and by the way-what a HUGE blessing it was to travel here
with RuthAnn! She's a GREAT girl!!)
7. For the Lord to fill all of us with His power and strength, His
sustaining grace and faith. That His word would speak to us and His
presence would be felt in a very real way. That He would give wisdom for
every decision that will come up.

I will try to update every couple days, or if something new happens. Bless
you all! Thanks for your support. And speaking of support-I have to thank
the Lord for the incredible folks who are here in Anchorage and standing
with us...these new friends who have taken us in, like Mary, who left
cookies and a note for me when I returned to the house last night-it felt
like a hug. For Sue, who again has let us use her home, and vehicle to get
around. For Kris, who stopped by the hospital to just say hello and offer
her love and prayers. God's people are everywhere and we are SO grateful!
Clinging to Him, Lin