A Meeting of the Minds...

After much discussion...both between the doctors and between the doctors/nurses/discharge people AND William...we should be able to go home about 2 this afternoon.

One Year Picture

The following is one of the "1 year pictures" of Laura Beth. Erica did a great job! Our little one is getting so big...

Appetite Burgler

Good Sunday morning to you all, I trust that you all had a wonderful night. Katie is doing okay this morning except she is feeling nauseated. She really wants to eat but she just cant make herself. She asked for a cup of noodles, so I made them for her, but the smell was too much for her to handle. She didn't throw up but she did gag a little. Katie slept pretty well last night, I however did not. Between her having to go to the bathroom and the medicine machines seemingly going off every five minutes it was a restless night. Christa is coming today! Praise God!! I don't know how she did this by herself all these times. She is a very strong woman and a great mother to her children. I thank God for her. She has sacrificed a lot through all of this and deserves a lot of credit for getting Katie were she is. I don't tell her enough but I think she is doing a great job taking care of Katie. I love her more now than I ever have. Please continue to pray for all of us but especially for Katie. That's all I have to say for now. Thanks again for everything.

update

Hey everyone I just wanted to let you know that the chemo started at 1:00 pm. So far so good on the upset stomach. Katie is still eating good and seems to be feeling good. We took a walk around the ninth floor just a few minutes ago to see if the playroom was open, but it was not. It was still good to get out of the room and move around some. We are back in the room waiting on visitors Nana, Pop, and Ashley. The chemo will be ending around 7:30 pm. Thanks again to all of you for everything. Gods power because of your prayers on Katies behalf has made all this progress a reality instead of a hope. I know faith is believing in things not seen, but if you new how bad Katie was then and how good she is now you might think of faith as believing because of what you have seen. Katies recovery from this bacterial infection IS proof that God does exist and that God is in control and always will be. I hope all of you have a great night and may God bless you.

Good morning...no...Great morning

Hello everyone I hope you all had a great night sleep, Katie and I did. Katie woke up about 6:30 this morning wanting to watch TV. Katie is feeling great and is in a WONDERFUL mood this morning. Katie will start chemo sometime today, hopefully this morning. Pray that this round of chemo will clear her bone marrow of cancer so that we can get on with this whole process and get Katie well. We are still scheduled to go home on Monday and are counting down the days. It has only been 11 days but it feels like forever. Katie misses her new big girl bed that we bought her. Her appetite is definitely back she is eating like horse, I hope the chemo doesn't change that. That's all the news I have right now. I hope you all have a blessed day. Remember never take one day with your family for granted because you never know when your family life will be changed. There are lots of things that you can get back but time is not one of them, so slow down and spend time with your kids and spouse and enjoy life.

no more one armed bandit!

Katie has now gotten her IVs pulled out and can use both her arms. She did not like it when the nurse pulled the tape off. She is happy that the IV is gone and that she can use both her hands. I told Christa that she would have been so proud of her daughter, because she was learning how to adapt to not being able to use her left hand. The reason I say that is because Christa is an OT and OTs teach people how to adapt to life when something such as a limb has been taken away. Thanks again for all the prayers and calls. Continue to pray for Katie and for Christa, Laura Beth and I.

New line

Katie is out of surgery, and her new line was successfully put in. Katie is in her room eating, watching TV and doing well. We hope that the IVs in her arm can be removed today because it is really aggravating her. She woke up from surgery pretty grouchy because she was hungry and because she woke up before I got there. The nurses did not have to show me where she was, I just followed her screaming voice. The doctor that did her surgery today was the same one that removed her cancer, so I am confident he did a great job. Christa and I thank you all so much for everything that you have done. Please continue to pray for Katie's health and for her complete healing here on this Earth. I also ask that you pray for me to have patience with these people and that I don't loose my temper with them.

Appetite Return...

Katie has had a good time with her daddy today. They took a nice morning nap and now Katie is eating like there is no tomorrow. She is quickly running out of her stash of Taco Bell burritos! LOL Thank you to everyone who has prayed for us. We can definitely feel the prayers. To God be the glory for everything He has brought us through and for the miracle we are believing in (Katie to be healed).

**Katie is scheduled for surgery tomorrow to put her central line back in and then chemo will be on Saturday and Sunday.

Good Times...NO...Great Times

Today has been WONDERFUL. Katie spent the morning laying in bed watching PBS, and singing to herself/her toys. And I got a little bit of a nap. This afternoon, Katie and I went for a walk up to the 16th floor to do laundry and play in the library. Katie had fun putting puzzles together in the library. She saw another little boy and commented that he had an IV too. Then she proceeded to tell him about her IVs and how a central line was better. Then the two of them showed their battle scars (he had had heart surgery). It was so much fun to see her talking to another kid, laughing, and having fun. Now...as soon as the nurse brings us a bucket we are going to do a craft...did I mention with glitter! LOL The glitter strikes again! Those blasted Radio Lollipop people... =) But to tell the truth we have a lot of fun with glitter....and pink buckets make it manageable. William will be here tonight so the posts for the rest of the week will be from him. Pray that he doesn't cause too much raucous while he is here...he isn't as polite as I am **wink**

Quiet

Today has been pretty good. We didn't have too many interruptions during the night and we slept well. Katie's cultures continue to be negative. They are planning to put the central line back in on Thursday. Then they can do chemotherapy on Friday and Saturday. Hopefully we can go home on Sunday or Monday. She doesn't have to have any more 'pokies' right now. Katie of course is happy about that. She is also excited to get to see her daddy tomorrow. He is going to take my place for a couple of days. Katie can have daddy time and Laura Beth can have some much needed mommy time. It should be good for all. Of course I will miss my little spitfire but I know she is in good hands.

Good Morning

Today has been going pretty smoothly...I am surprised to say I did not realize it is almost 10:30 until now...LOL. I almost killed me some residents this morning. First one came in about 4 to find out if they took out her central line (DO YOU READ CHARTS????) and then one came in about 6 or so to examine her and left the light on when she left....But all in all we are doing okay. Katie had to get blood drawn and she was not too excited about that....but it was quick and she didn't cry much. Thank you all for your prayers...William went home yesterday to go to work and I will probably go home on Thursday while he stays up here for a couple of days so that I can work (he is off from work on Thursday and Friday)....maybe no one will get killed while he is here by himself...who knows =)

Ninth Floor...Hooray

Katie had surgery to remove her central line at about 1:15 (only 3 hours after they said it would take place.) She now has two IVs in her left arm. We should be here until AT LEAST September 1. We are now on the ninth floor (room 934).

Update

Katie is suppose to have surgery about 10 this morning to remove the central line. After that we should be able to go to a room on the ninth floor (there are 5 empty rooms up there!) Please pray that everything goes well. They will put in another IV while she is under so that she won't feel it when they put it in. Thank you.

Hmmmm....

Well we now have a name...the bacteria is called Acinetobacter Baumanni. Apparently is relatively resistant to most antibiotics. The infection control doctors are suppose to come by later today. That is about all I know. The woman that they sent in to tell us what the bacteria was called didn't know anything but the name... We have had a good day. William's parents came by today with the baby. The hospital was not sure about having Laura Beth go back to see her sister. BUT after some firm words from William, she did indeed get to see her. Laura Beth brightened right up when she saw Katie and began to jabber away. Katie was getting tired by this time so she wasn't much for conversation but I know she enjoyed seeing Laura Beth as much as I did. I will let you know more as I get updates from the doctors. Thank you again for your prayers and generosity. One of the biggest good things that has come out of this whole ordeal is truly seeing God's love and generosity come through all of you. May God bless all of you 100 fold for all of your kindness.

Progress....

Katie is now off of ALL the blood pressure medications and is holding her own. She doesn't have a fever and hasn't had one for a while. Her culture from yesterday is still negative. We will be in the PICU for at least 24 hours after she came off of the blood pressure medications. (Please pray a room becomes available on the NINTH floor when we are cleared to go). They do not think, at this time, that they will have to take out her central line. BUT if they do, they will remove the central line and then THREE days later put a new one in. They stated that if she requires IV antibiotics we will be here for 2 weeks from yesterday! Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Thanks...

Prayers Work

Just a quick note...Your prayers worked; We just got a call that we now have a room at the Ronald McDonald House. They have gone down on the dopamine (she is now at half where she was when she started.) She is feeling better. Katie has been sitting up and putting together a puzzle with her daddy and now she is whining because I am typing and she wants to play a computer game. AND she is saying she misses her sister...this is good news since it usually the dog she misses first! LOL...thank you for your supportive calls and prayers...a special thanks to Donna Shannon's daughter who offered us a hotel room. You guys are great.

Frustration and YELLING

Well Katie is doing better. But William and I are not...we did not get a room for the Ronald McDonald House tonight. William hasn't take a shower today and did not get a nap...so to say the least there was some yelling. The lady at the desk said that if you get a room the night before that you are put at the bottom of the list for getting a room the next night. BUT she did say she will check with them at 10 to see if someone cancelled or did not pick up their key and then we might get a room. We are the only one on the waiting list right now for a room from the PICU. Please pray we get a room...though we don't deserve one I am sure after the way I just acted....but when we are tired or upset WE are NOT nice people...

Some good news

We got a little bit of good news today. Katie's cultures that they took today came back negative for growth. The doctor said we need to have three negative cultures in a row to be completely out of the woods. Katie has been cleared to eat if she wants to (but she does NOT want to eat right now because she is scared to throw up again). The central line will probably not have to be changed. Katie is completely off one of the blood pressure medications (norepinephrine), and they are working on getting her off of the other one. Katie is doing pretty well considering everything she has gone through. Christa and I were able to get some sleep last night. The Ronald McDonald house and all who volunteer there are true blessing from God. Thank you to all of you for everything you have done for our family. Please continue to pray for Katie as well Laura Beth. Laura Beth is not sick but she has been tossed around a lot. I am sure she feels like we have orphaned her. Just pray she understands that we love her and wish we could be there with her.

PICU Update #2

Katie made it through the night okay. They have turned down the blood pressure medication twice now. This means that her body is trying to do it on its own. Her heart rate has come down to about normal. She continues to need oxygen but is doing okay. She is cranky and that is a good sign! It means she is ready to 'blow this pop stand'

PICU Update

They have told us that one of the cultures that they took grew a gram negative cocci/bacillus. They believe that her central line is where the bacteria started. Gram negative cocci/bacillus hits hard and fast and is hard to treat. They are treating Katie with heavy duty antibiotics and will continue to take cultures daily. Her vitals have stabilized with medication. They have told us we will be here atleast a week. Thank you for your prayers.