Human Enterovirus, 0 Mighty Joe Fletcher, 1

Kendra just called me to say Mighty Joe donned his cape and soared out of the hospital breathing fresh air and soaking up the California sunshine! Praise the Lord for His goodness!

Fletch again (sorry, Kendra is too busy feeding the baby!): Joe's doctor visited today and reported that almost all of his lab results were normal (I asked the doctor if he was making "smart pee" and he had no idea what I was talking about). This is remarkable! They have stopped all medications (for seizures and high blood pressure) and while I was typing this entry, the nurse just removed his nasal food tube and his picc line. Wow...kind of boring to only be monitored for heart rate and oxygen saturation...it's like he is healthy or something (go figure...). The best part (check this out), Joe's doctor told us that if things go well tonight...Joe could go home tomorrow... WOW! Has someone out there been praying or something? A week ago Joe had a 50:50 prognosis and now we are ready to go home...c'mon...one of you must have been praying. Raise your hand if it was you, because I can't believe we are on the verge of taking Mighty Joe back home. His hospital release comes with some strings attached, because we'll need to return for an MRI in the next week or so. We'll post tomorrow if Joe is really getting booted and then you can look forward to multiple photos from our party! Thanks again for your prayer and support through this week! Andy and Kendra

"Not" as Intensive Care!

Fletch Here: Allow me to begin by repeating the great news from Deuteronomy Chapter 10:

“For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the Great God, Mighty and Awesome.”

Hey! Great news! Joe has been demoted from the PICU to a regular hospital room (Yay!...Now we are in the regular hospital!). We walked in this morning and Dr. Montes greeted us with our departure orders. He will check his progress daily, but didn't believe Mighty Joe needed the intensive nursing care anymore (of course he doesn't...what superhero needs intensive nursing care?). We met our new doctor and nurse on the main floor (this is Aunt Laura's old stomping grounds...so we've been "name dropping" like crazy). They have reviewed his chart and will be following up with him until we are booted home... His new room is spacious and he is still right across from the nursing station, it's a much more active floor with kids up and down the hallway (and more healthy!). How to Pray: ***We are trusting that God will continue to bring his kidneys back to full health. We are guessing he has about 50% usage right now. ***Once his kidneys are 100%, he will get his MRI done. ***For his potassium to regulate on it's own. Estimates: If he does excellent...we leave in 2-3 days. If he does good...we leave in 4-5 days. If he does average...we are here for another week. We aren't in a rush to leave and we want him to be healthy, but we love to see God defy the odds with this little guy! What a witness to His power! (By the way, does anyone recognize who that is in the background? I'll give you a hint)

Sorry it took so long to post this update. Mighty Joe has had several visitors today and he had a room change (no, not out of the PICU, just a trip down the hallway). Fletch will have photos on his blog later. We hit the one week mark early this morning and Joe is doing much better. He looks really good and we are excited to report his progress matches his appearance. His doctor told us this morning that the only thing keeping Joe in the PICU was his fluid balance and electrolytes (both require close nursing supervision). They are both dependent on healthy functioning kidneys (unfortunately Joe does not have those yet), so we continue to pray for them to start working. We've gotten used to hearing mixed news this week and there is nothing new today. While they regulate Joe's potassium and kidney disfunction, his blood pressure has been all over the place today, so now they are needing to control that with medication as well. Digestively, he has enjoyed his four-hour feeding schedule and he only gets supplemented through his nasal tube when he doesn't eat enough from the bottle. We love it, because we get to feed him and hold him every time! Once he moves downstairs (acute care) one of his big tests will be an MRI to evaluate his brain. Prayer Requests ***His kidneys need to start working, they are still acting "dumb" ***His electrolytes need to balance ***His blood pressure needs to regulate ***We were told that the MRI mentioned earlier this week is still needed to evaluate the extent of brain trauma. That will require sedation (approx. 2 hour procedure), but they didn't mention when it was going to take place. Happy Fourth of July!

Getting ready for the PICC line

Fletch Here: I called Kendra today and after a barrage of questions, she finally handed her cell phone to the doctor and let me talk with him. In general, his condition is the same. After the morning rundown of blood tests and lab cultures, he gave me today's good news: ***Viral activity has slowed, so blood tests have all improved. (Liver numbers, clotting factors, etc...) ***He is able to eat out of a bottle and he is tolerating all of the food very well. ***They are able to place a PICC line today and replace his central line and his regular IV. ***The only things keeping him in PICU at this point are his non-functioning kidneys and some elevated blood pressure. So, those who like to pray for specifics: Pray for his kidneys to kick in today! Pray for a successful PICC line placement (some risk)! Pray for his blood pressure to be controlled! Of course all this means that we merely transfer from one wing of the hospital to another, but we are so jazzed, because it means one step closer to home and one step away from critical care! All along we have prayed for great things from our Mighty God, but in case you're coming in late or you have missed seeing his hand in action, let me highlight a few of them for you... ER in our hometown 1. We were greeted by staff that knew us personally and we were visited throughout the day by other hospital employees who heard we were there. 2. Quick decisions by the ER doctors and our family doctor to transfer him to a children's hospital. 3. Super care from the ER nurses and support staff. 3. Readily available Critical Care Transport units. Children's Hospital 1. Of the five Children's Hospitals available in Northern California, the one we were sent to is only 1.5 hours from our house, 20 minutes from Kendra's parents, 10 minutes from her brothers family and her sister-in-law works at this specific hospital as an RN. 2. Our doctors were right on the money with their initial diagnosis and began treating Joe accordingly. They have been available personally to take phone calls and answer all of our questions. 3. Our first nurse, when asked if she liked Joe replied, "Like him? I love him..." - she wins the award for best answer! 4. The hospital has full hookups for RVs and my folks immediately parked their "wonderbus" for Kendra to use. 5. Kendra's high school friend is an OB in the area and was able to examine her and prescribe the right medication for her to begin to feel better. Mighty Joe's Body The doctors prepared us for the possibilities of multiple treatment scenarios, but Joe responded better than they hoped: 1. He has not needed dialysis. 2. He has not needed a ventilator. 3. He has not needed surgery. Back at Home 1. Our kids have been cared for in loving environments. 2. Hot meals have been provided by a church that has wrapped its arms around us. 3. My office staff has gone above and beyond to make my work week peaceful. These are the practical ways in which God has gone before us to answer prayer. There are many more relationships and situations where we have seen God's hand and many others to come. Praise the Lord for His goodness to His people! Thanks for praying for Mighty Joe! Fletch

I am sitting here in Mighty Joe's room today, catching up on some reading, answering emails, enjoying the quiet. Also enjoying Joe's occasionally opened eyes and his always voracious suck on his pacifier. It must be really odd to have a tummy continuously full but never have anything go past your tongue and throat. As Andy/Fletch stated in the previous post, there may be a chance he can be fed by bottle soon but so far, no signs of doing so today. I've been a tad melancholy today, doubtless the result of a somber mood in the PICU last night, then realizing (gee, where have I been???) that today is day six in the PICU for Mighty Joe. When you are in the midst of a trial such as this, you tend to ride the waves and lose track of time. Sort of like labor, when you look up at the clock and realize four hours have passed. There are delightful things, too. In fact, just as I am typing this, Dr. Montes appeared and told the nurse we can feed him by bottle! I also am looking forward to spending my sister-in-law's break with her when she gets a chance. The girls, my mom, and I got a quick peek at the post-op department where she works because there were no patients needing care at the moment. I love knowing that Laura is literally down the hall and around the corner. A sweet woman appeared this afternoon- she is a friend of a man who attends our church with his brother's family. Wow. The kindness of strangers. Thanks for coming, Janice. And certainly, the nurses have been wonderful. We have been so very blessed. And did I mention there's a Starbucks in the hospital? I kid you not. If I worked here I would grow fat on chai. Sara Groves is always a ministry to me. "Prayers for This Child" have been particularly poignant: I do not know how I am to pray for this child as a mother I don't want my baby denied but in the waiting in the waiting I learned Every instinct in me wants to shield him from pain take the arrows of misery heartache and blame but in the sorrow in the sorrow I learned to hold on I only have two eyes - be all seeing I only have two hands - be everywhere I do not know enough - to be all knowing I give this baby up into your care I do not know how, how to pray for this child I want to guard him from everything wicked and wild but in the trial in the trial I learned to hold on And in the trial, in the trial I learned to hold on to the heart of God Hold your babies tightly this afternoon- Kendra