Long Time... No Update... Til' Now :)

Well I guess it is time to update our family site. We are all doing really well, with school being out I have a lot of help at home and I love every bit of it. Kortnee and Nic played soccer this spring and sure had a blast doing it. Nic managed to make the final goal for the year again to tie up the game. Boy was he on cloud 9. Kortnee did great too, her coach actually walked up to Nate and said I can't believe how aggressive Kortnee has gotten with the ball. Boy was her dad proud.

They have also spent time up in Idaho with their grandparents and cousins too. This last visit was for a week and yes mom had a hard time with them being gone that long. But my wonderful Niece came and stayed with me while they were gone to help me out! Thank you Jessica. We love you !!!!!

We thought we would try our first family trip since our episode with Whitnee to the Hogle Zoo! The kids loved every bit of it. I think Whitnee's favorite part was the Monkeys, every time she saw one she would say Bobo Bobo (thank you Diego!) It was really cute. We had to cut our visit short due to the heat. So we plan on going back to finish our sight seeing this fall when it is quite a bit cooler for Whitnee. Well Whitnee had her first cold after our little episode in March, we managed to get through it with out Nate and I having a nervous breakdown. We are so greatful for her cough assist and suction machine. We managed to make it through her 2 week cold and so did she with out having to call the ambulance! Yippee !!!!!

I guess our most exciting adventure this summer so far was our trip to Shrinners Hospital this week for Whitnee's Wheelchair Evaluation. They measured her for her Wheelchair and then put her in a electric wheelchair and let her play with the joy stick. Her facial expression was priceless when she pushed on it the first time and started going in a circle. The look of Wow it moves when you touch this thing. The giggles between the movement was wonderful. A few more trips up there to play with the Wheelchair and I think by the end of August we will be in the process of purchasing her chair.

Welcome Home!!!!!!

YEAAAHHHH Whitnee's home. After a long stay at the hospital Whitnee was able to come home on Wednesday. She still had an "IV" to administer some antibiotics, but it was taken out last night around 6:30pm. So now she is sitting on the couch and laughing at her brother and sister. Even Daisy (the dog) noticed her being gone so long, she wouldn't leave the bedside all night until I rousted her out.

What's Next?
Well we will be feeding her through her "Gtube" for the next 6 weeks at least and possibly longer, only because she did not pass her swallow test at the hospital. The doctor said that she will likely recover fully, however the "G-tube" will always be a way to assist her staying healthy. As for the rest of us we are trying to get used to the routine. Anna, should get an honorary nursing degree after all of this.

As for now we are all doing much better especially not having to consider the hospital a second home. Still many things to come and learn over the next few weeks, but couldn't be happier now that she is home. I have had a few people ask about visiting and what they can do to help. Visiting is great, we just ask that you make sure you are healthy before you come. As for what we need, well we aren't really sure yet... We are still waiting for word back concerning her wheelchair session. As for now Just coming out and visiting is great.

Successful Surgery & HOME STRETCH!

Tuesday's Surgery went really good. WHitnee now has a second belly button and loves to tell us about it. She was able to recover pretty quick from the re-intibation (due to surgery) and is now just a little sore from the procedure, but overall really doing well. Here is a picture of her with Dad (first time I got to hold her since this ordeal started).

It seems that we are in the "home stretch". Doctors are now pushing her off of the bi-pap machine for longer periods of time. The only time she will need to be on it is when she sleeps and when she is sick. Today we are hoping she can do 9 hrs independant of the bi-pap but we will see. What does all of this mean? Well, we think that she may be able to come home either Tuesday or Wednesday.

I want to thank everyone again for the calls, emails, and prayers of support. It has really helped to know that we have good family and freinds to help us.

Whitnee's Surgery

Sorry we don't have any pictures this time, but we figured we needed to update the blog nonetheless.

Whitnee has been doing really good since the last time we posted. The ventilator was removed (extubated) on Friday 16th. She came off and exceeded the expectations of the doctors in the first 24hrs. She is now on a Bi-pap machine. The bi-pap provides the same type of assistance the ventilator did just on a "lesser" scale. The bi-pap machine will be another machine to Whitnee's entorauge. We hope at this point it will only be required when she sleeps.

Tomorrow Whitnee will be undergoing surgery. The procedure is called Nissen (named after the doctor that created it). To explain why we are doing this I have to tell you what the biggest things we have to battle.

1. Fatigue
Fatigue plays a big part in her well being. Even as much as eating can cause her major fatigue, which then causes her to not progress physically including her immunity system and limited motor functions.
2. Aspiration
Aspiration can happen at anytime regardless of what she has eaten or is eating.

To battle these two things we are proceeding with the Nissen G-tube. It is a procedure that allows us to offer the nutrients that Whitnee needs, and also helps prevent aspiration.

Click here for more information on the Nissen procedure.
Click here for more information on "G-tube".