shelly's summary

February 8, 2012 & an update on Brylee

2012-02-08T21:04:00.004-06:00

{this pan is going to be the death of me}

our sunday school class so graciously set us up with a "take them a meal" plan so we can focus our attention on brylee and getting back into "life" without the worry of dinner... well this little pan of heaven came from my friend lisa tonight and OMG it is so good! I am pretty sure I will eat half the pan by myself and gain 50 lbs doing it!!!!

*** Update on Brylee***

We are enjoying be HOME!!!!
We still are not all sleeping great but I hope that will come soon! We have to get up at midnight to give Brylee medicine which is not fun at all! I told her I was going to video her acting "so terrible" so she could see... funny thing is she doesn't even remember when we wake her up and give it to her but my oh my she is a bear for sure!! The funniest things she said to me was "REALLY MOM REALLY!!!"
She went to school Monday for 2 hrs and yesterday and today for half days and we are hoping to go half days for the rest of the week too. She is doing good going back but of course is tired when we pick her up. She took a nap the first day but none after that!
I am not sure when she will go all day... she is terrified of the lunchroom! She says it is going to "stink" in there and I am sure all the food smells probably will stink to her now! She is also afraid she is going to barf in front of her friends! :( Poor baby!
She is getting her appetite back somewhat except most things she eats make her stomach hurt! :( She doesn't get barfy sick just complains about it hurting. Which is another reason I am worried about the whole lunchroom/eating at school thing!
Thank goodness for yogurt in all types and flavors... that is pretty much all she eats!!!

Thanks again for all your prayers! Brylee is getting better and better each day and for that I am so thankful! Please keep praying that her stomach will ease up and that her body will adjust back to real food soon! We will finish her oral meds on Friday and it will be about a week before go back to the dr. for our follow up. I am worried about what will happen when we are off antibiotics since it we have been on them the past 3 weeks... please pray all goes well with that transition!

All our Love and Prayers!!!!

February 7, 2012

2012-02-07T21:02:00.000-06:00

{dance party in the usa}

one of her hospital treats was this light up lave lamp...

she loves it and we had a "dance party" in her room before bed!

February 6, 2012

2012-02-06T20:59:00.000-06:00

{brylee's first day back to school}

she went for 2 hrs the first day and did great!

February 5, 2012

2012-02-05T20:22:00.006-06:00

{a day date with my little man}

we went to church this morning together and then I let him pick where he wanted me to take him on a lunch date... he picked wings... we enjoyed our time together... we missed each other while we were away!

February 4, 2012

2012-02-04T20:20:00.000-06:00

{so excited after a 15-14 win}

mommy was so excited she got to see little man play ball too...

i missed seeing my little ball player shoot the hoop!!!

February 3, 2012 --- GOING HOME!!!!!!

2012-02-03T21:54:00.000-06:00

Today the dr. came in this morning and said "your labs came back great... ARE YOU READY TO GO HOME!!!!!" I was in shock I will say I did not believe him at first and really didn't until the nurse came in and said she had our discharge papers!!!!

It was probably 2 hours from when the doctor came in and told us we were going home before I packed the first thing! I ask the nurse when she came in "Is he for real... are we really going home"... she said YES! And I even said... they are not going to charge their minds... we really get to go home today! She laughed and said yes!!!

So i got to packing and getting everything ready for us to leave... i really could not believe we were leaving!!!!

We said good bye to our home away from home... room 688 in 6NW of children's hospital!!! Brylee all ready to go home!!!as you can tell she was not as happy to go home as I was...

I guess i don't blame her... if someone had been taking such good care of me like the nurses did at Children's I would not be ready to leave either!!!

Downstairs by the painted cow...

it seemed fitting since we had our boots on!

I told Brylee I was more excited to get myself and her dressed and take her home today than I was the day I brought her home from the hospital when she was born! Now that was a pretty special day... but this topped that one by far... and I am told getting her dressed for her wedding will be even better... I simply can not imagine!

yes i still have my green hospital bracelet on (actually still do) and don't really plan on taking it off soon... this bracelet means way to much to me... it symbolized a whole lot and I am just not ready to forget all what the good Lord did for us and all the prayers he answered in room 688! I might take it off one day... but I am really thinking I want a green bracelet with the word STRONG on it! I think this saying sums up my 2 week stay in Children's Room 688!!!!

You never know how strong you are

until being strong is the only choice you have!

Ok back to the coming home pictures...

Good Bye Children's...

How can we ever thank you for taking such good care of my baby! on our way home with her peace sign balloon from Granny!

we had some pretty special messages when we got home...

thank you mrs. lori

and aunt lindsey, zac and katie!!!

Friday was a great day!!!! I could not have been more excited that we got to come home!!!! It was almost an out of body experience! It has been 2 weeks since i wore real clothes, shoes, actually got fully dressed, rode in a car (besides going around the block for lunch once)... everything just looked weird! :)

Once we got brylee home and settled and she crashed out i could not wait to go somewhere!!!! So Richard and I went to run from errands... I drove around with the radio cranked up... i know dumb but it had been 2 weeks since I had driven or heard a radio!

I can promise you one thing.... I was appreciating the SMALL THINGS on Friday!!!!

And yes being home and sleeping in a real bed was wonderful too!

So where do we go from here: We are home on 2 oral antibiotics that we give at 8am, 4pm, and 12 midnight (yes that one is as fun as it sounds to give) for the next week! Our orders are food, school, and activities as tolerated... meaning we can do what she feels like doing! We are hoping to start half days at school next week! Then we go back to the doctor mid february and at that time we will schedule a surgery date!

Thank you all SO SO SO much for all your prayers! Please continue to pray for my baby girl! She is home but she is not her old spunky self yet and lets not forget we still have a perforated appendix which is what started this whole journey so we are on the mind but not out of the woods yet!!!

*** and I actually kept up with my picture a day even when we were in the hospital... i went back and added the date and pictures to the post that did not have any!!!***

{ also i downloaded picasa on our new to us laptop and they have lots of new actions on the new one and i am slightly obsessed with them... can you tell??...}

Happy to be HOME!!!!

February 2, 2012 -- Another Thursday Update!!!

2012-02-02T19:54:00.002-06:00

My momma always told me if you don't have anything nice to say them just don't say anything at all!

So I am just not going to say anything... I will save y'all all my list of complaints!

Brylee had a great day! At least she has a good attitude! That is more than I can say for myself!

I hope we get out of here before I am 82!

Thanks for your prayers!

Please pray for good lab reports tomorrow and that she tolerates the next oral antibiotic that they give her!

*** Brylee played Dr. Brylee today and all her animals were injured and they all need pink tape on their injuries !! ha! :)

{sparkles had a heart leg} {dangles had a hurt arm}{and brownie had a hurt ear}

February 1, 2012 -- Wednesday Update on Brylee...

2012-02-01T21:29:00.003-06:00

Today has been a GREAT Day!!!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!
For the first time in almost 2 weeks Brylee has NOT RAN A FEVER!!!!!!! Hallelujah!!!!!
She ate good today
She did not nap today
She was in a pretty good mood most of the day
She went on several wagon rides, trips to the cafeteria, a walk outside, went to make a valentine wreath in the art room and even enjoyed a game or two of uno!
I think we have reached the point that she is officially ready to get out of the hospital! I know that is a good sign!

Now lets just hope and pray that TOMORROW is the day they come in and say YOU CAN GO HOME!!!!!!

- we have been fever free for 24 hours and we can poop, pee, and keep our food down!!!!!

- the only hang up we had today is that we barfed our oral antibiotic up this morning... so they are changing that... we have not gotten our new one yet... i certainly hope that is not a hang up!!!! I also hope that doesn't mean we have to go home on a PICC line!!!!

SO please please please PRAY that we get to go HOME tomorrow!!!!! I don't know that i have ever wanted anything as bad as I want to go home!!!! Tomorrow would be fan-frinking-tastic but if we have to wait until Friday I might can handle it... but I don't think I can handle the weekend!!! Please Please Please Pray!!!!! Thank you so much for all your prayers!!!! We have felt them and appreciate them so much!!!! All our Love!!! Praying for Brylee!!!!

January 31, 2012 --- Tuesday Update on Brylee...

2012-01-31T19:57:00.003-06:00

Well today brought some of the very best news I have heard since we checked into this joint on Friday, Janurary 20th!!!! He said we might get to go home tomorrow (Wednesday)! What?!? Really?!?! They love throwing me some curve balls... I never saw that one coming!!!! However, he did say we needed to be "high" fever free before we went and we ran a fever of 102 this morning... so I don't think tomorrow is going to be our day but at least they are talking about it... i feel like it is in the near future! I am hoping we make our Friday goal! He also said that her body was doing really well with the new antibiotics and at this time it is looking like we will NOT have to go home on the PICC line.... SHUT UP!!!! That is also some really great news!!!! She will just take oral antibiotics twice a day! I think that is about all the news for today! Her crankiness is getting less and less each day! She look a real bath today and washed her hair... she did not really enjoy it like i thought she would but i know she felt better being all good and clean! She ate three real people meals today and her body is tolerating all types of food. Now of course the amount she eats is greatly reduced but she is eating. For example: she ate 4 strawberries for breakfast, 1/4 of a cheeseburger for lunch, and a 1/8 of a pizza slice... with a few snacks in between! HUGE PRAYER REQUEST: that this STINKIN' FEVER will GO AWAY!!!!!!!!!! I will say as eager as I am to see this fever go away... I am equally as eager to see God's plan! I am truly amazed at HIS plan... we think we are having surgery and HIS plan is NO, we think we will go home with a PICC line and HIS plan is NO, I don't know the day we will go home but HE does and what a MIGHTY PLAN it will be! One last selfish prayer request: The doctor said she is going to be able to return to school soon after we get home (like if we go home this week she can go on Monday). To say that I AM A NERVOUS WRECK about that is an UNDERSTATEMENT!!!! He keeps telling me she will be fine... I am concerned about sending her to the germ box and he said there is more germs in this hospital than there is at school, I am worried that she will get sick and he assures me she is 10 feet tall and bullet proof on all these antibiotics, I am worried about someone doing something to here to cause her appendix to rupture he assures me there is nothing anyone could do to cause that! I am concerned about her strength and he says do a few half days them send her full days... i think we need to go a few hours, then half days, then full days in like next August! Ha! I have a feeling sending her to school after all this is going to be worst than the first day of kindergarten!!! Please pray for the mommy in me that is not ready to release me baby back to the world... I have seen her at her sickest and it is going to be harder on me that it is on her to go back! I know she will be fine and more than ready to go back... it will be ME and only ME that is not ready! Thanks again for all your prayers!!! All our love!!! Praying for Brylee!!!! PS: well we just barfed... that is probably not going to work in our favor... she barfed up her oral antibiotic right after taking it... i think it was more a gag thing not a sick thing but we will see! Boo Hoo!

January 30, 2012 -- More Monday News...

2012-01-30T21:21:00.004-06:00

I will say the doctor threw me a curve ball this morning when he came in and said surgery was a no go. Certainly, I was glad she did not have to under go surgery but I really thought that was going to be the answer for the fever. I was holding on to a black and white answer... but that was my plan not Gods! :)
She was a little cranky think morning again... that is really no fun! So we decided to get her a wheel chair and wheel her around with hopes to get her out of her funk! We first went to the activity room and made a few cute valentine crafts... she had fun doing that! Then we took her outside for some fresh air but she was cold in her shorts and t-shirt so we did not stay long. But it was nice to get some fresh air and see the sunshine. Then she wanted to go eat lunch in the cafeteria. So we went in there and she ate some chicken and dumplings! After all that, she was a happy little camper and out of her funky cranky mood! I know she is more than ready to get out of this room; being in here for 10 days in no fun!
The doctor came around this afternoon and talked with us. He shared the results of the CT scan and told us she did have 2 abscess... apparently she came in with one but that was the first we heard of that. But neither of them were large enough to drain so they are just treating it with antibiotics. He also told us that none of the blood bacteria cultures grew anything so that was good news.
They changed her antibiotic today hoping this will help with her fever. She is taking one by mouth and one through her PICC line too. She seems to be tolerating both of them well. She ran a low grade fever two times today... but just up to 100... that is leaps and bounds better than 103!!!
I told the dr. when he came around this afternoon I hoped her fever would go away b.c i know that is our ticket out of here... and he said yes that was one of them! I think that eating, pooping, and peeing is the other ones and we can do all that. :)
She has NOT had any morphine in over 24 hours... HOLLAR!!!!! That means that the antibiotic is clearing up that infection b.c she is not in pain!!!!!
Over all it was a good day once we snapped sister out of her funky mood!
Please, Please, Please Pray that we DO NOT run a fever tonight or tomorrow and that the antibiotics do their job!!!! I want her to be totally well and more that ready to come home b.c we certainly don't want to come back but I am not going to lie I am ready to go home and I know she is too!
I would love love love to be home before the weekend! That would be fantastic!!!
Thanks again for praying for us!!!!! We appreciate all of you more than you will ever know! Thanks for checking on us and offering to bring us things! We truly have the best friends and family anyone could ask for! All in God's Plan!!!! Praying for Brylee!!!! (my camera battery is dead so until daddy brings me my charger we want have any picture update and I took lots today on our escape from room 688 adventure! )

Monday morning update on Brylee....

2012-01-30T06:43:00.001-06:00

The doctors just came in and they said no surgery today! I will be honest i have mixed feelings about that! I know the fact that she doesn't have to go through surgery is a good thing but i feel like if they were draining it we would have an "answer". I feel like things are still gray instead of black and white! They said there was a little fluid collection but I guess they are not planning on treating it by draining it! I am not sure if that means we do or don't have an abscess... I forgot to ask that question I think bc I was just sure they were coming in to tell us she would be having surgery! They are just going to watch her fever and I told him about her spiking a fever after she gets her antibiotic and he said "really, well we can change her antibiotic"! So I guess we will see if that is the order he writes or not and if that helps it or not!

Good news is she can go back to eating and drinking and is no longer NPO!

Thanks for your prayers! All in His timing!!!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

January 29, 2012 -- Sunday Update on Brylee...

2012-01-29T20:22:00.006-06:00

Saturday night was not the best night we have had here... we were up a good bit during the night fighting a fever, going to the bathroom, and taking meds... i am having flashbacks of having a newborn baby at home where your night is deemed good or bad according to how many hours of sleep you get a night!

Miss brylee woke up on the wrong side of the bed... she was ill and cranky this morning... not that she doesn't have a reason to be ill and cranky but that doesn't help things get any better! Then she finally got settled and went back to sleep and they came in and woke her up to have her CT scan done and she was NOT happy! She pretty much cried on and off the whole time before, during, and after the test! It was pitiful. She finally snapped out of it around lunch time and she had fun painting, coloring and doing sticker art with GoGo and KK.

She still ran a fever off and on today and based on our observations and talking with the nurses we have decided she spikes a fever about 30 minutes to an hour after she gets her antibiotic so we are going to head off the fever and give her Motrin before she gets her antibiotic at midnight hopefully that will help.

cousin katie and zac came to see brylee after they went to the circus

We did have some improvements today:

all her labs that they took blood for last night came back good
she is no longer hooked up to her PICC "food" tubes.. YEAH!!!!! She no longer has the big bag of "gatorade" or the little bag of "milk" hooked up to her... i told her she was footloose and fancy free... she can go to the bathroom without dragging a pole! She still has the PICC line in and will until after surgery but she is only hooked up to it every 8 hrs when she gets her antibiotics.
She got to eat FOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!! She ate chicken noodle soup... i only gave her on noodle b.c i was afraid she would get sick so she ate the broth and a few bites of jello... she is not a big jello fan even when she is well!

Monday morning is really a big day for Brylee some decisions concerning her condition and where we will go from here will be made Monday morning! More than likely, she will be facing an OR procedure (surgery) on Monday. They did the CT Scan today and the doctor will share the results in the morning... the nurse feels like he will tell us that they are going to go in and drain the abscess. But we will have to see! She could not officially tell us the dr will have to! She will be NPO (no food or drinks) after midnight just in case they do surgery tomorrow. The surgery will be mid morning to lunch time... the schedule is done based on age so the babies go first so she is about the middle of the age bracket.

Prayer Request:

pray we have a good night with some long stretches of sleep
pray that her fever will go away and stay away or at least the motrin before the antibiotic will help keep it down
pray that the doctor makes the best decision based on Brylee's condition
pray that if she does have surgery tomorrow that it will be successful and without complications
pray that her body continues to tolerate the food she eats and she doesn't get sick

Thank you so much for your prayers! We greatly appreciate it! We are holding on tight that the Great Physician will continue to heal our baby girl! All our love! Praying for Brylee!!!

January 28, 2012 -- Saturday Update on Brylee

2012-01-28T20:14:00.003-06:00

Day by day we continue to get better!

Brylee got to DRINK LIQUIDS today... PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!!! I am sure that was the best gatorade she has ever had!!!!
She got up and sat in a chair for about an hour and colored and made a pot holder!

{brylee and maddie coloring}
She continues to walk the hall and wanted to walk more but I made her turn around and come back!
She is still pooping and peeing good!
She kept all her liquids down today.... YEA! for no throwing up!
She ate another Popsicle today too!
She is going longer and longer in between morphine dosages... she went from 2:45am until 6:00pm without any morphine
She is getting more and more alert each day and staying awake longer each day
Several of her friends came to visit her today and she was glad to see them!

sweet friends... jill and coleigh

Please continue to pray for:

Pray for her fever... she is still starting the day with a fever and ending the day with a fever. I wish Mr. Fever would go away and NEVER NEVER come back!!!
Today they said if she continued to run a fever we would have another CT Scan Sunday and take a look inside to see how things are!
The dr. mentioned that there might be an abscess on her appendix and that could be what is causing the fever... if she does then they will access where the abscess is and if it is close and they can get to it they will go in and drain it... that would be an OR procedure but if they can't get to it without complications then they will continue to treat it with antibiotics. Please pray!
They just took blood from her to test it to see if her blood has a bacteria in it to see if that is causing the fever. There is a possibility that the PICC is in infected and if that is the case they will take it out and the fever and infection will go away (now i am not really sure how they will administer her meds if that is the case) or her blood could have bacteria in it and they would just change her antibiotics and that should cure the infection and the fever should go away!
So pray that they figure out why my baby is running a fever and fix the issue!
There was also talk of REAL FOOD on Sunday... OMG!!!! She will be so excited!!!! Please pray that her body will tolerate the food and she will not begin to throw up again when she has it!
I am sure she will go NPO in the morning before they do the CT Scan and then if they have to do surgery to drain the abscess on Monday I am sure they will not let her have food and she will probably be NPO until after the surgery!

Thank you so much for all your prayers. I know God is hearing them because HE has answered so many of them already! I can NOT thank you enough for praying for my baby girl!

All of love!!! Praying for Brylee!!!

January 27, 2012 -- Friday Update and Pictures....

2012-01-27T21:27:00.003-06:00

TGIF... Oh the difference a week came make!!!

Today has been another day with improvements and for that I am thankful!

She got to have ice chips and POPSICLES!!!!! She was so excited about that!!
She has not thrown up today... she kept all her Popsicles, meds, and ice chips down... PRAISE THE LORD!!!!
She was in a great mood and enjoyed playing on the computer, getting her nails painted, reading a book on the kindle, and visiting with friends and family!
She was up from about 8:00am to 5:00pm
She only had morphine twice today... which is great... the stretches between each dosage is getting longer and longer.
I actually left the hospital today for about an hour... Katy came to pick me up and take me to lunch... it was nice to get out... felt weird to wear shoes for the first time in a week... but of course brylee called me after about an hour and wanted to know what was taking me so long! :) Sweet baby doesn't want mommy to be gone very long... and that is ok... because I don't want to be gone long!

Here are a few pictures from the today... As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words...

today eating her first bite of food in about 3 days...

a green Popsicle...today her and kk were playing and they decided to tie all her balloons to each of her stuffed animals and put them in her bed... i said she looked like the movie up... like she was trying to get the balloons to lift her on out of the hospital...sweet avery came to visit...I am so thankful my sweet baby girl is feeling better... we are still have some heeling today but she is getting better every day! It is hard to believe we have been here a week. Honestly it has gone by fast! I hope the next week goes by fast too!

Please continue to pray for Brylee:

pray that her fever goes away and stays away... we are still fighting a fever anywhere from 100-103 a few times a day... usually first thing in the morning and in the evening
pray that she will not try and over do it... i know she feels better but she trys to be too active during the day and then she hits a wall and feels bad... i wish she would do a little and then rest a little... but they say that is the nature of the kids... that is why they heal so fast and they are so resilient.
pray that she continues to keep down her "food"
pray that she gets to have liquids soon.... she has a cute "tervis type" cup that she is DYING to drink out of... i hope she gets too soon!
pray that she continues to improve and that we don't have any set backs
pray that we get to go home when she is good and healed and ready!
pray for continued comfort and that we continue to get rest at night

To God be the Glory... my sweet girl is getting better!

All of our love and thanks for the prayers...

Keep them coming!!!

Praying for Brylee!

January 26, 2012 Thursday Update on Brylee...

2012-01-26T20:55:00.004-06:00

As we turn in for the night; we are praising the Father for answered prayers! We had another day with improvements being made in Brylee's condition. We are certainly not out of the woods just yet but we will celebrate the small victories.

she got the tube out of her nose today... HUGE!! HUGE!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!
she woke up in the best little mood... ready to conquer the day
she walked down the hall to get weighted this morning... poor baby has already lost 5 pounds ;(
she has continued to walk to the bathroom and constantly using it... she is pooping and peeing (sorry TMI) but those are two qualifications for going home!
she was awake most of the day from about 5:00am until about 2:00pm... then she took about an 2 hour nap and was up for about another 2 hours this evening... we are glad she is feeling better and being awake and alert more often!
she was eager to "play" with things today... she played the iPad and used lots of her art stuff that all of our sweet friends and family have brought her!
she is talking again... that kind of goes along with getting the tube out
her white blood cells and CRP levels are down from Tuesday
her blood cells are replenishing themselves

she got her hair washed today... check out this contraption they used to wash her hair! We are so thankful for all these wonderful prayers God has answered and how He continues to heel our sweet baby! Please continue to pray for her... we still have a ways to go!

pray that her fever will stay down... she has been keeping a fever on and off since last night
pray that she will not throw up anymore... so they will not have to put the tube back in her nose... she threw up twice today... we do not want her to start throwing up again
pray that they will allow her to drink liquids again or at least have ice chips again... when they took the tube out she went to back to NPO :(
pray for restful nights and renewed energy every morning for us and for her
pray that her appendix will not abscess

We are so thankful for answered prayers, our baby girl who is starting to feel better, and some of the most amazing friends and family anyone could ask for... all of you who have came to visit us help the day go by fast, all the food you have brought us has been so yummy and thoughtful, all the presents, cards, balloons, and snacks you have so graciously sent us or brought us... you all simply DO NOT know how much that means to us! I go to sleep each night in awe of how thoughtful some of our friends and family have been!

Most of all I thank you for your prayers! I know my baby girl is being prayed for by so many people. Those of you who have added her to your church or bible study prayer list we thank you! The more people we have praying the better! Keep up the praying!

Praying for Brylee!!!!

January 25, 2012 -- Wednesday Update on Brylee...

2012-01-25T22:38:00.008-06:00

Happy Hump Day! We definitely made it over some humps today and for that I am so thankful for! Today was a day full of improvements and we (I) needed that... I needed my baby girl to show me signs that she is getting better! Our improvements today were:

getting up and walking to the bathroom several times;
she was able to have 30 ice chips and you can bet we were counting and picked the biggest ones :);
she walked down the hall again today and it was actually her idea;
she talked a little bit today;
she enjoyed her visitors.

{when brylee's real life baby doll brooke...

came to visit it brought a smile to her face}

We did have a few sets backs today too:

she still has the tube in her nose
she ran a 103 fever this afternoon but it was down the last time they checked it.Please continue to pray for Brylee! Please pray that she will get the tube out of her nose soon (like tomorrow); pray that her fever continues to stay down; pray that the meds continue to work and that she continues to go to the bathroom on a regular schedule, pray that when the tube comes out and they let her have liquids again that she is able to keep those down and we don't start throwing up again; pray that her appendix doesn't abscess and please pray for continued healing and strength for all of us!

Tuesady night I was at the foot of Christ mad, sad, and just plain exhausted... I am so glad He is ok with that. I know He may not change the situation in my timing and that is ok but He is walking through this with us and oh what a story we will have when we get to the other side! All for His Glory! He is my strength and I am holding on tight! Thank you so much for all your prayers! Keep them coming! Praying for Brylee!!!

January 24, 2012 --- Keeping it Real....

2012-01-24T22:23:00.005-06:00

Today has not been the very best day! I know that there will be ups and downs but today has certainly been the lowest day we have had since we have been here.
I have been trying to be very positive and optimistic about what I say on this whole situation and Brylee's condition on the blog. I guess I am just trying to make the best of it and looking at it in my glass half full eyes.
This whole situation SUCKS! My baby girl one of the most important people in my life... is sick... very sick! She has been put through more pain and treatment this week than I have had in my 33 years of life. She has not had a bite of food in her mouth in almost a week. She has not had anything to drink since 10:00 am today! NOTHING!!!!! Not even an ice chip! She has about 5 different tubes hooked up to her poor little hand. She has an IV in one hand, a PICC line in her arm which is a tube that runs inside her arm toward her heart, and she has a tube up her nose that goes into her stomach that is sucking out all this nasty infection that is inside her stomach and dumping it into a canister. It looks like nasty muddy water! She will not be able to have anything to drink until the tube in her nose to her stomach is removed. She want even talk because her throat hurts from throwing up all this nasty stuff about 4 times a day and because her tube runs up her nose, down her throat and into her stomach and she has a big piece of tape stuck to her face to hold it in place. Her tummy hurts but yet she continues to push through the pain and get out of bed and walk to the bathroom. It is rough!
I don't know when we are going to get to go home! Best case scenario is next Monday! I would love to say I believed that was going to be the magic day but that might be wishful thinking! I want my baby to feel better and be well before we even head out of these doors. She is absolutely the most pitiful thing I have ever seen... it is not fair no one should have to go through this especially a child! She just lays in bed dosing in and out of sleep and moans every few hours. This whole thing STINKS!!!!!
Everyone ask me how I am doing and I try and stay positive... if for no one else but for Brylee... I am doing as good as anyone else would be if their child was laying in a hospital bed in the condition my child is! She doesn't want me to leave her side and honestly that is fine I don't want to leave it... she is my main focus at this time! Richard is doing about as well as any daddy would be doing if their one and only baby girl was laying in a hospital bed hurting and being poked and prodded like Brylee is and yet he is to be the strong parent and can't stay with her all the time! He comes for short visits and then goes home with Jackson he is trying to keep his little world as normal as possible. He left with tears in his eyes tonight. I know it is hard for him to see her like this and he want see her until Thursday after school... b.c he has to be the strong daddy for both babies and a mommy! Life is just hard!
Here are some real pictures... I try and post the best ones but really that is not our days... this is what I see most of the day!!!
a clown picture... and no she is not smiling or talking to them... but i know she enjoyed them!
this is what she looks like....and here is the machine that has about 5 wires hooked to her... this is her food... doesn't it look yummy! There you have it.... life as we know it in room 688 at children's hospital! Please continue to pray for my precious baby girl!!! Here is how you can pray.... - pray that the antibiotics are working and healing her little body - pray that her CRP level goes down - pray that the tube in her nose sucks out all the "junk" in her stomach - pray that she gets that tube out tomorrow so she can have something to drink - pray that her appendix doesn't abscess - pray that she will be pain free soon - pray for our family as we are all apart yet trying to stay strong for each other I really do feel good about her progress. We are seeing improvements daily! She is healing but this is not going to be a short road... we have a long way to go! I am so thankful she is resting peacefully and so thankful for good moments each day even if it is only 15 or 20 minutes a day!

**I know our God is Big! He can and will do a mighty work in my baby girls life! He is the GREAT Physician!!!! Thank you Lord for all you have done and will do to heal my precious baby! Will you pray for my baby girl???

Say a prayer...

2012-01-24T10:47:00.003-06:00

Her labs came back and her white blood cell count was better but her CRP level is high (I am not really sure what that is) basically her body is fighting the infection! Her intestines are a little sluggish and things are just not getting pulled out of her stomach as quickly as they would like! So they have put a tube in her nose to suck all that stuff out of her stomach! This will help her not throw up as much! My poor baby is such a trooper she only whined one time! ;( I have figured out that this is like riding a roller coaster! One minute we are great and the next we are "not"! Just pray for my baby! - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Tuesday Update on Brylee

2012-01-24T08:31:00.002-06:00

Good Morning! The drs. came around this morning and slowly but surely I am learning all this medical lingo. I am learning that everyone is called a "doctor" whether they are a med student, resident, a fellow (they make a little bit of money) and then the attending (i think those are the ones that make the big bucks)... but they are all "DRS"! HA! :) We had some xrays taken this morning and some bloodwork done. I was glad to hear we were getting these things done since we have not had any done since we were in the ER! I hope and pray we hear that meds are doing what they should be. I am pretty sure we will since I can already tell she is feeling so much better! We had a good night and morning. Every day my baby is getting better and better! I am so thankful for answered prayers! Thank you all so much for praying for Brylee! We appreciate it so much! Thank you so much for all the calls, prayers, text, emails, cards, and gifts! We feel so very loved and blessed in so many way! If you have no seen the picture post from last night take a look. You can see my baby's smiling face! She loved the clowns are already asking when they are coming back! I will keep you updated as I know more! All our love! Praying for Brylee!

January 23, 2012 Monday Pictures...

2012-01-23T20:52:00.004-06:00

Today was a really good day! We had lots of first today and we are making baby steps!

This morning Brylee perked up and talked to us in complete sentences for about 30 minutes... which was so much better than the head nods and shakes or thumbs up which is what we having been getting. Then she ask to see some of her prizes that all our sweet friends and family have brought her. She even wrote her name and drew a picture on her paper and dry erase board. That was a nice surprise! Her IV is in her right arm and she is right handed so she had to write with her left hand which made it a little bit hard but she still enjoyed it!The nurses have been trying to talk her into getting up and walking the halls but she has not been interested... she normally walks to the bathroom about 2 or 3 times a day and that is it. So today they told her if she walked up the hall and back they would reward her with a special treat! And she did it!!! Such a brave little girl... I know she looks miserable in the picture b.c she is still in pain when she walks but she was such a trooper! As we were walking out the door Cousin Olivia and Uncle Donnie were there and she got to walk the halls and "talk" with Olivia!

And look at her reward she got...a Popsicle... this is the first "food item" she has had in 5 days!!!

Big Deal!!!!

Our last surprise of the day as a visit from the clowns... they were so sweet and funny. She enjoyed them so much! They gave her some fish stickers to put on her "aquarium" aka IV bag, some boo boo stickers and a pillow case. So sweet! And most of all just brought a smile on my baby's face! They will come visit daily and she is already talking about them coming tomorrow!

Brylee is making progress and each day gets better and better. I am loving these little 15 to 30 minute times when she is herself... but because she is so week and on so many meds it wears her out to do the least little things and then she sleeps the rest of the time.

I am rejoicing tonight in the small things and thanking God for answered prayers... my baby girl is getting better and that I am so grateful for!

Keep praying for her... God is hearing our prayers... He is the Great Physician!!!!

Monday Update

2012-01-23T08:27:00.001-06:00

The doctors came in this morning and the plan of action remains the same!

She will be getting a PIC line most likely today which is basically an iv inside her arm as opposed on the outside!

We are seeing small improvements each day! Her fever is under control so that is good news that the antibiotic is working!

She has been throwing up a few times a day which is the most pitiful thing... I pray that stops soon! Bless her heart it is no fun! They give her meds for nausea and that usually knocks her out!

She is also still on the morphine but is making it longer between times she needs it. Yesterday she made it 6 hours in between dosages! Which is good news because that also mean the antibiotic is doing its job to heal the appendix!

She pretty much sleeps 23 of the 24 hours.... She wakes up a few minutes here and there but that is it!

Yesterday when she was all perky brylee and I posted the picture of her smiling was the best 30 minutes we have had since Wednesday! I hope and pray we get one of those everyday! Her good time was right after church let out yesterday... We know it was all those people praying for Brylee!

Her tummy is pretty swollen and hopefully that will start to subside soon. They said walking would help that but sister wants no part of that! Walking to the bathroom two times a day is about all she will do! ;-)

We spent a little time in the hall last night (on code T) due to the storms so sleep for daddy and I was not that great but thankfully brylee slept right through it!

I think that is about it! She is such a little trooper! She has been so brave and has not cried one time! That is more than her mommy can say! ;-) Apparently she has a high pain tolerance... I never would have thought that from my little drama queen but all the nurses brag about it!

We are just continuing to pray she shows improvement daily and that her meds do the job and that her little body will be healed soon!

Thank you again for all your prayers, text, fb messages, calls, and visits! I can not tell you how much all of your concern for our baby girl means to us!

We love you all dearly!

Praying for Brylee!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

January 22, 2012 Update on Brylee...

2012-01-22T11:51:00.003-06:00

God is SO Good!!! We have a smile on our face and are even talking in sentences!!! Thank you Lord for answered prayers!!!! We are rejoicing in the small things this morning! - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sunday Update on Brylee

2012-01-22T08:57:00.003-06:00

Good Sunday Morning! When the doctor came in this morning I all but tackled him and duct taped him to the chair and pelted him with my list of question I had written down! :-) Brylee is really about the same this morning. They have her comfortable by giving her tylenol, Motrin, and morphine. She actually made it five hrs 2 times yesterday between the morphine which is great! She has begun having some nausea so they are giving her meds for that too! Due to all the meds, she pretty much sleeps on and off all day! Poor baby! She spikes a fever throughout the day... Yesterday it got as high as 103 but they got that under control and she was fever free for about 12 to 18 hrs yesterday but she is back running a fever this morning of 101. So hopefully we can get that under control again today! Since we are on the weekend we have "second string" doctors coming in! So with that said we are still on the same plan as yesterday. The nurse we had last night was fantastic! He gave us lots of answers and told us what he thought the next few days and weeks looked like for us! He told us how normal this is... Seriously?!? They have had about 50 kids since January in here with appendicitis and about half of them are perforated like Brylee's! He said she is right "on track" with how this all goes down so that made me feel better! We will be here on the antibiotic iv until the infection has cleared up enough to where she is pain free. She will also needs to be able to eat, pee and poop (yes that is the exact words the dr. used :)) Once all those things are done then we can go home! **** if I had to pick my number 1 prayer request that is what I would ask all of you to pray for!**** This is what takes around 7 to 10 days! We are also looking at getting a picc line in soon; which is how she will "eat"! and we will go home with that! I love all things that come from their mouth that indicate home and pain free! I think that is about it! Pray that my baby girls will become pain free off her meds, that the antibiotics will clear up her infection, and that she will be responsive to the picc line and begin to eat and use the bathroom regularly! I simply CAN NOT thank each of you enough! Your prayers are all we need!!! We have the absolute best church family, community, family and friends anyone could ask for! Thank you so much for everything you have done for us! We appreciate it more than you know! Praying for Brylee!!!! (sorry if these post are all over the place I am writing them on phone) - Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

January 21, 2012 The Story of Brylee...

2012-01-21T08:54:00.006-06:00

Greeting from Children's Hospital! This is not exactly how we had planned on spending our weekend but we are thankful our baby girl is getting the care she needs!
Wednesday afternoon Brylee came home from school complaining of her stomach hurting! But she said it was not bad enough to miss church. She continued to complain during the middle of the night and she began to vomit.
On Thursday we went to see her ped. She was not running a fever! They checked her stomach and several labs were ran; her white blood count was only up to 17 and 15 is normal. Her strep was negative. Her sinus xray showed some cloudiness so she was diagnosed with a sinus infection. She still complained if her stomach hurting but she was sleeping lots. I have total faith in my ped and honestly did not feel it was anything more than a sinus infection and that the mucus drainage was making her feel sick! She was able to get on and off the table at the drs. office and was walking fine!
She stayed home Friday and continued to complain of her stomach hurting. Then she began to run a fever! My children NEVER run a fever!!! When they do i know they are bad sick!!! She was having difficulty walking and would not eat at all! I started suspecting that we may be dealing with appendicitis and after talking with the ped again we decided to take her to Children's to see what was going on and why a sinus infection was making her stomach hurt this bad!
After a few hours in the ER and after running more labs; finding that her white blood count was up to 22 and that her fever had not and was not breaking with meds they ordered her to have a CT scan! At this time they also gave her some morphine for the pain... Boy did that lighten the mood and bring on some laughs!
Low and behold the CT scan showed that she had appendicitis! So they came in and said we will be taking it out! Then a few minutes later they came back in and said well it is perforated (aka ruptured) and we will not be doing surgery tonight!
Instead you will be going upstairs and staying a while! The doctor said we would probably be here 7 to 10 days and could possibly be here 6 weeks! Let's hope and pray that is not the case! This is when I lost it and still have a hard time typing it now without tearing up! I think the hard part for me is I know how long 7 to 10 days is in a hospital and she really doesn't! But we are just taking it one day at a time and praying she gets well soon!
She is on iv antibiotics and morphine every 3 hrs for pain! The overall goal is for the antibiotics to heal the perforated appendix enough so that they can then remove it! But they can not do surgery at this time b/c of the perforation!
At this time (i think) We are looking at staying here on iv antibiotics, then going home on antibiotics, and then having surgery! But I have found out that you don't get a whole lot of info, info changes quickly, and The dr was in here this morning for about 37 secs! She can't have any food or drinks; however the dr did say she could have sprite!!! That was music to her little ears! Since her last real meal was wed night and she has only had ice chips since then sprite was a BIG deal!
I think that is pretty much it! I will keep this updated with what is going on!
I can not thank you all enough for the emails, calls, text, Facebook messages and most of all Prayers!!!! We greatly appreciate it!!! You all are so sweet to offer to help and bring things and at this time we are good... We don't need one thing except your PRAYERS!
It is no fun for your baby girl to be in pain and have to go through all this! I know it could have been so much worse and I am so thankful we have a wonderful hospital like children's to take good care of her! And most of all I am thankful for the Great Physician.... HE is taking good care of my baby!

Brylee's sweet friend Mattie came to visit her!

Praying for Brylee!

January 20, 2012

2012-01-20T15:01:00.000-06:00

Fraction Pizza School Project...

(what we thought would be a great picture of the day....

little did we know!)

Brylee at Children's ER...

the day our lives changed forever...

we were diagnosed with perforated appendicitis

and were sent upstairs to room 688