Happy 18th Birthday, Amy!

18 Things that Describe Amy

1. Third born

2. Enjoys One Stroke Painting

3. Plays piano, harp and flute

4. Is the family chef

5. Reading friends' blogs

6. Likes to make and eat cheesecake

7. Gardening

8. Enjoys schoolwork

9. Story teller and the comedian in the family

10. Likes driving

11. Washing dishes- (Oops how did that one make it in here?!)

12. Making and giving gifts

13. Favorite color is purple

14. Sour candy

15. Loves to shop

16. Knitting

17. Old-fashion movies

18. Jesus Christ is Lord of her life

Our Winter Wonderland

We received about two inches of snow in a short amount of time. It was our first "big" snow of the season!

A sled ride for John Boy by big brother, Daniel

John is doing very well in the recovery process. We are truly amazed. He really wanted to go out in the snow, so we let him with a bodyguard (ie-one of his sisters) for a little while.

First Day at Home

John had no fever this morning and is doing well. He is walking 10 times better today and even was able to roll over on his own. John is happy to be home, as we all are!
We really do appreciate the prayers for continued healing, as John works on getting better at home. Blessings to you!

O Happy Day, Going Home -Day Five

Update: John has had a fever since dinner this evening. The doctors said to call if he developed a fever. Please pray that it will not turn into something serious.

Welcome Home John!

Balloons along the driveway and a bushy smiley face! :)


Aunt Marjorie and Sarah in the trees yesterday, hanging smiley faces they made for John's homecoming

Their almost finished trees

Teamwork in action! :)

With help from a kind neighbor, Mr. Buxton

John with cousins, Luke and Cloe who came to welcome him home

Our little cousin Mark is making strides of his own. He is ten months old now! Mark shows Amy how he can stand.

John Boy with Jennifer and his cake from the Christensens
10:45am- Leaving the hospital on this beautiful Lord's Day! Thank you for all the prayers, notes and kindnesses shown to us!! God bless you all richly!

All dressed and ready to go

Good Morning early bird! :)

Movie leaving the hospital
John slept right through the night and everything went well. We fully expect to be released from the hospital this morning!

Doing Better on Day Four

If John has a good night tonight (no fevers or any relapse), he will probably be released tomorrow morning!!! Praise God John Boy has come this far! We can't wait to get home.

Happy little boy!

4:45pm- John is on another walk. Check below for a new walking movie!

3:10pm-John finished a second little walk around the nurses station.

Welcome to a visit with John Boy!

John and little Jesse the dog, visit with each other

Hanging out together!:)

A Puppy Visit
12:55pm- Eating his lunch in his chair. Didn't make it to the playroom.
12:45pm-John just had his walk around the room with Monica and Denise. A puppy named Jesse came to visit John and laid in bed with him!

12:00pm -Mom and I are giving John Boy a sponge bath in bed.
9:55am-John is getting ready to sit up in bed. They are giving him his pain medication as he doesn't want to move. The more he moves the better he will feel in the long run, even though it is really hard now.
John had a better night although he is still sleeping. His IV and catheter were able to come out. He was complaining his hand was hurting around 4am. The nurse said his hand was hard to the touch and John could do without the IV by taking his meds by mouth.

Moved into Peds on Day Three

John getting ready for bed

Watching "Chip 'n' Dale" for the 3rd time! :)

7:19pm- I have been sitting here by John's bed with the laptop reading him the comments and emails. He looked a lot more cheerful afterwards. Thanks for all the encouraging words!
6:55 pm- He is asking for his pain meds. We want him to walk some steps in his room before going to bed tonight. First we want his pain under control in bed, before trying to get out again though.
5:50 pm- John's dinner just came. He has mac n' cheese and green beans.
4:40pm- John is back in bed after his first walk to the playroom. He was able to see the yellow frog in the fish tank along with the fish on his walk. All the nurses were cheering him on as he walked down the hall. He is definitely in more pain with this surgery than the last one.

In the playroom

Resting after his walk
3:20pm -John is still sleeping. He didn't sleep well last night. Not much news, which is good.
We just were moved into Pediatrics. Now that our little man is in bed, he says he feels better. The last hour or more John was saying off and on, that his back is hurting him. We turned out the lights so hopefully he will sleep now.

ICU on Day Three

1:04- We are getting ready to move to Peds. He says he is hurting a lot.
12:50pm- John is sitting in his chair, eating a few bites. He looks really tired so he'll probably go to bed soon.
12:25pm- John took some steps around his ICU room- not a fun activity for him. He is having muscle spasms. The physician's assistants said to massage his back around the incision and to have him blow bubbles to loosen the congestion.

A glimpse of a smile!
10:05am- John ate some of his eggs, bagel and a few bites of his cereal for breakfast. They moved him into the chair for it. It is still no fun to be moved. He is being brave about the pain.
John had a tough night with fever and pain. The fever left but he still looks flushed. The nurses are keeping an eye on that. Dad is with John now while Mom is resting after taking the night shift.

Pictures on Day 2

The boys watching movies together

John resting after all the hard work of getting in a chair!

Talking to his sisters on the cell phone

5:25pm- John changed sides in bed. He also just got some more pain meds and warm packs for his back. The nurse hopes he will feel good enough to sit up again for dinner.

Dad helping John Boy with his lunch

Here's a movie of John Boy sitting up and enjoying his lunch!

6:00pm- John's nurse came to get him up in the chair for supper. John wants to stay in bed so the nurse and John made a deal- John can stay in bed another half hour, wait for more pain meds and then get up. Agreed. :)

6:30pm- John's in his chair, eating supper. The nurse and John kept their deal. It is still pretty painful to move.

Miss Nicole gave John a sticker chart. Every time he meets a goal he gets a sticker on his chart. When he has enough stickers he wins a prize in the playroom! They are hoping it will help motivate him to walk there. Tomorrow's goal is to take some steps.

10:10pm John is sleeping well now. He had a fever of 100, then it went to 101.4. He is getting Tylenol but pray it doesn't turn into something major. They also changed his antibiotic.

10:25pm- His fever went down to 100.4 and he is still sleeping well.

In ICU -Day 2

The nurse woke John up at midnight to turn him. She asked if he was in any pain and he said no, but as soon as she removed the pillow from behind his back, he was in a lot of pain. Since he was due for pain medication we decided to put the pillow back and wait for the medication to take effect before turning. It was still very painful for him but with the nurse on one side and mom on the other, they were able to work together to get him in position with some fresh hot packs tucked in a pillow case above and below the incision and his back pillow for support. Then he was resting comfortable again. The rest of the night was the same routine. Mom should be on her way to the hotel soon and then she can give me more of an update.
10:00am- John is in a lot more pain today then yesterday (which is to be expected when the pain killers from the operating room wear off). He is still interested in food and wants chicken nuggets as soon as possible! :)
The nurses are going to raise his bed a little at a time in ten minute intervals. They want him in a chair by noon.

12:00pm- John is sleeping a lot this morning. He doesn't want to be touched or moved because of the pain. His nurse has elevating his bed some but he is sleeping through it all.

3:30pm John just got back into bed after being up in a chair for the first time.

Here he is sitting up for the first time. He didn't like being moved at all but was fine after getting in a chair with all his pillows.

In ICU ~Day One

John ate some soup and crackers tonight as he was "starving"

He had a sharp pain once but other than that he says he's fine. He remembers the pain meds made him throw up like crazy last time and doesn't want them. The doctor is trying different medications for pain this time around. John just got his first dose about an hour or two ago. It was the first time he had pain meds since the OR this morning.
John has been holding onto his stuff animal friends during this whole ordeal. Hopefully he will have a good night and sleep well.

Eating ice chips
9:30pm- John's rash, which he had in recovery, came back. He was put back on benadryl and they changed the antibiotic. He felt it was painful to roll back to sleep but Mom said he is sleeping soundly now. He has to be kept flat until 11am tomorrow.

Good News! Out of Surgery ~Day 1

John is in recovery now. We are waiting for a room in ICU.

The surgeon expects John to spend two days in ICU and then another two in a regular room. John already asked when he can leave!

1:50pm-John is still in recovery as they are waiting for a bed in ICU. Dad said he is sleeping mostly.

2:30pm- John was starting to get red and puffy in the face. He was given benadryl through his IV which took effect right away. Now he is even more sleepy, but the swelling and redness has gone away. Still waiting for a bed in Intensive Care.

3:50pm- John is in ICU now!

John and Mom this afternoon

5:30pm ~John has to stay flat on his back for 24 hours. If he sits up he will get a very bad headache. Right now he is interested in eating and going back to the hotel! He is talking some and is a little emotional about different things. We are grateful John is doing this well and there were no complications! God is so good.