Day 4 update on Josh Landreth

I was able to make it up to the hospital for a few hours this morning while the boys were at school.  I was able to see Josh for about 15 minutes before they took him back for more tests.  He was in a LOT of pain because they were unable to give him any pain medicine prior to the testing.  It was pretty hard to see him like that.  A guy normally so full of energy laying there literally unable to move his body. They were able to get him to walk a little bit today, but with so much pain and no energy to do anything, it had to be hard on him.
 
They took him up to do a dye test this morning so they can check on his bladder because they think there might be a problem there too.  After his dye test they were going to take him up to do his dialysis which usually lasts 3-4 hours.  After that they were going to be doing a cat scan on him to check his abdomen because he had been having pain there.  They want to look at his appendix I think.  They did an ultrasound yesterday evening on him and found that his gallbladder had a lot of junk in it, so they are also going to get a consult today from a surgeon to see if that need to be taken out.  The doctor's reassured him that he will get better, but it is going to take a lot of time.  Once he gets to go home (don't know about that yet), he will get to be set up to do portable dialysis.  They are also pretty confident that his kidneys will begin working again, but again, that will take more time.

The doctor they talked to yesterday told them that if anyone was to look at the numbers on his chart right now, they would be frightened, but the encouraging news is that even though Josh is in a lot of pain right now, his progress with getting his enzyme levels back down has been really good.  The doctor said that what usually takes a normal person to recover from in 3-4 months has taken Josh 48 hours, so we are so thankful for that.  The doctors are also certain that what is going on with Josh's body has everything to do with the dehydration that occurred from the marathon which then caused his enzyme levels to skyrocket and start attacking his muscles and organs because the kidneys could not filter that amount.  A normal level of enzymes in the body is 900.  Josh's was 72,000 when he went into the hospital.  Yesterday that level had gone down to 47,000 and today they were at 27,000.  We are so thankful for this progress.  The doctors are still concerned about his kidneys and the lack of output from them given the decrease in the enzymes, but it will just take time.

Courtney was doing good today.  So proud of the strong woman, wife, and mother that she is.  She and Josh are so thankful for the outpouring of love and concern from all of you.  Josh has a long road ahead of him, but we have faith that he will get through this.

We are going out of town this weekend, but I will try to keep everyone updated on here as soon as we hear back from the tests and what the surgeon has to say about removing his gallbladder.

I know I have said it before, but it bears repeating.....Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, for all the support, prayers, love, snacks, etc. that have been sent their way.  We appreciate everything!

"Do no be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7


"We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." Romans 5:3-5

Update on Josh (bro-in-law)

Josh made it through dialysis just fine yesterday and it helped him feel better some.  He is still very sore and weak though.  My mom just called me and said that the doctor's told him this morning that he would have to do dialysis for several weeks now and not just the few days like we had hoped.  They are also now worried about his liver and gallbladder, so they are going to do an ultrasound today to check on those two things.  Please keep praying hard.  We know there is power in prayer and God can make his kidneys start working again!  Our family appreciates your thoughts, prayers and kind words.  It really means so much to us and I know it helps Courtney and Josh.  Please pray for his healing, strength and spirits to be lifted.  Thank you!

Prayer Request

My brother-in-law, Josh (Courtney's husband), ran in the Hogeye Marathon on Sunday.  Yesterday morning he woke up really sick and throwing up, so my sister took him to the hospital and they admitted him.  He had severe dehydration which caused his body to produce an "off the chart" amount of enzymes that started attacking the muscles in his body.  His kidneys also quit functioning properly which caused even more concern.  He is currently in ICU and had to start on dialysis this morning.  He will have to do dialysis twice a day until he regains proper kidney function.  The doctors have said that he will be in the hospital for at least a week, possibly longer.

Our family would appreciate your prayers as Josh goes through this difficult journey right now.  We know that God is his ultimate healer and will use the doctors and nurses to do what's best for Josh.  Please also keep my sister Courtney, my nephew Hudson and their unborn little boy in your prayers during this difficult time.
We love you Josh and can't wait for you to feel better and come home!

Carter's 2nd Birthday Party

Today we celebrated Carter's 2nd birthday with our family and friends.  I've had so much fun getting ready for Carter's Toy Story themed big day, and I think he really had a great day!  It was sooo beautiful and 80 degrees outside, so we decided to grill out and let the kids play in the backyard.  It worked out great, and we all had a great time visiting and celebrating with Carter.  Thanks to everyone who came!  You made Carter's day so special!

Happy Birthday little guy!

This is a shirt I made for him with my electronic cutter.  I made it to look like the Toy Story "2".

How old are you Carter?  He holds up his 2 index fingers and says, "Two!" :-)

I decided to make a cake for his birthday this year.  It was quite an undertaking, but it turned out pretty good.  I made the 1st tier to look like the pattern on Woody's shirt and the 2nd tier was the background of clouds from the movie cover.

Friends and family hanging out in the backyard.

 So, I thought it would be fun to put the boys' roller coaster that my parents got them for Christmas in the backyard for the kiddos to play on.  With 10 kids coming, I decided I better have my sis and mom bring theirs as well.  It worked out great having 3 of them back there so everyone's turn came more quickly.  They were quite the hit!

Lily

Will

Audrie & Annie

Scout

 I tried to incorporate as much of the Toy Story theme as I could into the food.

Here is the banner I made for Carter with my Silhouette cutter.  I made some circles to match the pattern on Woody's shirt, the green ones for Buzz's space suit and the blue with white clouds like the movie background.

 The kiddos enjoying their food

Then it was time for cake!  Carter was so excited to see everyone singing to him.  You could really see him just soaking it all in so sweetly.  I just love him!

He blew out his candles so well!  With all the birthday parties we've been going to over the past couple of months, he's had a lot of time to watch and learn.

 He didn't waste any time digging in!  Yep, this is how he rolls. :-)

 He was blessed with some really great gifts!  He had so much fun opening it all.

Uncle Joey wasn't able to be here, but he got Carter this awesome little backpack from Pottery Barn.  He pretty much wore it all night!

He also loved his new water guns from BJ and Wendy.  He played with Collin shooting these (without water) all night.  We all got such a kick out of him falling over and playing like he was hurt every time he got shot.  He is quite the little actor and so dramatic!  

 Mimi and Papa got him this suitcase personalized with his name from Pottery Barn as well to match his new backpack!  He's all ready to go somewhere now!

BJ, Josh and Walter

Papa and Mimi

Mommy and Daddy with the birthday boy

Love my little family!

He had to end the night shaving with his new shaving kit we got him.

Funny Friday!

Happy Friday!  Busy day for me today.  I don't really have too much to share this week.  Guess I've been so busy getting ready for a certain little guy's birthday party that I haven't been good at paying attention or writing all my funnies down this week, but here's a few....

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We went to the park one night this week and there was a little boy a few months younger than Carter there.  Carter was fascinated with him and kept walking around following him.  He would then bend down like he was talking to a little baby and say, "Hey baby!"  It was so funny because he wasn't that much smaller than Carter, but he thought he was so much bigger than him.  All we could hear all night was Carter yelling, "Hey Baby!" "Come hear baby!"

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Earlier this week I had to take the boys with me to Hobby Lobby.  We parked next to this big truck and there was a lady sitting inside.  She had some really long and big hair.  I'm talkin' like late 80's/early 90's big hairspray hair.  Anyways, I didn't even notice her, but Collin sure did.  Luckily we were still sitting in the car when he said it, but he blurts out, "Does that guy think he's a rock star or something??!"

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Here are some pics too...

Carter was acting like a ghost

Frustrated.....

Every night after bath Carter has gotten into a funny habit of wanting to be held like a baby.  It's hilarious because as soon as he gets out of the bath he yells, "I cold!" "Hold baby."  He then goes in and has to be held like a baby by Josh.  He just cracks us up.

Happy Friday!  Hopefully after all the birthday fun tomorrow, I will have time to post pics of Carter's Toy Story birthday party.

Happy 2nd Birthday Carter!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARTER!!

Our sweet little Carter is 2 today!  I really can't believe that he is already 2!  Collin was just his age when I was getting ready to give birth to him, so that really makes it hard to believe how fast time flies.  He has had a great day so far, but the 4 of us are celebrating more tonight when daddy gets home.  I am making one of his favorites, spaghetti, and then we are headed off for an evening of fun and craziness at Chuck E. Cheese!  Saturday we will be celebrating with our family and friends here at the house, so I will have more pictures after that.

I still remember his birth day so vividly.  He came really fast and we were all shocked about all the hair he had.  Daddy loved giving him a mohawk from the start.  You have been such a joy to our family and a great little brother for Collin.  I pray that you grow into a great man of God and always live for and love Jesus with your whole heart.  We love you so much and can't wait to see the great things you are going to do!

Love,

Mommy, Daddy & Collin

Funny Friday!

Boy, we had a funny filled week this week! Here you go!

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Collin-"Daddy, you're big, Carter is small and I am meteor." (medium)

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Trusting a 4 year old to keep a secret=not a good idea....

Collin-"Hey Carter, you're going to have a Toy Story birthday party, but I can't tell you what you're getting.....ok....I'll tell you this......it's green and it lights up....."(Collin got him a green light saber)

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Carter spilled milk ALL over the table. As I was trying to explain to him that it was not o.k. to do that, Collin chimes in and says, "Mom, it was just a mistake. You know like when people make mistakes when they say 'Shutup'."

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We got home and I told Lexi to get off the couch. Collin says, "Yeah Lexi honey, you can't be up there. You need to listen to mommy the first time. Even bigger dogs know that!"

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The boys were in the bath acting like they were shooting with their Star Wars guys, so I decided to join in. Collin immediately stops and I say, "Hey, I have a gun too." Collin says, "No you don't, you just get to have makeup!"

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My favorite for the week

The boys and I drove down to Fayetteville to have dinner with Josh because he was going to have to work late. We had a great time at Chick-Fil-A, but as Josh was pulling out onto the 4-lane, he turned into the farthest lane rather than the closest lane. Needless to say, we immediately saw blue lights behind us. Collin was full of questions....of course. We pulled into a parking lot and the boys are being so sweet to the police officer and yelling, "Hi! Hi!" from the backseat. After what seemed like and eternity, the police officer comes back with only a warning for Josh making an "improper turn". Collin's response?.....

"Hey dad, is that guy going to say, 'Sir, have you been drinking tonight?' "

I kid you not. He said it and we couldn't quit laughing. Definitely made the situation better. Apparently there is a commercial on the Star Wars movie we have DVR'd about drinking and driving and Collin remembered that!

Happy Friday everyone!