Update from Carrie

Hi all (including Europe, Finland, Canada, Australia, Papua New Guinea, and of course the US!),

It's no wonder we are so well taken care of with all the prayer support we're receiving around the globe! God has been so very gracious to us.

So here's the story: Seth was pretty miserably sick over the weekend, with Saturday being the worst, but improving a bit each day from Sunday onward. When I called his pulmonologist on Tuesday to schedule a follow-up, it was just to be sure everything was okay, that the crisis was past, because Seth was acting a LOT better. He was crawling, playing, clapping, laughing, babbling, and deciding sleep was overrated (whereas before it seemed he woke up just long enough to cry and go back to sleep). They wanted to make his appointment for Thursday, but I had another appointment for the babies already scheduled on Thursday, so asked for an appointment yesterday even though it meant I would have to drive twice as far. Thank God for that! Who knows how bad he might have gotten overnight?

He went from having good oxygen saturation at home to poor saturations by the time we reached the doctor's office. The staff started rushing around, called in a nurse to listen to his lungs, she couldn't hear breath sounds on his left side (it was "very quiet"), so she called the doctor out of another patient's consultation, he came in and listened, noted Seth was working harder to breathe and was breathing shallower than normal, sent him for an x-ray, compared the x-ray to his x-rays taken the last time he was in the hospital, identified partial lung collapse and possible pneumonia on the left side (a lot worse than the last time we were admitted), got on the phone with the hospital and got him a room on the Pulmonology floor within half an hour. Whew!

There were absolutely no problems the entire process. The Lord really directed our paths and went ahead of us. And Seth, though tired and hungry, still acted fine. He was definitely more pale and breathing differently, but he didn't act distressed at all, thank God!

The doctor explained to me that Seth, while feeling so much better as he got over the respiratory virus, was falling farther and farther behind in being able to fill his lung with air, hence the collapsing. In addition, his viral infection seems to once again have paved the way for a secondary bacterial infection.

The pulmonologist said this has to stop. Seth can't keep getting one infection on top of another or his lungs won't have the chance to heal and grow. His issues are so interrelated: He needs to learn to take all his nourishment by mouth, but his lung illnesses make him feel weak and crummy, completely disinterested in food. He also vomits when he feels gross, so he can't keep in enough nutrients to grow, so his lungs too aren't able to heal and grow as they should. In order to avoid infections long enough to give Seth the time and growth he needs, we have to stop taking the babies to crowded public areas or any place like the church nursery or Bible Study Fellowship Children's Program (sob!). We also have to re-double our hand washing vigilance at home, especially Isaac when he comes from school.

In response to all your sweet concern, I am actually doing great. I got a good night's sleep with early morning help from sweet Sarah G., I have so many wonderful people stepping up once again to serve at home, and Nanny Sam (I love her, I love her, I love her!) stayed at the hospital all night. She's the one who most needs prayer. Seth didn't sleep well, which of course meant she didn't, and whenever Seth would finally fall asleep someone would come in for some test or procedure or treatment and wake him up!

Gavin comes home tonight! Praise God! He is so bummed all this has been going on while he's been gone, but The Lord has taken beautiful care of us and provided for all our needs. Gavin had a fabulous time reconnecting with friends in Papua New Guinea and is SO glad he didn't try to do the house move with our whole family there. It was quite the job, even working late into the night the last night with some of our best friends lending a hand. (Thanks, Metzgers and Smiths! We love you!)

Seth worsening, with collapsing lung

Carrie & Seth are headed to Children's Medical Center in Dallas as I write this. At Seth's pulmonology appointment this afternoon, his doctor found his left lung to be partially collapsed. The plan is to admit him & treat him for pneumonia, adjust his meds...and pray. (I added the last, but know the doctor would heartily agree.) The pulmonologist says Seth is worse than when hospitalized 3 weeks ago. Gavin is in Australia in his long journey home from Papua New Guinea & is scheduled to arrive in Dallas late tomorrow (Thurs) night. I am leaving this weekend for 9 days overseas. Please pray for all of us, including the other babies and Isaac, and for our wonderful volunteers. His strength is perfected in our weakness; He does all things well. Warm regards & many, many thanks from The Quintessential Grandma.

Update Sunday Sept 8 with pictures of all but Seth

I guess Seth has had his share of attention in pictures the past few posts so I don't need to feel guilty that there are no pictures of him. He's been sleeping most of the time, so that precludes a lot of photo ops. 

It's been up and down, up and down around here. From S.O.S.-type chaos to unusually calm (as now). This morning for about 30 minutes we were barely hanging in there between vomiting episodes, and this afternoon I wondered if we were going to have to head to the ER because Seth was low-satting again. Thankfully, whatever was plugging up Seth's airways cleared after some good coughing (and more) on his part. Alas, the tummy bug has afflicted all five babies now. We've done 9 or 10 loads of laundry in the past two days and given innumerable baths. All the beds have been stripped multiple times and remade multiple times, including Isaac's bed because that's where we were unfortunately holding Seth when he erupted last night. :)

Seth has no voice at this point. It's so pathetic! It's also sad that he is doubly sick with cold and gastroentestinal yuckies. Poor punkin'. He remains perpetually sweet, though! 

Thanks again to all the volunteers who make LIFE possible right now! With Seth still receiving treatments lasting 25 or so minutes every four hours around the clock (last night's was 3 a.m.), I appreciate the help and prayers even more than normal. 

Seth's diaper needs a desperate change. Gotta run!

Love,

Carrie

Gracie (yes, in a blue sleeper), the last of the five to succumb to the new tummy bug

My lovely mother Jane and my lovely daughter Marcie Jane

Mom has been here a LOT and done more dishes and more laundry than anyone can keep count of - thank you!

Dad has also been here probably more than he's been at his own house. :) Thank God for close grandparents when all five kiddos and the nanny are sick. Please pray for stamina for us all. This has been a demanding past month.  

There are more baths happening around here than normal, in addition to the loads upon loads of yucky laundry!

Grace in front with Marcie in the background

And another

Gracie is in love with her little pony. She really knows how to ride it, too!

The kids are moving in a herd more and more. The cutest thing is their crawling in a line.
Left to right: Marcie, Will, David

And another, with Will looking this time.

Midnight Sunday "morning" update

Re: Seth, of course, written by Sam to the same Aunt Jennifer of the nebulizer we're using (see a couple posts ago): He's holding in there. His sats have been ok today, mostly low to mid 90's but occasionally higher! He's coughing so much and definitely moving a lot of junk around (and out.) He's thrown up a few times including just a bit ago allllll over Isaac's bed/floor. I think overall he's on the incline but it'll be a slow, uphill battle as it was in the hospital.

P.S. from Carrie: Marcie and Will have both vomited too, and Marcie and David have diarrhea. Please pray for all our precious kiddos, and THANK YOU as always!

Seth "this morning"

It's 11:30 PM for me in PNG time but 8:30 in  the morning yesterday in Dallas.  I just texted with Carrie and Seth did OK through the night, satting in the low 90's, which is acceptable, but he has not started getting rid of the stuff in his lungs yet.  Please continue the prayers for them as they struggle through this time.   Thank you so much!

My time here in PNG has been wonderful and productive, but tough knowing Seth and the other kids have been sick so much.  I'll be home to them on Thursday.   It will sure be good to see them!

Gavin

2 a.m. Urgent prayer request

Seth is hovering just above the "take to the hospital" guidelines, perhaps largely due to the mucolytic and back-thumping loosening up the nasty gunk and temporarily therefore clogging airways more. PLEASE pray, if the Lord is willing, that Seth's condition turns around and has a great night's sleep and doesn't have to be taken to the ER. And for strength and stamina and peace for us all if he does.

Thanks,
Carrie

Midnight update, Saturday morning

Well, Seth clearly WAS feeling better for at least a while on Thursday!

His lungs and cough have sounded a lot more full and junky today. Thankfully our afternoon helper is a nurse and brought her stethoscope. She could hear the congestion had "filled" his lungs to the very top, whereas yesterday it was only lower in his lungs. So, after calling the doctor and searching several pharmacies for a mucolytic to break up the nastiness he's struggling to breathe over, we finally found what we needed at Kroger of all places. Last week at the hospital it really seemed to help him turn the corner and get better a lot faster. The breathing treatments haven't helped a whole lot, but we're borrowing a nebulizer for the inhaled mucolytic and giving him one of his inhalers that way instead. It may help; we sure pray so. He is definitely worse today than yesterday, but thank God he's still satting well on the one liter of oxygen and he slept well last night, even during his 4 a.m. treatment. We're still doing them around the clock; SO thankful for help with the other babies, especially after tonight! I am also so very, very grateful for Sam's calmness and experience and hard work with Seth despite not feeling well herself. Please pray she can recover from her own raw throat and sinus drainage, poor girl!

Love and gratitude,
Carrie

Thanks for bringing the nebulizer over and leaving the game for it, Jennifer!

Gracie with food on her face yesterday

Ditto David

Will