Going Home!!!

Ruby just called and said Kaitlyn is going home at 10:30 today. Her pain is under control. She is up walking, going up and down stairs, eating, and is excited to go home. Praise God for answered prayer. Yesterday was a rough one, her pain med wasn’t working and she was actually in quite a bit of pain. After prayer and a change in her pain meds she had a drastic turnabout and is now going to finish her recovery at home. This will probably be the last blog I do. Ruby or Kaitlyn will probably take over from here. Thank you for all of your kind comments and support. Remember, I am still coordinating meals, errands, and general help for Ruby.

Kindest Regards,

Jill

Visits Welcome

Kaitlyn is doing well. She misses her friends and would love everyone to come by and see her. A nice visit goes a long way to cheer her up. Ruby reported that she walked around the 2nd level in the hospital yesterday. Some of the doctors at the hospital are saying she is ready to go home. They can’t get her pain level down below a 5 though. Her muscles are spasming due to shifting around and previously not being used. Ruby continues to spend the night in Kaitlyn’s room and is by her side most of the day. I would like to start scheduling meals to be brought to Ruby once Kaitlyn is home. If anyone would like to help out please e-mail me with a date and what meal you will bring.
Continue to pray for Kaitlyn’s pain to subside, her strength to build and her energy to grow.

Be Blessed,

Jill

Nothing But Good News

Kaitlyn had her first day in a regular room. She walked down to the elevator and back. She also went down for x-rays and was able to stand for those. Her pain level is tolerable and she is continuing to heal nicely. She is ready to have visitors now. Ruby is getting rest now and is much more relaxed now that Kaitlyn is in her own room. One of Katie’s favorite nurses from ICU was able to be her nurse yesterday so that was a nice blessing. Great news all around.

Answered Prayers

And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it John 14:13-14

Ruby called to let me know that Kaitlyn got up and walked for the first time this morning. She walked around the nurses station and back. They are going to send her to a regular room now. Her pain is under control now and Ruby said "Remarkable change since yesterday when everything was going wrong." Thanks again for your continued prayers.

Jill

Renewed Strength

Yesterday afternoon Kaitlyn's breathing improved. Her pain is now under control. I spent the night with her last night so Ruby could get some needed rest. Katie had a wonderful night. She hardly woke at all. They took her off the oxygen and her IV is doing better. I believe today will be the day for her to say goodbye to everyone in the ICU ward. She was smiling this morning and more alert than she has been since the surgery. Ruby was able to read all of your comments to her last night. It really lifted Kaitlyn's spirits. Thank you all for your prayers! I will post something later today after I get some sleep :)

Jill

Prayer is Everything

Please pray for protection around Kaitlyn and Ruby. Pray for her lungs to experience a miraculous recovery. Pray for her to get strong, breath clearly and get all the oxygen she needs to recover. Pray for God to send a caring staff to help her. Pray for Ruby to have peace and calm.

Jill

Prayer Appreciated

Well, Kaitlyn did not have a great day. Her night last night was not a good one and now all day today she had various difficulties. She has a multitude of tubes and some are uncomfortable and not cooperating with her movements. Mainly she is in a lot of discomfort which is expected but still doesn't make it much easier to deal with. Ruby has been helping her all day with communicating her needs to the nurses. That being said, please take time to pray for Kaitlyn. Worry about nothing Pray about everything.

At this point she will most likely be in ICU for a few more days unless the Lord intervenes. On a brighter note, she did have some victories today. She sat up in a chair for an hour. They removed the feeding tube that was in her nose and an IV (one of five). There is gradual progress, and Kaitlyn is toughing it out.

Jeremiah 33:6 says "Behold, I will bring health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth".
Let's all stand on that promise from God for Kaitlyn.

Blessings,

Jill

Kaitlyn Looks Wonderful

I visited Kaitlyn last night. She looks wonderful! She is smiling and talking a little. She is heavily sedated so she goes in and out a lot. Her pain is being managed very well so she will heal. She sat up for 15 minutes yesterday and stood for a few minutes. As you can imagine, it was painful and she was a little cranky with the nurses and mom, but she was still a trooper. Please continue to keep her in your prayers.

Jill Goodnight

Remarkable Progress

All the nurses and doctors in ICU say Kaitlyn is making remarkable progress. They are going to try and get her to sit up today and perhaps stand. She may even get to eat today, her body is doing so well. Ruby spent the night with Kaitlyn in ICU and she is impressed with how Kaitlyn is handling this. The staff has been very helpful, Shriner's is such a wonderful hospital. She is doing just great! Not quite ready to see anyone though. But knows you are all praying for her speedy recovery. Thanks to Debbie Kick at KMTG for loaning a laptop so Ruby can check this site and read the comments to Kaitlyn. Thanks to Arla Hoagland with Girls Ministries at CCC for loaning a CD player.

Kaitlyn's Favorite Things

I asked Ruby to get a list of Kaitlyn's favorite things in case people want to bring her "goodies" while she is recuperating.

Favorite Books: Any kind of novel
Favorite Colors: Green, Blue, Orange
Favorite Foods: Pasta, any little snack type things. FRUIT! Chicken, pizza, mexican food, salads, fish, veggies
Favorite Fast Food: In and Out/Cheeseburger meal, McDonalds/Big n Tasty, McNuggets, Taco Bell/Bean Burrito
Favorite Jamba Juice: Mango-a-go-go
Favorite Ice Cream: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough or Vanilla
Favorite Starbucks drink: White Mocha hot or iced
Favorite Quiet Activities: Reading, playing cards, listening to music (need to borrow a portable cd player)
Favorite Music: Any kind except Country or Rap/Hip Hop
Favorite Drink: Iced Tea (sweetened), orange juice (no pulp)

SUCCESS ! ! !

I just returned from Shriner's where Kaitlyn is in post-op. The doctor's said they couldn't have done a better job. They are very pleased with the outcome of the surgery. They removed several of Katie's ribs in front (which will grow back). They also removed six discs in her upper spine, then fused it with a rod. Her lower back was not involved so she can still grow and have movement. She should be in ICU for a few days then moved to a regular room. She is heavily sedated but the doctor said she was smiling and moving her legs. Ruby said Katie was a trooper this morning and was very brave. As soon as I have more information I will post another blog.

Jill Goodnight

Sweet Dreams Kaitlyn

Kaitlyn is all tucked in for the evening. Her friend that had the same exact surgery stopped by to encourage her and let her know what to expect the next few days. The hospital brought in a bed for Ruby so she can be right by Kaitlyn's side all night. Kaitlyn will be in pre-op at 6:45am with the surgery scheduled to begin at 7:30. The surgery is expected to last 8 hours. I know you will all be thinking of her tomorrow, I will be there with Ruby for "female" support all day and will go home to enter in a blog as soon as Kaitlyn is out of surgery. I know many of you wish Katie well and would love to send flowers etc. Unfortunately the hospital only allows mylar balloons. Cards with a note are always appreciated. I close this blog with: Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again - rejoice!

Jill Goodnight

Entering Hospital Day.

Hello, everyone! It's Kaitlyn. We're about to head off to church, and after that, we are heading straight to the hospital to check in. Thank you all so much for the comments that you have been leaving me; they are very encouraging and I enjoy reading them. Please keep checking this website for updates on my progress as I go through the surgery and my recovery afterward.

Thank you all!

Kaitlyn

Caring Friends

I have the privilege of coordinating the friends of the Blackwood family during Kaitlyn's surgery and recovery period. I know many of you would like to help out any way you can. Please contact me either by e-mail or cell phone to let me know if you would like to run errands, do chores, bring meals etc. I will then let you know when you are needed. By using this blog site, I will update everyone regularly with news on her recovery and needs. Kaitlyn is already enjoying the comments you have posted, all your kind words let her know just how much everyone cares. I have a list of her favorite things that I can share with anyone that would like to cheer her up. Kaitlyn has a strong faith and trust in her Heavenly Father, knowing that He will be with her during this season of her life as He always has been and forever will be. Let's rejoice in ALL THINGS.

Jill Goodnight
cell: 916-717-3116
e-mail: jgoodnight@ckr.com
e-mail: goodnightjill@yahoo.com

Kaitlyn's story

In March 2005, at the age of 13, Kaitlyn was diagnosed with scoliosis. She had a 10 degree curvature of the spine. Her doctor said to just watch her spine and that most people who have scoliosis don't progress much past that degree. Kaitlyn's back did not change much until November 2006. At that point she had 2 curvatures that were between 30 and 35 degrees. She started wearing a hard plastic back brace for 23 hours a day. This was not an easy time for her. The brace was very constricting and painful.

Over the next 6 months Kaitlyn wore the brace and saw a chiropractor. Her curvatures went down to the 25 to 30 degree range. We were hopeful that this would continue to decrease. Around the same time Kaitlyn grew and was sized for her second back brace. This one was more constricting and more uncomfortable. During the growth the curvatures increased to around 40 - 45 degrees. Her doctor told us that there was a possibility that she would need to have surgery to correct her spine.

By April of 2008, her doctor told us that Kaitlyn would need to have surgery by this summer as the curve was starting to affect her heart and right lung. Kaitlyn was very tired from dealing with pain and not being able to take in enough oxygen. At times the pain was so bad that she wasn't able to go to school or other activities. She was starting to have trouble concentrating. By this time her curves were in the 50 degree range.

We scheduled surgery for July 21, 2008, with hopes that the curvatures would decrease and she wouldn't have to go through surgery. When Kaitlyn returned to Shriners Hospital for a pre-operation appointment in June, it was discovered that her curvatures had gone to around 75 degrees in a very short period of time.

Her scoliosis surgeon told us that he would need to bring in another specialist to also operate on Kaitlyn and that everything we had planned would be doubled (two surgeons, longer surgery, longer in ICU, longer in the hospital and recovery time). We have made plans for all of this with hopes and prayers that each of these things will go smoothly and that Kaitlyn will heal as quickly as possible. We are standing in faith for complete healing.

This week Kaitlyn is preparing to check into the hospital on Sunday, July 20th and having surgery the morning of July 21st.

We have a friend who will be updating this blog whenever we are able to give her new information.

We will be checking the blog when we are able to, so please leave comments for Kaitlyn and her family to read for encouragement.

Many of you have offered help in many ways. Our friend, Jill Goodnight, has offered to coordinate our needs during this time. If you would like to contact her for schedules of what is needed (meals, errand running, visits, help with Kaitlyn after she is home, things to keep Kaitlyn entertained, or anything else), please feel free to contact Jill at:
916-717-3116(Jill's cell phone)
jgoodnight@ckr.com(Jill's work email)
goodnightjill@yahoo.com(Jill's personal email)
Kaitlyn is scheduled to be in the hospital 10-14 days(3-4 days in ICU)

Thank you,

The Blackwood Family