Well, I promised an update before the end of the month and so here is a quick couple thoughts regarding Christian and his challenge.
The question we get asked that seems to always underlie his challenge is simple, yet huge: Why?
The answer is simple, yet huge as well: It's right there in scripture - John 9: 1-3.
When asked by the disciples why a blind man was blind, had the man or his parents "sinned", Jesus answered, "Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him."
The more you re-read and reflect on that, the deeper and larger it gets, I know.
It doesn't really answer the "why" question, it just "is". Finding peace in that simple, yet huge question and response is what it is.
Spend some quiet time with it, you'll see what I mean.
-- Aida and Christian are headed to Houston today for clinic and a fishing trip - the Texas Oilmen's group takes the dialysis kids out once a year to a private lake and it is a great time for the kids. Thank you, TOBI volunteers!!!
Take care,
Kiki's Dad
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Thursday, July 10, 2008
We're still out there!
My last post was titled - "What happened to March?"
And then promptly 3 more months went by and I have not been able to update the page or work on the site or finish the video.
I just wanted to drop a quick note to all that Christian is doing pretty good right now. He attended a summer camp where there are dialysis facilities for all of the kids - it was a great experience for him.
On the tough side, we may have lost the use of the "B" port we use for dialysis access in his arm. Thank goodness we had the "C" port created back in February (remember those blogs?). At clinic this month we will see if they can use the sharp needles and restart the "B" port again. Having the option of the third port is something we'd like to get back.
Things have been very tough for our family these last three months, but at the same time I have never been more certain that this year will end strong and be the beginning of a great run for us.
I can tell you that things will get tougher for us before they get better, but they will get better.
Sorry for such a short update, but I know some of you have been wondering how things are going. I am without internet access right now due to my Sprint card flaking out. I have a new one on the way, but Best Buy has it backordered since 6/29! So my short internet times are at coffee shops with only enough time for me to roll through emails and get some business done.
I'll post more before the end of the month of July - scouts honor!
Take care,
Kiki's Dad
And then promptly 3 more months went by and I have not been able to update the page or work on the site or finish the video.
I just wanted to drop a quick note to all that Christian is doing pretty good right now. He attended a summer camp where there are dialysis facilities for all of the kids - it was a great experience for him.
On the tough side, we may have lost the use of the "B" port we use for dialysis access in his arm. Thank goodness we had the "C" port created back in February (remember those blogs?). At clinic this month we will see if they can use the sharp needles and restart the "B" port again. Having the option of the third port is something we'd like to get back.
Things have been very tough for our family these last three months, but at the same time I have never been more certain that this year will end strong and be the beginning of a great run for us.
I can tell you that things will get tougher for us before they get better, but they will get better.
Sorry for such a short update, but I know some of you have been wondering how things are going. I am without internet access right now due to my Sprint card flaking out. I have a new one on the way, but Best Buy has it backordered since 6/29! So my short internet times are at coffee shops with only enough time for me to roll through emails and get some business done.
I'll post more before the end of the month of July - scouts honor!
Take care,
Kiki's Dad
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
What happened to March???
Wow, how fast does a month fly by these days?
As you can probably tell, things have gone pretty well since I last updated. We have gone back to once a month clinic vists as Christian's lab results have continued to remain positive.
Things were so tough during December through February that we still have not implemented the exercise routines into Christian's regimen, but that will be our focus this month.
One of the excercises we really need to get on top of is the stretching of the IT band (ILIOTIBIAL TRACT) as shown in the picture. This is one of the causes of the curving of the legs we see in Christian's development - the deficiency in nutritional complements and build up of wastes in the body that the kidney would normally regulate cause his bones to weaken and his ligaments are tight.
Couple that along with the normal pressure of standing / walking during the day and one of the side effects of long term kidney disease is a curving of the lower legs.
The condition is known as genu valgum or knock knees and can become quite severe in kidney patients if not addressed. The good news is that with consistent exercise and better nutrition Christian can grow through it. Currently his legs are not severely affected and that is good news.
The better news is that if we get one more good month of labs, the doctors are going to put Christian back on growth hormone. He has been off of the hormone for about 3 years and getting back on it will be great. It will be nice to add some more height if we can and keep him from falling too far behind his friends and classmates.
We're also going to take this month to get some additional content up on Christian's site including pictures and a special video. Look for that in about 2 weeks.
Thanks for stopping by and keep plugging!
Hope and love,
Kiki's Dad
As you can probably tell, things have gone pretty well since I last updated. We have gone back to once a month clinic vists as Christian's lab results have continued to remain positive.
Things were so tough during December through February that we still have not implemented the exercise routines into Christian's regimen, but that will be our focus this month.
One of the excercises we really need to get on top of is the stretching of the IT band (ILIOTIBIAL TRACT) as shown in the picture. This is one of the causes of the curving of the legs we see in Christian's development - the deficiency in nutritional complements and build up of wastes in the body that the kidney would normally regulate cause his bones to weaken and his ligaments are tight.
Couple that along with the normal pressure of standing / walking during the day and one of the side effects of long term kidney disease is a curving of the lower legs.
The condition is known as genu valgum or knock knees and can become quite severe in kidney patients if not addressed. The good news is that with consistent exercise and better nutrition Christian can grow through it. Currently his legs are not severely affected and that is good news.
The better news is that if we get one more good month of labs, the doctors are going to put Christian back on growth hormone. He has been off of the hormone for about 3 years and getting back on it will be great. It will be nice to add some more height if we can and keep him from falling too far behind his friends and classmates.
We're also going to take this month to get some additional content up on Christian's site including pictures and a special video. Look for that in about 2 weeks.
Thanks for stopping by and keep plugging!
Hope and love,
Kiki's Dad
Friday, February 22, 2008
Coming home!
Well, it's been a long two weeks but Christian got released from Texas Children's today. Christian's fistula continues to perform well and the new access port that was created these last 10 days has worked fine this week.
Although delayed by 2.5 hours of Houston traffic, spirits are high as we wait for them to get home about 11pm.
I'll update in a few days again. Thanks for stopping by.
Kiki's Dad
Although delayed by 2.5 hours of Houston traffic, spirits are high as we wait for them to get home about 11pm.
I'll update in a few days again. Thanks for stopping by.
Kiki's Dad
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Extended Stay Houston
Talked with Aida this morning. She was hoping to be able to come home after tomorrow's therapy for Christian but they told her today to expect to stay through Friday.
They are accessing the new port with the blunt needles now and that seems to be going fine.
This morning they ran into alot of trouble with air infiltrating the system. Aida said they spent 1:45 minutes clearing alarms and repositioning the access needles. Finally they were able to clear the air from the system and get a rolling dialysis without alarms.
FYI - the problem with air in the system is that if it gets into the bloodstream it can stop the heart, so it is a critical problem to handle. A volume of air into the heart chambers would mean the heart is contracting against nothing and would pump and pump yet nothing would move through the system.
Clinic is a good place to be when that problem acted up, so we'll take that little bit of fortune today.
Take care.
Kiki's Dad
They are accessing the new port with the blunt needles now and that seems to be going fine.
This morning they ran into alot of trouble with air infiltrating the system. Aida said they spent 1:45 minutes clearing alarms and repositioning the access needles. Finally they were able to clear the air from the system and get a rolling dialysis without alarms.
FYI - the problem with air in the system is that if it gets into the bloodstream it can stop the heart, so it is a critical problem to handle. A volume of air into the heart chambers would mean the heart is contracting against nothing and would pump and pump yet nothing would move through the system.
Clinic is a good place to be when that problem acted up, so we'll take that little bit of fortune today.
Take care.
Kiki's Dad
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