12-7-2010

Hello- We are looking forward to the holidays! Can't wait to celebrate with our new/bigger family. So many more firsts are to come. Here is a quick update...

Cameryn's first tooth popped threw yesterday! She loves pushing the kitchen chairs around...who needs a walker when there are chairs around. Carson continues to have his ups and downs. He is currently having 2-3 rough days a week. His digestive tract moves very slowly on these days and Carson can not tolerate any fluid intake, even getting all his meds in can be a challenge. Today is a good day, he is taking a nice nap right now.

God Bless everyone and for everyday we get to spend together!

11-16-2011

8 months old already! Big brother Carson, all smiles!

WOW!

It has been way too long from the last update! I guess you can say no news is good news! All has been well, we have continued to have our good days and our bad days. (More good than bad lately).

Thank you again for the amazing birthday party for Carson...each and everyone of you helped make it so very special. I would love to have pictures that you may have taken at the party, feel free to email (sarahn.bowman@yahoo.com) them to me, send them snail mail or just drop them by and say hi!

Carson has begun to react to us again! Smiling and just being wide awake (when he wants, after all he is a 4 year old boy!) His seizures are still down, he has not had any other kidney stones, and we have not had any sicknesses (knock on wood).

Cameryn is growing like a weed, She is 7.5 months! She is all over the place, walking along furniture and behind a walker. Not to mention crawling like a champ, she likes to keep up with all the other kids here. I have caught her looking up the steps wondering 'how do I get up there?' She has also tried to figure out how to climb on the fireplace. Cami is also eating everything, counting down the days to Thanksgiving! She likes eggs, toast and cheese for breakfast. She also likes spaghetti and meatballs! What a go getter...

Jeff and I just celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary! What an amazing 7 years, we have been so blessed and are excited for the future.

Please enjoy the pics!

Updates: June 25, 2011

Carson’s 4^th Birthday Bash!!

Please help us celebrate Carson’s birthday.

Saturday August 13^th 6:00 pm

Bowman House: 15821 w 150^th terr

Gifts not necessary, just help us celebrate.

Bring cold drinks, lawn chairs and cooler weather!

Carson: Follow up to the May 26^th update. Carson’s disease is progressing and over the last month we have had more changes. His urine has been very smelly but had not been coming back with bacteria. So we did some labs on his blood and urine and the results came proving Carson’s Doctor’s thoughts. The brain damage is now affecting his Pituitary gland. His Anti-diuretic Hormone is high making his ammonia levels also very high. The high ammonia levels are why his urine has been very smelly. To help get more ammonia out of his body we have increased his Miralax to increase his stools per day. We have also put a Foley Catheter in, which is a catheter that stays in and is hooked up to a bag so his bladder is able to drain all the time. In a “typical” person, high ammonia levels cause confusion, in Carson it causes him to be more lethargic and he sleeps most of the time. Since we put in the Foley and have increased his daily stools, Carson has seemed to feel much better. He has been awake and does not look uncomfortable. The Hospice nurse just put the Foley in on Friday morning, so we are still learning and adjusting to his new care routines. The blood labs also showed us that Carson has very high sodium levels. We have been able to cut some of the sodium out of his diet, one of his multivitamins had sodium in it and we have stopped giving him a daily dose. We again are taking one day at a time and adjusting to what we need to for Carson. Please keep us in your thoughts.

Cameryn: Our big 4 month old. Her check up went great and the Dr. is very impressed with her strength. The Dr thinks Cami will be on the move soon! We have also started rice cereal with her. She loves it and looks forward to eating two times a day… She continues to love to snuggle and kiss on her brother.

Father's Day 2011

Happy Father's Day!!

Jeff is enjoying his day. He was up at the crack of dawn smoking ribs, and chicken for us today. Being a father of two is priceless!

The love and joy our children have brought to us has been amazing. Carson and Cameryn love each other so much, it shows how much love each of us is born with. Cami has even brought smiles to Carson's face. Please enjoy your day and hug your kids once more (even if they are not little any more)!

Late May update....

As hard as this is to write, we wanted you all to know...

We do not have any inspiring updates today, Carson's disease has been progressing. His body has started to require less fluid, we have decreased his water intake by half. With the decreased water he has had less secretions, so we have taken him completely off Robinul. We had been seeing pretty significant water retention. While his body is getting less water and we are seeing the retention go away, Carson has had dryer eyes, mouth and bowel movements. We have been using eye drops and brushing his teeth more to help keep hydrated, as well as more Miralax. Carson has also stopped responding to us, his sister and other stimuli. Although we can not know for sure, we (and the doctors) believe his brain damage is spreading to his brain stem effecting all the autonomic processes. These processes include: heart rate, urination and eye movements. He has not been urinating on his own for about 2 weeks now, we have been having to catheter him every six hours. Carson has pretty much slept this entire week, awake only for a few hours each day that we can tell. As with the last 3 1/2 years we do not know what the future will bring, we are just enjoying every moment. I am looking forward to a week off of work the first of June, I plan to stay at home and enjoy my children. Please continue your prayers that Carson will not suffer and for Jeff and I that we may remain strong as our journey with Carson continues.

More pics March and April