Kev called me this morning to tell me to bring in some boxed jello to sprinkle over ice.  Unfortunately, the vent made his swallow muscles very weak, so it’s very unsafe for him to drink anything right now.  Poor guy.  But, he did say he got around 13 hours of sleep last night which is just a record!  He really needed that after not sleeping at all the night before.

We’re praying we get some headway with heading to Hopkins today.  Still no word, so I plan to call Dr. Thornton to see what progress is being made.  It’s such a blessing that we can even get in at Hopkins, so I’m so grateful that we have the commitment of the staff down there to help us get the answers we desperately need.

Linda plans to head back to Winnipeg on Friday afternoon, which will be good because we have the big fundraising social planned for Saturday.  I hope all you Winnipeggers will come out and support on Saturday night!  It has been extra nice to have her here.  Much love to you Ken as you’re back home getting all this stuff coordinated.  A big hug and thank you to everyone helping!

We just continue to lift Kevin up and pray for a miracle.  He has already been provided so many miracles, we just all feel God has a BIG BIG plan for Kevin and will bring him through this.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Today was overall a very good day.  Kevin did not sleep at all last night, which wasn’t good, but his stats all looked good today.  The fluid in the lung looks better, and they hope to take the chest tube out by tomorrow!

We are also praying that we get to Hopkins tomorrow, but a bed just hasn’t opened up yet.  We got some very important things done today and signed, which was a huge relief.

Pastor Curtiss and Jay and Lois came to be with us today and to give special prayer and healing anointment to Kevin which just felt so good.  It was such a great feeling and we continue to pray for continued miracles for Kevin!

Sorry I haven’t been journeling as much as before, but I’m just exhausted by the time I get home.  Thinking and thanking you all for your support

From www.upperroom.org/devotional today

The Renovator

Read 1 Corinthians 3:9-17

Even when we were dead through our trespasses, [God] made us alive together with Christ.

THE shack my wife and I had bought in Tasmania required major renovations. Still, the place was ours. We replaced rotten timber and old plaster and removed debris. We repainted the place. It took time, effort, and money, but it became our home.

It struck me that God does something like this for us. God bought us with the blood Jesus shed on Calvary. Though we were worse than a shack (according to Eph. 2:1-3 and Rom. 5:6-11), God saw the beauty of a temple in us.

When God gave us the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, we needed a lot of renovating. God has a master plan by which to work, a goal for each of us. We are to be transformed into Christ’s likeness. (See 2 Cor. 3:18.)

Throughout scripture we read stories of God’s renovations in the heart, mind, priorities, and relationships of people. Similar replacing, repairing, and rebuilding can happen within us. But unlike us with our shack, God requires our cooperation to achieve that transformation. Yet God is gracious and patient with us. The result glorifies God, blesses others, and makes us eternally grateful.

Raymond N. Hawkins (Tasmania, Australia)

Praying it will be a good morning as I got no calls all night and I got a great sleep!  Linda and I are just getting ready to head into the hospital, so hopefully we can get a clue as to when we’re going to Hopkins and how good Kevin is doing.

He was still running a fever yesterday, so praying that it diminishes as a fever means there’s still some infection going on.

Pray for calm, safety and a joyful day ahead!

Today was such a success on so many levels.  I’m almost afraid to believe in the joy of it, for fear it be taken away from me again!

God opened some amazing doors today, and granted Kevin to be extabeted and OFF the ventilator breathing just on regular nasal cannula oxygen!!!  He just looks amazing, and is awake and vibrant as ever.

I spoke with Dr. Thornton who has things rolling to get Kevin down to Hopkins hopefully no later than Wednesday.  We are praying for smooth transitions there.

Tonight was an amazing prayer vigil at the LGH chapel, and it was just beautiful and refreshing and uplifting, especially to give such positive news to everyone.  Thank you all for your continued, outstanding support, and special thanks to Curtiss at New Danville for organizing all of this.

We want to ask for special prayer for a horrible accident in Salisbury (sp?) township that caused several traumas and airlifts to LGH tonight.  Our thoughts and prayers go out specifically to those families.

Thank you for your continued prayers, and keep them coming, as again, we are so happy and grateful, but still uncertain what lies ahead for us.  Thank you all, praise God!

No word yet whether the transfer will happen today or tomorrow.  All the Doctors at LGH are on board with the transfer, and Dr. Thornton at Hopkins is currently work to get the plans laid and a bed open if possible.  Nothing official yet.

Kevin is VERY awake today, which I’m not super happy about because of the vent.  He, however, seems to be tolerating it ok, despite the communication issues.  When I left he was up sitting in a chair and looked so handsome and strong.  It’s such a nice change!

He had the parasenthesis (sp?) done today-the draining of the belly.  They took 4400 ML OF FLUID!  His stomach looks much less distended now, and he’s definitely feeling more comfortable.

So…we’re just waiting.

I’m working on all the hoopla getting things switched and re-activated with our health plan which means emails, calls and overnighting some things which is why I had to stop home here.  I also just applied for Kevin’s first unemployment, so pray that goes through with no issues.  If I have time, I’ll also be meeting with Financial Services today about when I may be able to apply for medical assistance as I am completely unable to work whilst caring for Kevin now.

Thanks for all your prayers and support.  If we don’t head to Hopkins today, I’ll see some of you at the vigil tonight.  Again, it’s 6:30pm and after at the chapel inside the main lobby off James Street at LGH.

Take care and thanks so much for everything!

I just placed the two most important calls of the morning (besides Linda’s wake up call-for those who know her, you can smile!).  I left a message for Dr. thornton at Hopkins to call me back ASAP.  I also spoke with Kevin’s nurse and he’s stable, but frustrated (which I guess means not very sedated).  He’s trying to show Jim something with his hands, and it’s just not working, so he’s pretty agitated.  I’m going to try to get in there as soon as Linda gets going so I can put him at ease, as I know how agitated he gets on the vent.

Pray that his spirit is calmed and we can get going quickly on things today!

A Quick Night Update before hitting the bed…

I just called in to see how Kev was doing and was told that his heart rhythm did change, but only rose to about 100, which is fine.  They adjusted his meds slightly for a few hours to cover him, and his blood pressures are doing fine.  He temp is rising again to a low grade fever of around 101.  Please pray that he stabilizes on his own, and the temperature comes down.  We need him as stable as possible for them to approve the transfer tomorrow.

Thanks so much for your prayers!

Today went well.  Kevin came off his blood pressure meds and held great throughout the day.  He is starting to get a bed sore, so they switched him to a new air mattress that should alleviate some of that pressure.

He thankfully stayed sedated and calm throughout the day!  He really is improving.  I hope that tomorrow’s am conversation with Dr. Thornton goes well, and we can get Kevin airlifted ASAP to Hopkins.  Before that happens, LGH would still like to do a CT scan as well as the parasenthesis (sp?) draining of his stomach.  Pray that goes well!

Pray for open beds, and smooth transports for ALL of us.  Big thanks to Dan & Amy for again opening your home to us.

Thanks for all your love and support.  I am not sure yet if I will have the laptop with me, so if not, I’ll only be updating 1-2x daily.

Much Love!

Brenda Boitson

Well, we got clears from the Infectious Disease and Cardiac doctors that Kevin is very stable.  The plan is to keep doing what they’re doing, ween him off the heart medications, and take a CT scan of his body tomorrow to see how the chest tube drainage is working.  They also want to do a drain via needle of the fluid in his stomach to give him some relief there, and to start him on TPN (IV) feedings because it is too risky right now to do regular tube feedings.

Why I’m angry?  Because the oncologist on call this weekend feels there is nothing more that can be done (on THEIR side), and so after speaking with the internal medicine doctor, we’re going to get him transferred to Hopkins ASAP.  The thought is that LGH just doesn’t know enough about Kevin’s case/condition to be able to adequately treat him beyond what they have already provided.

So, first thing tomorrow, I’ll be on the phone with Dr. Thornton to get the transfer starter.  Pray that our COBRA application comes tomorrow so we can get this set up ASAP as bills are escalating fast and will be a nightmare to get sorted through.

Also pray for continued stability for Kevin to be able to handle the transfer to Hopkins tomorrow. Be with us as we pack and get ready for the trip, and that we’ll have a place to stay.

Thanks for your continued support-WE’RE NOT GIVING UP!