Softball Tournament & Golf Tournament

Co-Ed Softball Tournament
Saturday, December 6th
Ramona Softball Fields
Team Entry: $300
Contact Susanne to enter:
760-310-0089

Bake/ Mistletoe Sale
Saturday & Sunday, December 6th-7th
In front of Rabobank, Julian

Golf Tournament
Saturday, December 13th
San Vicente Golf Course
Cart & Green Fees $100
Contact Brian 760-644-5978
or Jeff 760-315-2253

http://www.welovekate.com/ for more information and events

No News Yet

There are some more abnormalities in Kate's bone marrow. We're not sure what is going on. Her blood and bone marrow have been dispersed to different labs and are having different tests and stains done to see what is going on. Although we have been optimistic, it's difficult with no news. In this case, no news means it's not good news. The doctors say it won't be until next week that we get some results. We will hold off on the chemo until after results are in and decisions are made. Todd and I would like to bring in doctors from other cancer specialized hospitals to get second opinions before we start another round of chemo that may not work. Keep on praying for our little Miss Kate.

Malakai is doing better. He can now hold down food, and his heart rate is stabilizing. He will be in the NICU until Thursday and will spend some time with Mom and Dad in the hospital. Pray he stays stable and can finally join Mom & Dad at home, in his wonderful nursery.

Love to everyone,
Krystal

Baby Burrows

It's a BOY!

Three sonograms, & 12 hours of labor later Audrey came out a boy! We were all in shock! It's incredible. His name is Malkai Lucas Burrows! He was 18" & 7.2 lbs. Once he was born he was taken to the NICU due to irregular breathing patterns. He was put on oxygen as well as had a stomach tube inserted to keep air out of his stomach. Once we left, after 2am, he was being taken off of oxygen and getting ready to be fed. This morning I learned that he was unable to handle the food and began throwing up, he also is having irregular heart beats and has to stay in the NICU. Our hopes were that he would be with Nut & Jayd this morning, but it looks like he'll be spending more time in the NICU.

Jayd has been able to be with him as much as possible. Jeanette is doig incredibly well. I am so proud of her! Jeanette ended up with a c-section because the cord was wrapped around Malakai's neck & his heart rate would significantly drop with every contraction. After she was at a steady 7cm and his heart rate wasn't recovering as quickly as possible, they decided to have a c-section. Jeanette hasn't been able to spend much time with him. She was finally able to nurse him this morning, and has been pumping to get her milk supply flowing. I think she'll get into a regular nursing schedule. Jayd was a champion through the whole thing, and he still continues to show incredible strength; they both do. I am so proud of them. I know with prayers and time Malakai will be okay and ready to be with the parents who have so eagerly waited his arrival.

We're still all in shock that he is a he and not an Audrey!

Please Pray for Malakai, Jeanette & Jayd!

I'll update in the next day or two with results from Katelyn's bone marrow aspiration. The results aren't in this morning, so we hope to get them tomorrow. Let's pray that those blasts are good cells!

I have a sonogram today at 1:30. I'm excited to see the little peanut growing inside me! I feel movements all the time, and my little sister, Brooke, got to feel some kicks yesterday. She was really happy to experience it. Katelyn loves the baby in my belly. If you ask her where the baby is, she'll point to either her or my belly and tell you "belly". She gives kisses and is already an incredible big sister.

We love you all!

Thanksgiving and Tests

Crashed out in her "bed of many colors" after a Thanksgiving Feast & Fun!

She loved the yams!

Mom can always find the tickle spot!

Thanksgiving 2008!

She is the cutest little Turkey around!

Time for another update!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We feasted, and both meals were delicious. Thank you for your thoughts! We hope everyone's Thanksgiving was delicious & memorable!

Katelyn had a big morning this morning. First she had a blood transfusion, then had a chest x-ray and dye test through her central cathetor, then she had a bone marrow extraction, and last, but not least a dressing and cap change... all before noon! She's an incredible child and handled it all very well. Due to the bone marrow aspiration she was NPO (unable to eat or drink) since midnight. Our only meltdown was after the extraction while we were waiting for lunch at around 1pm. She did wonderfully!


Her counts have been coming up, which is a wonderful thing. She's creating platelats as well as red and white blood cells. We are happy about that. However, she is also creating blasts. She is at the same range as she has been since we've been here, but we're not sure if these blasts are good or bad. The bone marrow aspiration was scheduled for next week but was moved to today to check these blasts. If they're uninfected, then we will be incredibly happy. That would mean the chemotherapy is doing it's job. She will still have at least two more rounds of chemo even if this round is working. If they are leukemia cells then we will have to re-evaluate her treatment. We will probably want to call in another specialist and get some more opinions on treatment and facilities. Lets hope and pray that the blasts are normal cells, and the chemo is working!!! We won't get test results until Monday or Tuesday, so it will be then that I update.

The dye test was also an unexpected procedure. Katelyn's cathetor has been difficult to push and has been clogging even while it's in use. We did the dye test to look for any clots or blockages. It flowed perfectly through, with no blockages or clots. This is good. We're not sure why it is difficult to push and pull. Even after the dye test showed no clots, we had an difficult time flushing and hep-locking one of her lines. We need prayers that this will resolve itself so we can avoid a surgery to take out and replace the line. If it doesn't resolve itself, Kate will need surgery.

With all that said and done, Katelyn is pheonomenal. She's still happy, fun, eating, drinking, walking and is now obsessed with her babies! Obsessed! She has such a caring, nurturing side. It's wonderful to see as she will be a big sister soon. I know she'll be the most wonderful big sister.

Thank you to everyone for everything! We are humbled and blessed and couldn't be more thankful.

Here are a few event updates:

Saturday & Sunday, December 6th-7th - Bake Sale & Mistletoe Sale in front of Rabobank, Julian

Friday, December 12th - Dinner at the Legion, Julian.

Saturday, December 13th - Golf Tournament at San Vicente, Ramona.

Saturday, December 20th - Blood Drive & bone marrow testing at the Legion, Ramona.

With Love & Thanks!

Giving Thanks

Daddy gives the best piggy back rides!

Go Chargers!

Raaar!!!! She loves to be a Lion!

She insists on eating all by herself. She's rather good at it!

She's the cutest thing I've ever seen!

Despite the trialsome time we're experiencing right now, we have so much to be thankful for. I am incredibly thankful for Todd. He is an amazing husband and the most incredible father I could have asked to have for my children. He is loyal, honest, loving, he has the biggest heart, and can always make me laugh. I am thankful for the love we have for eachother and the amazing relationship that comes with that. Not only is he an incredible husband and father, but he is the best friend I could ask for as well. He is a wonderful listener (as long as espn isn't on :), and he is very easy to talk to. We understand eachother, we work well together, and we can compromise. I am thankful for my husband, the father of my children, and my best friend.

Katelyn has brought more joy to our life that we could ever have imagined. Becoming parents was always something Todd and I wanted, but we never could have imagined that we could love someone as much as we love Katelyn. Every day, since the day she was born, has been an incredible blessing. Everyday I thank God for giving her to us, as well as keeping her happy and healthy. I am thankful that she is handling the chemo as well as she has; I am thankful for her incredible personality and ability to adjust to our new environment; I am thankful that both Todd and I can be here to care for her and enjoy her. Thank you, God, for all of those things.

I am thankful that I have not only had the blessing to be a mother to one child, but will soon welcome our second baby into this world. Both Todd and I couldn't be happier to be parents again. Having a baby is an incredible journey, and we have enjoyed every minute of it with Katelyn, we are sure to enjoy it with baby number two. I am thankful that our loving, sweet, daughter will get to be a big sister and welcome this baby into our family. I know Katelyn will be an incredible big sister.

I am thankful for our family and friends. The support through prayer, thoughts, and financial efforts has been incredible. It's our friends and family that make it possible for Todd and I to be here to care for Katelyn and enjoy her as much as we possibly can. Thank You, friends and family, for everything. We are humbled by the help and love we've experienced over the last month.

We hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving! I know our little family will have nothing short of a wonderful Thanksgiving as well. All that we need is eachother, and we are lucky enough to be together. For that, I am thankful.

Kate's First Haircut

Kate had her first haircut yesterday! Her hair was starting to come out in little pieces and Todd and I didn't want to have to see it. We decided to have it shaved and just start from scratch. She was born with a full head of hair, so it is interesting to see her without any. She has a perfect head! She is just as beautiful, if not more beautiful, without hair. Everyone in the hospital loves her bald head. She did wonderfully during the haircut. She played with the cape and the clippers for 15 minutes and then just let Grandma Cherri work her magic. She didn't even put up a fight! She is such an incredible child. She has adjusted so well during all of this. We are so grateful for our little Angel!

Since Saturday she is doing much better. Her fever broke Saturday morning and hasn't come back. She's had a rash on her back and a bit on her cheeks, the doctors think it is a post viral rash. We think she had a virus, which caused the fever and feveral seizure and her body, in combination with the antibiotics, has fought it of; hence the rash. Every day she's feeling better and better, and eating more and more. Her immune system is still completely shot, her Absolute Neutraphil Count is zero. When it is over 500 she can leave the unit and possibly go outside. She'll have to wear a mask throughout this whole process, but she has adjusted very well to it. She knows she needs a mask before we leave our room.

Todd went home today to do a few things. He brought down some of her toys and she was incredibly excited to see her table and chairs! He brought two little princess chairs in first and she was stomping around very happy, she couldn't wait to sit in them! She let Daddy clean them first. Next, he brought the table in and she did the same thing! She kept saying "table! table!" Since then we've been having tea parties, reading, and moving the chairs around. Soon I'll take some pictures and post them for you all to see her little retreat.

We love you all!

Our first real scare

Last night was the scariest night we've had since coming to the hospital. At about 3:00pm yesterday Katelyn spiked a fever, it wasn't incredibly high, but it rapidly approached 102.6 degrees. We drew blood to culture it and check for a bacterial infection. We immediately started her on broad spectrum antibiotics, as well as some tylenol to help break the fever. Katelyn felt great a few hours later, she ate popcorn, played with Mommy & Daddy and was a happy baby. I left her room at about 11:00pm to go get some sleep in our room at the Ronald McDonald House. Todd called me at 12:15am and said I needed to get up to her room. Katelyn's fever had dropped so drastically that her body went into shock. Her body stared flexing and tensing up so much that she was completely cramped into the fetal position. She stopped breathing for a bit (not sure how long), and then started shaking, convulsing is the term that was used. After awhile the shaking slowed down and by the time I got up to her room she was shivering uncontrollably. I laid with her and kept her warm. The doctors ran tests and kept a close eye on her. It was untimately decided that she should spend the night in the Pediatric ICU. We went there at about 3:00am. Her fever broke and she was happy and awake. She slept a few hours and woke with another fever, and wouldn't stop crying for Mommy. I came to her at 8:00am. The doctors had her on an NPO (nothing by mouth) until about 12:30pm. It was horrible for Katelyn, she was begging for food. Finally they approved clear liquids, and a few hours later she could have a shake. Her first meal was when we were finally sent back to our room on the HemOnc floor. She ate hot dog, pb&j, and a few french fries. She had tylenol at 7:20am and hasn't had any since then. She hasn't had a fever since this morning. We had a relatively good day. She was very happy, once she got to put something in her stomach. We played, walked, and read a lot of books. Some of the stool samples are coming back negative for bacterial infections, and her blood culture is negative so far. Blood cultures can take 3-5 days before anything shows up. Sometimes it will show up immediately, but until we are sure that she doesn't have a bacterial infection, she will stay on the antibiotics. During her sponge bath tonight I noticed a light rash, it covered her torso and shoulders. The resident that was here this afternoon came in and said it could be the aftermath of a viral infection. He said that often times when the body, or the antibiotics, fight off a viral infection the child will get a rash. It might get prominent and darker, but it should be relieved within 24 hours. She doesn't seem to be bothered by it, and she isn't itching, so we aren't giving her benadryl. She went to bed at 8:00pm and is out like a light. She slept through labs and vitals and all the other things poeple have come into our room for. I think she'll get a good nights sleep tonight. I figure I'll try to get one as well.

I'd like to write about a cute thing that Kate did today. During her sponge bath I gave her a washcloth to wash her baby while I washed her. She was wiping the baby with the washcloth and kept telling me that the baby was "dirty". She looked up at me and took the washcloth to my face. She started wiping my face saying "dirty". I was cracking up, it was adorable. Then she puts the washcloth down and says "clean!" and kisses my nose! It was incredibly precious!

Good night, thank you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers! Kate's website has been updated! I wrote a little something for the "About Kate" section, and the Events section has also been updated. Enjoy!