Monthly Miracles - Philip Briggs

I posted about my story of what happened when I died and how God performed a miracle in my life so that I could live. The post was titled Angels and Miracles in case you want to check it out.

So this brought up the idea of showcasing different peoples experiences with miracles or angel sightings in their lives. Thus Fort Thompson Monthly Miracles was born. It is my hope that this can go from monthly to weekly, but in order to do that I need your help getting the word out to others to send in their stories. They can be emailed to me.

This months story I have wanted to share for some time now. I think so highly of this mom and the strength and courage she shows on a daily basis. She is a pillar of faith and strength like no other as you will soon read. God truly blessed her family by giving them her as a mom. While she might not always feel that way because of what she has been through, I know that Gods blessings dont come any grander than Amy Briggs.

This is Philips story(Amy's son)as told by her....

Philip is a blessing to our family in so many ways. Years ago I did not think I would be able to even be a mom. I had 3 Miscarriages and the Dr told us that we may never be able to have children. When I got pregnant with Philip I held my breathe for months. I can remember every minute of the day we saw his heartbeat on the scan. The first time he moved, and the day we found out we were having a little boy. Life was perfect.

April 19th 1990 Philip James Briggs was born and I knew what it felt like to be a mommy..it was the most wonderful feeling in the world. And it still is. Philip was born three weeks early and weighed 7 pounds 12 ounces. He was perfect.

When Philip was about a week old he started to projectile throw up. I took him to the DR and we were told he had a virus. After a few days I took him back to the Dr and we were told he had reflux and to raise the head of the bed to help with this. I can remember driving to walmart at 2 am in tears to buy Mylocon drops thinking I am a awful mom. The following day I had Philip out shopping with me and he started throwing up non stop. I took him home and got him cleaned up. As I laid him on my bed his tummy started to heave as he was about to throw up and I bent down to pick up a burp cloth he vomited so hard it hit the wall. That minute I just said enough. I called the Dr and told him..I am bringing him to the ER . I remember his words so clear. Okay bring him but he has a virus and it will run it's course and be better in a few days. I said well you can tell me that when you see him.

You know it is odd..as I write this story I feel burring tears...As I write the next stage of this amazing story I realize this is where our lives forever changed. And it hurts. It hurts in a way that I can not explain. I think that is why it has taken me so long to finally sit down and write this. Maybe it is easier to think of it in bits and pieces...operation and recovery..vs the whole hard reality...19 brain operations. shunts Brain mass in brain stem .a stroke...28 orthopedic operations and pain pumps and stimulator's. Yes reality is hard some days.



I took Philip to the ER and they took one look at him and rushed him to a room. They told me that he was very dehydrated and would need a IV. I can remember thinking how in the world can I let them stick needles in him. It took 6 pokes and three IV techs to finally get his IV done. I was a wreck. The Er told me he thought he knew what was wrong with Philip . He wanted to do test to confirm his diagnosis of Pyloric Stenosis. They were calling in the surgeon and I was falling apart. I remember thinking..I can NOT do this. I can NOT have my new baby have an operation. After a few battery of test that included an Ultrasound, blood work, and xrays they could not confirm the Pyloric Stenosis. They admitted him in the hospital to run more test.

As the days went on Philip would still throw up, and sleep alot. I mentioned to the nurses that He was hard to wake up. One evening I was nursing Philip and the Dr came in and asked to speak to Jim. He told Jim that they could not find anything wrong with Philip and wondered if I might be having a hard time with being a new mom. He also told Jim that maybe I needed to be reminded that babies do spit up and they do sleep a lot. He suggested Jim have me see my Dr to see if I had post partemn depression. He said they would release us the next morning after all the test results were back. About an hour later they decided to move Philip to a room in ICU to better monitor him and we were told we were being transfered to a out of town children's hospital. Things sure had taken a sudden turn and needless to say I was both confused and concerned.

Philip was airlifted to a out of town children's hospital and taken to the Peds ICU. I had no idea how much our lives would change from that day forward. Being a teaching hospital there were tons of people who came in to care for Philip. But all these years later I remember the one resident that took extra care and time with Philip. Dr. Perez. I wonder if he has any idea what a impact he made on our lives. I have a feeling he is a wonderful Dr.



We were told that Philip had been transfered there due to a abnormal test. It was a ammonia level test that could mean he had a metabolism problem. Yet when they specialist came in he said he had re ran the test and it was in normal range. He also explained that if you smoke and touch the tip of the tube it can give a abnormal reading. So while that was wonderful news...here we were back where we started.

For a week Philip had every test done and re done. He was still in Peds ICU and no one could figure out what was wrong. It was finally decided that he had a rare virus and he could go home and be watched by our pediatrician. The same one who swore it was all in my head and yet the same night sent him to ICU.

My uncle who happen to be a DR in Ga called me to check on Philip. I told him what they had said and he listened and said okay. I had no idea how concerned he was. He called Dr. Perez and asked him exactly what type of virus and I am sure they discussed a few other things. Next thing I know...Jim has gone to get Philip's car seat ( he had been life flighted ) and I am listening to Dr. Perez tell me he is going to run one more test to cover his butt with my Uncle. To be honest I was not worried about the outcome because every single test came out negative.

As I packed our hospital room I had no idea how much our lives really were about to change. Dr. Perez came in and said they had found something. My heart broke and our life changed forever. He said it was in his brain stem and he would need a MRI immediately. I called Jim who came rushing back. He called his parents who were away on vacation and they drove through the night to get back. My mom came and we all gathered and waited.

That afternoon they took Philip by ambulance to a special hospital with a MRI and he had his scan. The first time I saw the big black area I said okay that is his brain. The tech explained to us that was the mass. I could not believe that was in my son's brain.

I remember a night that describes how I still feel today. It was about 2 am and I was sitting in a rocking chair. The nurse came in and said..are you okay? I can hear myself say the words...I am just trying to figure out how all this could of happen to my sweet baby boy. I still am trying to figure that out today. I know one day God will explain it all to me and I will know all the answers. Until then all I can do is pray and trust in my faith.

It was decided by the neurosurgeon that Philip needed emergency brain surgery. The Dr spent a lot of time answering all of our questions. He also explained that it would be best to go in and try to drain off the area vs placing a shunt. he said once a shunt always a shunt. And we spent a long time discussing the scary issues that can go along with having a shunt.

At 6 weeks old Philip had his first brain operation and spent a month in peds ICU on and off life support and was finally able to go home after spending 2 months in a out of town hospital. Life was good . We were a family and ready to put this behind us.

Things went well with Philip's follow up Dr appts and MRI. Then one day the nurse said the neurosurgeon wanted to speak to me about Philip's scan. He explained that his MRI showed 10% of the mass was back and we needed to watch it. He also explained that his brain still had a lot of growing to do and that size mass would not be a problem. For months the scan stayed the same 10%. During this time period I noticed Philip was throwing up some and sleeping a lot. I did take him back to the DR. And yes we did have a new DR. He told me he understood my fears but he really did think it was okay . He also said we would keep getting the scans every 6 weeks.

A few weeks later I went in to get Philip up and noticed he would cry out but not really wake up. I also noticed he was not eating good and seemed OFF. We did a emergency scan and found out the mass was back bigger then before. My heart sank.

As we were racing to the hospital I told Jim..atleast we know what to expect. Those were words that will haunt me forever. We had no idea what to expect. In fact I think that we were not prepared for anything. It was decided that he would need a shunt. The operation would be dramatic. They would need to go to the deepest part of the brain and separate it and move the main artery and get to the mass. It was to be a 5 hr operation. As I handed off my baby I had no idea that I should of held on a little tighter. I had no idea the changes he would go through. And I had no idea he would never be the same. I simply had no idea.

After 8 hrs we were called and told things got tricky. Then at 10 hrs we were told they called in a second Dr. Then at 13 hrs we were told that things were critical. Philip had two cardiac arrest on the table and was un stable. Finally after 17 hrs we saw our DR walk down the dark long hallway. He sat down and told us that he could not get to the mass and went past it. he had to go back and find his path. he said it was like cutting through a jungle and he was not sure what he had cut through. he said he did not expect Philip to wake up and if he did we would need to make some hard decissions...They called in the Chaplin and also we had his baptized.




The first time I walked in Philip's room after his operation I walked out. I did not know it was him. He had tubes in every part of his body. he was swollen because his kidneys had shut down and he was on full life support. I can not get that picture out of my mind. It haunts me. He was so little and so frail. My baby boy. How did this happen. How did I not know this would happen. I prayed to God non stop. Please just let him live and I will take him however we can have him. I have never prayed so hard in my whole life. For days he clung to life. I started to notice he only moved his one side. I mentioned it to the DR and they had noticed this also. Then one day when he had his eyes opened. I went to brush something away and he did not blink. I also noticed he never tracked. I sat down with Dr. Perez and told him my concerns. I was told that they felt that he had a
suffered a stroke and also was blind. they feared that his optic nerve had been cut . Isn't it odd that I can still remember the smell of the hallway and the sound of the shoes clicking on the floor as I just slid down the wall and cried. I cried like I have never cried before. I turned to god and asked him to please not keep Philip blind. I told God I knew I had said I would take him however he was but I so wanted him to see the world. I begged .

We were blessed in so many ways. Philip did get his site back after 17 day. It was decided he has swelling on his optical nerve . Philip did wake up and he lived. He had to learn to suck and swallow again. After 6 months in the peds ICU he finally went home with nursing care. After months of daily health care, physical and occipital therapy we started to work on finding our "normal".

Philip is our miracle. He has fought harder then I have ever seen anyone anyone fight to live. He has shown faith and courage on days I have felt like I could fall apart.

Philip has had over 19 brain operations, and 28 orthopedic operations. He has endured pain operations to try to help with his right leg bone growth and right arm growth. He has spent almost every holiday in the hospital and or healing from pain operations. He has cluster seizures and severe headaches. He has worked hard to find a way to try to make it through school and grown into a mature young man.He has since had to discontinue school. He is unable to go.

Last year Philip had a brain operation to replace a part of his shunt. A month later he becomes sick and we were finally sent to the Hospital. It was found that his shunt had a infection that had started in his stomach in his shunt tube and spread to his brain. He spent 4 weeks in ICU with drains in his brain and stomach. He also had to have two major brain operations. We were once again reminded just how fragile Life is and how blessed we are.

Dec of this year Philip woke up with pain in his left side.We gave him some meds and thought he had just pulled a muscle. His pain continued to get worse and we could not control it with meds. After numerous hospital trips and painful procedures...we did find that he has a syrnix in his spinal cord. This is in the area that control respiratory so it was decided this was a additional problem that was found but not causing his pain. After he developed weakness in his left arm and leg he was sent to a specialist. We were told Philip had a medical issues that was caused by his brain endings misfiring. Philip spent months on pain meds by mouth and injections and patches. Finally the decision was made that he would need to do a long term solution. Last May he had a special medical pump put in and a cath placed in his spine up into his brain. It delivers medication contuisely. Since it has been placed we have had to have the meds upped 10% and again by 15% and now 50%. We have had to add more meds by mouth to control his spasms and pain.

It is so hard to watch Philip suffer. It is even harder to watch his lose function in his left side. This is a condition that can not be cured only manged. The thought of Philip not able to use his right side due to his stroke and possibly losing the function in his left side is almost too much to watch. But as always we are right here by his side.

This past December I was diagnosed with Cancer. I can only hope to be as brave and strong as Philip is .

I know God blessed me when he picked Philip to be my son. It is a honor to be his mom.

Update for Philip...click here

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I hope you can take something away from this story as we have. Please make sure to visit the links to Amys blog as well as Philip's.

Now a a special letter to Philip from Amy....



Dear Philip...

I have so many thoughts going through my head. It is hard to even know where to start.

You have no idea just how very much I love you. From the very first time I saw your little heart beating on my ultrasound to the first time I saw you after delivery...and now as a young man. I feel like the most blessed women on this earth. When God picked out a son for me...he gave me the perfect one...YOU.

You have taught me so many life lessons. I have watched you struggle to live, struggle to breathe, struggle to crawl, roll over, speak and walk. And yet I have also watched you blossom in your faith as a young man. You are the strongest person I have ever known. And I am so proud to call you my son.

I can not even begin to tell you how amazed I am at your courage and strength. There have been so many times I have looked at you and wanted to take you and run as far away as possible. And if I could have I would of done it in a heart beat. You have suffered through 19 brain operations, strokes, shunts, pumps, therapies and now the awful Central nerve pain. You struggle everyday . I hate to see you in so much pain Watching you lose function in your right side was so hard. Now watching the same happen slowly in your left side, seems cruel.. If I could take it from you I would...I so wish I could.

I sometimes finding myself so confused with God. While I am so very thankful with God for saving your life and letting me have you with me each day. I am hurt with him that I watch your struggle everyday and I can do nothing to help you. As your mom I am suppose to be able to help you...or at least comfort you. Lately I feel like a failure in both areas.

I know God has a plan for you. I see such Grace all around you and our family.

Thank you for fighting so hard. I am honored to be your mother. And I love you so much . Please keep fighting and know I will never ever give up on trying to help you. I promise to be here with you till the very end.


Please visit the Briggs blog at http://ourdailyblessinglife-amyb.blogspot.com/ you can use this link.

Also visit Philip's site at http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/philipbriggs or click here for the link.

You can also click the picture of Philip with the dolphin in my left sidebar under the prayer column.

Please go and visit this family and shower them with your love and prayers!!


Love and Prayers,

Kayleigh is with Jesus

Many of us have followed this dear families journey and it is with great sadness in my heart that I tell you she lost her fight.



It is also with much happiness that I share that she is no longer in pain, and most importatnly is with our Lord.

Please visit the Freemans site and let them know that they are in your prayers. You can get there by clicking on the button above.

From The Fort to The Freemans:

We love you and will always have you in our prayers.

Kayleigh's life has touched so many. Her journey has meant so much to so many in such very special way. She will NEVER be forgotten. Her life will continue to live on in all of us.


Love and Prayers,

Prayer Request - One of Our Own

Michele and Tony Tomecko have been Prayer Soldiers here at Fort Thompson for a while now. While we normally find ourselves praying for others it is on this day that I ask you to pray for one of our own.

Today marks the 2 year anniversary of the birth of Nick and Kenny. Twins born at only 23 weeks gestation. They both weighed in at only 1 lb 7 oz. at 12 inches in length. While Kenny continues his journey, Nick was called home to be with our Lord two days later.

Please keep this family in your prayers on what will no doubt be a difficult day. Their family has touched us in a special way, and I know they will do the same for you. Please visit Michele and family at The Tomecko Echo and tell them you came from The Fort. All comments and prayers you leave them are greatly appreciated.

My Twin Pregnancy from michele tomecko on Vimeo.

Kenny still needs our prayers as he lives with Cerebral Palsy, Autism, lung disease, hearing loss, and eating problems just to name a few.



Again, please visit the Tomecko's and learn more about this amazing family and their story.

Please join us in praying for one of our own.

Love and Prayers,

Prayer Request

Hey ya'll!

I know that there is allot going on out there right now especially in our world of blog, so many still need our prayers.

I received a request that I wanted to post today from my great friend April at Deltakids. Her friend Emily fell from a ladder and fractured her skull. She is in very critical condition and is in desperate need of all our prayers. Please click the link above to Aprils site and let her know that you are praying for her friend Emily to open her eyes today, and let her know you are a prayer soldier from The Fort. She will really appreciate that and it will mean allot to us here at The Fort too.

While April has come to me to share this request to you, I want to also ask you to pray for her and Mike. They just lost a very good friend named Phil to cancer, so please pray for them during this time of loss.

I wanted to remind you that if you have a prayer request that you would like to share with the prayer soldiers here at Fort Thompson please email it to me. I also write for a social blog (Sited and Blogged) so it may also appear there.

Thank you all so much for praying.

Love and Prayers,

Prayer Request

Meet sweet, beautiful, and smart beyond her years Caroline. She is the beautiful daughter of my dear friend Alicia at Murry Mayhem. Alicia is one of the sweetest people I have ever met and I couldn't be more honored that God brought us together through the world of blog.



Caroline was diagnosed with Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura:

The exact cause of ITP isn't known. For that reason it's referred to as idiopathic — meaning "of unknown cause." It is known, however, that in people with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, the immune system malfunctions and begins attacking platelets as if they were foreign substances.

Antibodies produced by your immune system attach themselves to the platelets, marking the platelets for destruction. The spleen, which helps your body fight infection, recognizes the antibodies and removes the platelets from your system. The result of this case of mistaken identity is a lower number of platelets than normal.

A common cause of petechiae is a low platelet count (thrombocytopenia). Platelets are blood cells that play an important role in blood clotting. Causes of a low platelet count include:

§ Autoimmune disorders, such as lupus or rheumatoid arthritis
§ Viral infections, such as mononucleosis and measles (rubella)
§ Side effect of certain medications, such as chemotherapy drugs
§ Bone marrow disorders, such as leukemia
§ Infection of your bloodstream (septicemia, or "blood poisoning")

Caroline can have NO activity. NONE. She is not allowed to play outside. Period. She can't swing, ride a scooter or bike, she is only allowed to stay inside and color. She isn't allowed to just be a kid like the rest of her friends.

The petechiea is worse, a lot worse. And she has bruises all over her little body. If this keeps up, or she has any more nosebleeds that are hard to stop, then they will test for more serious diseases. And make no mistake she has a severe blood disease, that may or may not go away. If all goes well, she will get the all clear in about 8 months. But every time she gets any viral infection, she will be back to square 1.



So I am asking all of the Prayer Soldiers to keep this precious little girl and her family in your prayers. This is a very serious disease, however I have seen God heal things that were worse with the right amount of prayer. I will be praying non stop for my dear friend Alicia and her beautiful daughter Caroline.

Will you please pray with me?

Love and Prayers,

Living with Fear

I have debated since yesterday whether or not to write about this, and just now decided to do so because I need to ask for your prayers.

My day started Friday like any other. I went to the doctors office because I had been having some kidney pain and ended up bending over for a rectal exam. You will soon see the reason for my humor here. I have NEVER felt so violated in my entire life. Having a finger of someone else going were you no likey is no funny. I even asked her if she was going to at least take me out to eat or something and she just said "drop your pants and bend over!" I thought she was only going to look around a bit until I realized and said... OH OKAAAAY YOUR GOING IN!! This was not a fun visit to the doctors office but I did have to laugh a bit until..........

She asks me if colon cancer runs in my family. WAIT A MINUTE!!! What did you say? She asks again, does colon cancer run in your family? I cannot answer this question one because I cant speak and two because I am adopted and don't know what my family medical history is.

So she orders up a cat scan, and gives me the name of a GI that she wants me to see for some type of scope. You know a camera that ALSO like her finger gets to go to happy land. Right, more fun.

I mentioned that I would joke about this in the beginning of this post. This is just my coping mechanism I guess, because this does have me a little scared.

I'm not scared of dying, that I am very much ready for. Ok this is the hard part to write. I am NOT however ready to leave behind a 6 and 2 year old to live life without a Daddy. The thought of this KILLS me. No pun intended. I mean nothing is confirmed by any means, but just the thought of why they are looking into this because of what they think it is scares me silly.

As soon as I got out of the doctors office I was still very composed, however as soon as I called my wife I couldn't even speak a word. Tears prevented me from even getting a word out. She knew right away something was very wrong, and she was right. Its not even easy to write about in this post.

So until I have tests done Wednesday I will be living with some fear. Fear that there is a possibility that I may be about to enter the fight of my life. Fear that I could be leaving my beautiful bride alone. Fear of leaving my parents without a son. Fear of leaving a sister without a brother. And worst of all,fear that my kids might lose their daddy way to soon.

There is no fear of dying. For this I feel very prepared. Just a fear of not living for the benefit of a few that mean VERY much to me. So until the day comes when they tell me NO CANCER, yes I will be living with some fear. Not fear from this possible disease as I know it would be His will, but fear for those who need me the most.

I never thought the day would come when I would ask the Prayer Soldiers to pray for this person.

Will you pray for me? Please leave me a comment if you will.

Tears, Love, and Prayers Always,

Stellan's TV Interview

Stellan is doing a little better, but continues to need our prayers as his heart is still in SVT. Jennifer was interviewed by the local news affiliate tonight and that news package can be seen here.

Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.


Love and Prayers,

Critical Situation

Stellans heart is beginning to fail. His heart is still in SVT and not able to supply all of his little body with blood. There is no longer any pulse at all in his feet. His body is beginning to turn pale as his heart continues to fail. It is a miracle in itself that he has made it a week now in this condition.



A new treatment plan is being put into place now. There are no details on this new plan yet, however we hope something can still be done in time. By the way, today Stellan turned 5 months old.

I appreciate all of you who have left comments that you are praying with us for little Stellan. He needs our prayers now more than ever. Please continue to lift him up as well as his family, and leave a comment here to let all know that you are doing so.

Will you pray with us?

Love and Prayers,

Gavin Needs You! Update

God is so good, and Gavin is doing so much better that he didnt require a hospital stay this time. Thanks to all the prayer soldiers that prayed for Gavin. Please keep him in your prayers that he stays free of any more episodes.

Also, please make sure that you keep little Stellan in your prayers. He has been in SVT for almost a week now. How his little body is surviving without going into heart failure is beyond me. I am getting Jenn's twitters to my cell phone so I will let you know something as soon as I get the info.

Again, thank you so much for your prayers.

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Tonight there is a little boy who is very sick and in need of all our prayer. His name is Gavin and he has become very close to my heart over the last several months. He has too many conditions (many quite rare I think) too list here. I can say that most of his stomach is paralyzed which in itself causes enough problems. He has to take as many as 42 doses of medication daily just to get by. I urge you to click here to learn more about him from his mother Carla.

Most importantly, please pray for my little buddy Gav! Gavin needs me tonight...... and GAVIN NEEDS YOU! Please pray!


Love and Prayers,

Are You a Prayer Soldier?

Do you pray on a daily basis? Do you get on your knees with your children and show them how to talk to God while explaining the importance of it? Do you meditate in prayer over friends and family who are ill or facing adversities? Do you say a blessing before you eat?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you are a Prayer Soldier. We are all Soldier's in Christ's Army. However when we lift others up in His name we are Prayer Soldiers. We wage war against the enemy whether it be disease, finances, relationships, addictions, etc. The more of us there are the stronger our fight.

I know that many of you have seen thru prayer what kind of miracles are possible. So please grab the Fort Thompson Prayer Soldier button and proudly display it on your blog. Let others know that you too are a Prayer Soldier.

As prayer requests come in, all Prayer Soldiers will come together in prayer for the request that is made. Please feel free to email me with any of those friends or family of yours who might be in need of prayer.

I am also working in getting a subscription set up so you can have all prayer requests emailed to you as soon as they are posted. It is our hope that you will join us in prayer and grab your button today.

A special thanks to Hollie at The Drama Mamma (who designs everything at Fort Thompson) for the Prayer Soldier button she put together.

Let us all remember to pray.


Love and Prayers,

Prayer Request

I am calling on all Fort Thompson Prayer Soldiers to lift this family up right now where ever you might be reading this. Have all your friends and family join with you in prayer for these three girls. The following is a guest post from my very good friend Jill @ Sneaky Momma. Most of you know her.


I want to bring your attention to a new blogger whose family is in need of prayer. Kaleena McNabb has three daughters, all of which are currently being hospitalized for different conditions:

15 month old Delaney- has been hospitalized several times in her short life and is now battling pneumonia

5 year old Paisley-has bacterial pneumonia and the flu. She is severely dehydrated. Has a fever of 105 that will go down and come right back up. She also is vomiting so much that she is dehydrating as fast as they can pump her IV fluids in her. Her fever was so high it caused white spots on her teeth.

8 year old Destiny- has been hospitalized since Sunday for unexplainable loss of consciousness; possibly facing brain surgery

Would you join me in praying for this sweet family? Kaleena and her husband are overwhelmed (to say the least) with trying to be there for each of their girls. Stop by and leave them a comment if you get a chance. She has her laptop with her at the hospital and could use some love and support in this crazy time.

Please consider grabbing her button for your blog to let others know of her situation. They need all the prayer they can get.em>



Thank you so much Jill for sharing this families need with us. Please do take the time to post about this family on your blogs. If anything just put them on your prayer lists at church, your blog, where ever you might list prayer requests. It will also be much appreciated by Carey and I if you would go visit Kaleena @ McNabb Land and leave them a comment of support and let them know that you are praying for them.

Love and Prayers,

Attention Prayer Soldiers!

I'm calling out all Fort Thompson Prayer Soldier's tonight to pray for a little boy names Hudson. The following was written by a very good friend Hollie Anderson. Some of you may know her as The Drama Mama. These are her words:

Please fall on your knees and pray for our sweet friends, Amanda & Hunter and their little boy, Hudson. I do have some details, but I rather wait to post more until I speak with Amanda. But Hudson does that same vasovagal thing that Alexie does where they pass out, and evidently he had an episode of this earlier today and he would not come out of it (meaning he was unconscious and not breathing). He then started having seizures. Amanda had to call 911 and from what I understand, they had to work on him for quite some time before even leaving the house. They had to take him to the closest hospital to get him stable and then he will be (or was) care flighted to Children's. PLEASE pray for Hudson!Pray for wisdom in all the doctors and nurses working on Hud.Pray for Amanda as she waits for her family to join her (her husband was out of town at the time).Pray for peace and most of all healing!

So please keep this family in your prayers tonight. If you follow Fort Thompson and have read the Angels and Miracles post, then you know how sensitive I am about seizures. This family is heavy on my heart tonight and Hollie gave me permission to use her words. So please lift up this little boy and his family and I will update you as I receive word.

Thank you so much.

New Prayer Request! UPDATE!!!

Here is the latest word from Jennifer on her condition:

I shall not be blogging for the next few days. *sob* I just returned from the dentist, for those keeping track, that makes dental visit #4 in under 2 weeks. I have 2 dry sockets and infections. Needless to say I am in a lot of pain and need to rest up to regain some strength and fight off this infection.

Thank you for the thoughts, prayers, words of advise, and encouragement. I have read every one and they have all meant so very much to me.

I plan to spend the next few days in bed on pain medication and antibiotics, with the exception for trips to the dentist's office to have medicated pads changed in my two dry sockets. I will go through computer withdrawal I am certain.

I am asking all of the Prayer Soldier's out there to continue to pray for Jennifer. Thank you so much.

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Our good friend Jennifer at Rundpinne had all four wisdom teeth extracted and 13 others worked on last week. Many of you already know her as many of us follow the same blogs. She is one of the sweetest people you will ever meet. She is one who is so appreciative for all she has and treats everyone equally the same no matter who they are.

Since having this dental work done, she has developed dry socket. This is extremely painful as I have first hand experience. For those of you who don't know what it is read the following. If you do then continue past the italic definition.

As with any extraction of a tooth, some pain is to be expected, as the gums surrounding the former location will be damaged to a certain degree. This is especially so in extractions of impacted wisdom teeth, which may not have properly erupted; in these cases, the gums are cut open to allow access to the tooth, then sutured shut.

However, a dry socket typically presents as a sharp and sudden increase in pain commencing 2–5 days following the extraction of a mandibular molar, most commonly the third molar. It can also be accompanied by a foul taste or smell.[1][2]

The pain, which often radiates up and down the head and neck, can be extremely unpleasant for the patient. It will often cause pain in the ears as well. A dry socket is not an infection, and is not directly associated with swelling because it occurs entirely within bone — it is a phenomenon of inflammation within the bony lining of an empty tooth socket.

Wikipedia

Please keep Jennifer in your prayers. I am asking that not only the Fort Thompson prayer soldiers pray for her, but all whom read this post. Please also leave a comment here that you are praying, and if you can leave one on her blog that would be great as well. She is not able to get on the computer to respond, but knowing that many are praying will for sure make her feel better. Let her know that you were sent from The Fort!

God be with you Jenn! We are lifting you up in our prayers now.

A VERY Sad Day

Tears fill my eyes as I write this post:

Today baby Cora lost her fight with cancer and went to be with Jesus. Please continue to pray for this dear family who just lost their only child. Feel free to go by their blog and leave your condolences.

This is one of those times where we as a blogger community can come together in prayer for this family and ask that God grant them peace and comfort as they deal with this loss. Please pray for them.

Prayer Request *UPDATE*

Ok, now that I have my senses about me I can type this update. I went to the doctors office this morning, and while I almost lost consciousness while there, I did make it home.

I have a rare strain of the Influenza Virus that is extremely severe in its effects. I did not get to the doctor fast enough so I am not able to be administered the medicine needed to recover. It must be received within the first 48 hours. Therefore as my doctor put it "your just gonna have to suck it up" and these were her exact words.

Thank you to all of you who have prayed for me. It means more than you will ever know. Hopefully I can recover from this thing pretty quickly, but for now, its just kickin my butt.

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I cant remember when I was ever as sick as I am right now, and I've had to endure pneumonia before. Please keep me in your prayers, I see my doctor today.

God Bless

Update on Harper

Here is the newest update from Kelly on baby Harper. Please continue to pray for them.


I wanted to give you a little glimpse at my future Miss Arkansas!
These are the best pictures we have of her right now because we have to be careful not to stimulate her by touching her or talking too loud or using a flash. We will get a MILLION pictures of her once she gets good and healthy - but for now we just want her to get well.



We think she is the most precious thing we've ever seen. I love her so much. I just can't wait for the day I can hold her and sing to her and feed her and dress her and play with her!

I'm sorry we are just now getting an update to you. My parents and I got to Tulsa about 5 yesterday. We were immediately greeted by a sweet couple who live in the area and had read my blog and had been in our situation and just wanted to comfort us and let us know they were thinking of us - they brought us a big bag of snacks and magazines and necessities. We took their picture but I'm having technical difficulties. Kuykendalls - thank you so much! Our Sunday School teachers came and sat with Scott most of the day yesterday and brought us a lot of things to help us as well. That was such a comfort to Scott.
And then out popped my blog friend Caroline and her mother! They had driven from Dallas all the way to see me. I had always hoped we would meet in real life one day and never dreamed it would be this way but we were so blessed to have them come and it just gave us a HUGE lift. (I am SOOOOOOOOO swollen from all the fluids I was given and from crying for the last 2 days - so excuse the way I look) (not that it matters).
We have had SO many people who have read my blog and are in the area bring us flowers and letters and cards and just give us encouragment. You hopefully know who you are and I hope to thank you somehow. We are overwhelmed with the outreach of so many people. I haven't had a chance to read all of my comments and e-mails. I may not respond to you right now but I want you to know that we have cried a thousand tears over how much each and every word of encouragment and prayer has meant to us. Know that we are SO eternally grateful. We would never be able to bear this if we didn't know we were covered in prayer.

We are waiting to hear from the doctor today and I will let you know what he says. Right now she is still stable but in VERY critical condition. They think she could be having heart issues. We may have a very long road ahead of us but we believe that God is going to heal our baby and He is going to use her in a very mighty way. We know God says in the Bible that when two or more agree in His name - He will answer. And we know we have 2 or 3oo,ooo people praying for us. Our prayer is that all who pray for Harper will see God's might and power and His love in the miracle we know He is going to do for us.

We love you all - whether we know you or not. Please keep praying.

Please visit Kelly's site, there is a button a little further down this post, and a link to Kelly's Korner in my blog roll.

Tim





*******UPDATE*******

Update from Kelly

11:30 Saturday

Praise Jesus for He is good!!! Scott just called to tell me that he just went to see Harper and the nurse said she is not even on the list for bypass (ECMO) because the doctor thinks she is responding so well to what they are doing she may not even need it. We were told in not so many words yesterday that she may not survive at all and because of so many prayers all over the world - she is improving hour by hour. We have had so much kindness shown to us over the last 24 hours - I can not even begin to tell you. Scott has had several people that we don't know but who read our blog come to see him and even brought him things. He just called me crying because he couldn't believe the kindness we have been shown. It's so overwhelming. Our whole family has cried so much because of the overwhelming kindness of friends and strangers. It certainly has encouraged us to do more for others ourselves.



Update from Kelly: Email she just sent me at 11:30am CST Saturday

Thank you SOOOOOO much - we feel God's blessings on us already - she is improving hour by hour!

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Please be in prayer for the Stamps family. Their precious girl Harper was born weighing in at well over 9 lbs. but is having some very serious problems. Kelly is a PK like me and they are a very strong Christian family that is in desperate need of our prayers. Please pray for them. They are at St. Francis in Tulsa which is the same hospital that Carey gave birth to Taylor in.

Please visit their site and send them you love as well as let them know that Harper is in your prayers. You can also read a bit about Harper on Angie Smiths site.