Daily Battles with progress

Kelsey is only 3 1/2 years old but she has been my faithful companion in caring for little Lonia at the hospital. The hospital is very kid friendly. She goes right to the room with me. They bring her toys, videos to watch and even ice cream. She keeps me company while I sit with Lonia, feeding her, holding her comforting her, changing her and constantly praying for her. I am so glad she is able to be with me. Wilckly is still in Haiti, holding the fort there. Ashley is in Iowa with Grandma Reta and can hardly wait for us to get there. We are very anxious to see her too. We miss her a lot. She is keeping busy though. She's riding bikes, camping and fishing at the Lake of Three Fires, swimming when the summer Iowa winds and temperatures aren't below zero for a little Haiti girl with thin blood and playing with her cousins. We hope God will have us back together soon.
Thursday was very tiring. We were praying for Lonia to come home from the hospital on Thursday of Friday. All day Thursday she would not eat or take any liquids by mouth. I tried hard to coax her to eat. She finally downed some red jello and a little water. In a matter of moments though it all came back up. What great nurses we have. They take splendid care of us and were there in seconds to help me clean it all up clear down to her IV. We were really careful as the evening before the IV came out and it was a terrible battle to get it back in. Dr. Gates came about four. I had been there with Kelsey since 9 a.m. He told me to go on home and he would personally sit with Lonia, which he did for the next four hours. He finally had them put the feeding tube in for her which she had not had. I personally think he sent Kelsey and I home so we wouldn't have to witness that. We were all a little down when he got home. He also had them x-ray her stomach to make sure there were no other blockages causing her to throw up everything. He found nothing thank goodness.

4th of July in Sacramento, California found us at the hospital with Lonia. She has so many hook ups it's not funny but Kelsey is not scared of her. She hugs and kisses her and sings songs to her in Creole which makes Lonia smile. It was a big celebration for us as Lonia took food with her own hand and put it into her mouth to eat. Kelsey and I were so happy. We sang in Creole and everyone thought we were nuts, those who know us well know that this is so true. We sang, "Mesi Bondye, Lonia manje, Mesi Bondye, Lonia manje. Lonia manje, lakay nou prale." This means, Thank you God, Lonia is eating, Thank you God, Lonia is eating. She is eating, We are going HOME!!!!" End of song. I tried to think of foods she would like or be used too. I told them to bring a banana, some plain white rice, and some plain spaghetti noodles. She loved the banana. She wouldn't even let me cut it up smaller. She wanted the whole thing. It was such a precious sight and such a great relief to see her finally eating. She dug into the spaghetti with both hands full. We pray she had a good night. Everyone is exhausted, so exhausted that Kelsey slept through the loud fireworks that we went to see. It was a good ending to a great day. Everyone is resting this morning. The specialist is coming in to size the colostomy bags for us and order the right size. She will be giving me more lessons on cleaning it, putting it in place and emptying it. I have paid close attention to the nurses and doctor as they have done it so hopefully I will get the hang of it. Keep praying and thank you all so much for your concerns, emails and calls. They are very much appreciated. Please continue to keep Wilckly and all of our Haitian staff in your prayers as they continue the work and development there and prepare for another school year to begin.
Dee