Ella is stable but still not in a good place. There having problems drawing blood which is critical is assessing her condition. They tried at 2am with no success. There going to try again shortly. If you are up at this hour please pray for a successful draw. Please also pray that Ella’s pain will be minimized and that this obstruction will resolve without surgery.

Please also pray for peace and rest for Tina and myself.

Thanks for the support.

While our working trip to California has been enjoyable, it’s had its fair share of challenges. None of them greater though than what we’ve gone through in the last 36 hours.

Long story short: Ella’s in the hospital. A short time ago she was admitted to CHOC with symptoms of a bowel obstruction. The contrast x-Ray confirmed what we had seen before. The kiddo is very backed up.

The challenge here though is dealing with a medical system that is unfamiliar compounded with the fact of our complicated little girl.

36 hours ago we were at the Pachanga RV resort. Close to Tina’s mom. Ella spent the entire day being inconsolable. We tried all the tricks we knew, but nothing worked.

At 4:30am we packed up the rig and headed to a satellite location of Childrens Hospital in Laguna Niguel. Two failed IV attempts later plus lack of diverse resources, they recommend we transfer to CHOC.

After dealing with transport drama, we make the decision to move Ella ourselves. Mind you, our only mode of transportation is the RV.

We drive north to CHOC. Ella’s admitted. They get an IV placed in her arm, and now we start the multi-day process of letting her system clear out.

No word yet if this blockage is more serious than before, but we’ll see.

Were all totally wiped out. A little scared thinking she needed surgery tonight.

Holding off on surgery for now. In the PICU in a wait and see mode. Thanks for the prayers.

P.S. Sorry for the scare with the short post. It didn’t all come through on my phone.

Hey there Ella Fans! It’s been awhile since I (Ella’s dad) threw a post out there. I wanted to share a special moment with you.

Overall, life has been challenging with some days being better than others. I’m guessing that statement really sums up where a lot of families are right now.

October and November of last year were solid for my consulting business, but during the December holidays the work screeched to a halt. Not totally unheard of for that time of year, but the hope of things really picking up in January stalled quite a bit. Between the lack of consistent work and other family challenges, some of which Tina has posted about, it can really take a toll on your emotions and even your faith.

We took some video of Ella this last Monday, the 25th of January. This was after a day of going over our budget and discussing the direction we should take in life. It can be overwhelming to look at the storm going on around you and in those moments it’s easy to forget to keep your eyes on Christ. You find yourself starting to sink in the water with the waves crashing all around you…

….but peace was found in God affirming how awesome our little miracle is:

Above was the first day of her really crawling…below is the next day…

Thank you Lord for never leaving or forsaking us. Thank you for reminding us that you are always there and will never abandon us. We praise you for this sweet, amazing, wonderful, miracle of a child you have blessed us with. May our eyes continue to remain fixed on you, because we know that when we do, your peace is more powerful than any storm that surrounds us.

Ella was having some trouble with her feeds the last 24 hours. We started the process of consolidating her feeds down from five per day, with a goal of eventually three feeds per day.

We started yesterday and she took the first increase alright, but the next one she was more uncomfortable. The final one for the day pushed her over the edge and she was very inconsolable (lasted an hour and a half last night). Normally if we increase her volume per feed she will just push it back out and settle down. This time was different. She was experiencing labored breathing and acting like she was in some kind of pain which is not typical with feeds.

This morning, Ella woke up in a great mood. She didn’t fuss at all during bath time and overall was real happy, that is, until we began feeding her. She started behaving very strange and fussed in a way that is not normal.

After she calmed down, we packed up the car and headed downtown to run some errands. On the drive, I could really hear Ella breathing behind me in the car seat with labored breathing, which is not normal. This was also concerning. When it was time for her next feed, we decided to take it very slow and only give her 100ccs of food. She lost it immediately and was very inconsolable.

So, we now find ourselves in the ER.

They assessed her, took a chest and belly x-ray, and placed an IV. She’s not running a fever, nothing too glaring on her x-ray, and her blood work came back fine. To be safe though, they want to watch her overnight and do a upper GI study and small bowel series sometime tomorrow.

Nothing says home like a good nights rest at the Children’s Hospital.

We’ll update once we know more. G’Night all.

What an incredibly fun way to cap off two amazing years of the Bun’s life. We took Ella to the Zoo for the first time and she really enjoyed herself…actually, we all really enjoyed ourselves. Ella didn’t fuss once the entire trip even with the 95+ degree heat! Yes, we chose to go the the zoo on the hottest day we’ve had in awhile, but even with the heat it was still a great time.

Afterward, we headed over to Grandpas house for the birthday festivities including cake, decorations, present opening, and singing of the birthday song (which is included below in video form). It was neat to have family around to celebrate Ella’s special day.

And here are some close up pics of Ella’s first doll. We think she really liked her. =)

These years have flown by so quickly, I just can’t believe that the Bun is two! We have been incredibly blessed by this precious girl and yet these last couple years have been the most challenging times of our lives. Ella Renae is such an amazing kiddo, and it absolutely blows my mind to hear how other lives have been impacted by her journey. Praise God for this sweet child.

Thank you for being here each day, praying for us and with us, and for caring and loving our miracle girl. We look forward sharing Ella’s progress in the coming years.

Thank you Jesus for this amazing gift of a child. Through all the struggles, there has been incredible blessing. Bless Ella Renae and continue to heal her body. May she grow strong physically and mentally and may all that she does in her life be glorifying to you. You are an awesome God, and we praise you for the life you have given us. In your Holy name I pray….amen.

Ella had a good day and did well during her therapies. We’re all a bit wiped out though because it’s been a sad day for us. We had to put one of our cats down.

We knew something hadn’t been quite right for awhile. It wasn’t until the last few weeks when she had some dramatic weight loss and other symptoms that pointed to kidney failure that we knew it wouldn’t be long. We agreed that at the first sign of her starting to suffer, we would do the humane thing. Well that was today…and she’ll be missed. Every night for the last few years she would come up and “say goodnight” to me by giving me those rough tongue kisses on my nose. Pumps was such a sweet cat…even non-cat people liked her. Goodbye Pump-a-tudis.

So for whatever reason today, Ella decided to be a super duper pooper producer. Holy moly what a good time..heh. After the 4th diaper change I gave her a bath, cleaned her bed, and let her hang out in her almost birthday suit. I think she enjoyed it as shown in the video.

It’s been a good few days alone with the Bun, but we’re anxious for mom to come back. Ella and I head to the airport tomorrow morning to pick her up. It’ll be nice to have momma home.

Big day for Ella’s grandma…she turned the big 6-0…err I mean she’s 45..yeah…45. 😉 Happy Birthday to my mom, Lynn, the Bun’s grandma.

Also…thanks to all who are lifting up the Keirseys in prayer. Avery is far from out of the woods, but it looks like she doing a bit better. Please continue to pray for this precious family.

Ella’s grandpa came over for lunch today. We had a good time catching up. And then our dear sweet sitter Megan came by to watch the Bun this afternoon so I could have a break. I escaped by grabbing a bite at Chick-fil-A and went to see a movie. Last time I saw a flick in a theater was over a year ago in Gainsville. It was a nice break.

Ella has behaved herself today. She pitched a bit of a fit during bath time this morning, but that’s to be expected from our drama girl.

Lisa asked about Ella taking out her cannulas. It’s funny because the only time they really come out is by accident. Ella will actually try and put them back in her nose if she can. You figure for her she’s always had them in there. Maybe it’s like wearing a seat-belt. When I was kid they were optional, so I didn’t always think about it. But now, it’s actually uncomfortable without that strap across my chest.

Glad the Bun is doing pretty good these days. Praise God for her precious life.

P.S. Please continue to pray for the Keirseys. Avery has really struggled with some fluid issues over the last few days. I hope and pray they find a treatment that will help this sweet child.

Bun and I had a good day, but we’re both missing mommy. Counting the moments ’till shes home.

I have a prayer request this evening. Please lift up this beautiful family and their precious daughter Avery. She’s an amazing CDH baby that has had a journey similar to Ella, including other heart complications, and is currently dealing with fluid issues. Pray for Avery’s strength, the family’s peace, and wisdom for the doctors.

Heavenly Father, we lift up this sweet child to you and ask that you keep her stable and give her strength to come through this. May your peace wash over the family, and may you give discernment and wisdom to all doctors involved so that they may assist her body to heal. Thank you Jesus for this life and the family’s testimony. In your name we pray…Amen.

Yup…that’s right…Dad’s on Bun watch full time for the next few days. Tina’s on a mini vacay, off to see her best friend in Texas. I just got off the phone with her; She let me know that the flight was uneventful and she’s really enjoying the weather. I’m not sure if she said “enjoying” exactly, but there was something about the 98 degrees at 9pm plus tons of humidity when she arrived. Sounds nice to me. =)

So far, the Bun has behaved herself, and I plan to try and behave myself too. Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers related to the job situation. We’ll see how things go in the coming weeks.

Thank God for where he has us today, and for sweet Ella Bun’s overall health. She is pretty pickin’ cute!