Meetings, Meetings, and more Meetings...

Today wasn't as great as we were hoping, as evidenced by the fact that we are still in the hospital.  And after a minor meltdown on my part, we finally have a new plan.
Carter's EEG is showing a lot of seizure activity which in and of itself is worrisome, but the other problem we are having is that between seizures his brain activity is still abnormal.  We hope that the same medication that will control his seizures will control the other brain activity but we aren't sure...and we have to control the seizures first!  So here we wait, watching out boy and trying new medications.  The last 12 hours he's been REALLY out of it, only having brief moments of lucidity.  Thankfully that medication is wearing off and hopefully after a good night's sleep (and the new medication we'll start tonight) he will be a little more awake and vibrant tomorrow.
But we spent the day talking with lots of doctors about all of our options.  Since he doesn't fit in any box, and he isn't responding to "standard" protocols we are having to think outside the box and come up with solutions on our own.  Where's Dr. House when you need him?
But after meeting with pediatricians, hospital neurologists, radiologists, clinical neurologists, and pharmacists we have something new to try and hope to at least get a clue what direction to go in. It means we will be here at least 3 more days, but we hope and pray to be home for Valentine's day.  Keep us in your prayers and thanks for the love, concern and service we have received.  We are so indebted we could never repay you all.  Thanks!

Sunday's Wild Ride

We had great hopes this morning that things would have normalized and we would be on our way home by dinner time.  However, Carter had another bout of constant brain-wide seizure activity this morning and so we were set back a day.  We have started some new medication that hopefully, in tandem with his current prescription, keep out boy's brain quiet so that we can get some sleep tonight and be home for lunch tomorrow, fingers crossed.  I'll let you know how it goes in the morning.
And a quick thank you to all the wonderful ward members who helped Christopher in nursery today.  You are a God-send and a great big reason why we are grateful to live exactly where we do.

Update- Saturday morning

Last night Carter got a visit from Dad and sisters!  How exciting! It was short because children aren't allowed here during cold and flu season, but it seemed to regenerate his spirit and it was great to hug my girls!   Makes you realize how important it is for your family to be TOGETHER, something I think we take for granted so often.
Unfortunately, Carter had a rough morning, having as many as 15 seizures in 1 hour!  The EEG results are telling us that his neurons are firing all over the brain and constantly.  What this means is that we need to stop all the activity so that we can continue to treat.  So he got some medication to quiet his brain and hopefully help us to determine where all of this activity is originating so that we can learn how to stop it at the source.  We are increasing his medication today and hopeful that if it works we won't have to add a secondary medication.  Fingers crossed for an uneventful afternoon...we won't know more until tomorrow afternoon more than likely as changes can take 24 hours to take effect.  Keep the prayers coming and we love you all!

Carter's Adventures at PCMC

Just before christmas Carter decided to liven up life around here by developing seizures.  They started out short and separated by longer intervals, however that got too predictable for out little guy so he has decided to have many different types of seizures at many different times.  It became necessary this week for us to be admitted to Primary Children's Medical Center (PCMC) in SLC for continuous monitoring to give the doctor's a chance to try and get these episodes under control.  While seizures are not fun for anyone, the only medical problems that have arisen from them have been a couple of bumps on the head.  Nevertheless we feel it is important to be at the hospital to give Carter the best chance of overcoming this little setback so he can continue with his boistrous life! While we are here he is being continuously monitored and his medication is being tweaked.  

So far being at PCMC has been wonderful!!!  Its almost like being on a cruise!  Seriously!  They have an activity cart that brings art and crafts around (hence the painting he did), room service anytime with anything you want, as much as you want, for FREE (for the patient only, of course), playrooms and movies for free and even and XBOX 360 in every room.  Plus there are volunteers that do everything from music therapy to bringing a dog around to play and do tricks with your kid.  Its AWESOME!  We are so lucky to have such a great children't hospital only an hour away!
And speaking of things to be grateful for, we are so grateful to you, our family and friends, for the love and support and offers of help, not to mention all the care packages and balloons.  We are truly humbled by how many people have reached out to us in the last 24 hours and want to help out family during this "inconvenient" time.  We love you all and are forever indebted to you.  Thank you also for your prayers on our behalf as we feel the comfort of the Spirit with us continuously.  Thank you!
P.S. And for those of you wondering, we will be here at least through Sunday, possibly into next week.  It just depends on how he reacts to the medications.  Christopher is fortunate to be able to work from home and he'll spend Saturday with his parents and us here at PCMC.  We'll just have to see what Monday brings for us.

2012 Christmas Letter

Dear Family and Friends,
We hope this Christmas season finds you safe and warm and surrounded by loved ones.  We have been very fortunate this year and have been busy doing and learning some really fun things.  So here's a break down.
Christopher hit his 1 year mark with Health Equity this summer and is continuing to love working for this company.  He is now the Director of Consulting Sales and his favorite part about it is the presenting/speaking he gets to do.  He's been busy this fall traveling for work and while he enjoys the little trips he's glad most of them are short and don't keep him away from home for long.  After a year of teaching the 16 year olds at church we were released this summer and made the new nursery leaders.  Unaccustomed to spending so much time with so many little ones, Christopher is grateful for the help of the other leaders (especially his wife) and the time he gets to spend each Sunday with Carter.
Alyssa (6) had a fabulous first year at Odyssey Charter School and waited impatiently all summer for 1st grade to begin this fall.  She has turned into a good little reader, and while she is very good at math her favorite subject is core knowledge where she gets to learn about different cultures.  So far she has enjoyed learning about ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, World Religions (Islam, Christianity and Judaism), and most recently the Mayan civilization.  She is our little scientist and participated in the Mad Science club after school this fall.  At home she is busy being a great big sister, playing with friends, and watching The Universe with her Daddy.  We love having her in our family and keeping us on our toes!
Mikayla (4) is in her second year of Preschool at Lindon Elementary.  She is growing and becoming quite the conversationalist.  She started ballet this fall and loved doing her cat dance for us.  Mikayla continues to be a light and angel to all and she is surrounded by special boys her age that she is so patient and kind with that they all just love her, although she only has eyes for Finn and spends a lot of her time talking about when she grows up she's going to marry him.  She loves to play with her little brother and the sound of the two of them giggling together just makes my heart melt!   What an angel we were blessed with!
Carter (2) is all boy.  He loves running and climbing and tacking and any type of ball or truck or animal that goes ROAR!  Blessed with a happy disposition, he is constantly smiling and cheerful and such a great snuggler.
Rebecca is busy as a mother, a wife, and a friend who most days feels like a cruise director.  Happy to have spent time with her family this summer in DC for her sister's wedding and looking forward to our big roadtrip to Texas for Christmas with grandma and grandpa Williams.  Oh, and always on pinterest! Sundays have been busy with choir rehersals for two choirs, Rebecca's favorite part of the Christmas season continues to be her participation in Christmas in the Grove.
As we look back on 2012 we count our blessings and know they are abundant.  We are most grateful for our amazing neighborhood and wonderful ward, our friends new and old who enrich our lives, the gospel of Jesus Christ, and of course each other.  Family really is everything so we can truly say, "We've got it all!"
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year
Love,
The Woods

Mikayla's Official School Portrait

Mikayla's official school portrait for her second year of preschool.  The sad thing for me is how often she asks when she will get to go to kindergarten, or when she will get to go to Alyssa's school.  Its going to be hard on this mom next year.  But these girls sure do love each other and want to be together, so who can complain?  I'm so proud that this year when you ask who is smart she says, "Mikayla!" instead of always saying "Alyssa" like she has in the past.  Here's to a great school year!

1st Day of School

August 20, 2012 was Alyssa's first day of 1st Grade and boy!  was she excited!  She couldn't sleep the night before for all her anticipation.  Anyway, she looked fantastic.  Mikayla told us she was going to miss Alyssa when we dropped her off, which was really sweet.  And when I picked up Aly and asked how her day went she responded, " Best day ever!!"  and when I asked about her teacher she said, "Best teacher in the world!!"  So I think we shall have a successful year. (fingers crossed)
Odyssey Charter School, Ms. East's class:

August 28, 2012 was Mikayla's first day of Preschool.  Her second year at Lindon Elementary, Special Ed Preschool with Mrs. Jennifer Nelson and many, many aides and therapists.  Thanks for all the staff does so this little girl can keep developing strong muscles and a strong mind--she already has a very strong heart!

Ironically Christopher was able to take both of these girls to school on their first days because he was leaving on business trips and had a later flight.  And to celebrate (and not cook dinner) Mommy took us all out to Costa Vida for dinner each time.

What about Carter you ask?  He gets time at home with Mom, which he isn't sure what to do with.  The first day we dropped Mikayla off he cried and said, "Jo-Jo go bye."  But I think he's getting used to it now, although he plays so hard its not unusual to find him on the floor like this: