Dear ones,

Andrew has pneumonia and a kidney stone. "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, and the Lord delivers him out of them all". We pray that Andrew's deliverance will be out of his sickbed and into the life he enjoys again.

Love,
Laura

Thank you for praying. Andrew's scan was clear, and he has developed a urinary tract infection. That could account for at least part of his rough day. I'm told that is not uncommon in a bed ridden patient. David is recovering well at home, and Sarah and Baby Boy are fine as well. Thank you for bearing our burdens with us.

Laura

Hello, all,

Please pray for Andrew fervently. His oxygen level is down, and doctors are doing a catscan now to see what is the problem.

Laura

Andrew stayed on something called c-pap all weekend. This is a good step off of the ventilator. Please pray for that to continue. Pray for Jim and me to be strong for Andrew and the rest of our dear family. Also, I desire to "be anxious for nothing", not an easy thing under the best of circumstances. Pray especially for David tomorrow, as he has a minor health problem to be taken care of.

I appreciate you all,
Laura

Walking

Tonight, Andrew walked 5 steps forward and backward for 15 minutes. He does so well with his dad. I told him he's a most remarkable physical therapist, not to mention father and husband. Vent weaning is going forward. Please pray that we will know where to take Andrew for intensive rehab when the time is right.

Love,
Laura

Thank you for your prayers and calls concerning Andrew's attitude toward therapy. Today, it took a good turn, so keep it up! The vent progress continues forward at a snail's pace. A thousand years is but a day for God, I keep reminding myself.

Tomorrow, Thomas, Emily, Samson, Laura Belle and Baby are coming. Our families are such blessings.

Love to all,
Laura

Dear ones,

The respirator weaning is going VERY SLOWLY but in the right direction.We have a new prayer request. Andrew is not going to like reading this in the future. He is very partial to southern women and always has been. Most of his very nice therapists do not fit into this category. Consequently, he may be "playing possum" in his therapy sessions. Please pray that he will participate and benefit in every way with his occupational, physical and speech therapy. Thank you for your continuing prayers. I love to hear about them.

Love,
Laura

Good morning, all! Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. Now that Andrew is more awake, we are busy all of the time with him. He throws his legs over the side of the bed and pulls out the vent when no one is looking. Very scary, but supposedly good signs, they tell me. His youthful friends will appreciate the movie David finally found that has kept his full attention, Princess Mononoke? "Chinese cartoons" his nurse calls it.

My sister Anne is here for the weekend, and it's a great help, especially since someone needs to be with him all day. He has indicated to us that he remembers his college major, his job, numerous friends' faces and about 8 emotions, especially frustration. Leigh's friend Kym has given us numerous helpful suggestions for how to give him ways to convey his wants.Communication continues to be difficult, and we're trying a sensitive mouse today with the computer. Our pattern of health and awareness seems to be a good day, a bad day and a couple of neutral days. So, you can see the speed of progress.

Please pray that he will be weaned off of the vent. That is still our #1 holdback as far as communication, strength and mobility, I believe. Pray for Baby ? and Emily who has 165 days until her due date. Also, pray for Baby Boy and Sarah who has just over 60 days to her due date. Yesterday, she had a short-lived attack but was able to control it at home. I'm very thankful for your concern and prayers.

Love,
Laura

We've had an enormous day at the hospital. Andrew typed his name on the computer this morning. Tonight, he stood by the bed with Jim's support for 3 minutes! What an encouragement! Thank goodness for fathers. Andrew's been trying to get out of bed all afternoon, and I've been explaining how that's a bad idea. Jim said okay, let's do it. Tonight, I told Anne that very few people are privileged to see miracles, and I hope she'll never forget.

Thank you so much for your prayers.

Love,
Laura

The Respirator

As you all may have figured, the respirator is Andrew's most important challenge to beat at this point. Once he's off of it, he will be open to more therapy options. We were told recently that this weaning proccess normally takes weeks upon weeks to accomplish fully. Perhaps this will give you all a better idea of how to pray for him in the coming weeks as well as keep us all from hoping faster than Andrew can realistically keep up. A day or two off the respirator is great but only a baby step. We are asking the Lord to continue to strengthen him and give us patience as we wait for him to be restored more fully.

Dear loved ones,

As you know, we've been too busy to update, but I've been lifted by your prayers and support. Sarah is continuing to do well at home. Pray for "Baby Boy" to grow big and strong for 76 more days. Sarah needs her rest and plenty of fat free calories, if there is such a thing. Mr. Ted Richey is recovering well at home after his surgery.

My sister Leigh Lucas is here for the weekend, and it's a great blessing. Andrew is back on the vent for a few days. It was too tiring for him to breathe on his own, so he will rest over the weekend and start again on Monday. He thoroughly enjoyed a new Josh Groban cd tonight. He probably needs a little down time from all of our stimulating him.

Thank you for showing your love and concern for us in so many ways. I appreciate all of you and hope to meet you all some day.

Laura

Progress

Andrew has made wonderful progress these last few days. The respiratory therapist has taken him off the respirator during the day both today and yesterday. He handled it very well. He is back on it at night to ensure a good rest. In the afternoons he is placed in a chair for a few hours with a strap to be sure he stays up. He continues to lift his arms, make faces and stay awake for longer periods of time. Please pray that Andrew will not be frustrated or too worn out by his therapy and the current hindrances to communication (his respirator and tracheaotomy).
I (Sarah) am home from the hospital and currently pain free. Doctors are hoping the pain can be managed long enough for baby to grow more before surgery is necessary. They've given me medicine for flare ups and put me on a low-fat diet to help prevent them in the first place. Please pray I will be able to carry this baby to full term without pain from my gallbladder.
Thanks again for all your prayers and support.
~Sarah

Andrew's Sister: Sarah Richey-Update

Sarah is at St. Francis in Monroe, LA. We have been there since very early Sunday morning. As Mrs. Laura said in her previous post, she has gallstones. Being 28 weeks pregnant they don't want to do the very routine procedure of removing her gallbladder until she has the baby. One of the main factors in contemplating surgery is her pain level and persistence. We thought we might be discharged today(Monday), but her pain flared back up. Right now she is perky and comfortable with some "drugs." We are taking it day to day, as to what we might want or need to do. Please pray for her health. My parents were good nurses and comfort yesterday and today and Mrs. Laura is currently here with Sarah in Monroe. "Little Guy" inside of Sarah is doing well. The nurses listen his heartbeat every couple of hours and it usually is very fast with frequent kicking being noticeable. We did get to see him in an ultrasound of her gallbladder. He was grabbing his ankle and moving all around.

Please continue to pray for Wisdom for us and the doctors. Peace to sleep and rest despite the temptation to worry and overthink. Also, pray for my father, Ted Richey, who is having abdominal surgery on Wednesday. The Lord is good and has been merciful to us in many ways known to us and many that we aren't aware.

-Jarrod Richey
(Andrew's Brother-in-Law)

Dear friends and relations,

We have had a good sabbath with Andrew. Tonight, one of his doctors came in and asked if he wanted to watch football. Those of you who know him well will not be surprised to hear that he made a terrible face! I've never been so glad to see a dirty look in all my life! My great friend Pam Womack is here for a few days to help in every way.

We have another very important prayer request. Our daughter Sarah is 6 months pregnant and has gallstones. She is in the hospital for observation and treatment for pain. Pray for her and "Baby Boy". The best answer to prayer would be to wait until after baby is born to do the surgery. Thank you for all of your prayers for my three loved ones.

Love,
Laura

Resting

Please keep emailing! I come in at night and check the computer for your
words of encouragement. It means so much. Andrew had a neutral day, Jim
says. Yesterday was so busy, it seems he needed a day off. Anne is reading
The Magician's Nephew to Andrew. Next Tuesday, Feb. 6, she will be 12. She
is a wonderful young lady and a great sister.

Our next big goal is to be weaned off of the respirator. Andrew seems to
respond to men the best. Any of you men with a little spare time, we would
love to see you. We are in room 519 at Rapides Regional. I appreciate all of
you.

Love,
Laura