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Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Progress...sooooo much progress!

So sorry for the delayed post but so much has happened! Cohen had a very productive and progressive weekend. During the day he was able to leave the hospital and hang out at home and go to Brayden's birthday party, then at night he had to go back to the Children's Center to sleep. He had made so much progress on his speech and using his right arm and right leg that Monday morning Sheena was ready to talk to the doctor.

The doctors and staff at the Children's Center were in complete agreeance with Sheena and Jesse that Cohen was making such great progress at home that he can be released from inpatient care at the facility.
What does this mean? COHEN IS HOME!!!!! :) He will still go during the day for a couple hours of physical therapy and speech therapy but he is home, he is home he is home! Last night they all got to sleep in their own beds and in the comfort of their home. Your prayers, love and support have impacted this family more than you will ever know and they are so excited to report that he is doing so well. He has been talking and interacting so much with his brothers and everyone and he has crawled and supported his weight with his right arm as well as walked with assitance from his therapist from therapy back to his room.

Here he is on his way home:


Keep praying for this precious boy and the family. We know it will be a long road but there is definately light at the end of the tunnel! Thanks for your prayers, love and support!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Homebound for the weekend!

Today Sheena and Jesse met with the staff at the Children's Center andthey are allowing them to go home for the weekend and check back in on Monday! Cohen got to see his brothers for the first time yesterday and he had the biggest smile I have seen from him in a long time. Here is a little snip of what happened when he saw his buddies:




Kisses for Brayden!

He is doing better every day and working hard to recover. Keep praying for strength in his right side and for his speech. We love you all.
Thanks!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Pack up your bags for the big move!

Just got word that Cohen will be transferring to the Children's Center in Bethany tomorrow. There they will work with him on Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy, and Occupational Therapy. They also have some training for Sheena and Jesse to learn how to keep working with him once he gets home. This is such a huge step for them all and we cannot wait until he gets to go home for his healing. Another great thing about this is that they are literally right across the street from where Hudson and Brayden are staying and go to school! God is so amazing and is answering each prayer we are praying. Please continue to pray for healing and peace.

Phone call of relief!

Sheena called this morning and Cohen's doctors have decided he can be off of IV's. They are meeting with the physical therapist today to determine if he should stay at the hospital for PT or go home and go to PT everyday. This is such a blessing! He is still not using his right arm or right leg and not talking a whole lot so please be praying for these break throughs.

They took him outside yesterday in a wheel chair and Sheena said when they went back to go into the room he started crying and she asked him if he was ready to go back in his room and he shook his head no so needless to say....they kept walking around! :)

He is responding more and more everyday. He nods his head yes and no and he focuses on things.

Specific prayer requests:

Pray that he gets to go home! To help with his healing and to be with his brothers and his puppy Boomer!
Pray that there is a smooth transition from hospital to home.
Pray for his right side and his speech
Pray for Jesse and Sheena for continued patience and understanding.
Pray for Brayden and Hudson, they miss mom and dad and Cohen and home more than words can describe
Pray for continued support, love and prayers from everyone reading this story.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Today is a new day!

Today is a new day for Cohen! He has been moved to a regular room, OUT of ICU!!!!! His one eye is still swollen shut but his other eye is beginning to move out of the corner and he can move it to follow you across the room. The family is accepting visitors but if you plan to visit, please call first to make sure it is a good time to come. He is focusing his right eye and watching movies looking at books and he even talked to Jesse when he was reading him a book. When Jesse said Mr. Brown can moo, can you, Cohen replied with MOOO!

God is so good and healing him more and more everyday. His swelling has gone down TREMENDOUSLY thanks to your prayers, love, and support. He has been in a little bit of pain from the surgery today and is resting tonight. He is such a strong little boy and we are all so proud of him! We love him more than words can say and we praise God for his healing and his love during this time.


Today he got set up with a physical therapist and they had plans to take him outside in a wheel chair for a bit but they have put it on hold since he was a little uncomfortable this evening.

Thanks to everyone!

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Still need prayers

The neurologists are still a little worried about Cohen's right side of his body. He hasn't been using his right arm or leg very much. His right eye is stuck in the corner and he is having a hard time moving it over to the middle of his eye. His left eye is still swollen shut but the swelling is going down each day. Sheena asked him if he could see her the other day and he shook his head yes so that is a HUGE blessing! When someone comes to his bed side and starts messing with him (nurses, etc.) he lifts his blankets up over his head and "hides" which is so funny to us. He has not been talking at all for the last couple of days. They believe this is all due to the swelling he has in his brain and they are hoping it is temporary.

They also took the feeding tube out and he has been sipping on Apple Juice.

Only time will tell if there is any permananent damage but please pray that the swelling goes down and he regains all function in these areas. He rested all night with just Tylenol and he does not seem to be in any pain. When he wakes up and opens his one eye we talk to him and he listens and we even cracked a smile or two out of him.

The family is still requesting no visitors until he is more stable. The blog is where they are requesting people to go in order to check his status.

Specific Prayers:
Please pray for the swelling on his brain to go down
Pray for positive attitudes from everyone
Pray that the doctors start talking about getting him on a regular floor because that means he is one step closer to going home
Pray for his speech and his eyes.
Keep praying for peace and calmness for him and Sheena and Jesse. (God is answering this prayer as Cohen peacefully sleeps each day and night)

Friday, October 15, 2010

Afternoon Update

Cohen is resting peacefully. It's time to pray again for the swelling to go down so it does not affect the right side of his body or his eye. Pray that he will make a full recovery and that no long term damage is done. The doctor's are saying that only time will tell but we believe he will be making a full recovery!

Don't stop praying for this little guy after his long day today!! :)

Our prayers were heard!!!

Just got an update from Sheena!

The neuro surgeons went in and they took out a couple pieces of bone but they decided that no plate was needed! The bone will repair itself without having a plate and they said it looked good.

Thank you so much for your prayers, THANKS be to God for protecting him and THANKS be to God for the surgeons!

Keep praying...it's REALLY REALLY working.

Today is the day!

Today is the day for total and complete healing! Pray that God will lay his hand on Cohen today and for the surgeons to be able to do what they need to do to get him better and get him home.

Sheena and Jesse are in very positive moods today and are praying and hoping for swelling and for Cohen to be able to be comfortable. They are doing great and in high spirits today.

Last night Cohen had a great night of sleep and she said he only woke up if he was messed with. I am so proud of his bravery and courage and I know that he is going to be amazing today. God is not through with him yet and that little boy is our miracle baby!

Everyone please stop doing what you are doing at 8:30 a.m. this morning and pray for Cohen and his family. Pray for a total and complete healing and pray for the medical staff involved. I believe that God has decided to heal him through the hands of these surgeons and he will. Pray Pray Pray all day.

Update coming when he gets out of surgery. Thank you all!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Please Pray

Praying that everyone will take a moment tonight to say a quick prayer for Cohen and his surgeons tomorrow. If you have a minute around 8:30 please stop what you are doing and pray to give the surgeons guidance and pray to help Mom and Dad be calm and at peace.

Thanks everyone for your continuous prayers and support

Surgery is scheduled!

This little guy that we all love is doing wonderfully today! He is fully awake and without pain....They have stopped all pain medicines, INCLUDING tylenol! His right eye is open all the way and he is still working on building up the muscles again in order to look around, etc. His left eye is still swollen shut but you can see his eye trying to open and the muscles trying to get it open.

Surgery is scheduled for Friday (tomorrow) at 8:30 am and should take an hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours. They are expecting recovery to take 2 days and expecting everything to go well.

ANOTHER miracle is that he is asking questions with his hands. He is pointing at tubes and Sheena tells him what it is and then he points at another one and she tells him that also. He is only saying one or two words here and there but that may just be from having the ventilator tube down his throat and it being so dry for so long. Today he pointed at his lips and they gave him his cup and let him hold it as he took sips of apple juice.

He is doing so remarkable and I feel like he is on the upside of this battle. More updates to come but for right now he has been very stable and God has comforted him and the family in order for him to prepare for the next hurdle of surgery.

Keep praying!
Specific Prayers:
-Surgery to go wonderfully!
-Him to be able to get his eye muscle so back so he can look around instead of looking at one spot.
-Continuous painless rest!
-Rest for Sheena and Jesse and Cohen
-Brayden and Hudson

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

He said Mom.....HE SAID MOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cohen has made a HUGE turn around. Your prayers are being answered as we speak and it is so awesome to see God working in his healing.

To start with.... Our specific prayers were that he would wake up after the ventilator is off and be without pain. I am so EXCITED to announce that he is pain free and resting well with ONLY tylenol, no other pain meds are needed at this time.

2nd: Sheena called me and was so excited to let me know that he said Mom for the first time since before the accident! What a true blessing! The doctors were worried that the ventilator tube would harm his vocal cords and this does not seem to be the case. Sheena said that they still have the feeding tube in so he is not eating but she put some honey flavored lip balm on his dry lips this morning and he licked his lips and said.... MMMM!! :)

3rd: He is still unable to open his eyes but is resting well and for the moment he has stopped pulling on things. He is wanting to stretch every time he wakes up because his body is sore and aching from laying in the bed.

The neuroligist is hoping to schedule surgery for his plates in his head for Friday. They said that the swelling will come back when they do the surgery but are hoping it will not be severe. As soon as I get a definate answer on the surgery I will post it.

Specific prayer requests:

-Pray that he is able to open atleast one eye so he can find out where he is and see his mom and dad before he goes to surgery
-Pray that the tylenol keeps working to control his pain and discomfort
-Pray for Hudson and Brayden
-Pray for Cohen to remain strong
-Pray that God will give the surgeons a steady hand
-Pray for the medical staff taking care of him like he is their own child
-Pray for continuous rest for Sheena, Jesse, and Cohen

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

The tube is GONE!!!!!

They decided Mr. Cohen was ready to breath without the ventilator so he is breathing on his own now, without tubes helping him!!!!!!!!!!

Praise the Lord, he hears us, don't stop now!

Lunch Time Update

It is confirmed now that the pressure behind his eyes is going down. To start with there was blood behind both eyes as a result from the pressure that was building up in his brain. The pressure was 30/30 for his eyes. Yesterday the doctor stated that it went a little down to 27/29 and this afternoon they have said that he is at 23/20!!!


They came in this afternoon and are still debating on taking off the ventilator or not but it sounds like they are still leaning towards taking him off of it. Hopefully it will be this afternoon around 3:30 or 4.



Keep praying and donating to support the Ritters it is all working.

Praise the Lord he is doing better!

Today Cohen jumped a hurdle! After a full day of rest it seems that his body has kicked in. From the looks of it (no doctor's verification) his swelling has gone down a bit and he seems to be calm now. They are hoping to take him off of the ventilator today and to ween him off of the sedation medicine as well. They began weening him off of the ventilator through the night and he seems to be tolerating it well. He is currently on a feeding tube so they could turn his IV fluids down to help reduce the swelling. While I was there the nurses started messing with him and he did not like that as he started flailing around! He is such a strong little boy and definately a fighter. The other night I was there and of ALL the things to be hurting him and causing him pain, the only thing he wanted gone was the Oxygen sensor they have taped around his big toe. He would yank that thing off and sigh a sigh of relief when he would finally get to it. When he would fall back asleep we would tape it back on and he would wake up 30 seconds later yanking at it. This truly shows how tough this little guy is!

His eyes are still swollen shut. We are hoping and praying that when he wakes up he will be able to open atleast one a little bit so he is not scared about not being able to open them and see things.

The nurse said this morning she knew she is going to have a long day today with him but she is in it for the long haul. They will stop his sedation medicine in order for him to be awake when they take the breathing tube out. They have to wait about an hour after the meds stop until they take it out. Pray that they all keep calm while trying to prevent him from pulling it out himself!

Sheena and Jesse got some MUCH needed rest last night and she seemed revived this morning. She is excited for today and hopes all of their plans follow through. She is anxious to hold her baby boy and walk around the room with him. They seem to be in good spirits and they are very thankful for everyone's prayers and support!

More updates coming as soon as we know anything. Keeps the prayers and support coming, God hears you and is responding in our favor! :) If you would like to donate to the family please click the donate button listed on the side or top of this page. Jesse is not able to work right now so he can be with Cohen and Sheena so any help we can offer to them would be a gift from God!

Please pray specifically for:

-Sheena and Jesse to have a good day with Cohen. Keeping him calm and helping him not to pull out tubes and cords.
-Cohen getting off of the ventilator and resting peacefully WITHOUT pain.
-Brayden and Hudson  who don't know the extent of what is going on with Cohen. They miss their mom, dad and brother.
-Pray that he can get one of his eyes open even just a little bit.
-Rest, Rest, Rest. They all need Rest.
-Ultimate healing for Cohen and for Sheena, Jesse, Brayden and Hudson.

This smiling face is making a fast recovery. Keep praying and supporting!!

Monday, October 11, 2010

October 9, 2010

On October 9, 2010 two year old Cohen Ritter was involved in an accident at his home in Yukon, Oklahoma. He suffered a head injury and multiple skull fractures and is currently in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.


When he was taken to the hospital on Saturday by ambulance, doctors were unsure of his prognosis but are expecting him to fully recover. He has been temporarily placed on a ventilator to allow his body to rest and for the swelling in his brain to go down.


Doctors have said he will have to have atleast one surgery on one of his skull fractures in order to repair some of the damage.


A CT scan and an MRI were both completed today and they are saying he possibly has a blood clot in one of his jugular veins and they may have to give him some blood thinners to rid the clot. Doctors have requested that Cohen is not talked to or touched because they do not want to stimulate him but rather for him to rest. We are waiting now to let his body kick in and help him progress in his healing and recovery.


The family is requesting people to check this blog for updates and status changes instead of calling or visits to the hospital by friends until Cohen is more stable.


This blog is created for updates and prayers. If you feel the need to help in any way, the biggest way to help is financially. They need all the love and support they can get without having to worry about the financial side of this tragedy. I have posted a Paypal link for secure donations that will be given as a gift to the family to help them with this struggle.
All comments, prayers, concerns left on this page will be forwarded to Sheena and Jesse.


We ask that you continue to pray and keep this blog circling to help every prayer possible to be lifted up to God. Cohen is in good hands and God is going to take care of him.


Thank you all so much for your prayers, your love, your support and any donations you are able to make. The family is very thankful.