Caitlin Update, 3-13-08, 4:41 pm

This is Brandon again--right now me n' Jordan, Aunt Jo, Ms. Debbie, Granny and Papa, and dad and Terri are in the waiting room, partaking of the many snacks that have been dropped off and waiting for more news. Caitlin's condition hasn't changed-- her kidneys aren't working and she's still on dialysis. She's looking better though (better meaning she's still puffed out from all the fluids that have accumulated in her body and she has tubes poking out from every imaginable part of her body but she smiles occasionally). She's finally starting eating some simple stuff like Jell-o, a popsicle and some beef broth. She is still asleep most of the time.

Earlier today she began a heroic effort to text message her friends--heroic because her fingers are fat little sausages and she hits two buttons at once every time she tries to input a letter. I am secretly delighted at this development because I've been saying for a long time that she needs a lesson in patience. I think that 15 minutes per text message qualifies.

It's also good because it's an exercise in dexterity, which is a current concern. She's been completely immobile for nearly five days now and her joints are getting stiff. They had a person in the room earlier today who was working with her ankles and legs, rolling them around so she doesn't lose mobility while she's convalescing.