History

Tuesday, April 15, 2008 9:05 AM CDT

WEANING PROCESS

Today is Becca's second day without her morning dose of Topamax. So far, all is going very well.

Her aide said she had a great school day yesterday and I expect more and more of her being able to focus and participate.

We've been without a weekend nurse for about six weeks now, and Mom is getting tired. Please pray with us for some help. Our nurses have both helped out, but they need their weekends.

I've decided to create a new CaringBridge site! This is in the new format and you can choose to receive notification when I update the site!! I will have a link to this site on the new one, so you can read back over the journal and guestbook as you wish.

New site:
www.caringbridge.org/visit/rebeccaleupp

I will be adding more to the new site soon.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, March 26, 2008 1:45 PM CDT

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Becca is back in school after a fun Spring Break with Grandma and Aunt Tricia visiting. She is very nearly completely back to wellness and is tolerating being up, out, and about again.

Spring has sprung here in what they call Green Country, so we are able to get outside more.

We have gotten some help from another doctor with hormones that are controlling seizure activity better and I am backing down off of the Topamax. I am really looking forward to Becca being able to respond more and more and more.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, March 10, 2008 1:22 PM CDT

BACK TO SCHOOL!!!!

YES! Becca went back to school today! I will take her Wednesday and Thursday, then next week is Spring Break. We will likely just do three days the week after Spring Break as well, to ease back into things.

Becca was tired when I collected her before lunch today, but happy to be back at school. I just pray for the Lord's protection over her as I heard that the flu season has not even peaked yet.

It is good to be hearing her making noise again, laughing and those little sounds that make me wonder if she is trying to form words.

Thank you for continuing to pray for our family.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, February 27, 2008 9:26 AM CST

UPDATE

Becca had a good night last night and is much, much better this morning; thanks be to God!! I could tell she was breathing easier and she slept through my 1am visit to her. She does have a temp this morning, but her body is fighting the infection. She is so much happier and relaxed. I believe we are finally coming through to feeling better, although I know we'll have to take it slow so she can regain her strength. Thanks for your continued prayers!

FLU AND PNEUMONIA

Becca is such a trooper! We got her flu shot far too late, Monday 11 February, partly because when I started calling about availability, it was too early. I will not make the same mistake next year!

The flu really hit her that Friday, the 15th. I kept her home from school that day and she has not yet returned.

We took her to the doctor yesterday and he really took time to listen to her lungs; he even had us pull her forward in her chair so he could listen from the back. Nobody else does that. He said she has pneumonia in the lower left lobe, so he put her on two strong antibiotics. One for three days, the other for ten days. Zithromax and Cephrozil; if those are correct spellings.

Our instructions are to try to get her up to get the junk moving, do CPT (chest percussion therapy, or light pounding), breathing treatments, which we had already started, suctioning as needed, etc. If her fever is not gone by Thursday, we'll have to take her for a chest X-Ray on Friday.

Now, some of you know what that might mean. If the pneumonia is more pervasive, then she might have to enter the hospital. I am totally against that!! When we brought her home from the children's center and had to take her to the hospital, my sister, Tricia, and I had to teach the nurses how to care for Becca. It just caused a great deal of trauma for our family. So, I want my girl at home. Our nurses know how to care for her better than the hospital nurses.

I know you all have been praying all along, so please continue. I am confident that the meds will do their job and she will be feeling better soon. She woke up this morning with her highest temperature yet (102F), but it was already coming down after one hour.

Thank you for caring so much about our precious girl!

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, February 13, 2008 10:39 AM CST

SCHOOL ALL FIVE DAYS!

Can you believe it? Becca has come so far! She is now going to school every morning from 8-11 and doing well.

She is also doing well in physical therapy. She has gone further (140 or so feet)in the gait trainer the last two times and yesterday was not exhausted at the end.

I'm not sure if I mentioned that we were able to discontinue the overnight feeding close to the end of 2007. She is now able to tolerate the 2000ml of fluid she requires per day, during the day. That is amazing, if you look where we were a year ago!

Sorry the gait trainer photo is so big; I've got to take more photos so they will be easier to view.

Thank you for your continued prayers. Have a happy Valentine's Day!

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, January 15, 2008 3:40 PM CST

"YIPES, That was COLD!!"

Patti, Becca's nurse, just called to tell me a funny story. Her hands were kind of cold and she went to reposition Becca so she could give her a yogurt smoothie (custom made, mmm good!). Becca let out a screech/sound that made Patti step back and laugh. "Are my hands cold??" "YEAH!!" was Becca's reply.

Recently, we have noticed that Becca is getting some fine motor movements back. Like the day I suddenly realised she was moving her thumb back and forth, or she was moving one eyebrow up and down. These movements are so normal that one could miss them!

Last week, our visit to the dentist was exciting! When was the last time you said that? :-) Anyway, Becca cooperated so well; the first she's been able to do so. She received a lovely battery operated toothbrush, so Patti got it out and started playing. She brushed Becca's hand and cheek before cleaning it and then went for the teeth. Becca loved it. Oh, and did I mention that Patti was doing this hand over Becca's hand?

So, if she could brush her teeth, why not try eating? Call Mom and tell her to go buy a spoon! A really cool spoon that can bend sideways, which Becca took to and is enjoying her newfound skill.

So, eating could take more time again, but it will be worth it! Retraining and relearning takes time and patience.

Stephanie

Friday, December 28, 2007 8:40 PM CST

PROGRESS TOWARD TAKING A STEP!!

Today was an exciting day at physical therapy! I will type what Becca's therapist wrote so I will have it exact (I've added comments in parentheses):

"Today, Becca stood at the bars. We were addressing weight shifts to give Becca the opportunity to take a step forward. During our second stand, while her weight was on her right leg, her right quad muscles (these are the muscles on your upper legs) kicked in to allow her to maintain her weight without letting her knee buckle. (Becca has done this while in the gait trainer a couple of times).
Then we shifted her weight to her left and Becca responded to our cues and encouragement by straightening up her back and contracting her gluts (that's her bum muscles) in an attempt to step forward. These were both very obvious, purposeful movements and we could tell she was trying very hard to take that step. Great Job, Becca!"

We are praising the Lord and are so excited about what He is doing in our girl.

Emily took some photos of Becca in the gait trainer this week with Nurse Patti's camera, so watch for them!

We are going to ease into going back to school after Christmas break. Going two and three days in a row proved very tiring for Becca. She'll work her way up to five mornings in about a month, all going well.

Thanks for your faithful prayers!
Stephanie Leupp

Monday, November 12, 2007 2:08 PM CST

MORE SCHOOL!!

We are working on adding a fourth day of school so Becca can see the Speech Therapist who has just come on board. We actually met this lady when Becca first went back to school; she was the Director of Special Education for the school system. She retired, but a couple of years later now, here she is back in her Speech Therapist capacity. She is planning to try to catch up on the therapy the kids have missed. This is very exciting to me because Becca is talking more and more.

After Christmas, we are working toward Becca going to school every day. I believe we will keep to the mornings, but when I mentioned this to her on the way to school one day last week, she smiled and then her teachers told me she smiled, laughed, and was in a great mood all morning. Yea! More school!

Thank you for your continued prayers!

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, October 10, 2007 12:33 AM CDT

I was looking back in the journal history to find where Becca's friend, Garrett, had visited her. It was in August of 2006 and he was recovering from a brain injury he had sustained in January of that year in a one-car accident. I believe he had been trying to avoid hitting a deer.

He visited Becca only about three times, but she adored his attention and he was captivated by her, too.

Sadly, Garrett was killed Sunday, 7 October, in another one-car accident. I hear that he had a seizure while driving, but am not sure if that is the official reason for the accident.

The funeral is today, but I have decided not to go. I am very, very sad. I just cannot find any words.

Regarding Miss Becca, she is making little gains all the time. Her therapist, Kea (whom you will see soon if I can remember to take the camera to therapy!), tells me that the other therapists are commenting that Becca is looking better. From across the room, they notice her eye contact getting better. I think Becca has a lot of fans at BPR! Kea loves it when Becca turns her head to look her in the eye! Friday, she held her head up the entire therapy hour and had good weight-bearing through her arms as she sat on the mat table.

Well, as you finish reading this entry, please lift Garrett's family to our Heavenly Father. He was just 20 years old and had survived one devastating accident. It's just not supposed to happen again...

Stephanie

Tuesday, October 2, 2007 4:06 PM CDT

IS THIS THE PATH TO HEALING???

Hello Friends:

It has surely been a long journey. Thank you for persisting.

We were told, once upon a time, by medical experts that seizures might be one sign of brain healing. Or that seizures might be interpreted in this way.

It has seemed to Rebecca's parents that her seizures have been showing with relatively more intensity of late.

Is this at the same time an indication of healing? In some lights, the answer to this might be a very cautious yes.

Rebecca has continued with her customary seasons of therapy and her special-education schooling.

When Rebecca attends Physial Therapy twice per week her mother is often impressed by the therapeutic paces and how well Rebecca copes with expectations. Rebecca is not necessarily judged by some arbitrary performance schedule but up to the lights of her best exertions.

Rebecca seems to be gaining, very slowly, in alertness. She looks more like herself, although her "new" self as that self is emerging may bear only scant resemblance to her pre-trauma self. Still, it is a new self.

Much of the time Rebecca looks contented with herself. At times she even looks beatific. And maybe even angelic.

Friday, August 24, 2007 10:41 AM CDT

BACK TO SCHOOL

Becca is thoroughly enjoying being back in school. She is attending Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 8-11. We take her to a side door where one of her former babysitters, now her teacher aide, meets us and takes her to her class, then meets us at the same door to go home. I cannot tell you how nice it is not to have to go into that school and walk through those hallways! It is also wonderful that this teacher aide already knows Becca and is hers exclusively while she is at school. I am so thankful to realise how God works things out!

Becca's awareness is increasing. She turns her head to follow conversation and she is participating more in conversations. Her reaction time is getting shorter and always appropriate. She is getting more consistent with hitting the jelly bean switch to activate a tape.

Yesterday in therapy, we walked the furthest yet; Kea, her new PT, estimated 100-120 feet walked in the gait trainer with no breaks! That is amazing! Kea says she can feel Becca's muscles working as we walk.

Last weekend, the girls were watching a Roadrunner cartoon and Patti mentioned to Becca how that Wiley Coyote never seems to learn his lesson. He just keeps making mistakes. Becca said, "Yeah." Patti about fell over!

Our dependence is upon our God and our focus is on Him. He is reminding me this morning to keep focused. Do not be distracted by the cares of this world; He is coming and He is working!

Always watching for what He wants to show me,
Stephanie

Thursday, July 19, 2007 10:43 AM CDT

A BIT OF GOOD NEWS

We took Becca for her six-month eye check-up yesterday.

I told the pediatric eye doctor that she is turning to look at us when we speak to her and that she turns to see who is speaking in a conversation. He was glad to hear this.

He did his thing with the light, looking into both eyes, and then he put on his head gear with the light and put a special lens up to each eye to see further (I'm guessing). After he did his examination, he said that her left eye is a bit better!!!! Thank you, Lord!!!! He cannot say how much she can see out of her right eye until she can tell us what she can and cannot see.

Stephanie Leupp

Thursday, July 12, 2007 2:52 PM CDT

SUMMERTIME

Well, with summertime comes no school and vacations, so we are kind of in relaxed mode for a little while.

Pam, Becca's PT, is on vacation this and next week, so we'll just go on Fridays to see another PT. We'll work in the gait trainer, which is definitely work.

The lady who comes to read to Becca spent a leisurely two hours with us yesterday; I was nurse. It was a beautiful day, so we spent a fair amount of time in the garage, enjoying the day. She is going on vacation for two weeks, so Becca will have to remember what Mandy was doing in book one of the series.

I tried to work with Becca and her jelly bean switch, but she sat there as still as a stone the whole 30-40 minutes. I was so frustrated! She did lean her head down to see what I was trying to get her to do, but no further movement. I was actually amazed that a kid of 12 could be that still for that long! Of course, today, nurse Jessica told me that she did manipulate the switch by herself once. She moved her head so she could see her hand, and moved her arm millimeter by millimeter until she hit the switch. That may not seem like a big deal to some, but Jessica said Becca did it all herself. That took a lot of concentration and willpower.

We got Becca a Sonic burger after picking up Emily at the Salvation Army Summer Day Camp and she thoroughly enjoyed it. As I was giving her 4 ounces of yogurt, bite after bite, I suddenly realised how quickly and easily she was eating. A year ago, it would easily take an hour to feed her 4 ounces of food. Now, I was practically shoveling it in!

Sometimes progress is difficult to measure and it still is agonising to crawl through each day with VISIBLE healing shown only once in a while. BUT GOD... Larnelle Harris sings this song beautifully and brings me to tears every time I hear it. But God has given a promise and He will not leave it unfulfilled.

Stephanie Leupp

Saturday, June 30, 2007 8:57 AM CDT

FIELD TRIPS AND FUN

Becca is doing very well these days. At therapy, we rotate the gait trainer with standing at the bar to work on trunk, hip, and head control. Becca is working hard, and so are we!

We've gone on two field trips with the Salvation Army Summer Day Camp that Emily is attending. The first one was to the Blue Bell Ice Cream plant in Broken Arrow. Yesterday we went to the Tulsa Air and Space Museum and Planetarium. Becca thoroughly enjoyed both trips and so did I and her nurse. Fun!

As I sit here at the kitchen table writing this, Becca is eating a breakfast of eggs. As Patti (her nurse) and I are talking, Becca is turning her head to look at each of us as we talk. She has been responding more like this, but this turning to each speaker is new!

I thank God for every improvement.

Daddy is back at Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary in Manila for 6 weeks! He will be teaching a condensed class. This is where Becca and Emily were born, so it will be nice for him to be back.

Stephanie

Friday, June 1, 2007 11:37 AM CDT

GAIT TRAINER

We are borrowing a gait trainer from the schools and it is perfect!! We've used it twice already and Becca is really taking to it.

She was a little upset both times as we were maneuvering her into it, but I kept telling her she was okay, that this was just something new. Once strapped in, she is very safe, and, as you can see from the photos, there are plenty of us around her to reassure her.

On the sides, we guide the trainer forward, while Pam encourages her to move her feet. She has done so a few times and is really concentrating.

Yesterday she was so focused, I felt like her brain was remembering. "Oh yeah, I remember doing this!"

It is so wonderful to see her doing a new thing in therapy and that she is taking to it well.

I haven't quite decided who is doing more work, Becca, or Pam, her therapist! That is quite a job, crawling along the floor, helping Becca push her feet! That just tells you how dedicated these folks are to helping people! Thanks, Pam!

Stephanie

Tuesday, May 29, 2007 1:05 PM CDT

SCHOOL

Just a quick update to let you know we decided not to pursue summer school. We did not realize that her teacher was not going to be the summer school teacher!

Instead, a friend with training in teaching the student with traumatic brain injury will visit twice each week. The plan is 1 1/2 - 2 hour sessions. I am excited about this plan because it is a whole lot easier for us, plus Becca will get the benefit of attention from someone who understands her needs. I expect her to thrive!

Last Sunday, Becca let it be known that she was ready to graduate to a cup for drinking! She absolutely refused the previous way of getting fluids and hasn't looked back, in true Becca fashion.

There are no photos of Becca in the gait trainer at physical therapy because the trainer was too short. We got Becca in it and she was sort of getting used to this new thing, but it was just not tall enough for her. Pam, her therapist, and I are trying to call around to see if anyone has a taller one we could borrow for the summer. Update: I found one to borrow for the summer!! Soon there will be photos!

We've been sending out copies of the Muffins with Mom photo to friends and family. If you would like one to help remind you to pray for Becca, please email me at the address listed on this page. Be sure to give me your address.

Stephanie

Tuesday, May 15, 2007 1:41 PM CDT

Wed. 16 May
At therapy this morning, Becca was able to maintain head AND trunk control (her therapist had one finger on Becca's shoulder) three times, for three minutes each time!!

CHANGES, CHANGES

Rebecca continues to improve little by little. What a long process it is...

Yesterday we went out to the backyard to play in the sprinkler. Patti and I pushed Becca up close enough to get her legs wet. We told her to lift her legs so she could feel the water and up they went! She loved it. Of course, Emily had lots of fun, too.

We are facing a change in our medical benefit from the state, so we would be grateful for your prayers for continued coverage and a seamless transition. God's timing is perfect and He knows what we need. He keeps reminding me of this when I start to hyperventilate just thinking about what could happen... Too big for me!

It was obvious that Becca was trying to form the words, "Happy Mom's Day!" Patti was encouraging her and we could see her lips forming the words.

Last Friday when I greeted her in the morning, she kept focusing on me like she has not been able to do since the accident. I was so thrilled!

Saturday we attended "Muffins with Mom" at church and had our photo taken. It was the best photo yet! I have put it on the photo page.

Becca may be able to attend summer school. This will be three weeks in June and three in July. Sessions are three hours, four mornings a week. Please pray about this too; we do not think Becca is in danger of regression, which is usually a requirement for attendance. We know that she would greatly benefit from the continuity, so pray she will be allowed to attend. The final decision is not ours.

Keep praying! God is working!

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, May 7, 2007 11:43 AM CDT

I'M TWELVE!!

Friday, we celebrated Becca's birthday. It was low-key, but she enjoyed hearing Happy Birthday over and over. We got her a bubble machine and have had so much fun watching bubbles. I really like not getting all goopey with bubble juice!

Becca has been doing well in school and therapy; in fact, we are going to try the gait trainer this week. I've put up some new photos, and I'll get one of Becca in the gait trainer.

I continue to do what it says in 2 Chronicles 20: go out, take up my position, stand, and wait for the victory the Lord has promised. He is faithful!

Stephanie

Tuesday, April 17, 2007 5:27 PM CDT

IT IS ENOUGH!!

Dear Friends:

Pardon our tardiness in posting another message. It has been fully one month since the last update. With that in mind, we will probably close down this site at the three-year mark, which is fast approaching in August, unless there is dramatic news to report.

Rebecca has been responding fairly well to her various therapies. At physical therapy, which she undertakes twice per week, she is by now more often than not quite good about maintaining her head control. This is important. She also seems to enjoy going to school about six hours per week, three hours on each of Monday and Friday mornings. In the autumn, Rebecca may have a "shadow" who would enable her to attend public school over many more hours. This would also be a good thing.

Two nights ago Nurse Patti had been feeding Rebecca smushed peanut butter sandwich and had asked Rebecca if she had eaten enough. "Enough" Rebecca said in reply.

The parents never get in on the really good stuff! Could it be that our "independent" daughter is holding out on old Rod and not-so-old Steph? Maybe! At this point Rebecca is not telling us any secrets.

But "enough" seemed to be her first foray into two-syllable territory. We just hope we will not have to wait--as sadly has been the seeming pattern--another many weeks for the child to speak again.

Christians are now between the times of Easter and Pentecost. Not on the Christian calendar, but personally significant to our eldest, is her turning ONE DOZEN on May the fourth. The father's birthday is this year on Pentecost, May 27th, something that happens only infrequently.

We have no idea if all of these "things" have any meaning. We know Rebecca's life is of infinite value to God.

We continue to be blessed by your prayers, your interest, your concerns.

Saturday, March 17, 2007 7:50 PM CDT

BECCA BEARS: WEIGHT AND WITNESS

Friends:

Truly it is said that only Jesus Christ can bear witness to Himself. Yet perhaps the Holy Spirit empowers us in the Spirit of Jesus Christ to take the measure of our own cognizance, our own awareness, our own grace-given possibilities.

Saint Paul seems to say as much in his expansive view that "the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For what human being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also no one comprehends what is truly God's except the Spirit of God" (1 Cor 2:10b-11).

Rebecca's being Rebecca post-trauma now stretches nearly to one thousand days. What can Rebecca think of her own self? What MUST she think?

These are questions only God can finally answer, but to those who watch and wait Rebecca insists that I AM HERE, do not forget me.

And we do not forget our beloved daughter, niece, friend, sister, granddaughter, first-born, dare we say co-conspirator?

A visiting relative is surprised when, in turning and manipulating Rebecca in her bed, Becca supports her own weight. Becca BEARS weight. Becca BEARS witness.

As Easter approaches and then the stretch to just one year shy of being a full-blown teenager, hope is a times dormant, at times silent, at times unspoken, but never absent.

Wednesday, February 28, 2007 9:42 AM CST

BECAUSE IT BIT MY FINGER SO!!

Friends:

The father has not contributed a journal entry for some time now.

While only God knows the "ultimate" destiny of Rebecca Louise Leupp, as is very true for any and all of us, there is more than enough evidence that Rebecca is continuing to make a genuine effort to reclaim her own life and establish her own identity once again.

Last evening as we were listening to a children's counting audio tape, one Rebecca has heard dozens of times, the lyric "because it bit my finger so" riled our eldest daughter. Daddy "pretended" to bite Becca's finger to accentuate the point, and dear Becca STRONGLY reacted at the "nibbling," in irritation if not disgust at her father.

Most all of the nurses (we now have four in the house) are "on board" in believing Rebecca is making steady, if at times nearly invisible, progress. Rebecca continues to cooperate and to do well with her physical therapies and enjoys her two days per week at Madison Middle School.

One concern we have is that the pupils of her eyes are still quite enlarged, especially the right eye. It is not quite true to say they are "fixed" in that especially the left one will respond to light. Does the right one respond? Not very much, but perhaps on a bright day it does move ever so slightly.

It seems we are still all waiting for some sort of "breakthrough" but in the meantime there continue to be what many have called "baby steps."

Monday, February 5, 2007 12:36 AM CST

Just a short note today to say that Becca has been very vocal these last few days.

She has tried to sing along with a familiar tape, get Mom's attention, interact with Daddy, and sing along with Emily.

I heard a sound one night that I thought was Emily calling, "Mom." I stayed in my cozy bed, hoping Emily would just go back to sleep. But, pretty soon, I heard Emily call, "Mom!" When I went downstairs, Emily told me that Becca was calling me!

Bring it on!!

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, January 17, 2007 10:54 AM CST

THE HARE AND THE TORTOISE

Becca continues to improve slowly, slowly, slowly.

She is gaining strength in her physical therapy because of the stander and her new headrest, which helps her use her muscles to keep her head up. We added a second day of therapy because of her progress.

We've been standing her up at a bar at physical therapy and she stands tall and most of the time keeps her head up. We've started working on transfers without the Hoyer lift. Our nurses are far better at this than I am because for one, they are all shorter than I am, and number two, they have had more practice. What our therapists at Emanuel told us is very true, tall folks have a much harder time transferring people! So, at physical therapy each time, I practice a little, so I will get more comfortable with it.

I cancelled Speech for the time being because we are working on this at home and just did not feel it was what she needed right now. She is gaining in consistency in hitting her jelly bean switch to activate a tape recording of music or stories we recorded (she responds quite well to me and to our nurses in this activity). I even found a couple of story tapes my parents had recorded for us while we were in the Philippines.

School is going well, two days per week, three hours at a time. Dad does not stay the whole time and she is likely happy about that!

If I did not mention it before, our nursing hours have been cut down to 12 hours per day, starting Monday, 22 January. We see this as a good thing, but it has been difficult to work out the nursing schedule. Please pray with me that God will smooth the way. One of our nurses has chosen to leave at that time, which means we will have some gaps until someone else can be trained. At this point, I just do not want any more new nurses. I love our nurses and it breaks my heart to lose this one. I must continue to trust that God has it all under control, if we will only allow Him to direct us.

We had some friends come to pray and Becca desperately tried to speak. It was so obvious that she was participating!

I give God all praise and glory for the work He is doing. There is none other like Him and He is doing a good thing! He is so faithful and His works are amazing.

Stephanie Leupp

Friday, December 29, 2006 11:47 AM CST

STANDING TALL

We enjoyed a nice Christmas with just our family. We had a quiet day and just lazed around.

We've added another session of physical therapy, so go twice each week now. Becca's therapist has been having her stand at a bar, which is very exciting. Each time, we try to add another stand; today she did 5 stands. She does so well at keeping her whole body in line and keeping her head in control. It is really great to see her standing like this. A goal is to begin doing transfers from a sit-to-stand-to-sit. The nurses are excited about this prospect of not having to use the Hoyer lift.

Dad is taking Becca to school two days each week for three hours at a time. Since our nurses are not allowed to go, Rod said he would accompany her. He takes her in our van so we do not have to involve the school bus; too big a production, in my opinion. He hangs around for a little bit, then leaves her with her teacher or therapist for a while. So far (two days before Christmas break started), she has done well.

I FINALLY uploaded new photos. You can see the new headrest in the cookie photos. It is great and is helping to strengthen her neck muscles.

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, December 12, 2006 10:18 AM CST

BACK TO SCHOOL

Well, Becca gets to go back to school two days per week for three hours per day. That is the good part. The bad part is that the school district will not pay our home health nurse to accompany Becca to school. This means for those two days Rod will go to school with Becca and hopefully, one of our nurses will agree to come get Becca ready those two mornings. We will drop to an 8 hour shift after school.

Last week in Speech Therapy, Becca hit her switch to turn ON and OFF her tape 3 times, then the therapist changed the switch to automatically turn off after 30 seconds. With encouragement, Becca hit the switch 10 more times to turn on the tape. We were playing an old, old LP record from my childhood that I had put on a cassette tape. Do any of you remember Pete Seeger? "Put your finger on your ear, on your ear," "Abiyoyo," "Green and yellow," are just a few of the folk songs on that record. I was "over the moon" as my Aussie friends would say, with joy at this consistent behavior.

The next day, in Physical Therapy, our nurse reported to me that Becca kept her head up until the very end of the hour-long session. This is a first! Also, twice, she turned her head and looked directly at the person speaking either to her or to her therapist. Later, at home, she turned and looked directly at Daddy when he spoke to her.

Yesterday, during supper, Becca stuck her tongue out past her front teeth! Her nurse grabbed her cell phone and got video of this. Her tongue was probably half an inch beyond her teeth! This is important for speech.

Dr. Cockrell would ask Becca to do three things when assessing her for more intensive therapy. One was to track an object with her eyes. The second was to sqeeze her hand. The third was to STICK OUT HER TONGUE PAST HER TEETH!!

These have been days of intense prayer on my part and I have felt pressed down and shaken together, as the Bible says. There have been many things to discourage in this season of joy. I am thinking of six deaths in this last month, either of family or very close friends, or extended acquaintances. The university for which I work lost a precious student in a skiing accident on Sunday. His family is from Portland, where we spent so much time in the hospital. For me, it brings back so much pain. I cannot imagine that family's heartache right now, but I am so thankful that our God can handle it all. He knows all about us and wants to help us live more abundantly. I do not want to hold anything back from Him that would hinder His working in my family's life. I want to be and do all that He wants, don't you?

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, December 5, 2006 9:43 AM CST

STEADY AS SHE GOES

Friends:

Some of the trends noted in the previous message have continued since the last journal posting. Rebecca has continued to laugh her little laugh. She does this nearly daily and typically more than once per day.

She has also responded to spoken instructions once or twice, which is something we look for as a positive sign. One time one of the nurses challenged her to articulate MOM as a reward for having her hand-splints removed, devices Rebecca has never liked, but necessary if her fingers are to remain in writing-eventually shape. And guess what!! Rebecca stumbled out with her version of MOM! So we were gladdened by that.

Rebecca may be suffering from cabin fever. Because of near-record snowfall in N.E. Oklahoma Rebecca has not left home for five or six days. But later this week Rebecca should be going out for speech therapy and for physical therapy.

Christmas is less than three weeks away. We will never forget that first hospital-Christmas. The hospital "nominated" the Leupp Family for "Suffering Family of the Year" (obviously not the exact designation) but we refused to accept the "honor." The second Christmas, 2005, Rebecca was at least in Oklahoma although seemed mostly in a fog about what was going down. So it is not unreasonable if we hope that CHRISTMAS III will be the best post-trauma YULETIDE of all.

We thank you for your continued interest.

Thursday, November 16, 2006 12:53 AM CST

ONE YEAR SINCE COMING HOME!!

Rebecca is doing quite well these days. She's had a bout with conjunctivitis this week, but is almost finished with the eye drops.

She is stronger and shows us so with each visit to therapy. She is sitting up straighter in her chair, which helps to strengthen those neck muscles.

Her laugh is a little different now, not quite the shriek sound. In fact, the other day when I was upstairs and she emitted the sound, I thought I was hearing one of the girls yell for me in a very distressed voice. I came tearing downstairs to find Emily at Becca's side, asking what was so funny. Gotcha, Mom!!

Becca has not been able to attend school this week because of a problem with the nurses not being allowed to go with her. Please pray with us on this one, folks. This does not just affect Becca; there are several school districts in Oklahoma that will not allow a patient's nurse to attend school with them. It really all comes down to funding. That is the maddening part for me. The school nurse cannot meet Becca's needs and we absolutely will not send her to school alone. I am trying to get all the folks who need to talk to come together to hammer this out. I feel like being a Mom: get them all in one room, tell them they cannot come out until the issue is settled, then lock the door! Becca loves going to school and I am a firm believer in public education. I've nothing against the other forms, but we want Becca in school. Please pray that God will give me the strength to hang in there and get to the answer all these precious kiddos need and deserve. Just because someone has a disability or a medical need does not mean they can be kept away from school. I have developed a deep respect for families who deal with this day after day and it just is not right that they have to fight to get their kids an education. Life is difficult enough for them; let's make SOMETHING easier!

Thanks for your continued prayers for our family and thanks to those who come to the house to pray. Thank God for Christian nurses too, who encourage us day after day with words from our God.

Stephanie Leupp

Saturday, November 4, 2006 7:08 PM CST

FLOAT LIKE A BUTTERFLY; STING LIKE A BECCA

Friends:

No big medical news for this entry. Rebecca continues to do well in school and in physical therapy. On November 2nd she held her head erect for close to two minutes while sitting on the therapy mat. She is also going to speech therapy with more regularity. She gets these therapies, and others, during the course of her regular school week.

Daddy has been teaching "Becca punches" to his eldest, swinging her fist around and then punching a stuffed animal or whatever might be near to hand. And it seems like Rebecca has tried to do some of this punching on her own. Nurses beware!

At least twice Rebecca turned her head with much purpose and even some passion when her name was spoken.

Hardly a day passes but what we hear Rebecca utter her version of a laugh. It sounds more like a modified shriek than genuine hilarity, but we accept this expression as coming from somewhere close to her emotional center.

As months pass Rebecca is certainly able to tolerate much more time out of her bed. Today she was in the stander and in her wheelchair for probably 75% of the daylight hours.

It is easy to lose heart through this long vigil. Many times it seems there is no discernible progress. Friends and loved ones, those who pray even though they have never met the one for whom they are praying--this helps us keep going.

The Leupps

Friday, October 20, 2006 8:15 AM CDT

READING, WRITING, AND REBECCA

Dear Friends:

Rebecca is enjoying her daily one-hour school stint. She is reviewing curricular items from the past. She is doing well. And adding new facts to her repertoire of knowledge, wisdom, and discernment.

A recent visit to a church wedding threw the Plucky One out of her routine. Twice Stephanie had to wheel her out of the sanctuary to readjust her in her wheelchair and to find out the source of discomfort.

We welcome Stephanie's family members from Ohio, albeit for an abbreviated visit. While Rod and Stephanie repaired to Tulsa the family visited the country estate of oil baron Frank Phillips--Woolaroc--for "woods, lake, rocks." Rebecca has always enjoyed that place, and did during her most recent visit.

Rebecca is definitely vocalizing more and more these days. She laughs now several times per day. It does not matter that her laugh sounds more like a shriek. One of Rebecca's doctors--a rehab specialist--notes that prior to "normal" sounds a child in Rebecca's healing trajectory may often make such "weird" sounds. Rebecca is just getting warmed up for Halloween!

Let us continue to pray and to wait upon the Lord. Thank you for your continued support.

The Leupps

Friday, October 20, 2006 8:15 AM CDT

Saturday, September 30, 2006 6:28 PM CDT

REBECCA'S AUTUMNAL TURN???

Friends: The heat has finally loosed its vise-grip on Oklahoma although more temperate climes no doubt have better leaf-color than does the Sooner State.

Will Rebecca's brain be turning brown or golden or even red this autumn? Not likely, but we continue to rejoice as we see new activity, or at least the intensification of old activity.

Here is the lineup:

--more appropriate facial expressions and even "laughter" (really it sounds like a shriek) at appropriate times as Rebecca joins in the conversation as best she is able.

--seemingly a greater enjoyment when she is read to. I noticed this just the other night in the parking lot of East Cross United Methodist Church, which before the accident was Daddy, Emily, and Rebecca's own private in-line skating parlor.

--more attentiveness when outside to chirping birds, the buzz of the neighborhood squirrels, or passing cars. Along with that Rebecca may be opening her eyes more widely when outside.

--head control is sporadically improving, not as much "flopping" in the stander.

Rebecca almost always enjoys good days at school, where she typically answers the questions put to her correctly, through eye closure or shifting. She has also typically done very well with her once-weekly physical therapy, although this past week's therapy she was not too sharp.

Medically there is no bad news to report.

We are looking forward to a Christmas that is light years better than the disaster of 2004 and even significantly sunnier than the better Christmas of 2005.

Thank you all for your continuing interest in this story. Although it has been by now a very long road for all of us, especially Rebecca after twenty-six months and counting, the Plucky One shows no signs of just up and stopping her forward progress and movement. The Holy Spirit is in this child, and the Holy Spirit is continuing to do his (some would prefer "its" but I do not--I would prefer "her" to "its") abundant work of grace and mercy and love within Becca's brain.

Friday, September 15, 2006 1:00 PM CDT

MORE EMOTION

We are seeing more emotional "tone" in Becca these days. It is exciting to watch her expressing herself in more definite ways.

A couple of weeks ago, a friend came to visit Becca, but Becca was getting ready to have her shower and get ready for bed. Her friend began drawing while she waited for Becca, then was engrossed in her project when Becca was ready for her visit. She walked through the girls' room and said HI to Becca, then went out. When it was time to leave, she walked back through and said BYE to Becca and left the house. Becca threw a fit!! She pounded her feet and fists on the bed and clenched her jaw. We were THRILLED!!

The next week, it took our nurse and me about 15 minutes to get Becca to let us bend her knees enough to get her in our van so we could go to the first football game of the season of a local school. Becca had just decided she didn't feel like going and was not going to cooperate. When I realised this, I told her that we were going and it was a special game. This was not about her, it was about our nurse's son, and she might as well get with the program. She relaxed enough for us to get her in the van and enjoyed herself at the game. We were sitting on the front row of the bleachers, of course, and there was A LOT of foot traffic in front of us (with a railing). Rebecca decided to control the flow by sticking out her legs at strategic moments. This only allowed one person at a time to walk past. Our nurse and I had a very difficult time controlling our laughter as we watched her exert her will upon strangers!! Our nurse and I were bust-our-buttons-proud when her son told her later that when a teammate asked if he knew that girl in the wheelchair, her son said, "Oh, that's Becca! She's with me!"

Becca's teacher has already realised that she gets bored with certain activities. Yea! We talked yesterday about the idea of Becca going to a regular classroom for some subjects, when she starts going for a longer school day. This makes me very, very happy for her!

We are seeing progress and give God all the praise and glory. He is working!

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, August 28, 2006 6:56 PM CDT

BACK TO SCHOOL

School began again, Wednesday, 16 August. Becca is going for one hour per day. Our goal is to increase this to two or three hours right after Labor Day. Lots of details to work out for this to happen, but I am going to hang in there until they are all worked out. She has graduated to Middle School, which is exciting and scary. I am excited for her to stay longer so she can experience the new Adaptive Physical Education class! This is the first year it is being offered and I am so thankful for a teacher with this kind of vision for the kids with special needs!! Bless you!!

Becca has been doing very well, just a few days here and there of feeling under the weather and the Oklahoma allergies. It is predicted that this will be a rough year for allergies, since we had no significant frost last winter.

We are noticing increased awareness and a conscious effort to control her right arm. She moves it a little up and down. Just this weekend, we saw her lift her left arm with purpose too. She has done this before, but it is neat to watch her focus on that right arm.

She has a wonderful new headrest (I know, I know, pictures!) and new splints for her feet. The guy who made the splints put butterflies on them for her.

We are looking for miracles every day and believe the Lord has good for our Miss Becca.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, August 7, 2006 7:14 AM CDT

SPECIAL VISITOR

One of our nurses recently met a young man, Garrett, who was in a bad wreck in January. He, too, sustained a traumatic brain injury. His doctors foolishly told him he would be blind, deaf, and dumb, if he recovered at all.

Why do doctors make such pronouncements? God is the only one who knows the outcome!

Well, Garrett is NOT blind, NOT deaf, and definitely NOT without speech! He has been where Becca finds herself right now, and he came to visit yesterday with words of encouragement for her, as well as Mum, Dad, and Emily. Yes, encouragement for our nurses, as well.

He and Becca connected; the whole time he was sitting beside her, she looked at him and watched everything he did. She did not look at anyone else.

Garrett mentioned that he now has a difficult time sleeping. I asked him if he was afraid he would not wake up, because of being in a coma, and he said yes. So, when I said good-night to Becca, I affirmed that she was safe and she could sleep and would wake up in the morning. This is probably the first night in a long, long time that she stayed asleep through my 2am repositioning and through the 6am check before the nurse arrived.

Becca is moving her right arm with more purpose. It looks like she is working very hard to make it move like she wants; her face is concentrated and her arm moves up and down a little. We think this is progress.

The new headrest for her wheelchair has arrived; we are waiting for the guy to bring it to the house and install it. I will have photos up when it is in place.

Thursday, at physical therapy, Becca did her usual sit-to-stand routine with her therapist, and I have never seen her stand so straight and tall. I was behind her and she looked like she was standing there, talking to her friends. The only difference was that she was getting the supporting bear hug from her therapist!

We have passed the two year mark; Saturday was a low-key day. I am excited about year 3 as I believe it will be a year of miracles. I am claiming the Lord's promise of healing and am looking for good every day. I know He has promised, but we need encouragement to keep standing. Thank you so much for your continued prayers for us!

Thank you, Lord, for faithful friends, and thank you for Garrett, a new friend who understands Becca in ways we cannot right now. Thank you for the encouragement he is giving her.

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, August 1, 2006 11:08 AM CDT

REBECCA GETS RIGHTEOUS!!!

Not much new medical news to share regarding the plucky one. Rebecca's parents are becoming increasingly resistant to allowing another invasive surgery, which is what the insertion of the muscle-relaxant pump in the lower back would amount to.

Oklahoma begins its public school season quite early in comparison to some localities and Rebecca may return to school--a new school--as soon as August 16th, fast approaching. She is now in sixth grade. It is not known with certainty just what time of the day she will be attending her hour-long session.

This morning Daddy tried to feed Rebecca her oatmeal breakfast. Harder than it looks! Daddy gave up or gave out and returned to the more familiar terrain of reading Beverly Cleary. Thank you, Oregon-born and Oregon-bred Beverly Cleary. We will always love Klickitat Street, even if we are not Native American.

If Rebecca regains more or her consciousness than she has now regained she might consider "converting" to Judaism. Just kidding! She does enjoy Jewish-flavored music, though, as evidenced by her recent attendance at a Liberated Wailing Wall concert put together by The Jews for Jesus.

The music was bouncing along, and Rebecca surprised all of us by "laughing" (some might call it a veiled shriek) four times within a period of about that many minutes. It was not raucous but it could be heard. Rebecca smiled! She truly was enjoying the music.

Rebecca has also enjoyed two sessions of swimming at the local YMCA. Last Saturday she even moved her legs, her "fins" a little bit at our request.

Thursday, July 13, 2006 8:44 PM CDT

COGITO BECCA SUM!!

Nearly three weeks ago, on a Saturday evening, several times Rebecca tried to say "I." Actually, more than tried. She succeeded in saying "I" but could not complete her thought. May that completion be not slow in coming!

Rene Descartes founded modern philosophy with his declaration COGITO ERGO SUM, "I Think Therefore I Am," and I have borrowed from Descartes in proclaiming Becca's COGITO, her saying "I."

Since then Rebecca has said "NO" a few times, once to an offer of more Chef Boyardee. Smart cookie! That's our girl, holding out for better food.

Little icons or symbols have recently been downloaded from the Internet, laminated and cut out into 2" x 2" squares. The point? These are some "universal" symbols that are often used to help someone like Rebecca point with her fingers to a little symbol as a way of putting across her meaning. There are even restaurant symbols like Wendy's and Taco Bell if Rebecca gets a hankering.

We know this has been a long slow journey. Nearly two years now. We are grateful for continued prayer and "good wishes" support, and direct all praise and gratitude to the Triune God.

LATE BREAKING NEWS!!!

For a long time Rebecca has been "blessed" with the hand-over-hand modality of writing. Meaning, someone imposes her hand over Rebecca's hand and the writing is done this way.

But this afternoon, when a crayon was placed in the girl's hand she actually made a few scribbles ON HER OWN. This is a FIRST and we hope it is as significant as we want to believe it is.

Friday, July 7, 2006 1:12 PM CDT

New photos uploaded 11 July!

WHEELCHAIR VAN COMIN' THROUGH!!!!

We now have a wheelchair van and I cannot even begin to tell how much easier life is with it!! Becca appreciates it very much; she is much more comfortable and has decreased stiffness in the car.

Thanks SO MUCH to Bartlesville's amazing mid-high and high school students for raising a big chunk of what we needed for the van!

We are now waiting for a new headrest for the wheelchair and new splints for her feet that she can use with shoes. These will help her be more comfortable and the splints will help her with walking again.

Stephanie Leupp

Thursday, June 29, 2006 8:19 AM CDT

PRELIMINARY EEG RESULTS GOOD

Rod took me and Becca to Saint Francis Hospital on Monday morning to check in for her long term EEG. We got settled in a nice, quiet room and I gave my list of what we needed to the nurse as soon as she walked in the room. :-) I only asked the nurses/techs for help in changing Becca since that is a little tough for me to do alone at this time (her tone kicks in).

The EEG technician is a believer and we had camp meeting while she was hooking up all those tiny electrodes to Becca's head. There was video and sound hooked up as well, so the doctor would be able to have all pertinent information available to him.

I had a little button to push when I saw behavior we were wondering about, then I had to log the time and exact behavior. The button, when pressed, made a doorbell sound that marked the EEG for the doctor to note specifically. I logged about six times and Tuesday morning the nurse practitioner called and said that NONE of those behaviors are seizure activity!!!! Praise be to God!!!!

She also said that in their preliminary findings, anything else she and the neurologist saw that had potential to turn into seizure was being covered by the Topamax. Praise be to God!!!! No plans to change medication because it is working!

We ended up getting to leave earlier than I had expected on Tuesday and we were so glad to get home. I have to admit it was great having food delivered at 8, noon, and 5! They know how to make a pureed diet look appetizing! I got guest trays since I had to stay with Becca at all times to watch for activity to log.

Becca was very patient and cooperative for this test; I kept telling her how proud I was of her for that. When she is not happy with something, she whips her head to the other side! After our nurse gave her a shower Tuesday evening and told me about washing Becca's hair three times to get all the stickies out, Becca had her head turned away and would NOT look at Laura! She was mad! That would have made getting her ready for the test very difficult!

The Lord is working; I am looking for more manifestations of His promise!

Stephanie Leupp

Friday, June 23, 2006 11:38 AM CDT

VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL

We just finished up four evenings of VBS, or as it is called in the Philippines, Daily Vacation Bible School. I really did not expect Becca to be able to handle all four nights, and we almost did not make it to night three, but she did it! And loved every minute! The theme was Journey through the Wardrobe, with the emphasis on Narnia; just a wonderful week!

I finally read Scriptures on tape for Becca and she is very much enjoying that. I am almost ready to do more for her. I had a letter from the Mom of one of Becca's classmates and she really challenged and encouraged me to believe in what God has promised and what He is doing. I really needed that encouragement! There are many of you who have been praying faithfully who believe that God is healing Becca and her miracle is coming. Let's keep believing and thanking God for His work; He has done it!

Monday and Tuesday we will be at Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa for an overnight EEG. Becca has displayed activity that make us wonder if she is having seizures, so this will tell the neurologist what is going on in there.

We continue to encourage Becca to use words, and she makes sounds and at times, really tries hard to form words.

We are still waiting for approval for the Baclofen pump procedure and are waiting for a new headrest for her wheelchair. The new headrest will help her keep her head up on those days it is a bit too heavy.

The Lord is working and He is good. We are so grateful for each tiny step forward.

Stephanie Leupp

Sunday, June 4, 2006 8:12 PM CDT

REBECCA'S INTERSTATE LAUGH

Stephanie attended a conference in Indiana recently and called home to Oklahoma several times per day. During one of these calls Rebecca laughed in the background and Stephanie thought it was Emily!!

Today Rebecca seems to be pretty alert. SMILEY is the favorite word of the nurses.

Rebecca has seemed to be very attentive to the small tokens of affection (gifts!) that Stephanie brought back from the Indiana conference.

And Rebecca was also interested in the objects bought for her at the neighborhood arts and crafts fair called SUN FEST, held every year at this time just down the street from where we live.

We are thankful that Rebecca seems at times to be very alert. We hope and long for these relatively "lucid" periods to become more the rule than the exception.

Rebecca's history has been, sadly, to "perform" something noteworthy, and then keep to herself for weeks and even months at a time.

We seem to be heading in the desired direction of removing the feeding tube site protruding from her stomach. Rebecca is taking most everything by mouth now, although still gets a long slow feed overnight pumped into her stomach.

The conventional wisdom is that Rebecca's mouth movements and swallowing will eventually tip the balance toward more sounds and eventually speech. She has been quite vocal today.

Not to forget the Christian weight of this Day of Pentecost. Last year on Pentecost this site featured a poem. No poem this year.

But continued thanks to your faithfulness and continued acknowledgement that God alone holds the destiny of any and all of us.

Friday, May 26, 2006 2:41 PM CDT

GRADUATE

On Wednesday, Becca was able to participate in her fifth grade graduation ceremony at Hoover Elementary. The were four classes; hers was the last class and she went last on stage. I pushed her under the arbor, where each child stood and their hopes and dreams were read by the counselor.

I had filled out this hopes and dreams page, but did not realise what it was for. Well, as soon as her name was announced and we went out to the arbor, everyone started clapping and cheering. Of course I just bawled. Rod told me afterward that everyone was giving Miss Becca a standing ovation. It makes me cry just typing it!

I had written that before the accident, Becca thought she might want to be a doctor or a lawyer and go to Harvard or Yale, but now she just wanted to get better and be whatever God would help her to be. One of her friends had as her hope that her friend, Becca Leupp, would get better. That made me cry, too!

Now school is out for the summer. She'll have a week to hang out, then she'll get extended year services for several weeks.

We are busy looking for a wheelchair van and will likely take a field trip to Oklahoma City to check some out. There are many things to consider! Brain overload!

The local high school and mid-high student council officers brought the checks for money raised during their M.A.D. (Make a Difference) Week campaign, honoring Becca. They raised just shy of $5,000.00!!!! They were thrilled to hear we are using it for the van. Someone from the newspaper came, so we are watching for a photo. You might want to look in our local paper, examiner-enterprise.com to see if you can find it.

Onward and upward for His glory,
Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, May 16, 2006 1:00 PM CDT

SURGERY DENIED FOR NOW

I found out this morning that the surgery to implant a Baclofen pump has been denied by Medicaid. The nurse at the neurosurgeon's office said that perhaps more information is needed, so she is going to try to enlist some assistance from previous caregivers.

I was really looking forward to having this procedure behind us, but not looking forward to going to Oklahoma City, so my feelings are a little bit mixed. I am not disappointed; I believe it will happen if God wants it to happen.

Becca continues to appear to be just on the edge of turning a corner with increased alertness and even speech. Then she retreats a little. We rejoice and agonise, rejoice and agonise. It is still a rollercoaster, although the dips may not be as severe as they were in late 2004.

A friend mentioned to me a while ago that I should be reading Streams in the Desert. I just picked it up off the shelf in the library this morning and "happened" to turn to February 18. A little boy was expecting a stamp album from his grandmother as a Christmas gift. It did not come, even after a month of waiting. The boy's mother questioned his expectancy of the gift and told him that it most likely had been forgotten. The child knew it would come and decided to write to his grandmother, thanking her for the gift, as yet not received. His mother was astonished when the grandmother replied that she had been trying to find the album the boy desired, but was unsuccessful. She ordered one and had returned it, ordering another. This too, was unsatisfactory, so she enclosed some money for him to find one in his city. The mother realised that Grandmother had been working as the boy had been trusting, even though he could not see the work.
Permit me to quote the last paragraph:
"It is so human to want sight when we step out on the promises of God, but our Savior said to Thomas, and to the long roll of doubters who have ever since followed him: 'Blessed are they who have not seen, and yet have believed.'"
This brought tears to my eyes and confirmation to my heart that YES, God is still working in our child, as He promised so long ago. I choose to continue to trust, even when some would call me a fool. When God gives a promise, He keeps it; time notwithstanding.
One of my favorite quotes seen on the walls at Emanuel Hospital in Portland is of Saint Augustine: �Faith is to believe what we do not see, and the reward of faith is to see what we believe.�
Stephanie Leupp

Friday, May 12, 2006 10:45 AM CDT

REMOTE CONTROL

Thankfully, Becca settled down the other day and there has been no more vomiting. We do not really know why it happened and have not pursued an Upper GI for the moment.

Yesterday, after school, our nurse told me that Becca had chosen to watch Ella Enchanted, a current favorite movie. Our nurse and another nurse, who was getting oriented to our home, were sitting at the kitchen table eating lunch. Apparently, Becca picked up the remote control with both hands and managed to hit the Pause button! Of course the nurses were amazed and soon got the movie started again after talking with Becca. After a little while, Becca stopped the movie. I can only imagine how excited those nurses were! When asked if she wanted the movie back on, Becca moved a finger as if to try to push Play.

We are grateful beyond words for every little forward movement and continue to believe for more.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, May 10, 2006 10:09 AM CDT

THE FUN NEVER STOPS

We are still waiting for authorisation for the Baclofen pump surgery, but it will likely come a couple of days before we go down to Oklahoma City. I am certainly not looking forward to three days in OKC, but know that this will be of great benefit to Becca.

This morning, Becca has vomited a few times. With a fundoplication, this is not desirable! The surgeon's nurse told me not to get too upset unless Becca continues and vomits several times. It may be a passing bug, or, not a nice thought: the Reflux acting up. I guess that could mean the fundo is unravelling. Let us pray that is not happening. I think we are going to try to get an Upper GI done today; have to see the pediatrician first.

The MicKey procedure did not help the problem, unfortunately. Therefore, we are seriously trying to move toward removing the MicKey altogether. The concern is to be sure that Becca is getting enough fluids every day. She has been doing very, very well with eating and drinking, so we do not think it unrealistic to move in this direction. Of course, a day like today makes us pause!

It has been very rainy the last several days, so we've not been able to take Becca for a walk or sit out on the back porch. She dearly loves being outside.

Thank you for your continued prayers,
Stephanie Leupp

Saturday, May 6, 2006 3:39 PM CDT

BIRTHDAY FUN!!!

Rebecca seemed to know it was her birthday on May fourth. She is now eleven. A parade of her former and present classmates rolled through the house from about 3:45 to 7:15. Maybe three dozen came.

The first visitor was the most memorable, a dear heart from South America whose offspring attended Roman Catholic kindergarten way back when with our child. This woman, not old but not young, might have been preceded by the Holy Ghost. She came with oils for anointing and prayers for saying. At the close of the visit she pressed a crucifix into the injured one's hand. In her Spanish prayer the word "accident" was clearly articulated.

Rebecca continues, not always but sporadically, to want to speak. At least that is one conclusion one might draw from the observations one might make: lips moving, legs scissoring, head bobbing. We hope she will one day begin to speak.

Next week we expect more physical therapy. More than a year ago Rebecca was getting up to four hours of various therapies per day. This total has dramatically declined. We believe Rebecca is to the place where more PT might do the child some good.

This saga rapidly groans to the two-year mark. Rebecca has made progress. Her future cannot be assured. She may never walk and talk again. That is the reality of her injuries. Discernibly, she has gained. We hope she can put more pieces together soon.

The entire Leupp family appreciates the ministry of prayer many, many people have undertaken on our behalfs.

Wednesday, May 3, 2006 9:27 AM CDT

PROCEDURE WENT WELL AND TENTATIVE NEW SURGERY SET

Last Thursday went quite well for Miss Becca. She was very tired because of being shuffled into the Highlander at 3 am for the trip to Oklahoma City. I just gave a look to anyone who dared comment on her sleepiness.

It was a very short procedure and we now have the next bigger size MicKey. We are still fighting some leakage, so I am praying the Lord will put a stop to it. We did not have to be admitted, which was a great blessing.

Last night I got the tentative date for the Baclofen pump surgery. It will be Friday, 19 May. We have to go down for a pre-anesthesia clinic, so we'll do that on Thursday, the 18th and try to stay at the Ronald McDonald House. It will be a challenge to care for Becca there, but since we have to be at the hospital at 6 am the next morning (I believe they like to torture people), I would rather try staying over than going down one week for the clinic, then getting up at 3 again the next week to go for the surgery. That was brutal! I was told that normally, there is just a 23 hour observation period, then we can go home. So that will most likely mean only two nights in Oklahoma City.

I will be very glad to have the surgery over with so we can move ahead and Becca can experience less stiffness. Imagine not being able to control that stiffness and how it must hurt at times. At times it is tempting to be frustrated, but she has absolutely no control over it, so we just patiently help her bend those knees or elbows and keep her from getting sores.

In these lovely days, Becca is thoroughly enjoying spending time outside on the back porch. The warmth relaxes her and we enjoy chatting and blowing bubbles, etc.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, April 26, 2006 1:30 PM CDT

HHHOOOOWWWW EARLY????!!!!

Well, it looks like we'll have to leave the house around 3:30 AM in order to get to the OU Children's Center in Oklahoma City by 6:30 to check in for the procedure. Will I ever experience that hospital in a positive way??

The procedure will be at 8:30am, so please join us in prayer that it will go smoothly and that Becca will not have to be admitted for further surgery on her MicKey site. We want to keep it an outpatient procedure.

Becca has been well, just a bit cranky with the change in weather. I think I have been too!

Thanks,

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, April 17, 2006 7:45 PM CDT

TRIP WENT WELL

Becca did very well on the trip on the fourth. She showed that her stamina has increased tenfold.

She was very tired for school the next day, but so was her teacher. She had been to a TBI conference for two days. It was a very intense two days of learning and meeting some TBI victims. She learned a great deal to benefit her in teaching Becca. I am so grateful for folks who want to keep learning in order to help kids who have had tragic things happen to them.

We learned that the two procedures would be done at separate times; the nuerosurgeon considers the MicKey procedure as "dirty" so will not operate at the same time. We are still waiting to hear a date for the Baclofen pump surgery.

The procedure to clean up the MicKey site will be next Thursday, 27 April. It is planned as an out-patient procedure, but I will go prepared to stay a couple of nights in case Becca is admitted. When the surgeon actually gets into the MicKey and scopes it, she'll know if she can continue or if she will have to admit Becca and actually do a surgical procedure. She is a wonderful doctor and very caring. Her first question was, "Do you still need this thing?" I know many of you are likely asking the same question. The answer is yes, because we cannot guarantee that Becca is getting enough nutrition/hydration by mouth yet. A good example is this weekend. She developed a UTI and would not eat because she did not feel good. We had to give her some Compleat during the day to keep her nutrition up.

She did not feel good because of having the UTI, but also because the first medication we got for her was a Sulfa drug. She got one dose and let us know that her body does not like it. My Mom told me she herself had a bad reaction to a Sulfa drug a long time ago. Of course these things always happen on weekends, and a holiday weekend at that, but I was able to speak to Becca's pediatrician (I'm a Momma Bear now!) and get another medication on Saturday. She started feeling better almost right away.

I got to go to school with Becca last Monday because our nurse called in sick, and the teacher told me she is going to expand Becca's repertoire because she is being so consistent in her responses.

Well, I've been a little discouraged today because it is Spring, a season of new life. Sometimes when we try to ask Becca to do something, she seems to ignore us. I know the Lord has given a promise that He is making her better, but it is so slow that it gets discouraging. I will not stand down from what He has promised and I am so grateful that we can sit with Becca, encourage her, kiss her goodnight, and give her hugs. I know our God is breathing new life into her brain, little by little. I just sometimes get stuck wondering what the purpose is for her being so severely set aside.

Heartfelt thanks to each of you who check this website so often and who pray unceasingly. We surely need it.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, April 3, 2006 7:14 PM CDT

ROAD TRIP ON TUESDAY

Tomorrow we go to Oklahoma City to see two doctors.

The 2:30 appointment is with the neurosurgeon who will implant the Baclofen pump. This is the muscle relaxer to reduce the stiffness Becca experiences. I have also specifically requested that he palpate the reservoir by her shunt to see if it is refilling properly. We have had some concerns in recent days about this.

The 4:00 appointment is with a pediatric surgeon, the same who did the fundoplication to stop the reflux. We are hoping she can do something to stop the MicKey problem. We would absolutely love to have the MicKey completely removed, but the concern is getting enough fluids into Becca on a consistent basis. We have just today tried a new way to do this orally and it is working quite well. In a recent post I described the MicKey problem so will not go into all that again.

Becca has experienced three or four short seizures in the last week. This is one reason we are concerned about her shunt (there are other signs we are watching as well -- grumpiness, left eye looking down sometimes, etc.). Another reason for the seizures could very well be healing. In this same time period, she has been moving her left arm more; this could indicate healing in the right side of her brain.

Sunday evening and today, Emily has been a bit under the weather with a little of the current bug: tummy ache and headache. It appears Becca is feeling the same, so I am concerned about her making this trip and doing okay. Please pray with us that she will do all right and not have any seizures. I just will not rest easy for several days until I am convinced she came through this trip okay. It will be about six hours of driving total, then the sitting in the waiting rooms and doctors' offices. That is an awful lot of sitting for our Miss Becca.

Thanks for praying with us,

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, March 20, 2006 9:52 AM CST

BACK TO SCHOOL

Today is Becca's first day back to school since the accident, 19 1/2 months ago.

I am waiting around for her and her nurse to get back from the one hour venture.

We have an appointment with a doctor in Oklahoma City to get the infusion pump implanted. I guess with these injuries, the stiffness does not go away and it can be very frustrating.

We also must do something about her MicKey site. I am trying to get an appointment with the surgeon who did the fundoplication (to stop the reflux) to see if she will intervene with some kind of procedure.

The site developed some healing tissue that does not belong and then it also has a tunnel, it appears. All this makes for terrible leaking around the tube. Can you imagine having your stomach acids leaking out onto your broken down skin?? OUCH!! She has been a real trooper, but it is a bad problem. Becca has figured out that when she eats, it will hurt later, so she is not eating all that well right now.

Well, Becca and the nurse just arrived back home and it was a success! Our nurse was very impressed with how well Becca tolerated the hour and how well she responded to her school work.

Please join us in prayer for these two procedures. I am hoping to drive Becca to OKC just once for the consultations, then once for the procedures. I hope getting two doctors to coordinate their schedules will not prove to be too arduous.

Thanks,
Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, March 7, 2006 12:16 AM CST

EATING REGULARLY

On Friday, our dietician officially took Becca off her daytime tube feedings. She still gets the continuous feed through the night, but she is eating a regular breakfast, lunch, and supper with snacks in between! Our nurses are having to get very creative to get 8 ounces of milk into her three times a day! We think nothing of drinking down an 8 ounce glass of a beverage, but it is much more challenging and interesting when you are re-learning the art! She also gets cranberry juice and grape juice. Sometimes water, but I remember our speech therapist in Portland saying water is tasteless (okay, not in some parts of Ohio!!) and patients have difficulty realising it is in their mouth.

I remember watching some of the kids at the Providence Center for Medically Fragile Children (Portland, Oregon) being fed their pureed meals and wondering when Becca would make it to that point. Well, she's arrived!

We are feeding her all that we are eating at our meals: pizza, egg salad, pasta salad, oatmeal, fruit, veggies, grilled cheese, meat, a few sweets here and there, but the fruit mostly covers it, breads, etc. She loved the banana smoothie simply made with one banana and three tablespoons of vanilla ice cream that Laura made.

Eating takes lots of energy, so Becca is at another stamina-building stage. Often, by evening, she is exhausted and just goes to sleep. I think by the time she starts back to school in two weeks, she should be a lot stronger.

She is going to start back to school after Spring Break (13-17 March) for about an hour a day. Hopefully, she'll build up little by little to two or so hours a day.

Another blessing is that we were approved for the 16 hours of nursing care per day to continue through the end of May. With her improvements come more work! Our nurses are wonderful with her and are challenging her every day.

Laura noticed that Becca's visual acuity is expanding. We used to get up close to her or show things to her very close. Because of Laura's discovery, the vision therapist slowly backed up yesterday and found that Becca could see what she was working with up to the end of her bed!

It seems that we are accepting the possibility of more limitations than we had hoped for, but hope springs eternal for being able to take some steps, talking, and other basic abilities. I believe her mind is sharp. She makes that clear!

Be sure to tune in to your local ABC channel this Sunday night for the two hour special of Extreme Makeover-Home Edition. A new home was built for a local pastor's family and Rod was part of the security detail for the event. Many of our students and staff from OWU were very much involved as volunteers.

We are working on getting the infusion pump for Baclofen done. This is a procedure that will have to be done at the OU Children's Hospital. It is my understanding that it will only involve a two or three day hospital stay. Because of my frustrations with the two previous surgeries there, I am not looking forward to this. I am especially unwilling to have Rebecca in the car for a 6 hour trip to have a 10 minute consultation, then have to make the trip again for the procedure. I feel like I am working myself up for a fight and am praying that God will just smooth the way.

Our nurse, Kaysha, reported this morning that Becca basically rolled over from her back to her side in bed when Kaysha told her she was going to read the book that they have been working through. Rod told me he saw this and it was big-time movement! I made bookmarks so each of us could know who was reading what to Becca!

Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer. You have no idea how many times you have carried us when we could not walk another step. The Lord is faithful and He is doing a good work in our child.

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, February 21, 2006 11:44 AM CST

THE REWARD OF FAITH

Well, in consultation with our physiatrist in Portland and many others' thoughts, it appears the coma has ended. It seems it was so gradual that we missed it.

On one hand, this is terrifically exciting, but on the other, it makes the current impairment that much harsher. Things we could "blame" on coma now must be viewed through a different lens.

While we may not all agree on the end of the coma, I remain grateful for every little thing the Lord has enabled Becca to regain. She has a long, long, long way to go, and we do not know how far she will go, but I believe she will go further ahead than she is today.

She is trying to make sounds and words; just this morning she really tried to say HI to Emily. Many times, she really tries to make sounds when Daddy asks.

After our consult with the dietician last Friday, we are feeding her more. The dietician wants her to eat six times a day, 3 meals and 3 snacks. By meal, I mean a meat and a vegetable, mashed. At this point, amounts are not as important as getting her reaccustomed to eating by mouth again. The mickey (feeding tube) will stay in place for a long time yet; no one is very eager to remove those too soon. She is doing well, but making her preferences known too!

We appreciate your continued prayers.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, February 6, 2006 6:41 PM CST

PRAISE THE LORD AND PASS THE...MASHED POTATOES!!!

Yes, yes, yes!!! Becca passed her Swallow Study!!!

It was SO fascinating to watch that XRay screen as the speech therapist spooned liquid into Becca's mouth and see her immediately pump her tongue and swallow that Barium. What our nurse and I noticed was that the bites given were significantly larger than any we have tried.

Another bite of the liquid, then a couple bites of nectar consistency Barium and then the pudding consistency. Each time, she processed the stuff properly and swallowed it.

After the first bite or two, I commented quietly that it looked really good to me. The doctor looked at me and quietly said, "Looks good to me, too!"

The last thing the speech therapist wanted to try was some of the pudding on a graham cracker. She put in between Becca's teeth, but she did not bite down. I mentioned that we had not tried anything solid like that, so she decided not to push her luck.

We are just praising the Lord and are so happy I hope we can sleep tonight!

We see Becca's pediatrician tomorrow morning, so we'll get hooked up with a nutritionist and really get going.

Thank you for praying with us for this test. And thank you so much for all your postings in the guest book. Believe it or not, I remember each of you, even those I met once. You have been such an encouragement to us and we thank God for you.

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, January 31, 2006 12:19 AM CST

IT'S ACADEMIC AND NEWS FLASH AT BOTTOM!!!!

I'm not sure what prompted the nurse to do this, but she wrote down some simple sums on a piece of paper and showed them to Becca yesterday. She asked Becca if the sum of 2 3 is 7 and Becca looked at her out of the corner of her eye like Bobbie was really stupid. Bobbie tried a couple more incorrect sums with the same result. When she asked Becca if 5 was correct, Becca immediately closed her eyes! Hooray!! She did more sums with Becca and Becca proved she still knows math!

Later in the day, the vision/hearing therapist visited and she put the letters for Rebecca and Emily on a magnetic board. Becca indicated with her eyes that she still knows the names. Then the therapist made other words with the letters and Becca knew them as well!!

For various reasons, we had to reschedule a Swallow Study that was scheduled for last week. The new time is this Monday, 6 February. Please pray with us that Becca will be able to show off what she can really do. She is making it very, very obvious that she WANTS TO EAT FOOD!! We'll be able to add foods right after the study (see how confident I am that she will succeed??). Once she starts using all those muscles regularly to process her food, speech will come soon!

Also exciting is that she is lifting at least one foot to put in her pant leg when she is being dressed. She helps with her arms and head too. I remember that one of the goals at Emanuel was at least 25 percent helping with dressing and she has met that goal. I know it has been a long time coming, but it's here!

Praise be to God for every little step forward!

Stephanie Leupp

NEWS FLASH, 1 February
Yesterday, Becca said, "MOM" 3 times and "NO" 3 times!! Emily and I heard what we thought was "Mom" without the m sound (all Moms know the SOUND of that name!), but Becca's teacher was right beside her and verified that she said it!! Becca's kindergarten teacher aid now nurse, said that she went in and told Becca she was going to move her in bed and Becca made some noise and then said, "No." Laura exclaimed, "What did you say??" More noise and "No." Laura yelled for Rod to come and he heard her too, not quite as clear, but still, "No."
Thank you, Lord and BRING IT ON!!!!

Sunday, January 22, 2006 5:29 PM CST

HANDS ACROSS THE COMA

As Rebecca's being set aside for nearly eighteen months looms we are reminded of a part of John Wesley's lovely prayer for Christian Community and Covenant:

I am no longer my own, but thine
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low by thee.

Rebecca's parents have not infrequently mused on the pregnant line "laid aside for thee." However one might take Rebecca's having been away for nearly one and one-half years, being laid aside seems about right.

Last night as Rebecca's three immediate family members were away with one of our favorite restaurants, Rebecca did something memorable at the suggestion of the physical therapist, who visited.

Among Rebecca's many small plush, one may stand out. It was her kindergarten kitty. Our newest nurse, Nurse Laura, was in fact the teacher's aide in Rebecca's kindergarten class and recalls having to take Snowflake the Kitty away from the folds of Rebecca's parochial jumper, where Rebecca had spirited the kitty away.

And last evening, when asked, Rebecca switched the kitty from one hand to the other! She was not able to accomplish this more than once, but we were and remain ecstatic that the healing in her brain has advanced to such a state.

Dr. Janice Cockrell suggests that "near" coma might be more accurate to define and circumscribe Rebecca's current condition.

We believe that before long we will be able to drop coma and all of its qualifiers from our vocabulary. It has been so very long.

Thank you for your faithful endurance along this very long passage.

Sunday, January 15, 2006 2:20 PM CST

ONWARD AND UPWARD

Becca is more and more responsive and more sensitive to stimuli. She is ticklish on her feet!

She responds either right away or with a slight delay to questions and commands and is trying her best with therapy. It is wonderful to see her progressing.

We are still working to get rid of the granuloma and the infection around her mic-key site. It is working and we hope to get the leaking under control soon.

A swallow study is in the works and after that is accomplished, a nutritionist will come onboard to help us establish feeding by mouth and mic-key. I fully expect Becca will be able to begin taking some food by mouth after the study. As I mentioned before, she has done well with bananas and other tastes.

Becca had a few very wakeful nights, so we asked her pediatrician if we could try giving her Melatonin at night. This is natural sleep aid. Ha! It helped her sleep all right: all night and practically all the next day! I think we'll try a quarter of the tablet tonight!

Thanks for all your notes in the guestbook (great to hear from the Braults!!). You help keep us encouraged.

I think Becca will be able to return to school for part of the day after Spring Break. It is too risky now with flu season and she is not quite ready for all that excitement. Church is exciting enough, I guess!

Stephanie Leupp

Saturday, December 31, 2005 12:59 AM CST

DOING WELL

Becca has been having some off and on fever, so we took some items to be tested in the lab yesterday. So far, all is okay, so we are thinking perhaps her hypothalmus is healing and trying to regulate itself.

We've had a new physical therapist friend coming in once per week and she is bringing Becca's friends to help with therapy. She gets the girls to play Simon Says and it is quite effective. She has been very pleased with Becca's responses.

We are enjoying our new cat, which we got from one of Becca's friends from school. We've named her Jingle Belle because she is our Christmas cat. She is good therapy for all of us!

I finally downloaded some new photos!

Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, December 27, 2005 5:40 PM CST

NO SURGERY NECESSARY

Jerri, one of our nurses, and I took Becca to Tulsa this morning to visit a pediatric surgeon about what we thought was a fistula, or a small hole to the side of her gtube site. Parenthetically, Daddy did not go because he was determined not to cancel his physical for the third time. We felt it was important for him to keep that appointment.

Well, it may have been a fistula a few weeks ago, but now it is "granuloma," or tissue growing at the gtube site, trying to heal the site. The surgeon said this is very common and will not need surgery. It is important to keep it dry and clean. She put some silver nitrate on it to start the process of drying it up and gave us a prescription for a medicine to finish the job. We have to go back in two weeks so the doctor can check it. She said it periodically comes back, but if it does, I would imagine our pediatrician can handle it. I was very, very glad to hear no surgery is necessary! If it took sixteen months to present, then I am not terribly worried about it coming back real soon.

This doctor had the nerve to state (in front of Becca, mind you) that it does not appear that Becca will be eating by mouth any time soon, and I had to bite my tongue. When we got out to the car, I told Becca that sister had no clue what Becca was doing! Yesterday, Jerri fed Becca some baby food bananas!! My goodness, you should have seen the girl eat those bananas!! Julieann, Becca's speech therapist in Portland, you would be so proud!! She opened her mouth and ate so well. When Manang (Filipino term for older sister) Nemia came for second shift, Jerri and I were telling her about the doctor visit and the bananas and she almost cried, she was so happy!

Every day holds more good and some surprises. This child knows she is home and wants to come back to us. We are so thankful to have some of the best nurses in Oklahoma working with us. Each has her own special way with Becca and she responds to them. Once again, our family is enlarged. As one of our graduates from the seminary in Manila said, our hearts have been enlarged.

Thank you so very much for your continued prayers and for your cards and letters. Please know that we think of you, even when we do not respond personally. I always have such grand hopes for each day, then it is over before I can sit down and write that letter!

Have a wonderful New Year's!
Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, December 21, 2005 3:22 PM CST

THE ENIGMA OF HER ARRIVAL

Rebecca did well at her eye doctor visit this afternoon. We were relieved to learn Rebecca probably has visual capacity in both eyes, even the right eye. The damage to her vision happened at the moment of impact. It cannot be known how much acuity she may or may not have until she can TELL US HERSELF. Lord, hasten that day!

One of the nurses introduced a lollipop to Rebecca's mouth and tongue and got quite a response. We pray that not long from now Rebecca may once again enjoy her choice of eating, instead of what is fed into her stomach through a tube.

Rebecca is moving quite a lot these days, and some days does pretty well with responding to suggestions and/or "commands."

May this Advent--into--Christmas time of the year replenish our faith in the Christian evangel, this Holy Season when Deity is both revealed and concealed:

"Veiled in flesh the Godhead see . . ."
Charles Wesley in "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing"

"Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing . . ."
"O Come, All Ye Faithful"

Saturday, December 17, 2005 2:53 PM CST

IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER

That has been a favorite Christmas hymn of the Leupps' especially as voiced by Stephanie's lovely soprano. She has sung this carol and "We Three Kings" to Emily and Rebecca in the past. And will continue to do so.

Since the last posting Rebecca has continued to gain. More than any other ten-day period in this prolonged journey back to consciousness, Rebecca has demonstrably gained.

What we mean is she stays awake more hours during the twenty-four, moves much more than before and, probably, makes more sounds than before.

Jingle Belle the black cat now calls our residence home, and Rebecca seems aware of the new addition.

Special educators and therapists from Bartlesville Public Schools have been putting Rebecca through her therapeutic paces, and generally speaking (with some exceptions) Rebecca has done well with these ministrations.

Because of the interaction between Valium and an anti-seizure drug Rebecca's heart rate dipped dangerously low (sometimes into the 40s) for two or three days, but that problem is behind her now. She will be weaned from Valium (we are not really sure why she was given this to begin with??) but one anti-seizure drug that was discontinued may be added again.

The Leupp family has sometimes wondered if Rebecca will return for INTENSIVE REHAB to Legacy Emanuel Hospital in Portland, Oregon, since the therapists there were so interested in Rebecca's progress. That decision may be ahead of us.

We are delighted at the palpable progress Rebecca has made. A CHRISTMAS REAWAKENING? Rebecca's skeptical father says "not likely" but even he will admit that his eldest is moving in the right direction, and (of greatest consequence) seemingly moving with greater determination than before.

December 21st Rebecca's eyes will be tested. This appointment was postponed at least twice, so we hope this time it is firm. We continue to believe she can see from her left eye, although not sure of the acuity, and that she has some sensitivity to light in the right eye.

As always we remain grateful for your standing by the Leupp Family, and especially our eldest child. Rebecca has endured so much. When she regains consciousness we really hope she can tell us something of her long journey. Her Aunt Pat remarked that just before the accident Rebecca was prodigiously vocal. For a nine-year old Rebecca was deeply infused with the power of LOGOS, the power of expression. Surely not all of that has been forever lost.

Monday, December 5, 2005 5:42 PM CST

GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN

Since Rebecca returned on November 20th to her home, from her short visit to Jane Phillips Medical Center, we have seen gradual, but still gratifying, progress.

Two incidents we will not soon forget involve placing just a little taste of chocolate frosting on her tongue. In both cases Rebecca responded very appropriately--not smacking her lips, but moving her lips and enjoying the taste. The second time, in fact, she even raised her arm in protest when the attending nurse tried to clean off the remnants of the frosting. As if to say NOT SO FAST I am still enjoying this taste treat!!

Bartlesville Public Schools has also visited at least twice with Special Education Personnel to assess and to interact with Rebecca.

We have identified a local Physical Therapist, whose name just happens to be Rebecca, and we are hopeful she will be able to work Rebecca very soon. The attending nurses typically stretch Rebecca two or three times per day. She is also "up" in the wheelchair for three to five hours every waking day. Almost always this is in two sessions.

And in general Rebecca seems more interested most days in staying awake to observe the world around here, than the interminable sleeping.

Aunt Tricia has done a valuable service in helping to regularize Rebecca's feeding schedule and in taking the night watch detail. She will be missed as she leaves soon to motor back to the Buckeye State.

Roderick has enjoyed reading the classic LASSIE COME HOME to Rebecca, and she has enjoyed it.

Emily has introduced unique smells to her sister and in some cases has gotten a good response.

So there is no real bad news of any consequence to report, and much that looks very promising indeed.

Rebecca's local doctor even diagnosed Rebecca as now "semi-comatose." It is true that this doctor does not have the range of coma experience various other doctors have, but anyone who has spent significant time with Rebecca understands that indeed she is making real, if still seemingly slow, progress.

We of course would be just delighted if Rebecca really and truly regained consciousness between now and Christmas. But if not, as so many people have told us, and we honestly confess, our child is in the Immanuel hands of the Loving God.

Tuesday, November 22, 2005 9:56 AM CST

SHE'S HOME (AGAIN)!!!!

We joyfully brought Becca home last Wednesday from the Bethany Children's Center.

She seemed to know she was home and was smiling a little smile for us. I went to school and picked up Emily a little early (made her very happy) and Becca was smiling for her too.

She seemed to be doing well, but Thursday started bad and got worse. She was having some problems, and then got a high fever, high heart rate, rapid breathing. We tried all we could, then it became obvious that she had aspirated something into her lungs.

The nurses became increasingly worried and kept calling their home office, who then called our doctor. Since our doctor had not yet seen Becca, she was not as informed as she needed to be, so I finally made the decision to have Becca transported to the local hospital. That was a most difficult decision, since we had just gotten her home.

She did have pneumonia, so it was a good call, but we all had a most exhausting weekend, physically and emotionally. We were able to bring her home Sunday afternoon and she has been doing well. A good thing that has happened out of this is that we have been approved for 16 hours of nursing care every day. That is seven days per week, even holidays! We had been approved for 12, but for now, 16 is needed.

Two more good things are that now the doctors know Becca and we know that our local hospital can take care of her. That was one of my little worries. I was amused that we got to teach the nurses how to give her meds and fought with the feeding pump. All of you who have to give Depakote sprinkles (anti-seizure med) can rejoice with us that it is being discontinued on 3 December. We've had several fights with it because it clogs up the tube and it does not come un-clogged without a lot of work!

Thank you for your continued prayers. A good friend who met us at the hospital last Thursday night told me that Becca had been very heavy on her heart that whole day. That is sensitivity to our God.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, November 9, 2005 9:18 PM CST

ONE MORE WEEK

Our family training with our two volunteers went very well yesterday. I was so pleased when Nova told us that Becca really responded to her and knew her. That was Nova's first time to see Becca after the accident.

We brought home a loaner lift (it has a hand crank) and our bath chair. It is going to make bath time a lot easier! I am going to practice using both things with Emily. I think she will get a kick out of it and give me some good training.

You might remember that one year ago, today, we found out that Becca had bacterial meningitis. I have been thanking God today that He brought her through that and has preserved her.

There are a few more things to be done on the house, but it is really looking nice. We are more grateful than we can say to our wonderful contractor, Dewayne, and his crew, and all the subcontractors. They've all been super and very kind.

We will know soon about nursing care and on Monday we meet to plan for Becca's return to school. I know that will be very slow. That may be the toughest part for me because Becca was so bright before this accident.

My sister, Tricia, arrived today and will help us Bring Becca Home next Wednesday!! I know that when she settles in and realises she is home, Becca will perk up. I am praying that it will be enough to push her ahead a little more.

Thank you so much for your prayers for us.

Stephanie Leupp

Thursday, November 3, 2005 8:38 AM CST

BACK AT THE CHILDREN'S CENTER

Becca was returned to the Children's Center late Tuesday afternoon. She has been moved to the unit across the hall because a couple of kids are sick in her unit. The Center is now under RSV Isolation. They do this from November through April. The children are very susceptible to respiratory illnesses, so the Center takes precautions very seriously. What is a common cold for us can put one those children in the PICU.

Becca has done very well since the surgery. No crazy fevers, heart rates, or breathing. Thanks be to God!

We are in the painting phase now. By the end of the weekend, our walls downstairs will be new colors! After that, the new flooring in two rooms and we will be very close to the end of this project.

We are in the planning stages for bringing her home and making sure we have all the equipment we need. We'll have a meeting with some school folks to help us plan her return to school.

Please continue to pray for volunteers to help care for her. Mornings, afternoons, teamwork, we need help!

Stephanie Leupp

Friday, October 28, 2005 7:31 AM CDT

SURGERY A SUCCESS

This surgery is right up there in the top few of the-longest-surgeries-ever! I NEVER would have thought it could take so long! She was gone from her room about 5 or so hours. When the doctor called me, she told me it all had gone very smoothly, and that it had been done laparoscopically. This takes longer because they use a scope (a type of camera, I guess) and they watch what they are doing on a screen. The incision is quite a bit smaller and recovery should be quicker. She had also moved the feeding tube. It had been placed high in the stomach, which is a quick fix, but contributes to more reflux problems. This also did not give the doctor much room to wrap the end of the esophagus. She had to sew up that hole, then move the tube lower. When I called around 2:30 to talk to Becca's nurse, she found that the doctor was being very tedious to be sure she was taking good care of Becca. By then, though, Rod had gone out to get something to eat, driven to distraction by waiting and not getting many answers as to how she was doing in surgery. I certainly hope the work I was doing during that time is correct!
I called later in the evening, after Rod got home, to check on Becca. The nurse told me that several nurses had commented that Becca looks a lot more peaceful. She must have been in pain before this surgery. No crazy stuff with fevers, heart rate, breathing either. The doctor told me they will start her feeds again Saturday and start very slowly. She should be able to go back to the Children's Center Monday or Tuesday.
I have found a cleaning service to come the Saturday before we bring Becca home. When I explained what we were doing and why, the owner, who had come over to look at the house to give me an estimate, said, "If you will give us this job, we will take care of you. This is a gift from the Lord. No charge." Wow! To put it in perspective, the going rate around here is about $20/hour/person cleaning. One estimate I got was for 4 people and four hours. These folks will bring in around 8 or 9 people. Truly, a blessing from the Lord.
Please join us as we continue to pray for volunteers. You don't have to be a nurse to volunteer. You just have to be willing to care for our precious child and come to some training.

Stephanie Leupp

Friday, October 28, 2005 7:13 AM CDT

SURGERY A SUCCESS

This surgery is right up there in the top few of the-longest-surgeries-ever! I NEVER would have thought it could take so long! She was gone from her room about 5 or so hours. When the doctor called me, she told me it all had gone very smoothly, but it had been done laparoscopically. This takes longer because of the scope and I guess they watch what they are doing on a screen. The incision is quite a bit smaller and recovery should be quicker. She had also moved the feeding tube. It had been placed high in the stomach, which is a quick fix, but contributes to more reflux problems. She had to sew up that hole, then move the tube lower. When I called around 2:30 to talk to Becca's nurse, she found that the doctor was being very tedious to be sure she was taking good care of Becca. By then, though, Rod had gone out to get something to eat, driven to distraction by waiting and not getting many answers as to how she was doing in surgery. I certainly hope the work I was doing during that time is correct!

I called later in the evening, after Rod got home, to check on Becca. The nurse told me that several nurses had commented that Becca looks a lot more peaceful. She must have been in pain before this surgery. No crazy stuff with fevers, heart rate, breathing either. The doctor told me they will start her feeds again Saturday and start very slowly. She should be able to go back to the Children's Center Monday or Tuesday.

I have found a cleaning service to come the Saturday before we bring Becca home. When I explained what we doing and why, the owner, who had come over to look at the house to give me an estimate, said, "If you will give us this job, we will take care of you. This is a gift from the Lord. No charge." Wow! To put it in perspective, the going rate around here is about $20/hour/person cleaning. One estimate I got was for 4 people and four hours. These folks will bring in around 8 or 9 people. Truly, a blessing from the Lord!

Monday, October 24, 2005 6:58 PM CDT

CHANGE IN PLANS

I know I just posted an update today, but I guess we're going to bring Becca home one week later than I had hoped.

We were planning to bring her home on Wednesday, 9 November, but there is just too much left to do, such as getting the duct work cleaned and the house cleaned up. This will ease the pressure on the workers and on Rod, who has classes to wrap up.

Please continue to pray for us as we try not to be too stressed in thinking of all these details. It can be overwhelming and we do not know what the future holds, but we know God is in charge.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, October 24, 2005 7:52 AM CDT

SURGERY SET, AGAIN

I was one frustrated Momma last Friday. I actually went to the Nurses Station and demanded help! I have never done that.

Most of my frustration stemmed from two problems: one, Becca was not being changed and repositioned every two hours, and two, I felt like there was no give-and-take with the surgery date.

I felt better after discussing the matter with a couple of doctors who are caring for Becca. They were frustrated with the surgeons also! The surgery will be this Thursday, no sooner.

A small tube was put down Becca's nose and goes directly into the duodenum, thus bypassing the problem of Reflux. That will stay in until the surgery.

She did spike a fever and fast breathing yesterday while Emily and I were at church, but settled down very soon after we left to return to Bartlesville. The nurses and I got the distinct feeling that Becca just wanted to be left alone in a quiet room.

Yesterday, we enjoyed one last visit with our good friends Dave, Kim, Jonathan, and Joy Hane, with whom we served in the Philippines. We had lunch with them and Rhonda Brown, another good friend from our Philippine days. The Hanes return to the Philippines Tuesday morning. We thank God for these good friends. Friends like them and you who have stood by us these last nearly 15 months have kept up our faith. Like our contractor told me one day, you've helped to keep our chins up.

We have set Wednesday, 9 November as Bring Becca Home Day! We'll have Family Training with our volunteers at the Children's Center on Tuesday, 8 November. So, if you are thinking of volunteering, please, please give me a call. We really need some more women to help. We may get more nursing care than we expected, but are not sure yet. We really need your help, if God is speaking to you about it.

Stephanie Leupp

Thursday, October 20, 2005 11:01 AM CDT

SURGERY DELAYED

Becca spiked a fever yesterday and had tachycardia (fluctuating, high heart rate), so surgery has been delayed.

This is extremely frustrating to me because this is exactly why she needs the surgery! Reflux is causing some of these other problems because of the pain.

Please pray with us that she will have a few calm days so the surgery can be done very soon.

Mom, Dad, and little sis also do not especially enjoy having to sit around a hospital room! Who would?! At least this third move in one week has garnered a bigger room with no roommate (so far).

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, October 19, 2005 11:04 AM CDT

SURGERY ON THURSDAY

Becca is an add-on to the Thursday surgery schedule. I am told this Fundoplication surgery can be short or long, depending entirely on the patient. I am so thankful this is going to be done this soon; many problems will be alleviated.

Rod is on his way down to spend time with Becca and Emily and I will go down on Friday for the weekend.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, October 17, 2005 9:26 PM CDT

BLESSING IN DISGUISE

Friday, Becca scared her caregivers at the Children's Center half to death, I think. It ended up that she had a spasm in her larynx (or however you spell that) and was really going crazy.

She was sent back to the OU Medical Center to the PICU, but settled down right away. I was kind of upset, but as I began to pray, I asked the Lord for His will to be done. It occurred to me that He might be working in her behalf to get this Fundoplication surgery done sooner.

I believe that is exactly what happened. If she stays calm tomorrow (she had a fever today), then she should be on the surgery schedule for Wednesday. That was the day she was to have the consult for the surgery!

The Lord works in mysterious ways! Please pray that she will remain calm and fever-free and that this surgery will happen on Wednesday.

The tile looks great in the new bathroom. It is almost complete, then painting, trim, all the little things to finish up, and then Becca can come home!!

Please continue to pray for caregivers. We only have one so far and really need three or four more. This is on a volunteer basis, so a bigger pool would be wonderful. Rod will care for her as much as he can and we both will be responsible for her care at night, but I still have to work every day.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, October 12, 2005 10:50 AM CDT

INCREASES AND DECREASES

The neurologist at the Bethany Children's Center just visited with Becca this morning. He does not feel that the seizure activity is severe and is going to begin weaning Becca off the Depakote. Hooray!! You may remember that the Topamax was decreased a bit already, so she will remain on that and be weaned off the Depakote. His feeling is that two seizure drugs can compete against each other, to put it in terms we can understand. He prefers to use one drug treatment.

We are fairly certain that Becca needs the Fundoplication (are you impressed?) surgery. This is the one for the Reflux. The doctors at the Children's Center feel that Becca's fevers were likely caused by the pain of the Reflux (makes sense, especially if she's had it for a few years), not the Topamax. I am more in favor of this surgery because it will make her a lot more comfortable.

We are also feeling better about the pump surgery. Friends in Arkansas shared their experience (I knew about it, but had forgotten) and if anyone was going to get an infection, it would be Terry! He's been through almost everything. One thing they mentioned that I hadn't thought about is this: the drug does not have to be processed by any organs, thus protecting them from side effects. Another important consideration is the amount of the drug infused. In a pump, Becca would likely get about .5mg - 1 mg per day of Baclofen. Right now she gets 60mg in a crushed pill. This has to be processed by her stomach and who knows what other organs. This amount is not enough right now to help her muscles relax. You can see how important these pieces of information are for us in making decisions. Care would be much easier for her caregivers and day-to-day activities more comfortable for her. Also, our social worker just let me know that she has found one doctor in Bartlesville who refills these pumps. She is going to check with him to see if he is willing to fill Becca's, if the surgery goes forward.

Please continue to pray that female volunteers will come forward to help with Becca at home. She will get to go back to school, but it will be gradual. They have teachers and therapists who can care for all her needs at school, but we really need three or four women who can help mornings or afternoons for a few months. We have one friend, Regina, who has volunteered to care for Becca on Wednesdays.

Stephanie Leupp

Friday, October 7, 2005 8:29 AM CDT

TREATMENT OPTIONS

Becca is now on two medicines for the Reflux. My sister, Tricia, did some research on reflux in kids and found that one of the symptoms is a constant clearing of the throat. Becca was doing that for a couple of years before the accident, so she may have had this for a while. It has been exacerbated by the liquid diet she has been on for the last 14 months. Please join us in prayer that the meds will help her enough that surgery to wrap the stomach around the esophagus will not be necessary.

The second surgery option is for her stiffness (also known as tone or spasticity). I am going to be present for a Baclofen trial. She is already on Baclofen for the stiffness, but a one-time trial will be done soon. She will be given a slightly higher dose and then we will observe her for about 4 hours. This med peaks out at 4 hours. If this reduces her stiffness, then the doctor may wish to insert a pump into her abdomen which can send the Baclofen up her spinal column. We are very hesitant about this, even though the physiatrist has told me infection is highly unlikely.

As our neurosurgeon in Oregon kept telling us, he hated to keep doing invasive proceedures unless they were absolutely necessary. We agree with this. The infectious disease docs talk about these "foreign things" in the body that the body tries to fight, even when they are helpful. Please join us in prayer that we will make wise decisions. If any of you know of someone with a pump of this sort, we would be grateful if they would share their experience with it.

Work on the house is moving forward. Tile will be laid today and cabinets will be delivered Monday. Painting will begin soon. New photos will be up on the other site soon.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, October 3, 2005 8:09 PM CDT

IMPROVING

Well, Becca seems to be moving ahead, slowly but surely. We feel hope surge within us again as we see her more animated and hear her more vocal.

Saturday I was trimming her nails and she positively growled at me! I laughed out loud! She does not like that. Right now she is keeping her hands in a fist and is in danger of digging her nails into the skin of her palms. She did that once and it was nasty and looked very painful.

Friday I went down early so I could accompany her to the Baptist Hospital for an Upper GI. The moving XRay showed Reflux very clearly four times. The doctor told me she usually sees it during the test once. I saw the pediatrician from the Children's Center later that evening and he said they would probably try medicine first and discuss the possibility of doing surgery to wrap the stomach around the esophagus. This acts like a lobster trap: it allows food down, but not back up (one cannot throw up either). He told me he is very hopeful that she will make significant progress in this area. He wants her to eat again!! Hooray! I believe she will talk again; her sounds indicate this.

Today, work on the house moved ahead incredibly. Now it seems Becca will come home soon!

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, September 28, 2005 10:00 AM CDT

BACK IN BETHANY

Becca was returned to her bed space at the Bethany Children's Center on Monday afternoon. Rod has been with her yesterday and today and has found her very much more alert. She is making more sounds for longer periods. I just know I'm going to hear, "MOM!" one of these days!

The doctors and nurses at the OU Medical Center commented that she was more alert and animated, even after only knowing her about two weeks. One precious resident told me that Becca has captured her heart and she will not forget her. I have heard this over and over and I have been pondering. I believe the Lord is working through our child to reach out to people. He is being glorified through our pain and struggle and we just ask for strength to continue.

The doctors have also been pondering about the cause of these high fevers. When the region of the brain that controls our temperature is bruised or injured, our temps can fluctuate. One doc told me recently that medications can also contribute. He was suspicious of one of her seizure meds, Topamax, so that is being reduced and the other one increased. Friday afternoon, I will accompany Becca to Baptist Integris Hospital in Oklahoma City for her to have an Upper GI done. There is the thought that she might have "silent reflux." I hope to know more about this after this weekend. This may also be contributing to the high fevers.

I am very thankful that so many are concerned about our child and are doing their best to help her. It just amazes me how much can happen with an injury like this.

Thank you for your faithfulness. Hopefully, work on the house will move ahead a little faster in the next week or so. I know our contractor wants it to move faster! We are so grateful to all the folks who have and are working to help us. It is a great blessing from the Lord to see the progress and know it is all from Him.

Stephanie Leupp

Thursday, September 22, 2005 12:40 AM CDT

SURGERY A SUCCESS

Well, Miss Becca came through her surgery with "flying colors," as we used to say.

All of the tubing and the shunt valve itself was replaced. She had a magnetically programmable shunt, but now she has a low pressure valve shunt. Her neurosurgeon told Rod this one will show up better on the CT scans. Also, it is a single setting valve and is open a bit wider than the widest (or lowest) setting on her previous valve.

Rod was able to see her in Recovery and said she had her eyes open and looked great. She does have half her hair shaved off, though, which still does not make me very happy.

No indication of any infection and we expect it to stay that way.

Rod will come home tonight and I will head down tomorrow to be with her over the weekend. I expect her to be able to go back to the Children's Center early in the week.

Thank you so much for your prayers on her behalf during this surgery.

A cousin of mine shared an experience she had recently in which the Lord used Becca to tell my cousin she is okay and will be okay. That encouragement and reassurance means the world to me. We seem to need regular doses of reassurance and encouragement! How did the heroes of the faith wait so patiently???

Gratefully,

Stephanie

Monday, September 19, 2005 6:33 PM CDT

SURGERY SET

The shunt revision surgery is set for this Thursday at 8am. Rod will go down Wednesday so he can be there with Becca.

The main neurosurgeon told me she knows our neurosurgeon hero, Dr. Kent Grewe, from his student and residency days. God is good.

These surgeries usually last about 2 hours and then Becca may stay in the hospital over the weekend, going back to the Children's Center early next week. For me, knowing that she will have most of half of her head shaved again is very difficult. I just do not know how much more I can take, to be honest.

She has been fever free for nearly 48 hours now, which is an answer to prayer. The neurosurgeon said she may have some medicine ideas for these central, or neuro, fevers. When a fever gets up to 105F (41C) , it is very scary for a parent. For a doctor too!

We sometimes feel our expectations for recovery are lessening. We have no idea when this coma will lose its grip on our angel or how much better she will be a year from now. I do know that God has given promises and He keeps them. I just wish He would move the process along a bit faster.

Please pray for Becca in this surgery, for her surgeons, and for a good recovery from the procedure. There is always a chance for infection, so please specifically pray there will be none.

Thank you for walking with us,
Stephanie Leupp

Sunday, September 18, 2005 9:19 PM CDT

HALLELUJAH! THINE THE GLORY! REVIVE US AGAIN!

My opening is a tribute to the gospel song we sang growing up in the Church of the Nazarene.

The tie-in with Rebecca is revival, or more truthfully, revision.

As in, this week sometime, her shunt will be changed, or in the medical language, revised.

For some time now, apparently, her shunt has likely not been functioning at its full value. Tests have confirmed this. Her recent central fevers set the docs to thinking she may need to have the shunt changed.

The current shunt has been in place for about eight months, so it has been giving good service. The surgery will probably be September 21st.

The doctor giving us these tidings is of the opinion that Rebecca will probably NOT improve much beyond her current state. While it is sobering to hear this assessment, this particular physician does not know Rebecca's case history to any degree of depth.

We are confident that Rebecca will continue to gain, however slowly.

On a brighter note, one of her nurses, without our asking her, said she believed that Rebecca's left eye was "tracking" with her fairly seriously. We have not heard this sort of report for several weeks, so we were pleased with this report.

The waiting is not getting any easier. We sometimes feel forsaken by God. Remember that the Lord Jesus Christ felt that way at least once--forsaken by His Father. So perhaps this is just where we need to be. We are in good company if we are in the company of the Lord Jesus Christ and his Holy Spirit.

Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead. We hope that something like that happens for Rebecca, and soon.

Thanks for continued support.

Saturday, September 17, 2005 11:06 AM CDT

DOING BETTER

It seems that Becca is beating the fevers, finally. An infectious disease doc mentioned to me this morning that after someone has been on a drug for a while, it can cause fever! I never knew that!!

Becca is still on an antibiotic for the Staph and Strep that grew from the cultures taken from her throat, but no other cultures have grown anything, thanks be to God!!

She has been nicely responsive to us since we arrived for the weekend last night. She has moved her arms and legs and has made some sounds. I've even seen her smiling again and showing discomfort when the physical therapist stretched her. That is wonderful.

I know she would be very happy to have a real bath (Mom would like that for her too!), but there does not seem to be a facility on her floor. Strange. She has some funky foamy stuff that does not have to be rinsed off, but I don't think it does a great job.

We're waiting for the neurosurgeon to tell us the results of the CT scan they did last Sunday. He was waiting for her other scans to come from Oregon so he would have a comparison.

Please continue to pray for us. There is a fair amount to be done on the house before we can bring our princess home. Lots of other details to work out as well.

Stephanie Leupp

Wednesday, September 14, 2005 9:18 AM CDT

FEVER AGAIN

Well, starting around 5 am this morning, Becca is again having 103F fever and some respitory distress. She is flushed and a bit swollen again.

She's on a little bit of oxygen, but her nurse said her SATS are good.

Antibiotics were changed and may be changed again. She's had a chest XRay to look for congestion.

Her nurse was also thinking Becca had had some seizure activity, but could not say for certain.

So much for going back to the Children's Center today.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005 4:41 PM CDT

OUT TO THE FLOOR

To us, moving out to the floor does not mean that literally, but out of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) to the Acute Care Unit. A very positive step!

The ventilator was removed late yesterday, after the MRI was finally accomplished. Her nurse said Becca was a big fan of not having that vent anymore!! Yes, sir!

She did have a fever yesterday afternoon, but it responded nicely to alternating Tylenol and Motrin and they kept it up most of the night to be sure.

So far, only the throat cultures have grown anything. This hospital does not officially declare any culture negative until 5 days out.

Becca was to have an ultrasound today to be sure the end of the shunt tubing in her abdominal cavity was draining properly. I know some think shunts drain into the tummy, but they do not. That could make you sick! It drains into the abdominal cavity and the fluid is simply reabsorbed. The shunt mechanism itself is working fine, the neurologist has determined. It is still set at its widest opening for drainage.

Our social worker at the Children's Center said that all going well, Becca may be able to move back tomorrow. She would be surprised if it did not happen by Friday.

I asked her (our social worker) about the Ativan weaning, because in the hospital, Becca was only given it as needed, or PRN. As my sister told me, they are weaning slowly to insure that Becca does not come home and have a seizure or other big problem because of the sudden cessation of a drug.

While we rejoice that Becca is surmounting this obstacle, we are still sobered by the fact that this coma still has a grip on her. We sometimes feel our grip is loosening on the life raft. I KNOW our God has promised to release her from the coma and give her back to us and that He has very emphatically affirmed that promise about 3 times to me. Some of you have shared that God has spoken directly to you concerning Becca's good recovery. I know that in my head and in my heart, but my emotions sometimes have difficulty keeping up! Mommy wants and needs her girl!! Daddy needs his girl!! Sister needs her sister!! We say with Isaiah, "How long, O Lord??"

Grueling is the word someone recently used to describe how these 13 1/2 months must have been, and continue to be, for us. They have it exactly right.

Your prayers and encouraging words are keeping us going. Please don't give up on us! If we sometimes seem non-responsive to you, please forgive us. Hardly a moment goes by that our thoughts are with our eldest.

Construction goes on with lots of encouraging things happening over last weekend.

Stephanie Leupp

Monday, September 12, 2005 10:50 AM CDT

WATCHING AND WAITING

So far, the only infections that have grown out of the throat culture are Staph and Strep. This is not great, but it is easily treatable.

As a Mom, I cannot rest easy until Tuesday or Wednesday when I know that nothing has grown out of the blood cultures. In November when Becca got meningitis, the culture did not grow out until the third day.

We came home Sunday afternoon because all we can do is watch and wait. Rod will go back down tomorrow or Wednesday.

Becca will have an MRI this morning (I made sure everybody knows to reprogram her shunt!) and will be taken off the ventilator completely this afternoon.

She has been resting much more comfortably since late Saturday night when the fever finally broke and her heart rate went down.

Stephanie

Saturday, September 10, 2005 2:35 PM CDT

SETTLING DOWN

Rebecca was transported to the Children's Hospital in the University of Oklahoma Medical complex around noon today.

Thursday I gave approval for the dentist to pull some of her loose baby teeth and her physiatrist, Dr Wright, thinks some bacteria got into her bloodstream as a result. He said that we all have this when we have dental work; Becca is more sensitive now.

She's had up and down blood pressure, high fever (up to 105F this a.m. and heartrate up to 200), and vomiting. When she arrived at the hospital, there was some thought that she may be having a seizure, but it is more likely the clonus, or the muscles making her feet shake. With this type of injury, the brain does not tell her muscles to stop.

She was getting tired and breathing hard, so she is on the ventilator for a couple of days. Even when we arrived, just before 1:30p.m., she was settling down and all her indications, or SATS, were looking better. She has a Central Line for the IV and blood draws. They've drawn blood and have taken a urine specimen to determine what is going on.

The doctor told me they had sedated her to help her calm down, but when I touched her and began to talk to her, she opened her eyes a little more and really moved around! I really felt like she knew Mummy was there talking to her.

We believe this is another bump in the road and another dip in the rollercoaster ride, but our God has her in His arms, as He has all along.

Your continued prayers are most appreciated and needed. Emily is with friends at home.

Rod and Stephanie

Thursday, September 1, 2005 9:55 AM CDT

SLOWLY MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

On Monday, the nurse practitioner began reducing one of Becca's medications, Ativan. This is used to calm agitation. According to the dictionary, it is a tranquilizer! Small wonder that she has been so sleepy.

The Ativan will be weaned slowly. She gets it 3x/day, one milligram each time. It will be reduced by 1/2 milligram for one dose per week. By the first week of October, she will be off it completely. They would really like to keep her at the Children's Center until this is accomplished.

Rod said yesterday when he arrived that she seemed more alert already, even with just 1/2 milligram less of the med.

While early October is a more realistic target date for the construction project as well, this is difficult for Mommy. Enough said!

As you can imagine, she is growing and the wheelchair does not grow with her! It is too small all over, so the therapists are working to resize it. If this does not work, I guess we will be looking at a new chair. If this is necessary, it is a very long process.

On Friday, 23 September, Becca will see an eye doctor and have a hearing test. My continual prayer is that the Lord will allow her to see, hear, speak, eat and drink, and walk again. We know she can hear and we are confident that she can see a little bit.

We continue to be very grateful for your support in prayer and other tangible ways. We are holding on the Lord's promises and know He will keep them. Thank you for each message of encouragement; they mean a great deal to us.

Tuesday, August 23, 2005 10:58 AM CDT

THE LONG AND GRINDING ROAD

Yes, astute Beatles' fans, that is a reference to the Long and Winding Road.

So it has seemed with Rebecca recently. She has been sleeping
somewhat more than we have observed during her one month in Oklahoma.

Wednesday, August 17th was a very good day for her. Daddy arrived at The Children's Center at about 10:30 in the morning, not having seen her for nearly three days. Rebecca gave forth her morning greeting, and then upon encouragement, did it again.
She later vocalized in response to hearing about her sister Emily. When Daddy left for the evening, his viewing of the film "Hoosiers" still not completed, Rebecca was smiling broadly.

Since then Rebecca has been sleeping quite a lot. Maybe she is resting for a final big push to consciousness?

On Sunday afternoon visitors from First Church of the Nazarene in Bartlesville did manage to draw some responses from Rebecca. It is possible that she sleeps more around Mom and Dad and Emily, simply because she knows she is in loving hands, and is more alert for "special times" with special visitors. This phenomenon was observed at Providence Child Center back in Portland, Oregon.

There is some suspicion that Rebecca is blind in her right eye, and she will be seeing an eye specialist as soon as she is given a Medicaid number.

Some have thought she is also blind in the left eye, but we do not believe that, because there is quite a lot of evidence that she has at least some vision from the left side.

Remodeling of the Leupp family house in Bartlesville is moving ahead. When that is finished we can realistically consider bringing her back to Bartlesville.

One need in regard to that is to find interested people who would be willing to be trained to take care of her, as nursing care in our home will probably be limited.

We are gratified that Rebecca is receiving therapy daily, including Speech, Physical, Occupational, and also some special education ministrations.

Tuesday, August 16, 2005 1:51 PM CDT

A TALE OF TWO SISTERS

Rebecca continues to increase in stamina, for which we are very grateful. She has settled in nicely at the Bethany Children's Center and seems to recognise her visitors and enjoy the time they spend with her.

When Kari, a former babysitter/friend recently visited, she told me she had determined she would not cry upon seeing Rebecca. She knelt down beside Becca's bed and began to talk to her. Soon, she felt herself begin to choke up, and as it became evident in her voice, she noticed Becca's mouth moving as if she were trying to speak. Not long after, Becca made some sounds as if she herself were crying. Kari felt Becca was trying to console her.

This visitor's sister, Kristi, has a somewhat more dramatic story to tell her grandchildren. She was one of the first Bartlesville friends to visit, as she is staying in Bethany all summer. Apparently, she found Becca in her wheelchair, kind of bored-looking. When she spoke, Becca's head came up and her eyes flew open. A caregiver asked Kristi to move to the other side of the bed, as she was trying to do something with Becca, but Becca followed her old pal/babysitter! When Kristi asked Becca if she would like to be read to, a big smile danced across her lips. I'm sure I've forgotten some of the other details, but you can imagine how these two sisters' stories have encouraged us! Becca knows her old buddies.

Every little thing that Becca can do encourages us, but it is very discouraging at times. To visit weekend after weekend and not SEE dramatic improvement is disheartening. To have her doctor send us a note telling of an appointment with an eye doctor because of "blindness in both eyes secondary to motor vehicle incident" is scary, quite frankly. Hasn't the child suffered enough? Then we realise there are different degrees of blindness and we have known that her right eye is not responding as much as the left eye. We are discouraged as we send Emily off to school tomorrow and realise that Becca is missing another beginning.

We are encouraged and in awe at what the Lord is doing on our behalf regarding the construction on our home. He is providing far beyond our wildest imagination! Our contractor, Dewayne, is in awe as well. This is the Lord's doing and it is a reminder that He will keep His promises.

As you continue to uplift us in prayer, please pray for strength for the journey and include those who are working on our home. We pray for safety, a spirit of unity, and above all, a readiness to share what the Lord is doing in this place.

You can keep updated on the construction on our home via photos that I am taking and having put on the other website. Check out six-year old Tyler, Mr Construction Guy! He begged his granddad for days to take him to Stephanie's house so he could dig out concrete!

Stephanie

Monday, August 8, 2005 10:26 AM CDT

THE LONG-DISTANCE BECCA

Mommy Stephanie pointed out something we all must remember. Rebecca's stamina and endurance are increasing as the weeks roll by. It is true she is still in a coma, which after more than one year is obviously of great concern to all who have been following the story.

However, she is now better than ever. It surely seems like "any day now" she may emerge from this coma. Over the weekend of visits by family and friends, Rebecca stayed alert for much of it. She must be "consciously" fighting the impulse to sleep when friends and family are at her bedside, encouraging her.

Rod and Stephanie and Emily went with Rebecca on Saturday morning to the zoo in Oklahoma City. Rebecca did well and enjoyed the time we spent there together.

On Sunday morning we walked her across busy Route 66 (actually fairly quiet on a Sunday morning) and then to First Church of the Nazarene in Bethany, Oklahoma. Once again, Rebecca stayed alert for much of the worship service.

What we want now is for Rebecca to take an active part in her various therapies.

As a "test run" for her anticipated homecoming about six or eight weeks from now, we may bring her to Bartlesville one of these weekends, to see how she fares with it.

Thursday, August 4, 2005 7:25 AM CDT

IS REBECCA BORED?

It seems Rebecca knows she is no longer in Portland, Oregon, but she also knows she is not yet in her family home in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. We hope she will be "in residence" in another six to eight weeks. Things seem to move slowly. But funds have been raised and now the remodeling of the house can happen.

Rebecca still chooses her moments of lucidity or relative quietude. When she is alert her levels of alertness match anything we have seen in this long year. And by now she never sleeps for days upon end, as she did in the past, even the relatively recent past.

One happy reality we have observed is that Rebecca is recognizing, to one degree or other, Bartlesville friends who have been paying her visits. We are glad for that. Of course Rebecca has not seen these people for a year, if not longer, so this is very good news.

Daddy watched a new therapy protocol yesterday, and Rebecca made a fairly valiant effort to cooperate with what was asked of her. We can only ask her to make her best effort, and she almost always delivers.

Let us continue to bring Rebecca Leupp to the Healing God.

Wednesday, July 27, 2005 6:22 PM CDT

REBECCA'S NEW (TEMPORARY) HOME

Dear Friends:

Rebecca's transition to the Childen's Center in Bethany, Oklahoma has been accomplished. Thanks to all who prayed.

Rebecca has seemingly adjusted well. She is getting acquainted with her new surroundings. Her bed is in a much larger room than was true with Providence Child Center, where she had only one roommate. Now she has more like eight or nine, her bed being near the nurses' station. Her bed has a window. She will receive relatively more therapy in Oklahoma than she was receiving at Providence Child Center.

While the night flight to Dallas, Texas and the drive north to Oklahoma were tiring, the Lord supplied all of our needs. Rebecca slept for most of the trip. Dr. Jim Sohriakoff, longtime friend of the family, accompanied us and administered fluids and medicines to Rebecca. Thank you Jim for your generous act. Jim enjoyed the "road trip," claiming not to have seen Roderick in such a state before. It was the banana moonpie in northern Texas chased by the cold Starbucks that must have done it.

Roderick has more time on his hands than Stephanie the next three weeks, so he will be spending much of this time in Bethany, encouraging Rebecca's continuing emergence from this coma.

As for Rebecca, she has definitely not "gone into her shell" through this needed move. She seemed very interested in watching Veggie Tales on the room monitor, and has been moving perhaps more than ever, and sometimes vocalizing as we ask her to do so. What we simply cannot live without these days is Rebecca's radiant smile, and day to day we are never disappointed. At least once each day she breaks into smiles, almost always on her own initiative. Could it be that the Holy Spirit is witnessing with Rebecca's spirit, saying to her "My child, you are soon to regain consciousness." We hope so.

We are happy to report that Rebecca's wheelchair fits (barely) into the trunk of our Toyota Camry. Had it not, we would have contemplated buying a bigger vehicle.

As the one-year mark of Rebecca's coma approaches, we are chastened. One description of Karl Barth's theological ethics, "the hastening that waits," seems to fit here. There is hastening, there is quickening, and there has obviously been lots and lots of waiting. Through all of this the Lord God has been faithful to the Leupp family. Thanks be to God.

Saturday, July 23, 2005 11:19 PM CDT

REBECCA READY TO ROLL!!

By now Rebecca is too big to ride on many of the Kiddie Park rides in her hometown of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, but here is betting she will jump aboard her favorite--the scaled-down roller coaster--as soon as she is able, likely Summer of 2006.

Medical practitioners have used the "roller coaster" metaphor more than once to describe what Rebecca's parents and interested others would be in for. How true that has been!

Today and yesterday Rebecca has once again confirmed the hunch sneaking up on us--that Rebecca is reclaiming her own emotional territory, that she is becoming Rebecca again.

Twice recently she has walked the VIA NEGATIVA ("the way of negativity"). Last night about 9:00 p.m. as her parents were hovering around the wheelchair-confined Rebecca, one parent said "Well, OK, it's time for us to leave now." Immediately, without so much as a thought, Rebecca vocalized with some force, and it sure sounded like her version of "NO . . ."

How could we say "no" to that? Stephanie stayed to help with Rebecca's Friday night bath and Roderick watched television.

Then today, Roderick was joking with Rebecca, not intending to hurt her, but evidently getting under her increasingly sensitive skin. After a moment or two, Rebecca started to whimper, and her parents assured her that Dad was just playing with her. That helped her to regain her composure.

So Rebecca realizes when things are not altogether right in her world, and is letting us know about it! She also lifted her leg up--twice, no less--when Stephanie asked her to do so.

All seems ready for the midnight getaway on Monday evening. We will report on the trip after it has been accomplished.

Thanks for your prayerful faithfulness, and may all glory ascend to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Friday, July 22, 2005 11:14 AM CDT

GETTING READY FOR THE BIG TRIP

We are busy preparing for our trip on Monday night. All of Becca's caregivers at Providence are thrilled that we get to go home to Oklahoma, but they keep telling us how much they will miss Rebecca. She has come such a long way and they have been so genuinely glad as she has improved.

On a side note, you may remember me asking you to pray for a girl named Emma. After one year and a few days, she is now speaking sentences!! We were so happy to hear this news yesterday. God is good!

We have enjoyed seeing Becca smile and move about. She knows the time is getting close for leaving Oregon. When I told her I did not have to leave her again and that we were all going to Oklahoma together, I could tell she was happy and relieved.

Please add to your prayers that all will go smoothly during the trip. We are problem-solving in advance and thinking of ways to keep Becca comfortable.

Our heartfelt thanks to those in this area who have visited so faithfully and have cared for Becca in tangible ways. We will miss you. Know that friends in Oklahoma are eagerly waiting to take your place!

Rod and Stephanie Leupp

Tuesday, July 12, 2005 9:28 PM CDT

DATE SET FOR RETURN TO OKLAHOMA

After much frustration in trying to locate a flight through a charitable organization, we have been given tickets to fly American Airlines. The Lord knows our benefactor and I pray He will bless this person immeasurably.

Rod, Stephanie, Rebecca, and a doctor friend, Jim, will fly Monday, 25 July from Portland to Dallas. From Dallas, we will rent a van to drive the 3 hours up to Oklahoma City, thus not causing two flights for Becca.

Please pray that all will go smoothly.

Rod told me that Dr Cockrell's visit today was better than last month's visit. Becca responded much more to Dr Cockrell and she was very pleased with Becca's progress.

Sunday, Becca actually blew her nose, two times for Daddy and two times for the night nurse! This is not something we do without thinking; it is purposeful!! Praise the Lord!

Please be looking for an email regarding more details about bringing Becca home. If you do not receive one, email me at the address below this update.

Thanks be to God, for He keeps His promises. We are standing with steadfast faith.

Stephanie Leupp

Saturday, July 9, 2005 1:34 AM CDT

LEAVE IT TO BECCA

Recently Daddy and Rebecca were watching "Leave It To Beaver," a favorite program from Roderick's youth that Rebecca has embraced as her own. Rebecca seemed to be focusing well on the misadventures of Wally and The Beav and the entrenched wisdom of Eddie Haskell.

Rebecca seemed to be especially alert that evening, and progressed beyond that on the ensuing day, a day when Roderick regrettably did not get enough quality time with the plucky one. Tomorrow is a new day.

We continue to look for consistency of response and are not quite there yet. Long ago one pediatric neurosurgeon told us that once the brain does something, the brain "has it" and we are banking on this reality with Rebecca. She has once again been vocalizing weakly when she sees her father, leading him to believe that he still matters in her ten year old life.

We are "cleared for take off" from Portland, Oregon and what we are waiting for is simply for air transport to arrange. This issue is too complicated to explain easily. Predictably, cost and egos figure into the equation, but for us the real bottom line is the well-being of our daughter.

Our prayer request for this time is that the Lord God will smooth our passage from Portland to the children's care center in Bethany, Oklahoma, a distance of at least 150 miles from our family home. Still that is better than half a continent's distance. After thirty days in Bethany Rebecca is expected to return to our family home in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

We continue to be amazed at the breadth and length and height and depth of the prayer support we ongoingly receive.
The New Testament uses similar words to describe the extent of God's love, and the Holy Spirit must be inspiring all of you to remember Rebecca.

Before Rebecca's skull bones were replaced two months after the accident the injured part of her skull would go in and out rather dramatically, such that it was often difficult for her father to behold her. A washcloth had to be placed over that part of her skull.

The injured part of her skull still goes in and out somewhat, but nothing like before the "bone flap" was replaced. By now Roderick typically places his hand in the small space created by what has remained. It is a perfect fit. And sometimes as the hand lingers there a prayer necessarily arises to the "Sun of Righteousness, Risen With Healing in His Wings," a phrase Charles Wesley wisely borrowed from the last book in the Old Testament and used for his Christmas masterpiece.

May this Sun of Righteousness shine upon our precious daughter.

Monday, July 4, 2005 0:11 AM CDT

THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS

Different phrases of the Apostles' Creed have meant particular things to Rod and Stephanie as we have negotiated this family crisis. At times "the resurrection of the body" has seemed especially comforting, because at Rebecca's resurrection she will at last be FULLY RESTORED with a glorious resurrection body.

Now "the communion of saints" is moving front and center as many people (and not all of them Christians even) tell us they can see that Rebecca is improving. We take these testimonies for what they are worth--needed reminders that the God who began His good work in our eldest will indeed be faithful to complete it (even if "completion" means something different to God in His eternal wisdom than it might mean to us with our sadly limited outlooks).

Stephanie and Emily returned to see Rebecca over the Independence Day Weekend, not having seen her for about one month. Stephanie immediately noted that Rebecca's "emotionality" (emotional tone) is brighter, higher, more defined, more colored, more nuanced, deeper. Rebecca seems more and more to be making (conscious??) choices as to what sort of person she likes, to whom she may show more, and those not yet on her "A" list.

Aussie reinforcements in the persons of Christine and Nigel Lau arrived from the Land Down Under to provide several days of needed encouragement and "hang-in-theres" ("hangs-in-there"??) to Rod and Stephanie. They are friends from shared days together in the Philippines at the Asia-Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary. Thank you Nigel and Christine for lifting the load!

One nurse who probably has more experience with children in comas than any other nurse we have encountered (among the dozens we have met) suggested it may be time to start the "countdown" for Rebecca's regaining of consciousness. (If we weren't non-gambling Nazarenes we might host a lottery to guess Rebecca's moment of "coming to" with proceeds to benefit her college fund).

We say "bring it on." Eleven months is not an infinity, and who knows how conscious Rebecca is of the passing of time? And yet it has been a dreadfully long wait for all of us.

For Rod and Stephanie and Emily and Rebecca, the real fireworks will not be those we watch from the terrace at Providence Child Center. Inside of Rebecca's brain is the real combustion. We believe the fire of the Holy Spirit is even now bringing our child back to us.

Tuesday, June 28, 2005 8:52 PM CDT

AND BECCA LAUGHED (Genesis 18:12)

We are taking some liberties with the biblical text, and yet it seems justified. Two of Rebecca's nurse's aides report that she chuckled or guffawed to a funny story or incident that the two aides shared between themselves. It may not have been a side-splitting stitch-busting laugh from Rebecca, but it was something. We are thankful.

The pre-crash Rebecca had a developing sense of humor, such that she often regaled her parents and sister with jokes from a juvenile joke book. Rebecca is just a well-rounded girl, running the gamut from a leader among girls to someone who could at age nine tell a funny story.

Stephanie feared, based on some of her reading, that the damage to Rebecca's brain, coupled with the small part of her brain that was surgically removed just a few hours after the crash, meant that Rebecca had forever lost the ability to laugh. Because that part of the brain governs humor. But not to worry! Rebecca will one day laugh again, and she is dropping hints right now that this day may be closer than we realize.

This morning during casual "stretches" on her bed Rebecca looked almost rapturous in transport. Maybe she felt comfortable in the presence of her (wannabe) therapist father Roderick. Maybe she had been temporarily caught up into one or another heaven. But for many minutes her mouth curled slightly and her visage nearly glowed.

Speech therapy reports that after working with Rebecca for nine or ten weeks Rebecca is slowing growing more responsive to the ministrations of speech therapy. We are grateful for what the therapists have been able to do.

The four Leupps will be reunited in Portland, Oregon July 1 through 5. On Sunday we may all indulge in what Providence Child Center calls "Jacuzzi Fun." Rebecca loves the water (yesterday she received three baths in a row due to circumstances) and we hope she will rise and shine on Sunday.

Continued thanks and gratitude to all who are supporting with prayers and positive thoughts. And may Rebecca's progress point beyond itself to the "Father of Lights" from whom every good and perfect gift is given (James 1:17).

Friday, June 24, 2005 0:05 AM CDT

THE VOICE OF HER GREETING

When the Virgin Mary greeted her kinswoman Elizabeth the babe leaped in Elizabeth's womb. I felt a little bit like that early on Wednesday morning, when my impromptu showing up at about 5:45 to see the wide-awake Becca provoked from her a loud and definite greeting. Could Rebecca in her own way be trying to say "hello" to her father? This is what Stephanie and Roderick are believing.

Today Rod, relieved from the drudge of too many days-in-a-row of his "other" job, returned to his true job, quality time with his eldest. He was rewarded.

Rebecca's responses are growing in consistency. It is slow, but real growth. She did well in her hour-long therapy session this morning and afterwards, instead of her customary "crashing" for a nap, was awake for a while.

Two or three times she turned her head when her father asked her to do so. She laid across Rod's lap as he watched Game Seven of the professional basketball finals, and then later did very nicely in sitting beside him (with support) on a sort of love seat couch.

What we are looking for, and increasingly seeing, is more consistency in her responses. Without negating Rebecca's emerging and very real personality, wherein she probably does pick her spots of responsiveness, we need to see more of this.

Stephanie always keeps the focus where it ought to be: On God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. As a theologian, Roderick has felt with more depth than he thought possible the Father's anguish in seeing his beloved Son suffer, mediated to both of Them in the presence of the Holy Spirit, who is the "Bond of Love" (Augustine) between Father and Son. As Rebecca slowly returns to consciousness it is God's triune life that is reviving her. May all of us welcome this God into our midst also.

Sunday, June 19, 2005 5:16 PM CDT

Happy Father's Day!

Tuesday, Rebecca had an opportunity to show the visiting Dr Cockrell her stuff, but declined. This was a disappointment to her parents, because if she had been able to do all that was asked, she likely could have gone back to Emanuel for intensive rehab.

I believe she will go through intensive rehab, whether in Portland, Oregon or in Bethany, Oklahoma at the Bethany Children's Center. I just want our God to receive all the glory; it is ALL about Him!

Becca continues to gain in her ability to respond to commands, to stay awake for longer periods, to pull her head up, and in awareness. I just have to believe the end of this coma is in sight!

We are working on getting her back to Oklahoma by the year mark. Please pray with us about all the details we are trying to work out; there are about a billion!

Your continued prayers are important to us. Some have expressed embarrassement in not calling or writing. Please do not feel this way! We KNOW you are praying and that is a precious gift.

Rod and Stephanie

Monday, June 13, 2005 0:10 AM CDT

REBECCA REDIVIVUS

REDIVIVUS means "coming back to life again," related to vitality and vivacity and revival. Roderick first encountered the word in his studies of John Wesley (1703-1791), described by one writer as a Church Father Redivivus, or Father of the Church come back to life again.

As we have watched Rebecca these past three or four weeks this word seems most appropriate. The Lord God is bringing her back to life in front of our very eyes. It is a wonder to behold!

The contrast between the first two photos in the gallery, with Rebecca's eyes shuttered, and the third eyes-wide-open photo speaks volumes.

As far as she has traveled, and let us not underestimate that, Rebecca may still have some distance toward regaining consciousness. So let us continue to hold her forth before the Healing God.

Recently a new, nearly "beatific" expression has visited Rebecca's face. Not merely visited, because it IS her face. She looks calm, collected, peaceful. This horrific calamity has happened to her, and not to someone else, yet Rebecca seems to be keeping her poise through her long ordeal.

As parents and grandparent we sometimes tell her where she is and how it is she came to be there. We tell her not to be afraid, and not to lose her will to continue to heal.

We hope Rebecca will "show off" Tuesday morning for Dr. Janice Cockrell, because on Dr. Cockrell's word Rebecca could be readmitted to INTENSIVE REHAB back at Legacy Emanuel Hospital, a program Dr. Cockrell heads. If Rebecca does not impress her on Tuesday morning, she may have another chance before the "final" decision to fly Rebecca back to Oklahoma.

As always, we continue to be most grateful for all of the prayer support. Thanks be to Jesus Christ for sending his Holy Spirit into our lives to inspire us to pray!

Sunday, June 5, 2005 10:48 PM CDT

POWERS OF TEN

Friends:

Today marks ten months since Rebecca entered the coma, quite against her wishes. The Lord God has sustained Rebecca through many medical crises. We give all praise and credit to the Lord, and are thankful that the Divine Wisdom has seen fit to work through dedicated physicians, medical technologies and procedures, unflagging therapists (Rod calls them ther-a-bees, buzzing back to the healing hive) and not to forget the dozens of nurses who have shared the medical sojourn.

Rebecca continues to GAIN. Thank the Lord for that! The fact that the healing continues to be slow does NOT negate its REALITY. Today Rebecca made some sounds in response to a request to do so from Rod's mother, Edythe P. Leupp.

Now, more often than not, BOTH of her eyes are WIDE open, when she is awake. And the left pupil seems often not to be so dilated as before. She continues to be able to move body parts as she wishes.

Even after ten months, her parents cannot always READ Rebecca. She seems to choose her moments to be REALLY aware, and sometimes seems to retreat and shut down when overstimulated (as today at Providence Child Center in a crowded room featuring a kind of "generic" birthday party for everyone).

Personally today marks a dozen years of marriage for the parents, Stephanie and Roderick. We thank all those, known and unknown to us, who have modeled community, commitment, passion, (the right sort of) pathos, loyalty, and all those other values that make life life.

Monday, May 30, 2005 10:37 PM CDT

MEMORIAL DAY UPDATE

This weekend has been a more fruitful one for Rebecca than her birthday weekend four weeks ago, when she dozed through much of the weekend.

In contrast, she has been quite lively this weekend, perhaps her best weekend ever. She seems to be responding in a more purposeful way when we ask her to do simple tasks (although not every time, and almost always with a significant delay while making the effort), and seems to be "tracking" with us better.

She will be returning to Providence Child Center on Tuesday. Plans are now being formulated to move Rebecca back to Bartlesville, Oklahoma in about ten weeks, in early to mid-August.

This would change if in the interim she became "perky" (Dr. Cockrell's word) enough to return to "intensive rehab" at Legacy Emanuel Hospital in North Portland, Oregon.

"Fixed and dilated" no longer accurately describes Rebecca's pupils. They are still customarily wide, but the left one especially will now respond to light when light is introduced. That is good news!

While the length of this coma--now approaching ten months--is highly disturbing, Rebecca's medical stability is now at a higher level than it has ever been. Presumably, this is her good healing zone.

Rebecca's hair is growing in nicely, although a few shades darker than before. Maybe the summer sun of 2006 will bleach it again (she may not see much summer sun in 2005).

Stephanie and I sometimes look at one another and say something like "You know, we have done fairly well with THIS," but of course we understand the profusion of grace underwriting this whole drama.

We continue to be grateful for all who are standing by us.

Wednesday, May 25, 2005 8:17 PM CDT

Rebecca knows Daddy is back with her and has even smiled at him. She has been responding to therapies a little more often.

She does have an infection in the Hickman/Broveac line that was put in near her right armpit, so this afternoon was taken back to Emanuel Hospital to have it removed and to be given a course of antibiotics. Of course she has to go through the ER and Rod's Mom is waiting there with her. She has not had a fever and seems okay otherwise.

Emily and I are headed to Portland for the long weekend, so we will probably get to visit our old haunts on the School Age Unit at Emanuel.

A prayer request would be that a creative way to get the IV antibiotics into Becca would be found easily. You likely remember that the Hickman was put in because her veins are no good for IVs anymore. That is a real problem.

Thank you for your continued prayers!

Tuesday, May 17, 2005 7:03 AM CDT

Rebecca Louise Leupp: MONA LISA for today

Reports have reached us of smiles playing about the corners of Rebecca's mouth. Rod's sister Aunt Pat thinks so. "Grandma" Sybil (a volunteer at Providence Child Center related not by blood but by passion) endorses the idea. We have seen this before ourselves.

In Rebecca's long climb back to consciousness she seems to be more aware now than she has ever been. All of her medical signs look positive. In fact the care team at Providence Child Center are so confident of Rebecca's wellness that they have taken all monitors off of her. It was only four or five weeks ago that Rod had to endure a dire conference at Emanuel hospital tossing off the possibility that Rebecca might be losing the ability to breathe for herself, presaging something horrid.

So we continue to be encouraged and continue to place our trust in the One who is the "author and finisher" and the "pioneer and perfecter" of all things, Jesus Christ the Righteous.

Rebecca has recently had more success with the switching device that turns on a cassette player bringing family voices into her world, reading books on tape to her.

What is ahead? Our best hope is that Rebecca will continue to gain in responsiveness, being more consistent following verbal suggestions. If so, she will more than likely qualify for up to twelve more weeks back at Legacy Emanuel, where the skilled and able therapists want so much to "finish the job" they started with her earlier in 2005. She is also receiving therapy at Providence Child Center, and we are exceedingly grateful for that.

As we continue to be for all of the prayer and thoughtful support. No mortal should have to pass this way alone and unprotected by the prayers and good wishes of others. We are not alone. Thanks be to God!!

Sunday, May 15, 2005 12:34 AM CDT

For Rebecca, Today is PENTECOST

Her smoldering brain
So battered so emaciated
So riven
Is ignitable
Is combustible
Is waiting
For You, Holy Spirit
You Who are
Where Father and Son
Meet in ecstasy
Can You not also
Wake our sleeping babe

Tuesday, May 10, 2005 5:55 PM CDT

Rebecca continues to hold her own at the Providence Child Center in Portland, OR. Father Rod "retired" to Bartlesville, OK for a "respite." In his absence Rebecca has enlivened somewhat more than during his times with her. True to herself, even in a coma Rebecca is exercising choices.

Her vitals have been good of late. No significant fevers, tolerating her various therapies well, no vomiting, resting well at night, eyes open much of the time.

We hope, as Dr. Cockrell said weeks and weeks ago, that this is the "calm before the storm." She even said we might long for the days when all Rebecca would do is sleep. After nine months of sleep we are ready for a change!

We continue to place our ten-year old in God's capable hands. One woman used the Abraham and Isaac metaphor--that we need to offer up Rebecca to the Lord God continually.

This we endeavor to do, bringing honor and praise to the Thrice-Blessed Name of the Triune God.

We appreciate your standing by us. We could not stand alone.

Wednesday, May 4, 2005 7:37 AM CDT

HAPPY TENTH BIRTHDAY, SWEET REBECCA!!!!

It was great to see Becca this weekend and celebrate her birthday with a party Sunday afternoon. Three of her aunts (my sister, Tricia and Rod's sisters, Pat and Stacia) were there, along with her Nanny (Rod's mom), and Shelley, our good friend from Emanuel.

Becca was mostly sleepy during our visit, but she perked up here and there. She looks great and is stable.

Yesterday Rod said my sister watched Becca hold up her head for about two minutes in the prone position. That is lying on her stomach, propped up on her elbows. This position helps the lungs and strengthens the neck and back muscles.

Becca also got a haircut yesterday to even out the two sides and make it looks more girly. Rod said it looks pretty.

It is a real struggle for us to wait on God's timing. We know He will keep His promise, but this is really tough right now. Your continued prayers are very much appreciated. We need them more than you know.

Thursday, April 28, 2005 5:55 PM CDT

Last Friday, when Rebecca was being put back in her bed, BOTH eyes opened ALL THE WAY! We had been told there may have been some nerve damage to the right eyelid and possible surgery could correct it. This opening may have been a relaxation of the nerve, but hey, it happened!! This, I believe, was a direct answer to my prayer for encouragement.

Rod saw her heart rate in the 70's the other day; that is normal for her age! Thank you, Lord!

Last night, Rod called to say she had made a sound that was uniquely Rebecca; it made me very happy. He also says her wakeful periods are longer and more frequent.

Thank you for joining with us to ask that the Lord's promise would be fulfilled, even before her birthday on Wednesday.

Emily and I are going for the weekend and my sister Tricia will be there to help celebrate. We will have a party on Sunday afternoon. My prayer is that Rebecca can enjoy it.

Dr. Cockrell wants to see Rebecca consistently respond to commands, then she will get her back to Emanuel for Rehab.

Thank you for your continued prayer support. It means so much to us!

Rod, Stephanie, and Emily

Wednesday, April 20, 2005 8:47 AM CDT

The Lord is hearing our prayers and is answering. We stand firm in this confidence and know He is doing a good work in Rebecca.

These are some of the verses my best friend Heidi and I shared this past weekend when she visited (we hadn't seen each other in ten years!).

Hebrews 10: 19-23
we have CONFIDENCE to come before the throne
we approach with a true/clean heart in FULL ASSURANCE OF FAITH (the NIV says UNSWERVING FAITH!)
He who promised is FAITHFUL

Psalm 66: 10-end of chapter
Bless the Lord
He let people ride over our heads (Wow!), but He brought us to a spacious place
We will fulfill the vows we made when we were in distress
Come and hear, all you people, and WE WILL TELL WHAT GOD HAS DONE!
If we had cherished sin in our hearts, He would not have listened.
He has listened! He has not rejected our prayers! He has not removed His steadfast love from us!

God's Word ALWAYS has something pertinent to say to us if we will take the time to read it.

Becca will go back to Providence today. Here are some praises:
the eye abrasion from the hair caused NO DAMAGE to her eye
again, the Lord touched her immediately as you prayed about the breathing and lung difficulties
She turned away from the light as it was shined into her eyes
Dr Cockrell says she is progressing!

Dr Cockrell is looking for some major changes in the next couple of weeks. That is exactly what I am praying for; something BIG before her birthday. Becca's birthday is Wednesday, 4 May. She will be 10. This is an important birthday and I really want her to enjoy it. Would you join me in asking the Lord to help her turn the corner and come out of the coma before her birthday? He has heard our prayers and I believe He will do it. Many of you have asked about birthday gifts. If you can, the best gift would be to join me in prayer and/or fasting. I have felt so strongly impressed to do this and have had some wonderful times of prayer. Please join me especially in the next couple of weeks up to her birthday and on her birthday.

In Steadfast Faith,
Stephanie

Friday, April 15, 2005 10:14 AM CDT

The Lord is good! He has answered our prayers and helped Rebecca calm down and breathe okay.

In the night last night she did well, only experienced 2-3 seconds at a time of not breathing. We do not want this to occur at all, of course, but are so thankful the Lord has touched her.

Her fever is low-grade, the dentist was very pleased with her teeth (she has a couple of loose ones), and all the cultures are okay so far.

We are feeling a peace from the Lord that He is working and will keep His promises. We continue to ask Him to do it soon.

Rod and Stephanie

Thursday, April 14, 2005 4:56 PM CDT

Dear Friends:

On this day we need to remember Rebecca Louise Leupp in our prayers.�� Starting this morning at about six o'clock Pacific Time Rebecca developed some breathing difficulties.�� She was observed to stop breathing for up to ten seconds.�� That is obviously a concern.�� In Rebecca's past she has experienced trouble breathing, but this is worse than before.
�
If this worsens and Rebecca is no longer able to breathe on her own, it could mean the introduction of a breathing tube.�� Obviously, we do not want this to happen.
�
I (Rod) have spent most of today with the girl-soon-to-be-ten and have not noticed a breathing lapse of up to ten seconds.�� Maybe three or four seconds.�� Rebecca may have some fluid in her lungs.
�
Earlier today it was thought she might have pneumonia, but now that is less likely.�� There is some discoloration in her left lung, but her having pneumonia may not be the real explanation for this.
�
Stephanie and I continue to believe that there is much room for Grace, Providence, Mercy to work in Rebecca's life--as indeed in all of our lives.
�
Faithfully,� Rod

Wednesday, April 6, 2005 12:58 AM CDT

Rebecca was successfully transferred to Providence Child Center yesterday. As you can imagine, it was emotionally difficult for us as her parents. We had so hoped that 1) we would all be home by now, or 2) she would make progress more quickly so she could stay at Emanuel and get back into rehab.

On a happier note, Mom Leupp told me last night that Becca looked really good and comfortable. She made the transition very well. She made some sounds yesterday, had her right eye open more than Mom had seen it, and was still moving around a lot. She is stable. She'd had a GI tract infection which Dr. Cockrell said was inevitable from being in the hospital. The med was making her nauseous and caused some throwing up. Hopefully, she's past that now and the med is almost finished.

Becca's 10th birthday is 4 May. I really pray that our God will have mercy on all of us and awaken her before then.

Emily and I will get to visit her this weekend.

Thank you for your continued, faithful prayers. We need this support very much.

Rod and Stephanie

Sunday, April 3, 2005 4:21 PM CDT

This is a slightly edited version of an email from Shelley (she's in the photo with Becca). This is so good I wanted you to read her words! Stephanie

This afternoon (Friday, 1 April) I went up to her (Becca's) room and got her up to bring her down to therapy.� Val (physical therapist) was stretching her out so I decided to sit down and help hold her legs...today she had a lot of tone so she was very tight.� Val and I were talking about nursing school and Val said "Becca did you know Shelley got into nursing school?� She will be leaving us soon."� And I kid you not... Becca literally screamed... it was as if she was trying to say NO!� Everyone in the main gym stopped what they were doing to direct their eyes on Becca.� This was no little noise... no one has ever heard this out of her!!� Becca made three sounds like that, they were VERY loud plus her eyes were open and looking right at me.� After she made the noises she was a lot more relaxed, not so tight... So whether or not it was from the conversation ( I would like to think so :-)� )� or because we put her in a position she didn't like being in... we got a response!�

Shelley

Praise be to God! He is working in our child!
Rod and Stephanie

Wednesday, March 30, 2005 8:26 AM CST

Mom Leupp told me yesterday that the nurses reported the blood pressure medicine has been discontinued. That is a big Praise the Lord!! Another step forward toward recovery!

Saturday, March 26, 2005 8:00 AM CST

Rebecca's eyes are responding more! Dr. Cockrell told Mom Leupp that she is very pleased with how stable Becca is. The seizure meds are now showing proper levels.

I finally got a new photo in the photo album. Have a look!

We have been humbled in reading the entries in the guestbook. Our faith is strengthened by your faithfulness in prayer. God is certainly working in this situation to bring glory to Himself, which is why we are here.

What a glorious day of rejoicing we will see tomorrow, Easter. We celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, who was willing to die for us. Thanks be to God!

Tuesday, March 22, 2005 9:09 AM CST

One of the seizure meds was increased Saturday, so Becca has been a bit sleepy, which is no fun for visitors. I called her nurse yesterday afternoon and she said Becca had awakened for therapy and was doing well.

Thanks for your visits to our new page and for all the guestbook notes! Wow!

Friday, March 18, 2005 3:23 PM CST

Note from Aunt Tricia to add To Becca's web page -�

Rebecca was only on the ventilator for the two weeks immediately following the accident.� When she was taken off, she consistently breathed on her own and never had to be put back on the vent.� On Christmas Eve she was doing well enough to have the trach tube removed permanently.

She is being fed through a tube, as she has not been able to swallow safely since the accident.� She is growing in bed!

Friday, March 18, 2005 8:52 AM CST

Today we will remember two signs from Rebecca.
Her coma is continuing to lighten. Keep praying!
She opened and closed her eyes on the suggestion of the therapist.
When some of the hospital musicians came singing one of her favorite songs, almost immediately she made several sounds, as if trying to sing along with them! I witnessed this myself, and I was nearly brought to tears.
The rest of my family (Emily, Stephanie) returned to Oklahoma about one week ago. Thankfully I will be seeing them over an extended Easter weekend, unless some dramatic change in Rebecca's medical status requires my staying here in Portland, Oregon.
Thank you--Rod

Tuesday, March 15, 2005 1:38 PM CST

Thank you for visiting our new page to keep you updated on Rebecca's progress.

Just a little history:

5 August 2004: Accident. We were rearended by a Dodge pickup pulling a fifth wheel trailer as we were returning to Portland, Oregon from the coast. All of us were injured; Rod and I were treated and released at the local hospital while the girls were driven by ambulance to meet the Life Flight helicopters. The Pediatric ICU (PICU) intensivists (intensive care professionals) at Legacy Emanuel Hospital in Portland were certain Emily would be fine, but were not sure Rebecca would live. The next 72 hours would tell.

September - December 2004: Rebecca fought infections and went through several surgeries. Emily and I returned to Oklahoma for six weeks so we could be in Oregon later. During this time Rebecca fought a very dangerous bacterial meningitis. An exterior drain was put in her head because she developed hydrocephalus.

3 December 2004: A shunt was installed so that Becca could move out of the PICU.

Christmas: The shunt had to be tapped several days in a row because of the white blood cells working their way out after fighting the infection. The protein level was high also.

12 January 2005: A new shunt was installed.

27 February 2005: Becca had a seizure. The good news is that there is more brain activity, but seizures can happen as well.

Today: Emily and I again returned to Oklahoma on Saturday, 12 March. I will return to work 21 March and Emily will go back to her regular school. She will miss her friends at Capital Hill Elementary in Oregon. They were so good to her!
Rebecca is doing well. One therapist described her as being in a LIGHT coma. We were so thrilled to hear that! I understand from Rod and his mom that she is responding to commands and is making more sounds.
Last Thursday, the therapy dog, Pogo, visited. He was bouncing all over her as if to say that now he knows she is getting better. He is a Papillon (French for butterfly to describe the ears). He is just a little thing, black and white. He loves his job and is very good at it.
The seizure medicines are being regulated. Becca's right hand tremors some with seizure activity, but the meds are controlling it. The goal is to have zero seizures.

Tuesday, March 15, 2005 1:28 PM CST

This page has just been created. Please check back for additional updates.

Click here to go back to the main page.

----End of History----