Kristin "Kourageous" Katich

No, not really but, that is what Children's asked when they looked at her labs on Tuesday. She needed more packed red blood cells. Her hemoglobin had dropped down to 7 and we had had a transfusion just 10 days earlier. I asked why that was. The last transfusion brought her counts up much higher and they stayed there. Like a bouncing ball bounces back slower with every bounce, so does the bone marrow every time it gets knocked down with chemotherapy. With Kristin's bone marrow being suppressed so many times, it takes longer to recover after each hit. They said her counts were "garbage" and we would have to put off going to Oakland to start the interim maintainence phase until counts could recover. So Tuesday was spent at Renown getting two units of the good stuff. We rented some movies and Darren and the boys brought us Deli Town sandwiches. Yum. We all watched I am Legend together. It made the hours go by faster and her brothers got a taste of what she has to go thro...

Many of you have asked about how we found out Kristin had A.L.L. So, here it goes. On December 12, Kristin came home from practicing a dance for a school assembly she and some other kids were doing. She had been nominated for Winter Ball princess and the nominees do a dance in front of the school at the winter assembly. She showed us the dance and we were all laughing as it was rather funny. Since it was late, we had family prayer and said goodnight. Around 11:00, she came into our room practically crawling and in tears saying her knees were hurting her. We asked if she had hurt her self earlier in the day, said that was just really weird and to take some ibuprofen. A short while later she was still in terrible pain, crying and said,"You just don't understand just how bad this hurts!" We checked for swelling, redness, heat, etc. and found nothing. We wrapped her knees up, gave her some vicodin and thought that would do the trick. She asked me to stay with her....she cried...

Saint Baldricks 2008!

Saint Baldricks was amazing! Wyatt, Joey, Sam, Jake, Justin, Chase, Conner, and Joey's friend were the brave souls who graciously shaved to help raise funds for cancer research. Kristin had a generous showing of support from many of her friends fron Galena. At the end of the evening she commented that she was thankful for all the support from her friends and that it meant a lot to have them there. The event was staged by the Keaton Raphael Memorial here in Reno. (think Debbie Strickland and Lizzie Dalton) Wyatt was so excited to shave his head and was literally counting down the days. I think Sam called the house twice a day in anticipation also! These boys all attend Hunsberger. Chase Wortham's sister was diagnosised with A.L.L. a few years ago and is now a survivor. They had so much energy and not one of them second guessed their decision to shave. Kristin was very proud of Wyatt and loves sharing this experience with him. It will be a memory that they will never forget! Thi...

Well, those little nose bleeds on Sunday turned into floodgates early Monday morning. Around 2 a.m. Kristin came into our room and said her nose would not stop bleeding. She had already gone through quite a bit of tissue when she told me. We tried pressure and moved onto paper towels, but could not get it to stop. I called Children's and they directed us to Renown's e.r. Normally an e.r. is not where you want someone to go when they have a comprimised immune system and are neutropenic. Of course they are use to more traumas and wanted to order all kinds of scans and test. (oakland was suppose to call ahead and let them know we were coming in for platelets, but someone did not get the message) I told them all she needed was a stat cbc and they would know that she needed platelets and to send us up to the pediatric floor. Three hours later we were still waiting to go upstairs and had not gotten any platelets. The staff was extremely nice and the new e.r. has seperate, private pro...

So, what a great weekend we had! We were invited by the Hansens to go with them to their cabin in Tahoe. Now, we were only able to get away for just 24 hours but it seemed like a week of vacation to us. It is difficult for us to really go anywhere as we need to keep close contact with the doctors, labs, and hospitals in case of emergencies....which seems to be looming around the corner constantly. Now, this is no ordinary cabin! It is a beautiful home that sits on the shore of Lake Tahoe. Think picturesque views, peaceful, comfortable, and serene! The Hansens were great hosts and we felt like we were worlds away from our troubles. Kristin was able to lounge in comfort. I found her awake Saturday morning looking out of the picture windows that overlooked the lake. She, Darren, and I had a memorable conversation that morning that was priceless. Cody and Wyatt had a good time mastering the ancient game of ping pong along with Jake and J.R. We got a taste of Kerri's competitive side pl...

I just wanted to let you all know about St. Baldricks. This is the largest volunteer fundraiser for childhood cancer research worldwide! On Saint Patrick's Day people from across the country will go bald to raise funds for the event. Wyatt and several other 5th graders will be shaving that night. He cannot wait! This is an outstanding event and promises to be entertaining. If you would like to be a sponser for Wyatt you can go to http://www.stbaldricks.org/ , find the "team kristin" and make a pledge under his name. Lets all help find the cure for childhood cancer and research is where it all begins! If you have any questions, you can call us anytime. The event will be held at the Coconut Bowl in Sparks and shaving begins at 5:45. Go Team Kristin!

Yesterday we went to Renown for a transfusion and more chemo.. The lab results from earlier in the week showed that Kristin's hemoglobin was at 7.3. (these are the red blood cells that carry oxygen throughout the body) /when her levels are at 7, she needs a transfusion. Since we already had an appointment on Thursday for chemo, we decided to do the transfusion then also. By thursday, she was very low, weak, and extremely pale. Being this anemic also makes your nails, lips, and gums appear whitish. Getting a transfusion is like giving a wilted flower water. While we were there we visited with Charlie. She is and adorable eighteen month old and was diagnosed with A.L.L. on Thanksgiving day. We see her often on our clinic visits. There was another girl there who was about 10 or so who was not a cancer patient but had a blood disorder of some kind. Kristin was soundly asleep when she came in. They proceeded to draw her blood when she started kicking and screaming. It was ab...

So, we have had trouble with the internet at our home...again and I have not had access to be able to update everyone. We would like to thank Paul and Stacey with Capital Title for their generous donation of time to help fund raise for Kristin. Their generosity was very much appreciated and the money earned is already put to good use towards the mountain of co-pays and deductibles that we have. Kristin continues to be so brave. We have had many of bouts of vomiting and have been trying to deal with the issues of becoming dehydrated and losing so much weight. She would say in frustration how much she just wanted to enjoy a meal without tasting it on the way back up. In trying to figure out how to help her, I was impressed to try hypnosis. We found a highly recommended doctor here in Reno;William Danton, who has worked with chemo patients. Let me say, I am a believer. After our session, she said she wanted to go to get a bagel. We did and she loved every bite. She has enjoyed ever...