Update - October 19th at 12:15 p.m.

I just wanted to provide a quick update and let you know that Bennett's improvements continue (see "Bennett's site" to get details). I'd like to ask everyone to send up prayers of thanksgiving this weekend for Bennett's improvements since August 20th.

Let's also pray for Travis and Kelly as they continue life in the NICU. They both spend so much time there these days, and I'm sure they are so drained from the last two months. I think we need to say special prayers for them to help them endure the days until little Bennett gets to go home. Let's pray for their physical strength and their mental, emotional, and spiritual endurance.

I'm going to be making another delivery of photos and goodies to them tonight, so for those of you who have sent recent photo wishes, THANK YOU! I'll continue delivering them as long as I keep getting them. So, if you haven't sent one yet, it's not too late.

Let's also not forget about the prayer pager. I know that Bennett's condition has improved, but we should be using the prayer pager when we thank God for Bennett as well as when we pray for him, Kelly, and Travis. So, let's continue to pray and page little Bennett all the way home!

Update - October 9th at 11:15 a.m.

Hello to you all. I hope you've been reading the daily posts Travis and Kelly have been making to Bennett's site. If not, please click "Bennett's Site" at the top of the right column.

Bennett is improving, and we're all so very thankful for that. Please continue to keep Travis, Kelly, and Bennett in your prayers during the coming days and weeks. As Travis and Kelly keep reminding us, things can change quickly in the NICU. Also, with all of the trauma that Bennett's been through, he'll need our prayers for weeks to come. So, please keep up those prayers that Bennett's lungs and neurological functions will strengthen and heal.

Although the blog coverage has been spotty during the past week, please know that I will maintain this blog until Bennett is home and Travis and Kelly have no further needs. Since things are a bit more stable and Travis and Kelly have begun posting once per day, I will post on this blog once per week. I'll try to have my posts up by Mondays at noon.

For those of you who have been interested in helping Travis and Kelly, please continue to check this blog each week. I'll have updates on any means of help we can provide to this sweet family, be they physical, financial, emotional, or spiritual. Together, we can meet their needs.

So, please check this blog each week for updates, and please continue to pray for Travis, Kelly, and Bennett. Thanks for all you've done so far, and thanks for all you'll continue to do. Take care!

Update - October 2nd at 4:40 p.m.

Hello everyone. I wanted to post an update that's a bit overdue. I was out of town this weekend, so it's been a few days since I've been able to provide an update.

If you haven't read the latest posts from Travis and Kelly, please do so by clicking "Bennett's Site" at the top of the right column. They haven't posted today, but they did provide a couple of informative posts yesterday as well as a specific list of things for which we can be praying.

Also, I heard from them this weekend, so I wanted to update you on financial needs. At this point, longer-term needs such as hospital costs are unknown. So, if you'd like to help financially right now, you can consider sending a gift card. Gas cards and restaurant cards would be helpful, as would grocery gift cards. I confirmed this weekend that they shop for groceries at Safeway, so hopefully that information will help.

If you want to help financially, I'm sure meeting some of these short-term needs would be great. However, I would also encourage you to consider holding off until longer-term needs are known. There's no guarantee that there will be a long-term need, but in case there is, I'm sure that lots of people will need to pull together to meet it.

For those of you who have sent me e-mails in the last few days, I'll be returning them in the next 24 hours. The trip out of town and the return to a crazy work environment have caused me to be late on responses. I'm sorry about that.

Don't forget about praying, paging, posting, and sending photo wishes as means of supporting Travis and Kelly. They appreciate and lean on all you're doing, so let's keep it up!

Update - September 28th at 5 p.m.

If you haven't already, please read the latest post on "Bennett's Site" by clicking the link at the top of the right column.

Bennett has had a small setback today, but thankfully, it looks like he has stabilized for the time being. Please keep praying for his little body and its ability to breathe on its own. The best outcome for Bennett is 1) to avoid re-intubation and 2) to come off of the CPAP as soon as possible. So, let's pray for that outcome.

Also, Travis and Kelly met with the pediatric neurologist today. I won't repeat what was said on the latest post, because I don't want to chance inaccuracy. The bottom line is that we all need to send up prayers for Bennett's neurological functioning. We also need to begin thinking about other ways we can continue to support Travis and Kelly.

One way that we'll all probably be able to support Travis and Kelly in the future is by helping with any financial needs they may have. Many of you have asked about helping them with more substantial expenses (hospital costs, etc), so I'm working on finding out exactly how we might be able to help in that area. I have no idea what their needs might be at this point, but I will try to uncover those needs in the next week or two.

So, in the immediate term, please keep praying, paging, posting, and sending photo wishes for this precious family. You can also consider sending gift cards for their short-term expenses. Finally, begin thinking about how you might be able to help with any financial needs they have.

Take care, and keep praying!

Update - September 28th at 10 a.m.

I wanted to ask everyone to say special prayers throughout the day today for Travis and Kelly as they meet with the pediatric neurologist.

As new parents, Travis and Kelly are certainly anxious about this meeting and what may be discussed concerning their baby boy. As evident in their posts from last night and this morning, they are holding tight to their faith that Bennett can be fully healed. So, let's all surround them with prayers for Bennett's full and complete healing, including his lungs and his brain.

Let's show Travis and Kelly that we're behind them today. Please pray as much as possible for them today, and don't forget to page them after you do so. As a reminder, the instructions for the prayer pager are in the right column. Take care!

Update - September 26th at 5:20 p.m.

As you may have already read on Bennett's site, he was extubated last night and transitioned to the CPAP. This news is wonderful - a huge step for little Bennett - so let's all remember to say prayers of thanksgiving today. If you haven't read the full report, please see the journal entries from earlier today and last night.

Today was the day Travis and Kelly were scheduled to speak with the pediatric neurologist about Bennett's MRI results, so thanks for all of your prayers related to that. Let's continue to pray for that during the rest of the day.

I also want to let you know that Travis and Kelly are still requesting no visitors at this time. There will be a time when visitors will be more appropriate, and they've said that they would let me know when that time comes. So, in the meantime, you can show your support by photo wishes, prayer pages, and other creative means.

If you haven't already sent a photo wish, it's definitely not too late. Just follow the instructions at the right and send them my way. My plan is to collect and deliver them each week as long as there's a need. These photos will outlast the current situation, so I know that Travis and Kelly will treasure them no matter when they're sent. So, consider making and sending one in the next few days. And FYI...new photo wishes have been posted to the bottom of the right column.

Let's also not forget about the prayer pager. Although the reports during the past few days have been steps in the positive direction, our little Bennett isn't out of the woods yet. Travis and Kelly have been dealing with this situation for 5 1/2 weeks now, so as they grow weary, we need to be there to support and encourage them. So, follow the instructions in the right column to keep paging them daily.

Finally, I'll briefly mention ways to support Travis and Kelly financially. I don't know of any specific financial needs at this time, but I'm sure that grocery gift cards, restaurant gift cards, and gas cards would be helpful in the short term. Looking more long term, I don't know what the need will be for defraying medical costs, helping with care expenses, etc. Once I find out, I'll be sure to post that information.

I'm amazed at the outpouring of love I've witnessed during this situation. I can't imagine how it makes Travis and Kelly feel. Thanks to you all for your generous, loving hearts. You're truly making a difference in the lives of this precious family. Take care!

Update - September 25th at 10:45 p.m.

If you haven't read the most recent postings, you'll want to click on "Bennett's Site" at the top of the right column.

The latest and greatest news is that Bennett's extubation is tentatively scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday). This is wonderful news, and I know that Travis and Kelly are thrilled! Let's all pray for the extubation to happen if appropriate, let's pray that it goes smoothly, and let's pray that Bennett tolerates the CPAP well (the CPAP is a device that will replace the tube).

Tomorrow is also the day when Travis and Kelly are scheduled to meet with the pediatric neurologist, so let's all be praying that they'll get a good report and that they'll be able to understand what the doctor says.

I must apologize to those who sent photo wishes last week, because I didn't deliver them to the hospital as planned due to a series of events. I will be delivering them during the week this week. I apologize for the delay.

Speaking of photo wishes, if you haven't sent yours, please consider doing so soon. You can find out how to make and send photo wishes by reading the instructions in the right column. Also, I have posted new photo wishes at the bottom of the right column, so check them out.

I've gotten some more questions about financial help for Travis and Kelly. In terms of short-term needs, I'm sure that grocery gift cards, restaurant gift cards, and gas cards would be very useful for Travis and Kelly. If you're out of town and don't know what grocery chains, restaurants, or gas stations are local to the D.C. area, just send me an e-mail and I'll be happy to pass that information along.

In terms of long-term needs, I believe those will depend on how much longer Bennett is in the NICU. I'm going to check with Travis and Kelly's families about setting up a fund for them to help defray costs. I'll certainly post information about that fund here once I have it.

Please be in prayer for Travis, Kelly, and Bennett tomorrow. Let's make the prayer pager go off all day to let them know that we're supporting them and encouraging them every step of the way. As a reminder, the instructions for the prayer pager are in the right column. Take care!

Update - September 22nd at 10:30 a.m.

Friends, yesterday was quite a day for Travis and Kelly. If you haven't seen the latest post from last night, you'll want to read it.

Travis and Kelly have reminded us that Bennett has come very far, so we should all be thankful for that. However, this precious little boy needs our prayers so much right now.

We must pray for the three areas in which Bennett needs to remain stable to be able to go home: temperature, breathing, and feeding. So, let's pray for those areas during the next few days.

Perhaps the areas that need our prayers most of all right now are Bennett's diaphragm and his brain. As was noted on the post, there seems to be paralysis of Bennett's right diaphragm. Although doctors expect this to correct itself within a few years, we still need to pray that it doesn't cause any significant problems to Bennett's growth.

Finally, please pray for little Bennett's brain. The MRI has shown areas of concern, but as of now, Travis and Kelly don't have detailed information on what those areas of concern might mean. They have asked for our prayers for Bennett's neurological functioning, so let's surround them with those requested prayers right now.

Let's renew our commitment to pray for this family and to page them as a tangible means of support. With a month in the NICU behind them and recent reports of concern, this family needs our encouragement. If there are times in the coming days where they are exhausted and unsure of how to move forward, we need to make sure they are confident of our support and our love for them. So, let's make a commitment to pray for this sweet family and to page them each time we do so.

As a quick reminder, I'll be taking more photos to the hospital tonight, so if you haven't sent a photo wish, please consider doing so. I might be able to extend the deadline until 2 p.m., so if you can get a photo to me before that time, I should be able to deliver it with this batch.

Take care, and thanks so much for your support of Travis, Kelly, and Bennett.

Update - September 21st at 4:45 p.m.

There's no word yet on Travis and Kelly's 2 p.m. meeting, but let's keep on praying for them and for Bennett today.

I encourage each of you to continue to ask others in your sphere to pray for Travis and Kelly. Although the immediate urgency after Bennett's birth has gone away, the need for prayers on behalf of this precious family has not. So, please ask your family, friends, church members, small groups, co-workers, and others to pray.

We really need to encourage Travis and Kelly as the time they've spent in the NICU grows longer and longer. Three tangible ways of supporting them include:
1. Praying them and paging them after you've done it.
2. Sending a photo wish to them (individuals, families, and groups are encouraged to do this).
3. Posting a note of encouragement to them.

The instructions for all three of these support mechanisms are in the right column. Thanks so much for hanging in there with Travis, Kelly, and Bennett. It means more to them than any of us can really know. Take care!

Update - September 21st at 9:40 a.m.

Hey everyone. Although there are no updates on Bennett's Site this morning, I'm sure we'll be getting one soon.

Let's all make today one where we say extra prayers for Travis, Kelly, and Bennett. Travis and Kelly will have an important meeting at 2 p.m., so let's all cover them with prayers at that time.

Continue to pray for Bennett today and the various issues for which Travis and Kelly have requested prayers. I know that we all want to see his full recovery, so let's continue praying for that.

Before I go, here are a few more quick notes/requests:

1. If you are a leader of a small group in any church across the country, I'd like to request two things from you:
a. Please e-mail me if your group would like to volunteer to take care of various needs that Travis and Kelly have. I don't have any specifics yet, but I'd like to go ahead and activate a network of people that would be willing to help. So again, if you're a small group leader, please e-mail me your name, your church, and your e-mail address. I'll begin "activating the troops" as needs arise.
b. Please consider having your entire small group make a photo wish for Travis and Kelly. There have been a few groups to do so already, and those photos are very special to Travis and Kelly. So, please think about having a small group photo wish taken.

2. If you haven't sent a photo wish from yourself or your family, please consider doing so. I will be taking another batch to the hospital tomorrow night, so please e-mail them to me by tomorrow at noon. As a reminder, instructions are in the right column.

3. Many of you have asked about ways to help Travis and Kelly financially. At this point, their financial needs are unknown. Once there is more information about what help they might need, I will make sure to let everyone know. So, please stay tuned about that.

Please remember to pray for Bennett throughout the day today. And, set a reminder for yourself to pray for them at 2 p.m. They continue to need our prayers as much today as they did one month ago, so let's continue to support them. Don't forget about the prayer pager, as we need to continue sending them tangible signs of our support. Take care!