Saturday, February 14

It’s been a few days since I have had a chance to post an update, but I think it’s fitting that on a day symbolized by a heart, I found myself waking this morning with Taylor weighing heavily on my own.

The last few days Taylor has been very comfortable. When she has been awake, her fussy spells have been less and less. Today she slept a lot and was pretty restful and when she was awake she seemed to be more relaxed.

Tammy’s folks are going to stay with Taylor on Sunday, so Jeff and Tammy can both spend time with the boys together. The boys haven’t had much time with both of them together the past month so this will be a nice treat for them. The family has been so blessed to have family and friends around to help out when needed. We thank the Lord for these blessings.

There has been some medical related news over the past couple of days to share. First, we found out the results from the vision and hearing tests that were performed. According to the tests, Taylor’s right ear is operating normally, but her left ear was abnormal. And unfortunately, both eyes came back as functioning abnormal. So what does this mean? From what I understand, the brain is receiving the information about the test (i.e. flashing light in her eyes), but is currently not responding back. At this point they really can’t say how significant this will be, so the diagnoses remains that it is abnormal and only time will tell us how significant it really is.

They also performed a barium x-ray on Taylor. The x-rays show that Taylor’s liver is also enlarged. A barium x-ray is a radiographic (x-ray) examination of the gastrointestinal tract. The use of barium with standard x-rays contributes to the visibility of various characteristics of the GI tract. Barium is a dry, white, chalky, metallic powder that is mixed with water to make barium liquid. Barium is an x-ray absorber and appears white on x-ray film. When instilled into the GI tract, barium coats the inside wall of the esophagus, stomach, large intestine, and/or small intestine so that the inside wall lining, size, shape, contour, and patency (openness) are visible on x-ray. This process shows differences that might not be seen on standard x-rays.


Perhaps the biggest thing to communicate is around the Gastrointestinal Tube surgery that we have been waiting to proceed with. The Rehabilitation unit back at Pitt County Memorial Hospital in Greenville will not accept Taylor until she has this surgery.

Jeff and Tammy have a decision to make and I know it is weighing heavy on their hearts.

Postponing the surgery any longer is costing critical time for Taylor’s rehabilitation. However, the GI doctor’s opinion is that Taylor’s heart is not strong enough for the surgery. However, the Cardiologists are telling them that the improvements in her heart will be measured in months, not weeks and they can’t afford to wait months for Taylor to start rehab. They are waiting to talk to the anesthesiologist to see what his opinion is, but if they do move forward with the surgery they will have the best cardiologist experts in the room just in case.

As good as some days seem it is apparent that Taylor still has a lot of challenges to overcome. I pray that Jeff and Tammy continue to lift Taylor up to the Lord. Place the burden in their hearts in the Lords hands. And on a day that symbolizes love, I pray that Taylor not only feels the love that Jeff, Tammy, and all our family and friends have for her, but that she also feels the love of Christ in her heart.

“Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.”
Psalm 55:22

Pass the Love… Here is a Taylor in her Valentine outfit, she is such a beautiful child.

God Bless!
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