Month: February 2008

Mandy isdoing well, but lots of challanges ahead

Hey Guys, Just a quick update on Mandy. She is dong pretty well at the moment. We saw her today and she is definitely gaining weight. Her weight is 7 pounds 7 ounces. She is still on the ventilator. They plan to let her rest while she grows. They are increasing her calories every day. The plan is to eventually try to take her off the ventilator again. If she cannot function without life support, then they will probably do a tracheotomy . The good thing about this is that Mandy would not have to be as sedated she has to be now. She will be able to move around a little more which would be awesome. But it would require another surgery. So once again it’s all in God’s Hands. Thank You for All the Prayers! God will bless your vigilence. Watch and pray that you not enter into temptation. Math 26:41Love in Christ
Michael and Tresa Blaes  

Mandy is still fighting

 

Picture of Mandy shortly after her 2nd SurgeryHey Guys

 We had a little setback. Friday they decided to take Mandy off of the breathing machine. Unfortunately, early Saturday morning,  her stats started dropping and she coded. The doctors decided to put her on the breathing machine and she is doing better now. They dont plan to try to take her off for a while, giving her lots of time to rest and recover.

 Teresa and I were praying, and we heard the Lord tell us that the enemy was attempting to squeeze the life out of her, and us by extention. We took authority and felt peace return. But it taught me something important. Whatever I do I cannot let my guard down. But I know that I cannot stand alone. In fact,  we would not have gotten this far if we hadnt had the prayer support that we have. Please dont allow your guard to drop. We are at a very critical time. Eventually they have to get Mandy off of the respirator, or she wont be able to come home with us. We are not rushing this process, and we know that God is in control. She is resting in his arms.  Here is a scripture that we are standing on.

 If anyone has faith as a grain of mustard seed, he can say to this mountain be removed and be cast into the sea. and it will be done.  Mark 11:23

 We have a mountain or two in the way and we need our Lord to move them for us. Please ask him to give us the stength and wisdom that we need as well, not only to know what to do about Mandy, but what to do in our business as well.

 Thank You For Your Prayers!

Love in Christ
Michael and Teresa Blaes

Mandy’s Second Surger Successful! Praise God!

Hey Guys

Mandy is doing great. It turned out the original patch they used came loose. So they repatched the original hole and a new one they found Both are BSDs. Fortunately the one they were worried about in the muscle area  is very small, and did not require any attention. They also did some work in the Tricuspid Valve which goes to the lungs.  All of the tests so far look great and To GOD BE ALL THE GLORY!!!!!!!!!

Thank You Thank You Thank You For All the Prayers

Love in Christ

Michael and Teresa Blaes

PS. Feel free to comment below. Remeber God is in control!

Mandy’s Second Surgery Complete

Hey Guys,

Mandy is back from surgery. From what we understand everything went well. We havent heard from the doctors yet. We’ll update everything when we know more.

Thanks for all the prayers. We are not out of the woods yet. The PA told us that the first 24-48 hours could be pretty dicey. So please keep the prayers coming. Feel free to comment below. It really encourages us.

 Love in Christ

Michael and Teresa Blaes

Mandy’s Second Surgery

Hey Guys,

I have another update. Mandy is going back for her second heart surgery later today, Feb 19 at 7am. When the doctors closed the BSD holes in the first surgery, they noticed several other holes that they were hoping would close on their own. Unfortunately one of the holes has gotten larger, and letting way too much blood go to the lungs, when it should be going to the lower part of her body. Thank God that it has not affected her internal organs.

The hole in question is in a difficult area of the heart, in the muscular tissue towards the bottom. The procedure that they are going to try does not have a god success rate. Another thing they are considering doing is placing a band around the pulmonary artery to restrict the blood flow.

When we were signing the consent for the procedure, the PA told us that there was not much else they could do. I asked about the possibility of a heart transplant, and was told that there were major issues with that option. It would require extreme constant care from us. And we would have to be evaluated to see if we would be able to handle it.

I probably don’t need to tell you that we need a miracle. PLEASE pray for her especially during the time of her surgery 7:00am Arizona Time. The procedure will take at least 4 hours. We also know that there are major risks of infection and she will have a long recovery. I will have my laptop with me and will be updating the blog as we get them. Also pray for us to have the strength and the peace we need to get through this. The scripture we are standing on is:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving bring your requests to God. Phil 4:6

Pray for the wisdom of the doctors especially Dr Nogri, and Dr. Cleveland, the heart surgeons. They are very good at what they do, but now they need the help of our great physician Jehovah Rapha. (I hope that I spelled that right)

Teresa and I know that Mandy is in God’s Hands. He is her only hope

Love in Christ
Michael and Teresa Blaes

PS. Please feel free to leave prayers and comments below. It really encourages us.

Mandy’s Procedure Successful

Hey Guys, zIts about 5:25pm and the doctor just called me. Mandy’s catheterization went well and she is recovering nicely. They found two more medium sized holes in her heart that are allowing a significant blood flow to go to the lungs which is what is causing her lungs to be stiff, which is effecting her breathing and thus requiring her to be on the breathing machine. All of the doctors on her case will be meeting soon to decide what the next step is. This will probably happen on Tuesday, but it could happen before. Please pray for the doctors to have the wisdom to decide what needs to be done. The most likely solution is surgery. Im not trying to be dramatic about this, but I sense in my spirit that Satan is doing everything in his power to take Mandy’s life. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again. Mandy is very special before the Lord and is going to do something major for him. Please keep covering her in prayer for protection.  The Bible says in Isaiah 53:5, 
       he was crushed for our iniquities;
       the punishment that brought us peace was upon him,
       and by his wounds we are healed.I know that God has promised to heal Mandy, and I believe firmly that he has. If it was up to me and my faith level, she would already be back at home with us. For some reason, God has chosen not to do that. I know that Mandy is in his hands.  Love in Christ

Michael Blaes

Another Mandy Update

I have another Mandy Update.  They ran some tests today, and determined that there is not any extra fluid around her heart. So this is not the reason why she is having trouble breathing. So the doctors have decided to do a Cardiac Catheterization, so they can check the pressure in the heart, and check to see if there are any more large holes in her heart that need to be repaired. If they find any then the plan is take her back to the operating room and repair the other holds.  She is scheduled tomorrow afternoon at 2:00pm. The procedure is done in the laboratory. We don’t have transportation down there tomorrow, so we will be getting updates by phone.  Thank You for All the PrayersMichael and Teresa Blaes 

A little setback

Hey Guys,I have a quick update on Mandy. They were noticing that her blood pressure was really low last night. So they took her off of feedings. This morning they noticed that she was having a lot of trouble breathing. So they tried putting her on CPAP which she didn’t tolerate well at all. So they put her back on the breathing machine. She is doing better now. They are not sure why. There is a chance that her lungs are getting too much blood. They are also considering that she may have an infection. So they are starting antibiotics just in case.  Please pray that they can figure out what is wrong. Also that Teresa and I have the strength to endure. It is kind of frustrating her making progress and then falling back. If God wants to heal her instantly I would not mind that either. Ultimately she is in God’s hands.  Michael Blaes

Back to the Cardiac Unit

Hey Guys,

 Just wanted to let you know that Mandy was transferred back to the Cardiac ICU. She was having some trouble breathing. So they had to put the breathing tube back in. This happened Thursday night.  the next day, The doctors did an ultrasound on Mandy’s heart, and noticed that the heart was enlarged, which means that there is excess fluid. They did a pericardial synthesis to drain off the fluid. The procedure was successful and they transferred back t the Pediatric Cardiac ICU.

She is doing really well. Hopefully they will be removing the breathing tube tomorrow. One more step closer to bringing her home.

Thank You For All The Prayers!                                   

Love In Christ                                                                  Michael and Teresa Blaes