Friday, February 24, 2017

Alyssa's Story

3 Years ago we went to a birthday party at a restaurant.
I think there were 60 people there.
17 people got deathly sick.
2 were hospitalized with Alyssa being one of them.
March 6th, 3 years ago, she was hospitalized with ecoli!
We had no idea where this would take us.

She was a very sick little girl.
There was no rhyme or reason for everyone being sick.
The strange thing is everybody didn't eat the same thing
and Alyssa and her Mom even shared a plate.
We called it food poisoning but it wasn't.
We have now learned that most likely the person
handling the silverware, plates or glasses,
more than likely didn't wash their hands properly, therefore
explaining why some got sick and some didn't.
Over the next 3 years Alyssa would have flairs of
stomach issues. She even had her gall bladder removed
thinking that was it.
The flairs wouldn't last long but
we all knew she had not been the same
since that sickness.

On Christmas night her family was at a Christmas party.
She came to her Mom and said she was very sick.
Long story short. That night was the beginning to this nightmare we are living.
Since Christmas night Alyssa has not eaten food.
Her Mom and Dad would get her to eat a bite or two
here and there but it put her in so much pain
it was not worth it to Alyssa.
They would bring her to me while they worked.
Alyssa just sat. She didn't talk. She was in constant pain.
They had to put her on homebound at school.
(Her daddy holding her hand in above picture)

Then it got to the point that Alyssa
was not able to come to my house
so I would go to her house.
She was declining everyday.
Over the weeks after Christmas, she spent many nights in emergency rooms and at doctors.
Her Mom & Dad begged for her to be admitted but our
Medical system is so messed up right now. It was hard to get anyone's attention but we all knew she was going down hill.
Over the past 3 years she has seen 4 GI doctors 
& lots of other doctors and
they all said everything was normal until the last one.
(Her Mom holding her hand in above picture)

We could see Alyssa was getting discouraged.
She was in so much pain but
nobody could find what was wrong.
But finally, a doctor did a nuclear test
and saw she had delayed processing.
He diagnosed her with Gastropresis along with some
underlying issues.
It is basically a paralyzed stomach.
Finally, a diagnosis.
They put a feeding tube in and sent them home to feed her through that, but her body rejected the formulas they put in.
It causes her body to go in to distress.

Then Monday, Feb. 13 she crashed.
They had to call 911.
She finally was admitted in the hospital.
After spending 8 days in Chattanooga hospital
the doctors had done all they knew to do,
her Mom requested being transferred
to Cincinnati Children's Hospital.
If you would like to send her a card to brighten her day
here is the address:

Cincinnati Children's Hospital
Attn. Talley A4S - Room 442
3333 Burnet Avenue
Cincinnati, OHIO 45229
*Update: Alyssa is home now with a feeding tube.
She is still under the care of the Cincinnati Childrens Hospital.

This is the latest update as of yesterday:

Last 24 hours we've had lots of issues with IV's and about to be required to get another one. Nutrition is still the priority. That's what our prayers are for right now.

The hospital is wonderful to keep the kids busy. She has played Family Feud on TV with all other patients watching, won BINGO, and had an artist draw a pic just for her. Pretty fair day.


Please continue to lift up Alyssa, her Mom & Dad, our family, the doctors and nurses up to our Lord.
Thank you all for your love, your prayers and your support with the t-shirts. Our family thanks you from the bottom of our hearts. Honestly. Thank you is not enough.
Nutrition is our main goal.
We are hoping the doctor will have a plan today.
Alyssa's spirits are up even though she is always in pain.
We are waiting on our miracle.
One night when Alyssa was having a bad night and they called me back to the hospital,
this is what I walked in to see.
It brought tears to my eyes.
Shannon, ( her mom) lays in the bed with her, holding her.
Bryan, ( her dad) literally sat up all night many nights.
A parents love for their child is beyond describing.
Just think.
This is how God is, with us.

*Update:
After being in 2 hospitals for a month,
Alyssa is home now with a feeding tube.
Thanks to the Cincinatti Childrens hospital they
were able to administer a picc line and
slowly get her body to accept nutrition
through the feeding tube.
She has had one flare since we have been home
where she had to be transported to the hospital
only for monitoring until it passed.
Please continue to pray for her.

This is our family you are praying for.
I can tell you that this Mom & Dad would give up
everything to make Alyssa better.
I've watched them. They have been amazing.
We would give up everything to make her better.
When something like this happens, houses, cars, jobs etc.
are nothing. The things we think are important
aren't important anymore.

You never know from day to day
what can happen in your family.
In our wildest days we would never
 have thought we would be here.
Our family is asking you to keep praying.
We are a very close family and
this journey we are on is hard to understand.
Please keep praying while we are waiting on our miracle.
Where would we be without our Lord?
Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts.
*********************

If you would like to purchase a t shirt please send an email to prayersforalyssa413@gmail.com. All sizes are available right now. Men, women and children. Please include size, quantity and whether you want it shipped or pick up. You will receive an invoice to pay through PayPal. If you are local, you can pay at pick up. Just order through email and state you will pay at pick up. The t shirts are 15.00 for local pick up. If you would like it shipped, your shirt will be 18.00 to cover shipping costs. All money raised will go to help them in their time of need. You also can send me private message. Thank you for praying for Alyssa and helping our  family. For such a time as this.

Child sizes:
YXS (2/4)
YS (6/8)
YM (10/12)
YL (14/16)
YXL (18/20)

Adult sizes:
S
M
L
XL
2X
3X
4X
5X

Thank you for your prayers and support. If you have trouble ordering you can text me with info. at 706 913 3337.










Thursday, February 16, 2017

Life

I asked "Sweet Hunter" last night......
How did we get here?
He said, Life.
And he's so right.
You never know from day to day
what is going to happen.
I would have never thought in my wildest days
that "Sweet Angel" would be here.
Bless her heart.
She is in the hospital.
Her parents had to call 911 Monday and
from there she was admitted to the hospital.
She has been diagnosed with Gastropresis
with underlying issues.
We don't have answers to those yet.
Right now, we have to get nourishment in her.
She hasn't ate since Christmas night except a few bites
that we forced her to eat.
We are trusting and believing for a miracle.
While she is at the hospital, Brother is with us.
"Sweet Hunter" gets him up, gets him ready,
feeds him, takes him to school
and picks him up from school.

This boy keeps us laughing!
You should hear some of the conversations
with him and his "POPS"
Please keep praying for his sister!
We need her back!
******************
Our Pastor came by the hospital today and he texted me
this verse after he left.
Isaiah 41:10
Fear thou not; for I am with thee:
be not dismayed; for I am thy God:
I will strengthen thee;
yea, I will help thee;
yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my
righteousness.

Sunday, February 12, 2017

Family

Today, our family all went over to Alyssa's house
to try to cheer her up!
You can't help but be cheered up around these babies.
And she loves her cousins!

Our daughter, Maranda brought a
huge meal over for the family to share.
Our daughter, Mandy brought drinks and desserts.
I know our daughter Shannon really appreciated it.
It really helped me because I always feel like food makes it better.  And I will be cooking during the week.

Alyssa's boyfriend came over to visit her.
That was the first time he had seen
her with her feeding tube in.
He was so sweet.
He brought her Valentines gift and
she was upset that she didn't have him anything.
I know he understood. I don't think he was worried about that.
Bless her heart!
I caught them holding hands.
Look at her little arm.
It actually looks good now.
She's been stuck so many times.

The house was full and noisy with
lots of little munchkins running
around. Sweet Angel loves her family
so we hoped this might brighten
her day. These are her babies.

When she was born, I will never forget her little toes!
She has unique toes.
We are expecting results from some tests tomorrow and hoping for answers.
We need our baby girl back!
She's been sick since Christmas night.
I did a little story on facebook about her family.
It went something like this:

I've watched our family as we go through this trial with our granddaughter.
"Momma Bear"
(our daughter, Alyssa's Mom)
stays right with her, loves on her and
lays with her. There's nothing like a Mothers love.

"Daddy Bear"
(our son in love)
While having to keep things going he still caters to
their every need. Men are fixers. I know he wants to fix this. It hurts when you can't.

"Baby Bear "(Brother)
He's all boy. He plays his guitar. He plays his games.
But in his eyes even though he probably doesn't understand,
you can see he is worried.

Big Sister Bear (Big sister)
While working a full time job and going to college to get her Masters, she
still finds time to call and check to see if Alyssa needs something.

And then there is "Middle Baby Bear"
Alyssa
Sweet Angel
Baby girl

Our world revolves around her right now.
So I hope you understand why this is what I write about.
It is my heart.
We need her back!
Please keep praying for her and our family.
Trusting & Believing


Saturday, February 11, 2017

Update

We should all be so thankful for our health.
This little girl spent another night in the ER last night.
They put a feeding tube in her to
give her some nourishment but
her little body went in to shock from lack
of food and didn't accept it.
So now we are waiting on results
of the tests from last week and hoping for answers.
This has went on for 3 years but nothing like this.
This flair has been the worst.
She's lost over 30 pounds since Christmas night.
Hopefully they will find the right nutrition that she can take
or fix her so she can accept the food through the tube.
On a good note, I wanted to show you what
kind of person our granddaughter is.
When we moved here to the farm,
she was with me everyday along with
our other grands.
She loves all her cousins and she loves babies.
This is one of my favorite pictures of her
with her cousin Asher.
It was naptime. She rocked him on the swing to sleep.
She is so loving with them all.
When she laid him down for his nap,
you can't see it but she pulled a chair out there right next to him and sat next to him rocking him as he laid there.
She sat there for nearly 2 hours watching him.
I know everyone's grand's are special to them and
all mine are to me.
But I am giving you a little insight to our granddaughter
you are praying for.
She has a great big heart full of love.
She's always bubbly and smiling.
She's not smiling today.
Keep praying.
There's a miracle in the making for our baby girl.




Wednesday, February 8, 2017

An Ordinary Morning

We start our mornings with a quiet time.
Sweet Hunter gets up early and comes in the kitchen,
plugs his coffee pot up, and builds me a fire if it's cold.
Then I join him after he gets it all cozy.
I love our mornings.
I love "us!"
Then while he is getting ready to go conquer the world, 
I head out to feed the chickens.
And our day begins.
Then I feed Lily and let her out of her dog lot for a while,
before I let the chickens out.
It takes me about 20-30 minutes
to get my morning farm chores done.
By the way, we took her to the vet for her last boosters and
she weighs right at 36 pounds!
She's only 15 weeks old!
She's going to be a big girl!

"Sweet Hunter" feeds the cats out front every morning.
He says the chickens and Lily are mine
and the kitties are his!!!
We had so many people tell us that our cats
would kill our chickens eventually.
But they were wrong.
Some nights the kitties sleep in the coops
with the chickens.

Then I come in and get ready for the day!
Then make my bed.
See, pretty ordinary, huh?
Then I put a load of laundry in
and fold some clothes.
I try to do my ironing once a week.
It suppose to be today but not gonna happen!
(just not in the mood!)

We are not big breakfast people but I have been trying to
make something small every morning.
Some days we eat oatmeal.
But it there is a cake or cookies we just grab that.
This morning it was cinnamon rolls.

Then I head to the kitchen and straighten it up
and prepare his coffee for the next day.
He only has to plug it in the next morning!
Shall we say spoiled?
(Giggle)
Then I try to get our supper out of the way.
Today we are having chicken enchiladas.
I usually make huge amounts but I am trying to do better on cooking for 2.
If you would like the recipe you can go Here!

Then I headed out to the garden.
I was surprised yesterday when I saw all this broccoli growing.
I thought my broccoli was finished.
Evidently not!
(Smile)

There were 2 heads of cabbage and some Brussel sprouts also!
That's pretty good for February!
Well, that's my morning so far.
I am hoping to make a scarf this afternoon.
We will see.
I love my ordinary days at home.
It's my favorite place to be.
*********************************
I decided that while I am requesting prayer for Alyssa,
I will share something about her.
This picture is when she was younger.
(She's in the purple)
Here she is with Granny and her Sister and brother.
Granny was showing us a quilt she made.
They always loved to go to Granny's.
Since Granny has been gone her house was sold
and it doesn't look the same.
They don't take care of it like Granny did.
We rode by Granny's house one day
right after she had went to Heaven.
and "Sweet Angel" said,
"I miss Granny, don't you Gi Gi?"
She told me when she covers up with a quilt
she can feel Granny's love.

Update on our baby girl.
No change.
But I can't wait until I can tell you she
has her miracle!
Keep praying!
I am trusting and believing!



Monday, February 6, 2017

Home



I went out to the garden today and found lots of goodies
that I didn't even realize were there!
So I picked the Brussel sprouts
and came in and cooked them.
I had some bacon already cooked so I added that
along with butter, salt and pepper.
There's something special about
shopping right from your home.
Grilled homemade bread.
I whipped up some chocolate chip cookies!
There's just something magical about doing with what you have
and not running to the store.

I went outside and was looking around and found one of Granny's plants
peeping out of the ground.
They think it's spring but Sweet Hunter
says it's fixing to get cold again.

I think everyone knows how I love home.
My favorite thing is being at home when it rains.
I don't know why.
That's just me.
Just wanted to give you a little taste of my day.

I also had Sweet Angel here!
What an honor to have her here.
Thank you all for your sweet comments
and most of all your prayers.
We really need them.
There is no change right now.
She still can't eat and doesn't drink much.
She doesn't talk and seems so sad
which is the opposite of what she normally is.
I pray that the doctors will have wisdom and not give up
until we find the problem.
I pray for a miracle.
We need our "Baby girl" back.
Keep praying for Alyssa!
Please.

Wednesday, February 1, 2017

Asking For Prayers

On behalf of our family......

We are asking for prayers for our granddaughter!

I found this picture of when I taught her
to make biscuits on my blog when she was little.

Anyone that has followed my blog
know her as "Sweet Angel!"

We also call her "Baby Girl!"
This is her with her sister!


But if you will call her name out to our Father!
Alyssa is very sick.
Doctors cannot find out what is wrong with her.
She can't eat without pain.
This is her with her baby cousin, Huddy.
He's more like her brother!

This is her Mom, (our daughter),
her dad and her sister and brothers!
We need anyone that will to pray.
Pray for the doctors to find whatever the problem is.
Pray for her Mom and dad and sister and brother.
Pray for us.
But most of all......
Please pray for Alyssa!