<BGSOUND SRC="sparrow2.mid" LOOP="INFINITE"> To More of Mikey's Miracle !! All plaintext copy and photographs courtesy of Mikey's Dad. Thanks, Rick! Note from Peg: This pic is of Mikey and his cousin Ariel. It was taken in December 2000. It is very special to me because Mikey is reading the card WE sent him, with a little note about how the best things in life are .... patched together with love!! *VVVBS* Jan 10th, 2001... Mikey made his last trip to Tulsa Friday, where we received both good and bad news. Mikey hugged and kissed his cardiologist and nurse Rosie, who have taken such good care of him for so long.. since birth, actually, and told them that he loved them. We are unable to continue seeing his regular health care providers and will have to begin going to Little Rock for Mikey's care. Little Rock does not have a pediatric heart surgeon at this time, but they are expecting one soon. If Mikey would need an invasive procedure in the meantime, he would be sent to Cleveland, Ohio. The good news, is that Mikey is doing quite well, right now. He has actually gained a pound or two and grown an inch since November. His cardiologist says that he is still a high cardiac risk and that he does still have two small holes in his heart.. in both the atrial and ventricle sides. The bad news, is they have told us that even if Mikey does not have any other problems in the meantime, that he will have to undergo major open-heart surgery again, in as little as 5 years. This surgery will require his heart to be stopped again, and he will be placed on the heart-lung machine while the repairs are made. The homograft will have to be replaced. The homograft is the human donor valve that runs from the ventricle defect (hole) and connects to the pulmonary artery, after bypassing the area of stenosis (blockage). Mikey will leave surgery, being supported by the ventilator again. It is hard for us to imagine going through all this again. And we know that we will be facing all the same risks, again. But we still believe in miracles and we know that God is still on His throne. Mikey is doing great right now, and we will enjoy every day that we have with him. Perhaps medical advances could be made in the next five years, improving the outlook for our Mikey. We KNOW that God can do a lot in five years. Jan 17th, 2001... Mikey always gets up with a smile. He goes to bed with a smile. He's just a smiley, loveable little guy. If you don't like lots of big hugs and kisses or someone constantly telling you that he loves you.... you better stay away from Mikey! He gets EVERYBODY, sooner or later.. teachers, doctors, nurses, preachers, visitors and total strangers. Sometimes he draws 'em in close, by pretending he's gonna whisper something in their ear.. and then he nails 'em! Dressed for church... Jan 28th, 2001... Tie? Check.. Vest? Check.. Remind dad that my birthday is approaching? Check! Mikey is all duded up and ready to leave for church. He is doing very well right now. He's eating a little better now, and he has mucho energy! This week, he goes to see his new doctors in Little Rock and have his pacemakers checked at the arrythmia clinic. This is our "birthday season"..grandma's birthday was last week.. sissy's birthday is next week (Feb 4th) and Mikey's birthday is Feb 16th. Mikey will be 6 years old and he's making sure EVERYONE knows it. We've come such a long way with Mikey. God IS good. Thank You, Father. Feb 2nd, 2001 Today's update is very hard to write. Mikey is back wearing the 24-hour "Holter Monitor" again. We have been numb all week, from the news we have gotten. We traveled to Little Rock to meet with Mikey's new doctors earlier this week. An EKG, pacer check, and a heart echo were done, and then they gave us the unexpected news. The Little Rock doctors believe that Mikey is still very ill. They believe that his heart is under too much pressure and that the implanted homograft (donor valve) is calcifying and becoming blocked. They want to do a heart catheterization to determine their next step... possibly a homograft replacement, or an "arterial switch" operation. Both procedures are major open-heart surgeries. This news was like a kick in the stomach.. totally unexpected.. leaving us breathless, numb. The homograft should have been good for YEARS. Mikey seems so healthy to us right now. He's eating better, growing, getting stronger, and he seems to have more energy every day. AND, we had just gotten a clean bill of health from Tulsa a couple of weeks ago. We really don't understand what has happened. Was there a problem with the repair? Was the homograft bad? Mikey's heart was just repaired JUST months ago! He barely survived that surgery. He hasn't even had time to fully recover yet. Can he survive another open-heart surgery this soon? And if THIS homograft IS replaced... will IT, TOO, have to be replaced in a few months, like this one? We're just at a loss right now. We have asked for, and are being allowed, another 6 weeks before discussing the heart cath and further procedures. During this time, we will spend as much time as possible with Mikey, pray, and believe God for another miracle. We're hurting, but we're not defeated. Please pray and believe with us. The heart cath alone is dangerous for Mikey, but it IS more accurate than a heart echo. Pray and believe that this heart cath will show the stenosis (blockage) of this homograft, not to be as severe as it is thought to be. Mikey is looking forward to his birthday. He will be 6 years old on the 16th of this month. We haven't told Mikey anything, yet. We want him to enjoy himself as long as he can before "the time comes". Mikey needs another miracle. He needs a COMPLETE healing. Thank you for your prayers, and thank You, Father. To see Mikey's Valentines from Diva of the 'Net,click below. While you are here, please sign Mikey's Guestbook! THANK YOU!
All plaintext copy and photographs courtesy of Mikey's Dad. Thanks, Rick! Note from Peg: This pic is of Mikey and his cousin Ariel. It was taken in December 2000. It is very special to me because Mikey is reading the card WE sent him, with a little note about how the best things in life are .... patched together with love!! *VVVBS* Jan 10th, 2001... Mikey made his last trip to Tulsa Friday, where we received both good and bad news. Mikey hugged and kissed his cardiologist and nurse Rosie, who have taken such good care of him for so long.. since birth, actually, and told them that he loved them. We are unable to continue seeing his regular health care providers and will have to begin going to Little Rock for Mikey's care. Little Rock does not have a pediatric heart surgeon at this time, but they are expecting one soon. If Mikey would need an invasive procedure in the meantime, he would be sent to Cleveland, Ohio. The good news, is that Mikey is doing quite well, right now. He has actually gained a pound or two and grown an inch since November. His cardiologist says that he is still a high cardiac risk and that he does still have two small holes in his heart.. in both the atrial and ventricle sides. The bad news, is they have told us that even if Mikey does not have any other problems in the meantime, that he will have to undergo major open-heart surgery again, in as little as 5 years. This surgery will require his heart to be stopped again, and he will be placed on the heart-lung machine while the repairs are made. The homograft will have to be replaced. The homograft is the human donor valve that runs from the ventricle defect (hole) and connects to the pulmonary artery, after bypassing the area of stenosis (blockage). Mikey will leave surgery, being supported by the ventilator again. It is hard for us to imagine going through all this again. And we know that we will be facing all the same risks, again. But we still believe in miracles and we know that God is still on His throne. Mikey is doing great right now, and we will enjoy every day that we have with him. Perhaps medical advances could be made in the next five years, improving the outlook for our Mikey. We KNOW that God can do a lot in five years. Jan 17th, 2001... Mikey always gets up with a smile. He goes to bed with a smile. He's just a smiley, loveable little guy. If you don't like lots of big hugs and kisses or someone constantly telling you that he loves you.... you better stay away from Mikey! He gets EVERYBODY, sooner or later.. teachers, doctors, nurses, preachers, visitors and total strangers. Sometimes he draws 'em in close, by pretending he's gonna whisper something in their ear.. and then he nails 'em! Dressed for church... Jan 28th, 2001... Tie? Check.. Vest? Check.. Remind dad that my birthday is approaching? Check! Mikey is all duded up and ready to leave for church. He is doing very well right now. He's eating a little better now, and he has mucho energy! This week, he goes to see his new doctors in Little Rock and have his pacemakers checked at the arrythmia clinic. This is our "birthday season"..grandma's birthday was last week.. sissy's birthday is next week (Feb 4th) and Mikey's birthday is Feb 16th. Mikey will be 6 years old and he's making sure EVERYONE knows it. We've come such a long way with Mikey. God IS good. Thank You, Father. Feb 2nd, 2001 Today's update is very hard to write. Mikey is back wearing the 24-hour "Holter Monitor" again. We have been numb all week, from the news we have gotten. We traveled to Little Rock to meet with Mikey's new doctors earlier this week. An EKG, pacer check, and a heart echo were done, and then they gave us the unexpected news. The Little Rock doctors believe that Mikey is still very ill. They believe that his heart is under too much pressure and that the implanted homograft (donor valve) is calcifying and becoming blocked. They want to do a heart catheterization to determine their next step... possibly a homograft replacement, or an "arterial switch" operation. Both procedures are major open-heart surgeries. This news was like a kick in the stomach.. totally unexpected.. leaving us breathless, numb. The homograft should have been good for YEARS. Mikey seems so healthy to us right now. He's eating better, growing, getting stronger, and he seems to have more energy every day. AND, we had just gotten a clean bill of health from Tulsa a couple of weeks ago. We really don't understand what has happened. Was there a problem with the repair? Was the homograft bad? Mikey's heart was just repaired JUST months ago! He barely survived that surgery. He hasn't even had time to fully recover yet. Can he survive another open-heart surgery this soon? And if THIS homograft IS replaced... will IT, TOO, have to be replaced in a few months, like this one? We're just at a loss right now. We have asked for, and are being allowed, another 6 weeks before discussing the heart cath and further procedures. During this time, we will spend as much time as possible with Mikey, pray, and believe God for another miracle. We're hurting, but we're not defeated. Please pray and believe with us. The heart cath alone is dangerous for Mikey, but it IS more accurate than a heart echo. Pray and believe that this heart cath will show the stenosis (blockage) of this homograft, not to be as severe as it is thought to be. Mikey is looking forward to his birthday. He will be 6 years old on the 16th of this month. We haven't told Mikey anything, yet. We want him to enjoy himself as long as he can before "the time comes". Mikey needs another miracle. He needs a COMPLETE healing. Thank you for your prayers, and thank You, Father.
