The Ho-Down

In between hospital stays, we did have one week of normal around here during which we took the kids to the town fair - and Shifrah discovered rides.

Our Regular Escapee Strikes Again!

Giving Praise To Our Good Lord

That is what we are doing today - giving praise to our good Lord. Hadassah is home!

No News Is Good News

We have spent an uneventful day at the hospital today without any noteworthy irregularities in Hadassah's heart rhythm. This is a blessing from the Lord and an answer to your and our prayers! The doctors are mildly adjusting some of her medications but other than that, there is not much happening here. Hopefully, yesterday's heartbeat "run" was an isolated event. Perhaps in a few days, Hadassah will be able to return home with a telemetry device that will send her heart rhythm information out remotely. God's technology continues to amaze me.

Hadassah Is Back In The Hospital

Please pray for Hadassah! Tonight, she is being re-admitted to the New York Presbyterian Hospital due to some irregular heartbeats. Tomorrow, they will monitor her and then determine a course of action. We do not know where this will lead or what her (and our) future holds but we do know Someone who does!

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"When my heart is overwhelmed;

O lead me to the rock that is higher than I."

Psalm 61:2

What A Creative Creator We Have!

I just want to share with you these beautiful plants. These are the last of my pictures from South Carolina - a time that seems so long ago but it has actually been only 4 or 5 weeks!

Hadassah is doing well and is adjusting to her new normal of doctor visits, medications and homeschooling. We are so glad that we had decided to homeschool her since it gives us so much more flexibility with our time. God knew our future! She had a doctor visit yesterday which confirmed that her heart remains in "about the same" condition. Please keep praying!

First Day of Homeschooling

Well, this was not exactly how I planned to begin our homeschooling adventure! 3 days late, tired, dishes piled high, laundry piled high, house a catastophe, beds unmade, bills unpaid, empty fridge, needy attention seeking toddler. But when I despaired to a godly friend, she only laughed and said that at the very least, I would learn something - to rely on God, rather than myself. Pretty good advice, I thought.

Hadassah Is Home!

Yesterday, Hadassah was able to come home from the hospital. Her breathing is regular and her heartbeat is back to normal. Praise God for his healing mercies! She will continue to visit doctors and take medications to help her heart to work and to keep her breathing regular but we are glad to have her home!

"I will bless the LORD at all times;

his praise shall continually be in

my mouth.

My soul makes its boast in the LORD;

let the humble hear and be glad.

Oh, magnify the LORD with me,

and let us exalt his name

together!"

Psalm 34:1-3

Pretty In Pink

I miss this kid. Hope she's having fun with her friends. A picture still from South Carolina:

Disappointed

This morning, we were disappointed to hear that Hadassah will not be coming home today. Yesterday, she had eight irregular heartbeats (in a row) which is not the direction we were hoping this would take. Because of this, they changed / added to her medications and need to keep watching her. We are hoping and praying the irregularity was an isolated incident and that her condition will stabilize soon.

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"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by your name;

You are Mine.

When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;

And through the rivers,

they shall not overflow you.

When you walk through the fire,

you shall not be burned,

Nor shall the flame scorch you.

For I am the Lord your God,

The Holy One of Israel,

your Savior."

Isaiah 43:1-3

Out of Intensive Care

Yesterday, Hadassah was moved out of intensive care and onto the 6th floor cardiology ward. Her new number is 212-342-4299. If she responds well to the oral meds today and if it is the will of the Lord, she hopes to come home tomorrow!

Visitors

Nothing cheers Hadassah like visitors and phone calls! Today, her Uncle Dave and Aunt Sheri came with her three cousins, and Shifrah and Aunty Ada came too. Too bad Shifrah is still scared of Hadassah in this setting. She hugged her like crazy but wouldn't look at her.
Obviously, Hadassah is doing really well. She takes walks around the floor and tells me if she "wasn't hooked up to this thing", she'd be running. Tonight, she will finish with her IV and be only on oral medications. One big step toward going home!

Understanding Cardiomyopathy

This is Hadassah's room. There is a large window seat almost the width of a twin bed for Paul or I to sleep on. We have been taking turns. We are on the 9th floor facing south overlooking Manhattan and the Hudson River.

Yesterday was a quiet day and today looks like it will be the same. They did start her on one of the medications that she will be on at home and she is doing well with it. In fact, she feels so good that she doesn't understand what all the fuss is about.

Perhaps I should clarify that though the medications help her heart to function better and could, over time, assist in stablizing her condition, they do not actually heal her heart. As I understand it, there is no intervening "cure" for cardiomyopathy. That being said, people do recover from it about one third of the time and go on with their normal lives - more likely when the cause of it is viral. Another third of the time, the condition remains the same but stable with the medications. And the final third of the time, the condition deteriorates. It is too early to predict which "third" Hadassah will fall into or even what the cause of it was - though at this time there is "no indication that it was viral".

We thank you for your prayers and ask that you will continue to bring her needs before the Great Physician. My heart is constantly heavy and my chest tight but I know that our good Lord is here with us and that He cares for Hadassah even more than I do.

Looking Good

First of all, we want to thank you all for the cards, phone calls, emails, text messages, gifts, e-cards, Facebook comments, inboxes and blog postings. We are overwhelmed with the love of God's people!

Hadassah is looking great! She is still a very sick girl but you would never know that to look at her. She was even allowed to go for a walk today - something she has been longing to do. Her breathing has become easier and has slowed slightly. The cardiologist also said her echo-cardiogram is slightly improved. This is all good news and moving in the right direction. Tomorrow, they plan to begin oral heart medications to gradually replace the heart medications that she receives by IV. This is being done so that when she is stable with those, she will able to go home and continue as an outpatient. Her future is yet unknown.

We know that all these things are in the Hand of our good God and that He is the greatest Healer of all time - the One who created our amazing bodies. I am in awe when talking with the cardiologist as to how God has designed our hearts to compensate for its weaknesses. So, we will not fear, for He is with us; we will not be dismayed, for He is our God; He will strengthen us, He will help us, He will uphold us with His righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)

Fishing With Uncle Steve

I just wanted to share a picture from a few weeks ago. Hadassah and Josiah went fishing on the beach with their Uncle Steve and even caught a pretty decent fish!