God is healing Larissa!

Larissa had a wonderful day today! She was able to nurse for 5 minutes in the morning, 5 minutes at noon, and then in the afternoon she was able to nurse for 20 minutes!!!! Thank you God!!!!

As of Friday night...(Larissa)

I called Keila yesterday afternoon (Friday afternoon) and was able to talk to her and ask her all the questions that were whirling around in my head. First of all, the information that was passed on to me that Larissa was in the isolated ICU is not true. Larissa remains in the normal ICU where Keila can enter every few hours to try to nurse her. Larissa's high white blood cell count has been high from the beginning and has continued to be high. The doctors are saying that it is due to the blood clot in her brain. What happened from Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning that was a setback is that the blood clot has apparently caused damage that is affecting Larissa's muscle control. This is why Larissa was no longer able to nurse on Wednesday morning and has had to be feed through a tube since then. Yesterday the doctors confirmed that she does not have an infection, but she does continue to be on antibiotics. The test yesterday also confirmed that the blood clot is slowly being absorbed. We are praying that the sudden loss of some muscle control that Larissa is experiencing will be reversable.
Mathias continues to get better. Keila's mom will need to go back to her home in São Paulo on Monday and Márcio's mother will be arriving on Tuesday for 10 days. Let's all pray that Larissa is home by the time Márcio's mother needs to return.
And if you are feeling worn out by the changes in information that the doctors give...the ups and downs of each update...just imagine how Márcio and Keila feel. And yet Keila can calmly tell me that she knows that there are 20 more babies in the ICU that are all needing answers and solutions. And she can tell me that the doctors are trying their best and yet they are not gods and we cannot expect too much from them. And here I was wanting to catch the next plane to personally tell the doctors that they need to stop clowning around and get the diagnosis straight. She continues to be an example to me, even through this terrible experience.

As of Thursday night....update on Larissa

Larissa continues to be lathargic and unable to nurse. She is receiving milk through a tube. The doctors are planning on performing another test today that might give them some answers. These days have been hard on Márcio and Keila because Larissa had been getting better and they had been looking forward to taking her home by the end of this weekend. Now they are back to ground zero with Larissa's recent regression. As of yesterday, her diagnosis is the following: hospital infection, blood clot in the brain, and reflux in the digestive system. It seems like each day something changes...first they say she doesn't have an infection, then she does, now maybe she doesn't....it has been brutal for the family.

Their 2 year-old (Mathias) has an inflamed throat due to a virus and is returning to the pediatrician today. His fever has come down a bit and it looks like there is no infection. The pediatrician also said she heard an abnormality in his heart that they will have to investigate.

Keep praying.

the latest on Larissa

I just talked to Keila's mom (she is in Manaus with Keila to help) and the situation is not good. They did another exam yesterday that showed that the blood clot is smaller and everyone was saying that Larissa was getting better each day. She was not showing any more signs of infection and was gaining weight each day. The doctor said that there was not an obstruction in her intestines anymore. After the exam, Larissa nursed well 3 more times before Keila had to leave the hospital. This morning, Larissa would not nurse and is not responsive. They have moved her to the isolated ICU, which means Márcio and Keila can only see her from 3-5pm each day. Her white blood count is way up (normal is 10,000 and hers is 1 million) and they don't know why. Apparently, the doctors are now considering the possibility of Larissa being transferred to a hospital in São Paulo. This would be complicated (airplane, etc.), but perhaps it is the only way to get answers. To make things worse, their 2 year-old boy started having a high fever (104) yesterday. They took him to the emergency room where they were told that it looks like he has a virus. He is taking medicine to bring the fever down, but it keeps coming back. They will take him again today and hopefully at least a blood test will be done. Please, pray for this family. Keila and Márcio are totally exhausted. They are firm that God will not give them more than they can handle, but they are in great need of our prayers and of God's peace and strength. I will continue to put updates on the blog.

Pray for Larissa

This is Keila, Márcio, Mathias (2 years old), and Larissa (a few days old). Larissa is in the ICU with an infection in her intestines, meningitis, and a blood clot in her brain. Larissa was born on June 7 and suddenly on June 15 she started having a fever and vomitting. She is stable and nursing well now, but there is no way of knowing if there will be any lasting effects from the blood clot. Please pray that Larissa will have a full recovery. Keila is at the hospital every day, all day to be able to nurse Larissa every 2 hours (she is physically and emotionally exhausted). Keila's mother is with them and taking care of house things and, most importantly, taking care of Mathias. Márcio is the designated driver since Keila had a c-section and is not allowed to drive yet and is trying to give Mathias the extra attention he is needing since he is feeling the absense of his mommy at home. This is a very, very dear family to us. Keila is like a sister to me. Unfortunately for me, Asas sent them to Manaus last year to work at that flight base, so I can't be of much help through this rough time. They seem to be pleased with the medical care that Larissa is receiving, so that is a blessing.

Women's Retreat

The ladies of Asas had a great time last Tuesday at the retreat. Joan (Steve's mom) lead us in a study of "Idols of the Heart". It was a wonderful balance of study, quiet time alone, and small group time. After lunch, I taught the ladies how to paint and decorate cans to make antique looking buckets to decorate with. They were all very proud of themselves for how well their projects turned out!

Nana's visit

We had a great 2 weeks with Steve's mom, Joan! The kids call her "Nana" and they were very sad to see her go! She taught them new kid's songs, played Uno and Dominos daily with them, and made lots of cookies! It was so nice to have her here to take care of the kiddos while we were in Brasília for a Project and I had the previledge to have many talks with her about raising children in Brazil, ministry, and how to balance both when the needs are endless.

Couple's Group

For those of you who get my email updates, this is the couple's group that we are involved with. We have chosen a book entitled "The Myth of Marriage" to go through together. Just thought that you might want to put faces with the names as you pray!
From left to right: Hélio and Gláucia, Douglas and Marcela, João and Biatriz, Steve and Kristin