Posts Tagged ‘prayer’

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Prayer Request

Saturday, April 24th, 2010

Dear Friends,

As you know Aaron Tanner is fighting the battle of his life. We are asking for an increase in prayers so that Aaron can receive the miracle of a heart and kidney transplant. Below are two links. The first link is a link to our blog page. There you can find updated information about Aaron and our family.

The second link is a link to our prayer page on Facebook. If you have a Facebook account, we would to have you part of our prayer page!

As always, we are extemely grateful for your prayers, good wishes and generosity.

Please feel free to share this link will all of your friends and family to increase prayers for Aaron.

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Now He Waits…

Monday, April 19th, 2010

I have not posted an update in awhile; things have been absolutely crazy since we have been back home.

We are gone three days a week for dialysis. I did not anticipate how much time it takes to get back and forth to the city. They have increased Aarons dialysis runs to 4 hours each treatment, and it takes about a half hour or so to set him up on machine. Therefore, we are in treatment and he is doing fantastic being home. I have not seen him happier.

Just a little background info for those who are just finding Aarons story….

We are still waiting for the phone call, he is still listed 1A. I can’t tell you how many people – even nurses will ask me if we have the organs or when the transplant will take place. I have answered that question so many times.

So no, we don’t know when it will be. It will be a 5-hour warning or so because he needs a heart. In order to receive a heart, it has to come from someone — a child close to Aaron’s size, with the same blood type and match that would be on life support. He also has to receive the kidney from same donor, so he does not reject it after the transplant.

We are just waiting and waiting. Because of his age, it could be a long wait or it could happen at any moment. We have waited 6-months so far. Children in his age group tend to wait the longest. That is why we are trying to raise donor awareness, children like Aaron die each day around the world waiting on a list.

He is on an IV medication that he has to have running continuously. The medication gives his heart a little extra squeeze because he has a very very faint light squeeze in his heart, while the rest of us have these vigorous hardworking pumping hearts beating in our chests that is what has happened that is why he is in kidney failure his heart could not pump or work to keep his kidneys functioning.

Now since kidney failure Aaron does not urinate at all (we get that question a lot too) that is why he goes to dialysis to filter his blood of all the toxins. Our little tiny guy is in a battle inside that little body of his night and day every breath is hard and each pumping of his heart is very faint. He is a miracle to us and we will do whatever we can to get to his transplant we have to ask for your prayers.

Remember the movie Horton Hears a Who? I think of it often God will here all of our voices praying and Aaron’s miracle will come (WE ARE HERE, WE ARE HERE) I scream it in my head constantly because our faith will keep him strong. I can’t give up, but I am asking all of you to not give up. I am so extremely thankful to each and everyone of you for your constant prayers. In Gods time.

I am home, Aaron is home now, and we could not be happier! My boys needed to be together it was so difficult and hard on them so keep them in your prayers too. Everyone says children are resilient and so on and they bounce right back but put your children in our situation. They are all just children. They should be having fun and laughing and playing and learning, but its like they are growing up in the middle of a war.

Thank you all for not giving up, we try the best we can each day and like you, I want the best and brightest for my child. I wake up each day and thank our God for every Moment.

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Aaron waits for dual transplants

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

Welcome Home Aaron and Elizabeth

Aaron arrived back home safely on Saturday. The little guy requires ’round the clock nursing and regular dialysis treatment due to his failing kidneys. Aaron must travel to San Francisco every other day, for three hours of kidney dialysis.

Elizabeth has posted a brief comment (see the side panel under “Recent Comments”) to the site. As is understandable, Elizabeth is feeling a bit overwhelmed at this time, but she promises to send an update just as soon as she is able to see daylight.

Reporter Laura Anthony, wrote an update on March 17, 2010 for ABC News 7. Read it here…
Toddler still waiting for dual transplants

More updates will be posted as they become available and you can be sure Elizabeth will let us know just as soon as she has news of the transplant surgery. Your continued prayers are greatly appreciated!

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Your Prayers Sustain Us

Saturday, October 17th, 2009

Prayer warriors, we have been here two weeks. Things are on such a fast pace. 

Early this afternoon (October 13, 2009) Aaron underwent his second MRI.  He had one shortly before we left UCSF, but those images are not clear enough for the transplant surgeon, Dr. Lax, to map out the transplant. Aaron, also with being a hyperplasic left heart baby, has left atrial isomerism and heterotaxy and he is a single ventricle kid. His insides are all different than most congenital heart children. 

Wonderful Doctors

For 4-years he has been walking around and he was very sick inside his medications and surgeries were helping him. We being here with Dr. Lax are the best thing that has happened to Aaron, he is one of only maybe a few that could do this transplant. He has done them before and he has done them before with success.  Once Aaron has this transplant he will be more or less cured of his major heart problem and should be able to live a normal life.

Aaron will be listed in just a few days and he will be listed with status A1 that is the very top. When the doctor is off and not available to do surgery they are talking about putting Aaron on as status 7 that means he accrues time, but he will not be called if organ becomes available only because Dr.  Lax is the only one of the transplant doctors that can do this. Luckily enough Dr. Lax is pretty much here 24 /7. 

I think he is taking a couple days off next week, so Aaron will be status 7 for a couple  days but that means they have faith that it could happen any moment once listed. All that is happening is very good they are taking such care with everything that is happening. God has put us here for a reason and put us into the hands of a very capable cardiac team. We will have Dr. Lax as his surgeon and Dr. Alejos and Dr. Greg Perens as his cardiologist team.

Hospital Discharge

We will be discharged from the hospital maybe early next week can you believe it. We have been in the hospital since June, he will remain on his milrinome IV medication, and be assigned a home health care nurse that will check on us .

We will be nearby the hospital, their only fear is that he could go into tachycardia, but so far he has been stable the entire time. We are still in the process of trying to find housing we have a couple temporary situations. Nothing long term or permanent yet. 

The doctors feel he would have a much better quality of life right know outside the hospital being here is so hard on him. He is only 4 so I have such a hard time rationalizing it all with him. He is also at his witts end with it all. He was in the ICU almost all of that time so he has had his vitals done every two hours and had bandages changed over and over again and now his dialysis.

God Loves the Little Children

The only way I think I have managed this far is with the love from all back at home and with the Love of God, when I think I cant do it anymore and I just want to take him away from all this I always pray and somehow God has been there each and every time. He shows himself in the love from so many at home and in the love and support from our family.

Aaron is scheduled to have his MRI this early afternoon and I spent most of the morning signing consents as well as listening to the doctors explain his odds and possible outcomes and hearing that regardless he had to do this. There is a small chance that since he is in kidney failure he could have a bad reaction to the dye that is used in this MRI and develop an auto immune disease.

So, being here alone I was very scarred and nervous. Before coffee or anything this morning I was given a letter from father Dismas, telling me to stay strong it was probably sent a week ago but did not arrive till this morning.

Then Aaron and I went to the playroom when we returned there was a card from father Dismas, sent on an entirely different date that arrived also fatefully today letting us know that our family at Holy Rosary is praying for a safe and sound return home. 

That was not just chance — that was OUR GOD answering my prayers. These kind situations have happened on so many occasions throughout this whole ordeal. I was so sadden about being alone today and I was being told that I was not alone. 

Rejoice in all you have not the things because they are just that things, rejoice in having God be with you when you need it most and even when you don’t realize it. I am suffering immensely but Our Lord over and over again will not let me suffer alone he is here with Aaron and I time and time again.

God Bless you all prayer Warriors and thank you for your continued support. We are just beginning to climb this mountain.   We don’t know how long it will take but we can do it.

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Infection Causes Delay

Thursday, September 3rd, 2009

Once again we are asking for your prayers — we know all are praying; that is the only way prayer can move mountains.

Surgery Scheduled

Aaron has had another set back. He will have a surgery tomorrow around noon to have his dialysis catheter removed, he has had an infection that if left will run rampant throughout his entire body. The only way to combat it is through a treatment of antibiotics and to remove the dialysis catheter he had put into place a couple weeks ago.

He will have a new catheter put in it will be for hemodialysis. That will begin on Saturday. Hemodialysis may be very hard on his heart but we know these very competent doctors have decided it is the only solution at this point. They are going to proceed very cautiously with his treatment plan.

Our Aaron certainly keeps them on their toes. He is a fighter we all know that of that. I could not be prouder of my little man.

UCLA Tranfer Delayed

UCLA is on a temporary hold because he cannot have a transplant with this infection; it would be devastating to him. So, every trace of infection has to be gone. The doctors will have to check and recheck him, before he can have the transplant surgery.

UCLA is aware of the situation and once it is established that there is no infection, we can proceed as planed. They have a few more tests that have to be performed here anyway (a heart cauterization and an MRI), so those may be able to happen in the next few weeks.

Special Thank You to ALL

All we can say is that we are so very blessed to be surrounded by the many wonderful people around us.

My past employer Coldwell Banker Amaral has gone beyond anything we could have ever imagined. They have organizing some very special events. Aaron Meadows, Noelle, Michelle and Velya you do not miss a beat. You are doing things before any one thinks of them. Aaron will be back in there playing with Legos in the office, under my desk, before you know it.

And then there’s Marguerite Elcenko and Eric, my wonderful friends. How we love you. The Bake sale was such a huge hit, I can’t believe all you are taking on and with a set of twins, under 2 years old.

We have a special bond; we both lost our children within months of each other that made us part of something that we did not want to be, but we are blessed to have both in our life when this happened. Marguerite went into this mode of I know what to do we will do this and this and don’t worry. I am just so very blessed; Mark and I are so incredibly blessed.

Anne Powers put together the bowling event. Aaron got the biggest kick out of seeing the bowling pin that everyone signed. He will treasure it. We enjoyed the pictures that were taken, but the best part, was seeing Aaron’s smile — seeing his friends bowling for him.

My Mom is our biggest support! When we get bad news, we call her and she is right there, reminding us that we can’t loose faith, and to not even go to a place of despair. She is the best Mom and the greatest Grandma.

She recently searched every Toys R Us from Pittsburgh to San Francisco to find a certain toy that Aaron had to have. She has been with the boys at home, this entire time. With her and my sister Kaylena and Scott our brother-in-law the boys are so happy, they are so secure being with them, it is almost no different than being with us. We just miss them immensely. I can’t wait to be a family again.

The list of friends that are suffering through this with us is long; they call, e-mail and text us, to check on us and are hurting right along with us. Thank you KC, Kay, Lourdes, Lynn, and Joan La Foss my support on the east coast. She is reaching out to us from so many miles away, sending her closest friends that live nearby, to hug us and send her love. 

There are so many more people I can’t possibly name them all and some we don’t even know. You are all just amazing people. You are a much needed support — we love you.  I wish we could hug each and every one of you; you are so special to us.

The medical staff here at UCSF is amazing and they are all working so hard I pray every day that God is with them in all the decisions that they make.

So much is happening and changing each and every day but the one constant in our life, in all this, is Our God.

Our Prayer Request!

We are praying we will all be home soon and this will be over. We don’t know when, but we know it will happen. I wake up every day and think it is a nightmare that we are living but it is our lives, our reality.

Aaron is the reason and he makes it worth it, our miracle will happen.

Thank you and God Bless!

Editor’s Note: Please leave a message and let the Tanner Family know you are praying.

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