Update On Olivia and Sam

Well as some may know, we are delayed in about a week to two weeks on getting to bring Hero home.  Somewhat disappointed but I know that God has a plan and only he knew what each day would bring.  The trainer at Shadows For Life says he is doing extremely well on his commands to care for Olivia but was still excitable out in public and so therefore didnt pass his first state certified test.  Praying for good news the end of this week that we get the OK to head to Dallas.  As for news on Olivia.  Olivia has started to have some seizures that have caused her to projectile vomit afterwards.  Not a pretty picture.  She went to the Er last weekend, and the neurologist was contacted and last week, Olivia started seizure meds.  This has been upsetting because it seems as if we are taking steps backwards.  I knew eventually she would be on them but was not prepared for the now.    She is beginning to be taught sign language in speech therapy because she is having trouble vocalizing her wants.  This is becoming very frustrating at times because I KNOW I need to stick to the signs everytime she wants something but she cries and cries and its so hard to not give in.  I know in her own time, she will begin to do them without hesitation and learn the words as well, but we have a long way to go.  I ask that you please continue to pray for her healing.  We are almost halfway through with her first 12 rounds of radiation and steroids and then we go back to see neurosurgeon for complete workup to see if anything has changed whether it be for good or for bad.  She is a child of God and she rests in His Hands and I pray that His will be done for her life and that no matter the outcomes, I am able to accept it, rise from it and live it.  As for Sam, she has started an oral chemo med at home and is recieving radiation on her pelvis for the cancerous tumors on her lymph nodes.  This has been a very hard pill to swallow.  She is such a fun and energetic 3 year old and its so hard to explain to her that shes sick.  She wants to know why does she sick in her throat, why does her legs hurt, why does she need that medicine....Its hard to explain to her and so the fight begins when she gets sores in her mouth and she has to take meds so she can eat, its hard to explain to her we cant go here or there because she has sores opening up on her body.  How do you tell her???  I have done nothing but PRAY, PRAY, PRAY that God will just give her body comfort and rest.  She has taught me so much about strength and living life to the fullest.  Its amazing to me how God uses someone in your life to make you think about life.  With all the help that I have recieved for the girls, its become very clear to me that even though I have felt very alone at times, my kids and I are part of the biggest and best family in the world.  The family of God.  What a feeling to feel, when nothing else seems to be, that is the one thing I hold onto.  You dear family and friends can never fully understand how completely grateful I am to have each of you.  From the emails I recieve, from the texts just to say hi, and from helping financially I am truly overwhelmed with emotion and gratitude. May God Bless each and everyone of you who have touched my family in such a special way.

I ask that you continue to pray for the girls.  Hannah seems to be doing a little better with handling things and I know its because there are special people praying for her.  Please continue to pray for the healing for the girls and for the doctors who are caring for them.  Please pray for my continued  strength to care for them daily and give me the peace I need to know that whatever decision I need to make in their care that I have the ultimate answer from God that this is what He wants for His child.  More than anything, prayer is the ultimate gift and that is what I ask from each of you who read this blog, who help care for my kids during treatment days, who help in anyway.....PRAYER IS IT!!! 

A Letter from Kelly

o        To my church family, friends and people in the Crosby/Humble Community...You have no idea what it meant to me when we started unloading baked goods, when I saw people bringing goods with their children and then buying what someone else made. My heart was overcome with emotion. I have been fighting illness with Sam, my 3 year old since October of 2010. I thought to myself and asked why....why God do you think I can deal with this? I’m not someone who handles problems well. In the past, I was someone who strayed from you for years, who went against everything I knew you wanted for me. WHY ME!!! Needless to say, He never answered that question and then in June of 2011 when the youngest Olivia was 1, she was diagnosed with a malformation in the artery in her brain. I thought to myself OH NO, here we go again and once again found myself asking the question I knew would never be answered, WHY. On a routine trip for a checkup, an inoperable tumor was found in Olivia's brain. Since the beginning, of both children’s illnesses, things have changed dramatically. Sam has been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and is undergoing radiation and oral chemo. Olivia is receiving radiation on the tumor in her brain and steroids for her swelling in the brain. She has seizures, and has begun to regress in her eating skills and communication skills. When Michelle said we were doing a bake sale, I was overjoyed! Even to get enough to offset the cost of traveling was going to be the best news for me. A young child made a sign that said "Help Bring Hero Home", as it sat outside Arlan’s, people would ask what the sale was for and others would begin to listen as Michelle told the story of Olivia. We had people writing $100 checks, giving $100 bills, people coming from Humble with a van full of women and spending well over $100. The outcome was AMAZING!! Had it not been GOD, I never would have thought we would have ended up with what we did. Whoever says God does not provide all our needs has never met a church family full of Faith in God, full of never-ending prayer and full of God's unconditional love for others like First Baptist Church Crosby. Through everyone's help, the funds were raised to pick up Hero on the 18th of this month, the funds are available to have all travel expenses for that trip paid, there are funds to pay for BOTH Sam and Olivia's treatments and medicines for a month and we have been able to order the ID tags and Service vest that Hero has to have in order to go in public with Olivia. OUR GOD IS AN AWESOME GOD!!! At the end of the night when the bake sale was over, I was at home with the girls in bed and couldn’t stop crying. Then all of a sudden I could hear myself breathe. I could actually breathe. I now know that without a doubt in about two weeks, Hero, named well by Hannah would become my Hero. No longer will I be up all night watching Olivia. I can rest, I can breathe, I can cook my family a meal without it taking hours because I stop every 5 minutes to check on Olivia. My faith was truly tested and once again I found myself on my knees asking God to forgive me for my doubts. I am blessed that God chose me to care for HIS children Sam and Olivia while he plans out their life. I am blessed that He allowed me to be the one to show them of God’s love not only through me but through the generosity of all His other children. I am blessed and honored to know that through this there will be 3 totally awesome testimonies used ONLY for GOD’S GLORY!!! You all have touched my life in an unforgettable way and I will forever be thankful. You have made a difference in my children's lives as well. I’m reminded of a post on facebook I saw "You have never really lived until you have done something for someone who can never repay you" I can never repay all the love and prayer and generosity that came from such wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ, but everyone will always be special to me and hold dear places in my heart.

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people Galatians 6:10

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children Ephesians 5:1

I thank you all again so much and ask that as always, please pray for my family for healing for the girls, for patience and understanding for Hannah and for rest and guidance as I continue to care for God's children every day. Me and my family love you all.

Love,

Kelly

THE GREAT PROVIDER

Tears come to my eyes as I type this. Oh me of little faith, I was hoping to just raise half of what Kelly and her family needed to get Olivia's seizure dog. God had much bigger plans however. Tonight alone, we were able to raise over $1800!! (The total came in at $2,178.05)  The generosity of all those who baked, donated and bought items was absolutely overwhelming. Kelly and I were both brought to tears on more than one occasion as we saw God's provision through His people. We even got to the giddy school girl phase of excitement. But God didn't stop there. In addition to the Arlan's bake sale, Jeff, Olivia's dad, held a bake sale at work and was also able to raise money. This will go to expenses for travel and lodging when they go to pick up Hero and go for his other trainings. About every 90 days Kelly and Livi will have to take Hero back to the trainer to make sure his certification and tests are current. So as you can imagine, there will be costs for travel, lodging and food when they go to Dallas. BUT....GOD still isn't finished. Tomorrow Huffman ISD is holding a district wide bake sale to help raise funds for the Gants!! As I write this, I am still getting chills...our GOD is so great and so goes beyond what we even hope for. He knows the needs of this precious family. HE knows that parking each week is over $50, not to mention the copays for both girls to go to the doctor, therapies, and treatments. HE knows the financial stress on this family and HE continues to provide. I am certain that this is but the first step. God is faithful to provide as the Gant's will have another mouth to feed with Hero and another family member to care for. I am humbled to serve such an amazing Creator, Provider, Father. Please, please, continue to send up prayers for Olivia, Samantha, Kelly, Jeff and Hannah. God hears our cries and has proven once again that HE is always there for us. A big thank you again to all who helped by baking and donating at the sale tonight. Kelly was in awe of the generosity of everyone. Keep praying my dear friends and watch as God does amazing things!!

Sincerely,
Michelle

We are having a bake sale!!

Calling all bakers, I need some help!!  Kelly and family are soon to welcome home Hero, Olivia's seizure dog.  He will soon finish his first round of training, and we need help raising the funds to pay for everything.  Right now, the costs for the dog add up to about $1800.   In an effort to raise this money, I am hosting a bake sale at Arlan's Market in Crosby this Thursday, October 6 from 4-8pm.  You may wonder how you can help...well there are a few ways.  Please consider donating baked goods of any kind.  You can either contact me, Michelle Holloway at  281-923-5617 or you can bring them to church (FBC Crosby) Wednesday night or Thursday morning if that is more convenient.  You can also help by attending the bake sale and purchasing some yummy goodies.  If you would just like to make a financial contribution, you can either click on the donate button on the left side of your screen, make a donation at Community Bank of Texas under the name Gant Girls, or simply contact me via the number above or email me at mholloway@fbccrosby.net.  As always, Kelly, Jeff and the girls appreciate all the prayers that you lift up for them.  I will be updating the blog again soon as to the week to week schedule for the girls and needs that come along with their treatments.  I want to thank you in advance for your prayers and participation in helping meet this need in a precious girls life.  This dog will help not only to alert Kelly to the seizures, but Hero is also trained to get Olivia out of the seizures quicker so as to hopefully cause less damage to her brain.

Thank you so much,
Michelle

Olivia starts radiation

Well as you know, with the tumor that has now been discovered in Olivia's brain she has started a 12 week round of radiation treatments along with steroids.  This treatment is in the hopes that the tumor will shrink or at the least, not grow anymore and hoping that this will reduce some of the swelling in the brain.  CT scans are being ran throughout these treatments in order to follow the growth of not only the tumor, but the malformation in the artery in her brain.  Olivia has seemed to do well with her first round of steroids and radiation but there has been some changes due to the swelling in her brain as well due to the seizures she is having.  Olivia is still a very happy little girl, but she is beginning to show signs of regression.  Her balance is becoming more unstable than before, where she used to say several words she now just mostly babbles.   She has drooping on the right side of her face, and her eating has become less than what it used to be.  The doctors told Kelly that because of the tumor being within a milimeter of the paratoid gland, these things were sure to happen as well as some other problems but it was not certain of when these things would become a reality.  The neurologist has ordered more physical, occupational and speech therapy in order to keep her going physically and keep the constant learning.  As you can imagine, this has been extremely hard not only for Kelly and Jeff but for the girls.  Kelly has to bear the whole responsibility of caring for Olivia.  She goes back and forth from recognizing people, to not remembering who someone is.  This is heartbreaking for everyone.  Also, not knowing truly how many seizures a day she is having is hard because there is damage being done from them and Kelly feels helpless that she doesnt know each and everyone, where she can alert Olivia to come to.  Thats where we are so thankful that in a few weeks, "HERO" will be at home with little Olivia and begin to help her.

We ask that you please continue to pray for Olivia and the family.  Everyday is hard on everyone.  What will Olivia do today, what or whom she will forget.  Please continue to pray for healing for precious Olivia, pray that as she continues to endure the treatments the side effects of the radiation and steroids will be minimal and she will begin to show signs of improvement.Please pray for strength for Jeff and Kelly that as each day brings new challenges, they are able to face them with Gods help and make each day count and that each of the girls are ok at the end of the day.

Please pray for the doctors that monitor Olivia on a weekly basis, that they may have insight on what to do next and that they will continue to care for Olivia to the best of their abilities.  Pray that the doctors are men and women of God and that they ultimatley do Gods will in the care and treatment of Olivia.

The Newest Addition

Well, all I can say is Praise God, Praise God from whom all blessings flow.....As you know we had posted a prayer request for a seizure dog for Olivia.  Thought it sounded like a strange request, but knew that as God's people saw the need and began to pray, that when it was time  met, it would be met.  Through  dear sweet friend, a blog was posted on her page and a friend saw the need and thought of another friend....As the phone tag game started, a wonderful Constable Bobby Thurman gave a phone call and offered up a 5 month old registered black lab.  God does answer prayer!!!!!  The dog was donated free of charge to Olivia, and so began the next journey.  Tuesday, Kelly and Olivia picked up the new addition to the family whom Hannah very cleverly named HERO....So now as a trio, Kelly, Olivia and Hero left for Dallas and headed to Shadows For Life, a service dog training facility who is going to train Hero to alert the family of when Olivia is having a seizure and to get her out of one as quick as possible, as well as be her best friend to help her deal with the continued trials that she will go through.  The trip to Dallas was quick trip but it was obvious that Hero and Olivia were meant to be together.  At the training facility, the trainer watched as Olivia interacted with Hero to see how his tempermant was.  It was no surprise, that Hero knew he belonged to Olivia.  He followed her every move, and when he was put in his crate, the tables turned and Olivia stayed right with him....

The training will be from 6-8 weeks and then the family will travel back to Dallas to reunite with Hero and bring him home and learn to integrate him into the daily routine of Olivia.  He will be with her 24/7 from doctor visits, to visits at grandmas, to baths and bed.  This is going to be a very new process for everyone to get used to.  Please pray that as the family prepares for this new addition, that there will be peace.  Please pray that as Hero learns Olivia and her every move that he will do wonders for her and that Kelly and Jeff will feel some since of peace and a little lighter load being carried.  Please pray for the trainers, who will prepare Hero for his daily duties with Olivia that they have the wisdom for training him to meet her needs.

Kelly is eternally grateful to everyone for the prayers for Olivia and her needs.  She is also very grateful to the few friends who made it possible for this precious gift to be recieved.  Thank you to those who continue to pray for Olivia and the entire family, the prayers are greatly appreciated and the best want that Kelly asks for from others....PRAY PRAY PRAY

The Thurman family who donated Hero to Olivia, Shadows For Life who is training Hero and to the ones who connected the need through prayers, facebook and phone calls, your in hearts and minds forever.

Whatever you will ask the Father in My name, He will give it to you.  John 16:23

Update on Visit to ENT with Olivia

Well, Kelly and Olivia embarked on a day long visit to the ENT last week in hopes to get some answers on this tumor, and some uplifiting news that things would be ok...That was simply not the case.  The ENT decided to order an ultrasound of her own to look at from different angles and to compare to the ones previously taken at Texas Childrens.  As it appeared from all the tests done on Olivia, the tumor is sandwhiched in between the malformation in her brain and the paratoid gland.  We were told that the tumor is inoperable....The dr said to imagine the tumor as a piece of lunchmeat and the malformation and the gland as the bread, she asked can you remove the meat without disturbing the bread??? No, but we know that not to be true.  God, the ultimate healer can remove that tumor and heal her brain, and we pray and believe that!  Olivia will face many obstacles as she lives with this tumor.  Due to the fact that its above the paratoid gland, it can cause for her to loose her hearing in the right ear, loose feeling on the right side of her face, cause her problems with swallowing and with her speech.  Due to not knowing if the tumor has been there and just became big enough to see or if the tumor just started to grow, the Dr's are unaware if its at its point of growth or if it's still growing.  Therefore,   Kelly was sent home with steroids and Olivia began them and will take them for 15 days, then she will recieve radiation on the tumor twice a week for two weeks, then will repeat the steroids and radiation then see the dr again to see if the tumor is shrinking.  Depending on the outcome of these treatments and the followup, it will be determined whether another round of treatment is needed at that time.  The main concern is the hope to stop the tumor from growing, shrink it and in the process of the radiation, hopefully hit the malformation and cause the swelling in her brain to go down and keep it from pushing up any further into the main artery in her brain.

This has proven to be a very difficult time for Kelly, Olivia and everyone involved as you can well imagine.  Kelly feels like Olivia's life just dangles on a daily basis not only not knowing what each new day brings but wondering and worrying as how to deal with this and care for Sam and Hannah as well.  Please continue to pray for peace not only for Kelly and Jeff but for the girls.  Pray for understanding, that they might try to help Olivia everyday to continue to thrive and to be a happy little girl who loves life and eveyone in it!  Pray for the Dr''s that they be given the knowledge to know what needs to be done for Olivia in her daily treatments as well as long term treatments.

Kelly especially appreciates everyone who keeps up with the blog and says a little prayer for Olivia and the girls, everyday.  Prayer is the most precious gift anyone can give, and at this point that is all she feels she can give as well.  Please continue to be in prayer for the digitrace test that is being ordered for Olivia.  Please pray that provisions will be met and that insurance will cover this costly test that the Neurologist feels Olivia needs.  It will determine by watching her for 72 hours what she is doing when she's having seizures and how often she is having them, because as you can imagine, it is impossible for kelly to watch her 24/7 and mark and monitor every seizure.  We thank everyone who gets the word out about this blog and asks others as well to pray.  When two or more are gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them. Matthew 18:20