Home from San Antonio

Well we are back at home after having the last treatment done. The doctor was not sure if he was going to do any more gluing or if he was just going to look around. Well when he got into Matt's head and started looking at everything he discovered that the AVM had collected some more blood vessels since the last treatment. He told me that he expected this to happen. So he went ahead and put some more glue in there and tried to block off more of the AVM. He stated that when he first started this back in October that the AVM was about the size of a golf ball and that when he went in this time it was only the size of a quarter. After he was done with the gluing this time the AVM was about the size of a pencil eraser or smaller. As far as he is conserned he is done and is not going to do any more to Matt. He wants Matt to undergo what they call radiosurgery. They use what is called a gamma knife to focus the readiation onto the AVM and blast it, this is suppose to kill what is left of the AVM. The doctor says that he was able to block off about 99% of the blood flow and that this other treatment should take care of the rest of it. We are so thankful that God lead the doctors in what they were doing and that Matt is at home and in great condition. He did much better this time than the last time. He got very sick and was throwing up after the last procedure, but had no problems this time and has only taken tylenol for the pain. I am so glad that the Lord led us to the right person to take care of Matt and that this doctor is one of the best that there is when it comes to neurosurgery. Thank you all for praying for Matt and your continued support. Please continue to pray for Matt as he recovers from this last procedure. We also want you to feel free to share any part of this story, we want to be sure that God gets all the credit for what has happened with Matt. If you know someone that needs hope, or needs to know that God does answer prayers please feel free to share Matt's story with them or have them contact us and we will be glad to talk to them. Thank you again for everything and we will keep you posted on how things are going and when Matt is to undergo this next procedure. We love you all and thank you again for all your prayers. We hope you all have a great New Year, we are going to have a great New Year thanks to our Lord and Savior.

Going to San Antonio

We are going to San Antonio in the morning and they will be looking at Matt's brain on Tuesday. We are hoping and praying that this will be the last trip that we have to make and that this will also be the last procedure that he will have to get done. THey are going to do an angiogram on Tuesday and like I posted before if they are able to block the rest of the AVM off, if there is just low flow they may not do anything. We are trusting that God will guide their hands and decision making. God has been so wonderful and merciful to us so far we are absolutely sure that He will continue to keep His hand on Matt through this next procedure. Please continue to pray for Matt and the doctors. Matt and I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas. I will tell you that this Christmas had a special feel to it for us, not only were we celebrating the birth of our Savior, but we were able to celebrate Matt still being here with us. What an awesome and wonderful God we serve. THank you for keeping us in your prayers and for your faithfulness in your reading of the blog. We love you all and I will post again when we get back home from San Antonio.

Dec. 11th

Well, Matt has been back to work for almost 2 weeks and he is doing great. He is tired, but it is tired in a good way. I know that when I first start back to work after having the summer off I am tired for a couple of weeks. We have to work next week and then get a couple of weeks off. We are looking forward to Christmas and sharing a special holiday with our family. We are so thankful that Matt is here with us and I don't think that I will every look at holidays in the same way, they will always have a more special meaning. We had a wonderful time at church this weekend. Our church did what they called "Cardboard Testimonies". Matt was asked to be one of the people that were involved in this. What a blessing it was to see him on the stage and share what he has been through. His cardboard sign sayed, "Major brain bleed, terminal by morning." On the other side that showed the blessing that God had given us read, "Survived the night and now teaching public school and working with the youth." I dont' think there was a dry eye in the worship center, between Matt and all of the other wonderful stories that were shared that day. Well it is getting late and I need to get to bed, but I wanted to update the blog before I went to bed. THank you all for being faithful in your prayers for Matt. God has revealed himself to us in a very real way and we are looking forward to seeing what else He has in story for us. Also, Matt is going to the surgeon in San ANtonio on the 30th of Dec. they are going to put him under and do an angiogram (spelling?). After he gets in there the doctor is going to try to block off the rest of the 5% of the AVM, and if not them he will just close things up and Matt will be on his way home. The doctor said that if there is still very low blood flow to the AVM he may not do anything, but I told him that if he can block the rest of it off then that is what we want him to do. If he can block it off then we do not have to worry about this anymore. I know that God is in control of this situation, and that his will is going to be done. Please pray that God will guide the doctors hand and allow him to do what is needed. We are so thankful for this doctor and what he has done for Matt. Thank you all once again for all of your support and your prayers. We love you all and keep those prayers coming.

Hello everyone,

This is Matt. I thought I would type this update. I went to my Physical Medicine doctor today, and he released me to go back to work with basically no restrictions. Praise our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for all He has done. Please keep me in your prayers that my strength will continue to increase as I return to work, and more importantly that God's Will will continue to be accomplished in my life and that I will not get in the way. Thank you all for your prayers for me and my family over the past months.

To the glory of God the Father and my Savior, Jesus Christ, Forever!

Matt Kesselring

Nov. 23rd

We are getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving and we have so much to be thankful for this year. Matt is doing great and I see the improvements daily. He did not get to go back to work before Thanksgiving, but he will be able to go back to work right after the Thanksgiving holiday. I am so proud of him and so thankful to God for all that he has done. While we were at church today, one of our friends who stayed with us through the whole ordeal told me that I needed to quit smiling. I told him that I did not think that this would happen for a very long time. I can't imagine anything that would make me stop smiling and rejoicing in what God has done and is doing.

We went to San Antonio this week and the doctor there was impressed with how well Matt is doing. He wants to put Matt under general and do an angiogram sometime the end of December. When he gets in there he will look and see if he can block off the last 5% of the AVM and if not he will check to see how the blood flow to it is. If there is only a low, slow blood flow then he will not do anything else. His words were we will call it done and Matt will not have to go for any more treatments with him. We were so excited to hear what he had to say. Who would have thought that 4 months ago we would be talking about not ever having to worry about the rupture again. I cannot stop thinking about how far we have come and how many blessings God has given us. I don't know what we did to deserve all of these blessings and this wonderful miracle, but I am glad that he decided to give them to us.

Please continue to pray that the doctors will continue to allow God to lead them as they finish up with Matt and that when he goes in later in December that the doctors will not have to do anything else, or if he does have to do more work that he will be able to block off the rest of the AVM, this is what I am praying for, so that we don't have to worry about it anymore. We are still thanking God for all of you that continue to pray for Matt and for everyone involved in his care. What a wonderful Thanksgiving we all should have knowing that God is still in the miracle business and that he is willing to bless those who need him. Please take time this Thanksgiving to remember all of those who are serving our country and their families. Also, remember to thank God for all that he has done and all that he is still doing with Matt. We love you all and hope that you will have a great Thanksgiving, give someone that you love a big hug and tell them how much they mean to you. Love you all!!!

Nov 15th

Matt is still doing GREAT!! We were hoping to have him back at work before Thanksgiving, but that does not look like it is going to happen. He has to take one more test some kind of Neuro-Psch. test before his doctor will let him go back to work. He has an appointment on Tuesday to take this test. We went to see the Psychologist last week and she could not understand why Matt was even in her office for testing. We decided that I needed to be on the couch more than Matt did, just kidding, but somewhat true. She is going to rush the test scoring so that he can get back to work ASAP. He got released from OT/PT last week and there is no more therapy for him. Yeah!!! That is a mile stone in and of itself. He is moving around and doing the same things as he was before. He also went and took the driving test last week and passed with no problem. He is driving again, look out world!! I was glad to see that some of you were still reading the blog and I will keep you up to date with any changes. Thank you all for staying with us and praying for Matt through all of this, your prayers have been answered. God has been so wonderful to us and we continue to see what he is doing with Matt and we watch in amazement. Keep praying for him and we love you all.

Nov. 6th

I am not sure how many people are still reading this, but I wanted to let anyone that is know that Matt is doing absolutly wonderful. He is being dismissed from occupational and physical therapy as of today. We are in the process of getting some tests done in order for Matt to go back to work. Please join us in praying that the tests will be able to be done quickly and that he will be able to return to work ASAP. We would like to see him return to work the week before Thanksgiving. This is a great time for him to go back, because it allows for some built in breaks in order to allow him to build back up to working. He is going stir crazy sitting here at the house and now without therapy he is really going to go crazy. There is a person in San Antonio that can do the tests, all we need to do is get the consult from the doctors here. It was a big mess trying to find a doctor here in Corpus that did the test and took our insurance. Anyway, God has once again provided a way for this to be done and hopefully we can get it done quickly. Thank you all for your continued support, I feel as if we are almost to that light at the end of the tunnel and when Matt is finally able to go back to work it will be the icing on the cake. Please leave us a message and let us know if anyone is still reading this blog. Thank you again for your continued prayers and support through this whole thing.

Oct. 11

Thesee are 2 pictures of the AVM in Matt's brain just after the rupture in July. Notice the enlarged size of the blood vessels. The large lines that you see at the bottom of the 2nd image are the enlarged blood vessels, these should be the size of the little ones at the top of the same image. All of the dark that you see is the blood supply that is flowing through the vessels to the AVM and this amount of blood flow is what caused the AVM to rupture.

These are the 2 pictures of Matt's brain after the glue procedure. All of the dark spots that you see now is the glue. This causes the blood supply to redistribute to the other parts of the brain and not to feed the AVM. This decreases the chances of it rupturing again. The top image looks like a jellyfish. Matt had not seen these pictures until about a week ago and I had asked the doctor to send them to us so that he could see what was going on in his head. I thought these were some pretty amazing pictures. It is amazing what modern medicine can do and what an awesome God we serve, that he would bring Matt through all of this.

Oct. 11

Well, Matt is back to doing his therapy. He had a day when he felt like he had gone backward instead of forwards as far as his abilities go. I talked to him and we talked about how far he had come and that he had nothing to feel bad about and that he had not lost any of the abilities that he had regained. The next day the therapists came out and they did a reassessment and told him how far he had come and that made him feel so much better. Both of the therapists have talked to him about setting long tem goals and their long term goal is for Matt to go back to work sometime in November. This is a goal that makes Matt very happy. He is mentally ready to go back to work, and is almost ready physically. I think that staying home is beginning to drive him crazy. I wish I could stay at home for a while, but that is not going to happen any time soon. But, overall he is getting much better and doing it faster than people thought he would, he is a star student!!! Please continue to pray for him as he works to get back to normal life very soon. We have an appointment with the eye doctor on the 20th and we are going to insist on getting some glasses that will help with his vision. Thank you all for keeping Matt in your prayers, I can see it daily that he is getting better and better. Matt is truly a miracle and proof that our God is in the healing business.

Oct. 4, 2008

I want to share with you the most wonderful news. Matt and I traveled to San Antonio along with the boys and my mom. On Friday the doctors performed the embolization procedure. I was a mess, and could do nothing but cry. I was very worried and could not get the past out of my mind. I knew that God was in control, but all of those feelings were still so raw. But anyway, to the wonderful news!!! Matt went into surgery and we were told that they would continue as long as they felt safe working in his brain. They told us that it could be anywhere from 2-6 hours. The longer they were able to stay and work the better it would be and the more they would be able to close off. Well they were only able to work about 3 hours or so. When the nurse came out and told us they were done and that Matt was doing great, I was releaved and on the other hand I was a little bummed out because they were not in there working for the 6 hours. I then got to talk to the doctors and once again God has showed us that he is so in control of our lives, the doctors were able to close off 95% of the AVM blood supply. What an awesome moment that was for us, Matt and I had prayed that they would be able to close off all of it or at least a large number of it. I knew that God could allow this to happen, but I had some doubts. What was I thinking!!!! We have to go back to the doctors in 6 weeks to discuss what is next. He told us that he wants to go in again in 3 months to do another embolization and try to get the last 5 % blocked off, he also said that there is a chance that some more blood vessels will show up and that they will need to be blocked as well. The doctor was so pleased with his results and said that the chances of the AVM rerupturing was decreased with the success of this surgery. Another added benefit seems to be that Matt's eyesight is a little better. His double vision is not as bad and when he focuses his eyes do not seem to shift as much. He was having problems focusing and his eyes would shift back and forth until they got focused. He is still seeing some double, but hopefully as the brain heals that will go away. Please continue to pray for him and that he will heal and his eyes will be healed as well. Please also ask God to bless the doctors and nurse that took care of Matt during the surgery, they were so kind and so helpful. Please feel free to contact us and take to Matt, he would love to hear from some of you. Thank you all once again for all of your support and for all of your prayers.

Sept. 29

I want to say I am sorry for not keeping up with the blog. I was not sure if anyone was still reading since Matt was at home now. I was told tonight that I was in trouble for not keeping it up to date by a friend of mine. So I will try and do better. Matt is doing great and I am so impressed with how well his therapy is going. He is sweeping, cooking, weeding, picking up garbage outside to name a few things. His balance is so much better and he is not using the walker or wheel chair anymore. He has been grocery shopping with me and is pushing the cart and loading the stuff in the cart. In fact, we just got home from Walmart. Matt is working hard with the therapist and wants to get back to work by November. At the rate he is going, I don't see why he can't go back around then or soon after. We are preparing for the first procedure on Friday. It is scarry, but I know that God is going to take care of him, He has brought him this far and I believe that God is going to see him through this. I had to put Matt in God's hands a few months ago and I am going to continue to trust that God is in control of all that is going on and will see Matt through it. We are leaving to go to San Antonio on Thursday and he will check in that night and the surgery will be on Friday. The surgery could last anywhere from 2 to 6 hours. The longer it goes, the more they will be able to embolize, which in the long run will be better. However, for those of us sitting in the waiting room it may not be so good. I know that I am already a nervous wreck about this whole thing, I can't imagine on Friday waiting for 6 hours. Please pray for Matt as he goes through the surgery and that they will be able to get a lot of the AVM blocked off and that it will not take to many of these procedures to get it shrunk. My Mom, Matt's Mom and John and the boys are going to be there with us and I know that they will be a great help to me. Please pray for safe travel for all of us and that God will once again deliver Matt from all of this. Thank you all for your prayers and for your friendships. Please continue to pray for us and for the doctors that will be working on Matt the end of this week.

Sept. 21

Today has been a great day. It was Matt's first Sunday back at church and what a blessing it was. He was welcomed back with open arms and many people who had been praying for him. He was able to walk into church without the walker or wheelchair and he thinks he is big stuff without the use of equipment. I am so proud of him and how well he is doing. The therapists keep working him hard and he is stepping up and doing what they are asking him to do. We are so blessed. Please continue to keep the doctors in your prayers as they prepare for the procedure on Oct. 3rd. We are so thankful that God has given us this miracle to share with everyone and I pray that God will use Matt in a great and mighty way. Thank you all for all of your love and prayers.

Sept. 17

We have had a very busy day today!!! We went to San Antonio this morning, left our house at 5:00 and yes that is A.M. We had an appt. with the doctor that is going to work on the AVM in Matt's head. We have the first procedure on October 3. This is the first of several procedures that Matt will have to go through, but things look good. The doctor was very confident that he will be able to help Matt and that they should be able to shrink this thing so that they can use radiation to completly make it go away. After that appt. we rushed back down to Corpus to go to an eye doctor to have him check on Matt's double vision. He is not going to do anything for now, because he thinks that once they take care of the AVM that hopefully the vision issuses will clear up. If not then we will talk about glasses. At this point Matt's vision is still 20/20, the only thing is being able to focus and seeing 2 of everything. So over all it was a very productive day. We would like for you to pray for the doctors that will be doing surgery, and that God will guide their hands and give them wisdom. Please also continue to pray for Matt's strength so that he can continue to get stronger and better each day with his therapy. We are so thankful for all of you and we thank God for you all everyday. Thank you for you continued faithfulness.

Sept. 12

Well I know that it has been awhile since I posted. Things have been great here at home with Matt back. The boys and I are so happy that he is home with us and we are a family again. We thought we were going to have to leave due to the hurricane, but thank God we were not affected by it. We may get some rain and a little wind, but my weather man Matt, does not think we will get much. Matt has been watching the news and keeping track of the storm online. We had OT/PT and Speech come out and evaluate Matt on Tuesday. He will be getting OT/PT 3 times a week and he will get Speech 2 times a week for 2 weeks and that will be all that he needs as far as Speech goes. He will have the OT/PT here at the house for a month, and maybe 2 months if they think it will be needed. I want to tell you the guy who came out to do the OT evaluation was very intense. He had Matt doing all sorts of things, I think even more than the PT guy at the hospital did. He was very good and I think that with his help Matt will recover fast. He said that he wanted to be the one who came out and gave Matt his therapy. I was tired and I only watched. Matt was actually on the floor doing exercises and stretches. This guy wants Matt to start a Pilates class when he gets better. I guess that means that I too will be taking a Pilates class. I hurt just thinking about it!!! Well anyway, I wanted to update everyone and tell you how well Matt is doing at home. We are looking forward to going to church on Sunday. Please continue to pray for him as he starts therapy here at home. We have an appointment in San Antonio next week on Weds. to see the doctors about the AVM, so pray that all goes well with that and we are waiting to get approval for him to see the eye doctor, so keep that in your prayers as well. Thank you all for praying for Matt, you have all been a part of his recovery and his miracle. We love you all and are so thankful for each of you!!!!

Sept. 8th

I am happy to report that we managed to surprise everyone and meet our families for lunch on Sunday. It was Grandparents Day and our families were meeting for lunch at my sisters restuarant. Everyone was sitting down and getting ready to place their orders when Matt and I walked arounf the corner. Needless to say there were some happy and confused people. We had talked to the doctor and he said that Matt could leave the hospital on Sunday instead of on Tuesday. He is doing so well!!! We had a home health care nurse come in today and she was also amazed at how well Matt was doing. She did not think that he needed the services of a nurse, but instead would push for there to be more OT/PT for him since that is what he needs most right now. I have also placed a call to the Dr. in San Antonio and I am expecting a call from them on Tuesday to set up the appointment to discuss treatment of the AVM. We are also going to see a doctor that specializes in eye care and should be able to help with the double vision. Things are going so well and it is so nice to be at home and in our own house. It was very nice to have Matt and both of the boys at home and under one roof last night. Please continue to pray for Matt in the upcoming days. He has made the transition to home pretty easily and we are praying that this continues. Please also continue to pray for the doctors that are going to treat the AVM that they will have Gods wisdom in how and what to do to make this thing in his head go away. Thank you all so much for your continued pray through this time in our lives. I always felt that you all were praying and that God was hearing everyone of the prayers that were going up. What an awesome God we serve and what an awesome miracle he has given us. Please share Matt's incrediable story and I do believe that there are many lives out there that will be blessed by what he has gone through. I know for me I will always give God the glory for this blessing that he has given me. We love you all and please feel free to give us a call at home. I will be home with Matt over the next week and we would love to hear from you. Thanks again for all your prayer and all of your support. We love you all!!!!!

Sept. 3

Well today is another good day. We are making plans for Matt going home. They are lining up therapy, get equipment for the house and we are getting excited. He is working hard and will continue to work hard for the next 6 days while he is here. He wants to get the most out of the time that he has with the OT/PT people here at the hospital. On Tuesday they had him walking without the use of the walker. He was actually walking down the hallway with just the therapist beside him. He said that it was a little scary, but it felt good to know that he could do it. I wish I had been here to see that!!! Today for part of his therapy, they had him cooking and standing up in the kitchen. He helped make spagetti and meatballs. The other patients on the floor got to eat the food and they all said it was very good. This has been the best place for Matt and I am so thankful for all of the people on this unit that have helped him recover. God has been so good to us by providing us with the great people that have taken care of Matt. We have met some very awesome nurses and doctors. Please continue to keep Matt in your prayers as he gets ready to go home and please pray for the boys and I that we will be able to make him feel welcome and that our family will once again fit together like it did before. Please also continue to pray for Matt's eyes, they are getting better and the double vision is not as far apart as it was. The images seem to be coming together slowly. We love you and we will continue to thank God for all of you and that you are there to pray for us in this trying time.

August 31

I want to apologize for not updating in a few days. There was some interference with the internet at the hospital and I could not get online. It has been a very busy weekend. On Friday they came and took the PEG tube out of Matt's stomach. He said it hurt, but was more pressure than pain. It actually looks really good, they changed the bandage last night and only a little bit of blood/leakage. They do not put stitches in the hole it just closes on its own. When I got here on Friday they were telling me that Matt may be going home today. Everyone was freaking out over the hurricane. It is the hospital policy that if the patient is able to go home then they send them home. So Matt was one of those that could go home if need be. I was then freaking out. I was excited, but also a little unprepared. I don't think it is an issuse now, they don't think the hurricane is coming this way so he will stay until the 9th of Sept. He is doing so well. His PT worked on climbing stairs on Friday. We have about 15 steps to get upstairs and they want him to be able to go up and down our stairs, with assistance of course. God has been so good to us, not only Matt but me also. I started in a new building this school year, and it has been great. The ladies that I work with are wonderful and my supervising teachers husband is a baptist preacher. I am also going to be able to finish one of my summer classes via the mail, she will send me the work and I will mail it back to her. I was also going to take 3 classes this Fall before all of this happened with Matt. I have to take one of them, because it goes with my student teaching. I got an email from one of the other teachers and there are not enough people to continue that class and I was going to drop it anyway. Then the last class that I was going to take is only offered in the Fall and it is offered from 7-9:30 at night. I did not want to be gone that late with Matt just coming home from the hospital. I emailed and went to talk to the professor and she has agreed to let me take this class through independent study. She will send me the information and I will keep up with it and send it back to her via email. We will meet several times during the semester and there are no test. I am so thankful that God has taken care of all the details to make our lives easier. Please continue to pray for Matt, he still needs a lot of strength to get through the PT/OT and also for his eyes to heal and the double vision to go away. Thank you all for your prayer and support we are so thankful for each and ever one of you. Take care and we love you all.

August 27th

Another good day at rehab. Matt was able to walk all the way to the end of the hallway from his room which is about 100 feet give or take a few feet. That was the goal to reach by the end of the week. Now that he has done that, he is going to work on technique. He told me the other day that he felt a little like Frankenstein when he walks, because he feels like his feet are heavy. I told him that at least he was up and walking and that it would get easier and better the more he did it. I was listening to the radio and a song came on this morning and the words spoke to me, I am not even sure what song it was, but there was a little girl talking at the end of it and she said the following words:

"The Lord is the everlasting God,The creator of all the Earth,He never grows weak or weary,No one can measure the depths of His understanding,He gives power to the weak, and strength to the powerless,Even youth will become weak and tired,And young men will fall in exhaustion,But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength,They will soar high on wings like eagles,They will run and not grow weary,They will walk and not faint"

I just looked it up and it is a song by Lincoln Brewster, called Everlasting God. The little child speaking at the end is what captured my attention. All I could think about was Matt and how even though he is tired, he keeps working and is able to push himself through the therapy. This is the strength that comes from God. We pray nightly for God to bless him with His strength. I am amazed at how strong he has been through this whole ordeal. I was talking to Matt on the phone today during my lunch time and one of my co-workers overheard our conversation and she asked me who was in the hospital. I told her my husband and she asked me why I was always smiling and happy if my husband was in thehospital? I was happy to be able to share with her what God had done and was doing with Matt. She was blessed by his story and said that she could now see why I was smiling. I just love sharing Matt's story with whoever will listen and I love being able to give God all the glory for what he has done. Thank you all for praying for Matt and being a part of the miracle and part of the story that I love to share. Please continue to pray for strength and that his eyes will continue to heal. You all are so special and so awesome. Thank you for standing in the gap for Matt and I while we have been down this difficult road.

August 26th

I could not wait to get online and update everyone. Matt is for sure going home on Sept. 9th. GOD is soooooo AWESOME!!!!!!!!!! I am still amazed daily at the strength that God allows to flow through Matt. Matt has been working very hard this week. He walked on Monday using the tray table. Now you are thinking how hard could it be to hold on to a table with wheels and walk. Well, he was not allowed to hold on to the sides of the table, he had to leave his hands flat on the top of the table and walk that way. Not as easy as it sounds trust me. Today, he used a walker for the first time and he went half way down the hall. The goal for this week is for him to make it all the way to the end of the hall. The first goal that was set was for him to walk 50 feet and that was surpassed on Monday. I personally think they need to give him harder goals. The speech therapist told us that all the therapist were talking on Monday morning and they all decided that Matt was the star student. They are all impressed with how well he is doing and how fast he is meeting and exceeding his goals that they set for him. I am amazed at the strength that God allows to flow through Matt on a daily basis. He tells me that it is not him that is making the progress, but God through him and he is right, but I also remind him that he has to be a willing host for Gods strength to flow out of. Matt is going home on the 9th of Sept. and guess what that is... Jonathan's first football game. Imagine that, God is working things out again. I just cannot say enough about how much we appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers. Matt is a living, breathing, walking miracle and you are all a part of why that happened. You are all so AWESOME!!!! Thank you all for everything and please continue to pray for him as he goes on to recover completly from this ordeal.

August 24

I know that I have not written in a couple of days, but all is well. Yesterday Matt was doing his PT workout and the lady that was working with him decided to let him try and walk. He did outstanding. He was walking between a set of parellel bars. He went forward and backward about 8 times. He was very strong and his balance and posture were very good too. I am once again blown away by what he is able to do and how far he has come in a little less than 2 weeks. They are still talking about him coming home on the 9th of September. We counted the days yesterday and as of today there is 15 days until he should come home. It has been long journey, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I can't wait to have him home and the 4 of us get our lives back to normal. It will be nice to just spend time together as a family and let the boys reconnect with their Dad again. They come up to the hospital for a hour or so but have not really been able to spend a lot of time with their Dad. It will be nice to be home in our home and with our stuff and be a family again. I must say that is one of the things that I miss the most, and that is spending time, just Matt, the boys and me. It has been nice having family and friends come and go, but just to be with my husband and boys again will be a huge answer to my prayers. I want to ask you all to continue praying for Matt's strength and for his eyes to get better, but I also want you to pray that our transition back into normal life will go smooth. Not only for us, but for all of our family, my Mom has had the boys since this all happened and for Matt's Mom as she goes home and gets her life back to normal. God has been so good in providing the support that we needed in this terrible time, I pray that all of our transitions will go smoothly in a couple of weeks. Thank you again for all of your support, love and prayers during this time in our lives. We love you and are so thankful for you all.

August 22

Matt has had a great day today. The PT guy has had him doing squats and the OT people have been working with him on lifting his arm. He has made such great improvements over the past week. The doctor that is overseeing his care is so amazed at the progress that he is making. Matt has a very strong desire to go home and that is why he is working so hard. He told me yesterday that he is working so hard because he wants to come home and that I am his inspiration. Little does he know that he is my inspiration, because of the fight and drive that he has to get better. I have seen people make improvements over time, but I have not seen someone improve over night before and that is what seems to be happening with Matt. I know it sounds funny, but I am telling you the truth. Last Sunday he could hardly hold himself up on his legs and now his legs seem to be so strong and this happened from Sunday to Monday. Even when he is tired he puts forth 150% for the people that are working with him. I knew that if they got him up to this floor that he would make great progress. Every night we pray for him to have the strength of God and that seems to be what he is getting. God is so good and He loves us so much. I am so glad that I am here to see the wonderful work that He is doing with Matt. Please continue to pray with us that God will give Matt his strength to make it through this rehab stuff and that God will continue to heal his eyes. I would also like to ask you to pray for me as school starts on Monday and I am doing my student teaching this semester. I am a little nervous, because we are expected to get as many of the special ed kids to pass the TAKS test and I am not sure how all of that works. This is a whole new experience for me and one that I am not real comfortable with at this point. Thank you all for your love and your prayers, we can not ever repay the gratitude that we feel for you all. Thanks again and we love you very much.

August 20th

I must beg for your forgiveness. Yesterday was a crazy day and I just did not get to updating the blog. Matt is doing fantastic. He went for another swollow study today and called me at 11:30 and told me that he had passed the test with "flying colors". So tonight for dinner he was able to have food from my sisters resturant that they have recently opened. He ate opened faced pot roast, mashed tators, green beans, and the famous watermelon pie. After he was finished eating he told me that he felt like he usually does after Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner. It is so good to see him eating again and enjoying food. His therapy is going so well. The people that he works with are just amazed at the progress that he is making and how quickly he is making that progress. He is very quick to give God the glory for what is going on, but them I am quick to tell him that if he were not willing to accept and us what God is giving then it would not work. Everyday is a new day for us and I feel like I can't love him any more until I walk in the door from work and I do. I told him the other night it was like being newlyweds again and realizing just how much you do love each other, but this is even more intense, because we have been married for 20 years. Anyway, sorry I got off on a little bit of us and not so much of telling you about Matt. He is still doing well standing and was using a box today to do step ups. We talked to them about the steps in the house and they are going to work to help him be able to climb the steps at home. There is a projected date of Sept. 11th for Matt to possible go home. It may even be sooner than that. I have talked to them and they are willing to work with us because, I have to start my student teaching on that day. The therapist that is in charge of his care is working with us and said that he can probable come home on the 9th or 10th rather than the 11th. I am planning on taking a couple of days off to be at home with him. Please continue to pray for Matt's strength and also his eyes that the double vision will heal itself and we won't have any trouble with that. Please also pray that he might be able to come home sooner than the first part of Sept., but that if he needs to stay until then that God will help him to continue to do well so that he will not need any assistance when he goes home. I am looking forward to having him home and getting our lives back to normal. It will be nice for us to be at home and be able to get our lives back to normal with just us and the boys. I know that we as a family are going to need some time to get things together again since all of this has happened. Thank you so much for your prayer and I will continue to keep you updated and we love you all.

August 18th

Standing was on the agenda today and they had him stand up and sit 10 times today. He told me that it was very hard, but that it felt good. When I got to the hospital after work he was eating and I then took him back to his room and he wanted to go back to bed and sit in the bed for a while. Usually, when I am not here the CNA's help him in and out of bed, but when I am with him I help him in and out of bed. Yesterday when he was transfering from the wheelchair to the bed he could not hardly bare weight on his legs, well today when I went to help him back into bed he was actually standing up tall and was supporting most of his weight on his own. Walking was a little tricky, but he did well and side stepped and took a few steps to help get back in bed. I am so proud of him and how well he is doing. We took another trip to the 3rd floor today to visit with the sweet nurses that he had and they are all shocked when we roll off the elevator and he say Hi how are you all doing. He is now eating more normal food and not just chopped up food, they are just giving it to him the way it is served. He is able to use a straw to drink from and is doing great with that according to the speech person. They are thinking of doing another swallow study, just to make sure that things are going where they are suppose to, but the speech person really does not see a need for that and is going to try and talk to the doctor about it. Someone, I am not sure who, said that he may be getting out of here on the 8th of Sept. That to me is pretty exciting, to think that it is almost 2 months to the day. Just think, that they did not expect him to even live through the night and now we are talking about going home. Man oh Man isn't God great!!!!! Dr. Chen was in this morning and took out the stitches that were on his stomach that he put on the PEG and he told us to make an appointment as soon as they gave the all clear for him to travel. I still am amazed at how God brought all the right people together at just the right time to have a solution to the problem on Matt's AVM. I know that I am using the word amazed a lot in the updates, but that is the only word that seems to even come close to fitting what we have experienced. We are praying for continued strength and also that Matt's double vision will go a way. They are using a patch to strengthen his eyes, so we are asking God to intervene and help the process along. Thank you all once again and we love you all.

August 17th

For those of you who know Matt, you know how much he loves his coffee. Well, after a month of not having coffee he got his first cup of Starbucks since he got sick. He does not like the coffee that they make here at the hospital and was complaining about it this morning. Just another way that I can tell that he is getting better!! This weekend is not as intense as during the week. They only work the patients for an hour one time a day, where they work them an hour 3 times a day during the week. On Saturday the OT people were here and they worked on getting the muscles in his left arm loose and relaxed. He did very well with that and today the PT person came in and he worked on posture. He also had Matt lean on the table and use his elbows and forearms to support his body and then squat. Matt said man this is hard, but it is a good way to strengthed his legs. All in all it was a good weekend. He is eating more and more food. To start out with he would eat his tray and then between breakfast and lunch they would give him a can of stuff like Ensure and the same between lunch and dinner. He told us that after eating all of the food on his tray he was getting to full when they would give him the Ensure stuff. The nurse said that if he are more than 50% of his tray that they would not give him the Ensure. The physical therapy doctor is amazed at how well Matt is doing. Keep praying for strength, because it is working and he is able to handle more and more therapy each day. We also went on a ride today. We went down to the 3rd floor to visit the nurses and then we went outside and enjoyed the rain. It was good to see him up and enjoying the outdoors again. It has been over a month since he has been outside, except for 2 rides to change hospitals. Anyway, I wanted to update everyone before it got to late. Take care and we love you all. Thanks for sticking with us and continuing to pray for Matt and his recovery.

August 15th and 16th

Sorry this is a day late. I could not get my computer to work last night. Matt is doing so well. He ate real food yesterday and said that it was good. For breakfast he had pancakes and sausage. He is also able to drink coffee now. He says that the hospital coffee is not very good. Our brother-in-law Larry has been waiting for him to be able to drink coffee. He says that the next time he comes to the hospital he is going to bring Matt Starbucks coffee. It is very exciting to see him eating and drinking again. He looks better and sounds better too. Hopefully it won't take to much longer and he will be well enough to go home. I hate that I have to leave him every day and go to work, but sometimes we don't always get to do what we want to in life. Anyway, sorry about that it was a little pitty party for me and I need to get over it.

This morning we got him up and he used his legs to help wheel himself down to the dining area and he did really well. He had eggs and cream of wheat this morning along with apple juice and coffee. Once again, the coffee was not very good. He is also getting some other nutrition through his PEG while he is building up his strength so that he is getting enough calories. I am really happy to see that he is doing so well and I know that it is because you are keeping him in prayer. God has been so wonderful to us and we can never repay the debt that we owe Him. It seems like every time I write I am thanking you for praying and telling you how specical you are to us and I hope you know that every time I say that, it comes from my heart and that it is not just words. I am truely thankful for every one of you that prays for Matt, because if you were not praying I don't know where we would be at this point. I love you all and thanks again.

August 14

Man oh Man!! What a day Matt had today. He has started transfering himself from the bed to the wheelchair (with some assistance). He was able to take a shower today, a real shower not a bath in the bed. He used his legs and rolled himself down to the dining area. He shaved himself. After all of this what could be better, well just wait!?!?!?! He is going to start eating chopped up food on Friday. He has been getting liquid food through his PEG, but now he will start getting chopped up food. They are going to be giving him 6-7 small meals/snacks a day and then supplement with the liquid food through the PEG at night. He is also able to take water from a cup now, anytime he wants. This is all very exciting. He is trying to do stuff so that when I come from work I will be happy and proud of him. I told him that I was proud of him no matter what he did or didn't do. He asked me to tell him what really happened to him tonight. I felt like if he was asking that he was ready to know, so I told him. He cried when I told him about the first night, but then I explained how from there that he only got better with a couple of minor set backs. He said, "I did not realize just how sick I was and that I was that close to death!" This brought tears to my eyes and I think what got him the most was that the boys were told that he would not make it through the night. I know that is the part that gets to me everytime I share Matt's story with someone. Please continue to pray for strength, that is a request from Matt. I would like for you to continue to pray for patience and for him to get stronger and stronger everyday so that we do not have to stay in the hospital very much longer. You all are the best and I am so glad that you all are in my life and in the life of my family. Thanks again and I will keep you posted on Matt's everyday progress, he is doing just fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

August 13

I am writing you from the 8th floor, better known as the rehab floor. Matt is doing great!!!!! I know that I keep saying that, but each time I come back from work he seems to get better since the morning. He is able to pucker his lips today and that was a surprise that he saved to show me when I got to the hospital. It is so good to see him smiling and being proud of what he is doing. I think that he knows that he is getting better and I think that he is proud of himself. When one of our pastors came by today, he asked Matt what they needed to pray for and Matt told him Strength. Whenever our pastor would come up to the hospital he would ask me what to pray for and I would always tell him what I thought we needed to pray for that week. It was kind of cool that Matt was able to tell him what he wanted to pray for. In the past when Matt would talk his voice was very raspy and hoarse sounding. His speech has gotten so much better and he is even talking to people on the phone and it is pretty easy to understand him. Once the rehab people have him on the floor for a few days the are going to start taking out the tubes that he has left in his body. The only thing that they will leave in is the feeding PEG in his stomach and that will stay in until he is taking in enough real food to sustain him. So if you all will join us in praying for Matt's request of strength I would appreciate it. He is working so hard and is making great progress. Keep those prayers coming, because this is when the real work for him starts. He is going to need all of the strength that God can give him. Thank you all for your continued prayer and support.

August 12th

Matt had a GREAT day. He worked for almost an hour with the PT people and then he worked again this afternoon with OT. He is talking more and is moving his legs and arms so much better. I know that he is getting better, because as many of you know when a child is sick and then starts to feel better they start to moan and complain about different things. Well that is where Matt is at right now. We are happy to announce that as soon as they get everything approved again from the insurance, that Matt is once again moving to the 8th floor or better known as the rehab floor. Sometime on Wed. he will move up to rehab and will start working on coming home. The rehab doctor came in late tonight and said that he was impressed with the way Matt was recovering and that he was ready for him to move and start on the road to coming home with us. What a blessing, I have been praying and asking God to let this happen by mid week and guess what Wed. is? God is so AWESOME!!!!!!! I also went back to work today, and I was very nervous because I am working in a new building with a whole new group of people. Today was great, everyone was so welcoming and the special ed teacher that I am working with is very sweet. She has already told me to be prepared to help with everything that she is doing. I am also doing my student teaching with her and I am very excited about the chance to work with her and a different age group. Thank you everyone who pray for rehab to come soon and for those of you that I have talked to about going back to work. I must tell you that walking out that door this morning was the hardest thing that I have ever had to do, I cried all the way to my house, but Matt was fine and he did very well today. Thank you again for praying and we are so excited about the improvements that we are seeing daily in Matt. We love you all.

August 11

Well it is another late night, before I got a chance to write. Matt is doing well. OT/PT both came in today and worked with him for about an hour. The PT person brought in a machine that helped him to support himself and stand up. He did very well and was able to stand for a minute of so, that does not sound like a lot, but when you haven't been out of bed for several weeks that is a lot of time and most of all a lot of effort. Later on in the day he was complaining that his shoulder hurt, I was very encouraged to hear this. When his shoulder hurts from the workout it tells me that all the nerves and sensations from his brain to his arm are reconnecting and working on healing themselves. Then he sat up in a chair for another 2 hours. While he was sitting in the chair the Speech person came in and wanted to work with him as well. She was pleased with the way he was swollowing. She gave him ice chips and a little bit of water. He did very well and is now able to have ice chips when he wants them. They were going to try some other textures, but decided to work with him a few days before they gave him anything else. Thats ok, he is thrilled with the ice chips. He has been waiting for those ice chips for a couple of days now. Matt has some weakness on his left side and has a tendancy to lean to the left with his head, so working on keeping his head straight and tall is a lot of work also, but I cannot tell you how much better his is getting at holding his head up and keeping it aligned. This is important so that when he swallows everything goes down the right pipes and it does not go into his lungs. All of his doctors were in today and they are all impressed with his progress. They are so impressed that they are ready to release him to rehab as soon as the doctor up there has a bed for him. I was hoping that would be today, but no such luck. Dr. Reddy came in today and asked me if I was ready for him to go to rehab and I asked if we could go now. He told me to call the physical therapy doctor and let him know that Matt could go when he had the room. I have not heard from that doctor yet, but should hear from him on Tuesday. Lisa, Matt's nurse, was back today and she has not seen him in a few days and she was thrilled to see him smile, talk and even a chuckle came out today. I can also tell that he is getting better, because he is beginning to complain about how he is laying and that his butt hurts. I give him a hard time about complaining, but then I tell him how happy I am to have him complaining about stuff and not just laying there. I will gladly take the complaints over the nothing is bothering me that was going on a week or two ago. I am so extremely excited at the progress that Matt has made, and I connot wait to see what he can do when he gets up to rehab. I have to go to work on Tuesday, and I am kind of sad. I hate to leave him and I feel guilty leaving him, even though his Mom will be here to help out, I still feel like I should be here for him. I am planning to leave the hospital in the morning at about 6:00 and be at work at 7:30. After work I will go home and get my stuff together for the next day and then go back up to the hospital and stay with him for the night. God is still working miracles and I am still very excited to see each day what God is going to do today. Thanks so much for all your comments and I love hearing from you. Keep praying for him, he is improving daily. Rehab will start and he will really need your prayers through all of that work that they will put him through. Thanks and we love you all very much.

August 10th

Today is another good day. Matt is becoming more and more himself. He is making jokes and his sense of humor is back He is doing so well and the doctors have been in today. Both of the doctors that are caring for him are saying that he is ready to go back to the rehab floor. They have both written orders for the rehab doctor to come in and evaluate him again. The last time he evaluated Matt he was ready that same day to take him to rehab, but we were waiting on the other doctors to get on board. Now all we need is for the rehab doctor to come in and he will be on his way to rehab again. Matt is starting to want to do things for himself. I found out last night that he still has the ability to write. I could not understand what he wanted me to do and I had him try and write down what he wanted and he did with no problems. He started to day out smiling at me and I must tell you that his smile is the best thing I have seen in a long, long time. The feeling I get when he smiles at me is the same feeling that I got when the boys were babies and were learning to smile. Your heart just fills with love and you are just so excited to see that smile over and over again. I have been saying that I cannot wait to get a hug from him, well today I got my hug. I was moving him over in the bed and I had my arm behind his neck and was centering hiim in the bed and he took that chance to give me my long awaited hug. I am so thankful that God has been so gracious to me and that he has given me my Matt back. There were things that use to make me mad and I really don't think that those things will ever bother me again. I am reminded daily just how precious life is and that it is to short to get mad about little things. We need to live everyday like it is our last and never forget to tell the people in our lives just how much they mean to us. God has given us life and we need to be thankful and not take if for granted. I feel like the luckiest person in the whole world. If you had asked me a month ago how lucky I felt I don't know that I would have been able to answer that question. Please continue to pray for Matt and please pray for Dr. Chen and his partner as the look through Matt's tests and put together a plan of action for the repair of the AVM. We are also praying of a quick move to rehab and that once he is there that he will exceed all of their expectations and be able to come home soon. Thank again for all your support and your prayers. We love you all and are so glad that God has put you in our lives.

August 9th

Matt is doing so well. He had a great night and I was able to stay with him and make sure that he was okay. I am amazed at how much he has started moving both arms. He is reaching up to shake hands with the doctors and anyone that comes to visit him. The doctors have reinstated the OT/PT orders and also the speech orders, so on Monday, maybe Sunday if we are lucky he will be able to start moving again. I am praying that he gets to go to the rehab floor early this week, or at least by the middle of the week. He was trying to help take the pillows out from under his back earlier today and that is the first time he has done that. I was talking to him and telling him how much I loved him and asked if he loved me even half as much as I love him and he responded by waving his hand(like get out of here) and then he gave me the biggest smile as if to say I am only joking. This is the first time that he has smiled like that since the initial incident happened. I cried right away and he looked at me as if to say what are you crying for? I told him that they were happy tears and then he seemed to understand. I am sure he was thinking ohh there goes that sappy wife of mine again. He is getting better and better. God is good to us and I don't think that there are words to ever describe how thankful I am that God has given me my husband back, when the doctors did not give any hope. God continues to show me just how wonderful he is and I continue to be thankful, more and more everyday. Thank you all for helping us pray for Matt and I ask you to continue to pray for him as he starts rehab soon. This will be hard at first, but in the long run he will benefit the most from this. After rehab Matt will be able to go home and continue rehab on an outpatient basis. I am looking forward to having him home with me and the boys. Thank you again for all your prays and love for Matt, the boys and me. We will be forever thankful and in your debt. We love you all.

August 8th

Good News keeps coming. It took all day, but Matt is back on the 3rd floor where we started out and would you believe that he is in the same room that we left on Monday. What are the chances!! (That is my new saying) They started feeding him through the PEG tube in his stomach today and that is going well. For the past couple of days I have been hearing his stomach growl and I am not hearing that anymore. I talked again to Dr. Chen the wonderful doctor that is going to help Matt. He told me that the procedure that they are going to do on Matt will last from 1 hour to 3 or 4 hours depending on how things are going. Matt will have to stay in ICU right after the procedure to make sure that there is no bleeding and then either 1 or 2 days later he will go home. There will be anywhere from 3 months to 6 months between each surgery. So this whole process could take a year or more depending on what they are able to get done and how the AVM responds to the procedures. This will all take place in San Antonio at the military hospital up there. We are still excited and very hopeful. We are praying for Matt to be able to go to the rehab floor in the next couple of days, maybe by Monday or Tuesday. I have to start back to work on Tuesday and I would like to have him in rehab before I go back to school. I was going to try and stay with him for another couple of weeks, but with the doctors wanting to start the procedures as soon as he is able to travel, I need to save all of my leave for that. I hate to have to leave him, but his Mom is here and she will stay with him during the day and I will come and stay at night after I get off work. Please continue to pray for him. I think and it is only me, but I think that he is doing better now than he was before he got to this hospital the 25th of July. He is trying to talk more, moving both arms and legs more, and he is also more alert. He has been reaching up and scratching his nose and eye, he has not done that for several weeks. I am not sure that I shared this from yesterday, but the last EEG showed that everything is normal with his brain activity. I asked the doctor what the difference was between the EEG that was done the day after the rupture and this last one was? He told me that the one they did right after the rupture showed that the brain activity was slow and this last one they did the day after the seizure showed that everything was normal. That was great news, since we have not had an EEG since the day after the rupture. God is amazing and He continues to show us just how awesome He really is. I am sorry that it took me so long to post today, I will try to do better. Thank you again and again for being supportive and for being our pray warriors. I know for a fact that Matt would not be where he is today if it were not for all of your prayers and the grace of GOD. Thank you again for loving us and for all of your prayers.

August 7th

Well another wonderful day God has given us. Matt is doing well and will be moving up to the floor and out of the ICU on Friday. Our favorite nurse Lisa is going to make sure that we have a room on the 3rd floor so she could take care of Matt again. The doctor that came in and told us that he thought he could fix the AVM came back and said that with some treatments that they would at least be able to shrink the AVm enough to us radiation on it. It will take more than one treatment to fix this, he even said as many as 7 or 8. The treatments are relatively simple and not to invasive. If you are interested you can look up AVM Embolization or this site has a lot of information on it:
http://www.irsa.org/avms.html. They would like to do it as soon as Matt is strong enough to travel to San Antonio. This was another very exciting day for us. The doctors came in and they took the tube out of his nose and they are planning to start him on tube feedings in the morning. They will continue to use this for feeding until he is able to eat enough to maintain his strength. I must tell you God has given Matt the most wonderful doctor that is overseeing his care. Dr. Reddy is great and he shared with us what he thought about Matt having a seizure today. He told me that he knew that God answered our prayers. Not just my prayers but our prayers. He told me that he believed that God allowed Matt to have a seizure so that Dr. Chin could come and put the PEG in and that he would want to help fix the AVM. Dr. Reddy said to me, what are the chances of all of this happen at the same time?? He said it is because God allowed the seizure to happen. I wanted to share another verse that has touched my life over the past year. It is a verse that my church used as we were launching a building campaign and it is as follows:
"Now to Him who is able to do immeasureably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us (and in our families)...to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen (Ephesians 3:20-21 ).
We always need to remember that God can do far more than we are every able to imagine and that if we will only ask and trust, He will be faithful to answer out prayers. I hope that you will all be sure to give God all the glory for what He is doing in Matt and please continue to pray for him. The next step is back up to rehab and hopefully that will be very soon. I have to start work on Tuesday and I would like to see him in rehab by then. I have to return to work especially since we will have to make several trips to San Antonio in the near future. I will need all of my leave days to go with Matt when they work on his head. Take care and know that we love you all and are thankful for all your prayers.

August 6th

I am not even sure how to begin this next entry. Holy Moly does not even come close to expressing what I am about to tell you. Just in case you were not aware of this God is sooooo AWESOME!!!! Now that I have said that I need to update you on Matt. They were able to get the PEG in his stomach. The doctors had to use the CAT scan to do it and it was a success. What they did was to put a stitch in his stomach and pull it up to the skin and all of his intestines fell back into place and they were able to put the PEG in. That alone is amazing but it gets better. I am glad that you are sitting while you read this. Matt's doctor told us that he was going to get someone to put this PEG it didn't matter who it was. Well God knew who it was and man does he know how to pick them. The doctor that put the PEG in is a Neurointerventional Radiologist. He wanted to talk to me after they had put the PEG in and he asked me what the doctors were saying about the AVM in Matt's brain. I told him what I knew and that the neurosurgon was going to send Matt's information out to other doctors, but he was not sure if they were going to be able to fix the AVM. Well here is the AWESOME part hold on... This radiologist told me that he took the liberty of looking at all of Matt's scans and test and that he had sent them to his associate in San Antonio. He also told me that he thought that they would be able to fix the AVM with a little glue and some coils. This is a procedure that I have read about online. He told me that this is something that they deal with all the time and that he is pretty sure that they will be able to help, becasue Matt is far to young to have this hanging over his head for the rest of his life. All I could do was cry and he could not understand why I was crying. What are the chances that this person from San Antonio would just happen to be here in Corpus working this summer and that he would be the one that put the PEG in Matt's stomach, and that he would be the one that would tell us that he can fix the AVM. I can only think of one person who could make all of this happen at the same time and that would be the one and only true GOD that we serve. I am once again taken to a point of amazement and I have been there many times in the past month.
There is a verse that has really become part of my life the past few weeks and that verse is:
Mark 11:23-24
"For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain,"Be removed and cast into the sea," and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. "Therefore I say unto you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you will receive them, and you will have them.
I read this verse one night and it has stuck with me throughout this whole crazy rollercoaster ride that we have been on the past month. I started praying very specific prays about Matt, I would pray for his right arm to get stronger and for the left arm to get stronger. I would also pray that God would hold the AVM in His hand and keep it safe and He has done that, now not only is He keeping it safe, but He has brought someone into our lives that will fix it. I am just in awe and amazement at the miracles that God is doing day in and day out. I get up in the mornings and look at Matt and see a miracle and then God just keeps adding to the pile. I feel like God is personlly involved in our lives and I am not sure that I have ever felt that way before. I always knew that He had a hand on us, but I never felt like it was personal. There was a lady that posted a comment to that affect today and it really brought it into light for me, that God is personally involved and that is how He wants to be invloved in everyones life. I once again want to thank you all for your prayers and support, and I thank God for you every day. Knowing that I can count on you to pray and lift Matt up means more to me than you will ever know. God has surrounded us with an awesome support and thank you for being a part of that team. God bless you and I will keep you pasted. Thanks again!!!!

August 6th

Good afternoon. Matt is down in the radiology lab as I am typing this and they are working under the guide of a CAT scan to get the PEG put into his stomach. His doctor is pretty sure that they will be able to get it in this time. This means that the NG tube in his nose will come out today as well. When they are done with that procedure he will come back to ICU and they will start taking him off the vent. This will mean that he gets one tube in and 2 tubes out. Please pray that all goes well and I will post another update later after he gets back and I can go and see him again. God is sooo awesome and He is watching over Matt night and day.

August 5th

Holy Moly!!! What a day yesterday was! We went down for the PEG and once again that did not happen. I was a little ticked off to say the least. According to the doctor he did not order the PEG and he was not sure why they had brought him down. He blamed it on the nurse and I have a hard time believing that a nurse would just take upon herself to bring a patient down. Well that is neither here nor there. After we got back down to his room they got him cleaned up and ready to rest for a while. He seemed to get cold and had goose bumps. He started shaking like he was really cold. Little did I know that was the beginning of a seizure. I called the nurse and they called a code white, which means doctors assistance right away. There must have been 15 peopel come into the room and they brought the crash cart with them. I was not leaving Matt, but they asked my mom and his mom to wait outside. They started pushing meds in him trying to get him to calm down. After 12 minutes, but for me it seemed like an eternity and way more than 12 minutes, Matt started to relax. That was the most intense 12 minutes that I have every gone through. The doctor said that he would need to have the breathing tube put back in because of all of the meds that they had given him to help him clam down. At this time I did leave the room and had a little break down outside. All I could think of was that I was going to have to tell our boys that their dad was not going to make it all over again. That is also one moment in time that I do not ever wish to have to live through again. So, after the put the breathing tube back in the took him to ICU. I was not happy about this because we are back to only seeing him 4-5 hours out of the day. Finally, around 8:30 we were able to go in and see him and the neurolgist came in while I was in there to read some of the tests that they had done. They did an EEG and it showed that there had been seizure activity, but that it had stopped and he has not had anymore. We talked about how Matt was acting the morning before the seizure and I told him that he was smilng and acting silly with everyone. He said that was good and that he expected him to be doing the same thing in a couple of days. There should not be any long term affects from the seizure, but he will have to be put on anti-seizure meds for the rest of his life. I told him that was a minor detail. They are taking Matt for another CT and doing another EEG today to make sure that there have been no other seizures and to make sure that the AVM has not bleed anymore. The neurologist did tell me last night that he did not expect to find that they AVM had bleed on the CT that they wanted to do just to make sure. I have just come from seeing him and he looks good. He is able to squeeze my hand, he is moving his arm and he was waving his toes at one of the PT people that have worked with him. Once he is more alert and the doctor gives the all clear from the tests that they are doing, they will start removing the breathing tube. God has once again proven that he is in control and that he is the great physician. Yesterday after the seizure happened, I was a little down and was questioning why God lets things like this happen to good people like Matt and our pastor shared a story with me about how our story has already helped people. I was amazed and once again God has taken me to the place where I am in total amazement with all that He can do in out lives. You know if all of this has to happen to help one person then God has done a great deed. I have to tell you about one more thing before I close this post. Every night for the past week or so Matt and I have been praying. When I pray I touch every part of his body, his head and I ask God to hold the AVM in His hand and keep it safe, then I pray for each leg, each arm and so on. I finally end up praying for his lungs and his heart. I was praying with him last night and when I got to praying for his heart and I aske God to help him know how much I love him, he squeezed my hand and this was all while he was still under the influence of the sedation. It was Matt's way once again of telling me that he was still here and that he was still fighting to get better. God is so amazing and I will forever give him all of the praise and glory for what He has done in our lives. Keep praying becasue God is hearing all those prayers and He is answering them day in and day out. Thank you all for your support and for standing in the gap for us. I thank God daily for friends and family who not only love us, but love our God as well.

August 4th

We just got some exciting news!! Matt is going to get the PEG tube put into his stomach at 11:30 today. I was not expecting this, the doctor was not very sure he would do it today or wait until Tuesday. God is good to us, this means that Matt should be able to go back up to the rehab floor in a couple of days. This is a step in the right direction. He has been more alert since they have started feeding him the 2600 calories a day and seems to have more energy, imagine that. I will update later about how the PEG went and if there is any news about when he is moving up to the rehab floor. Thanks again for praying and keep those prayers going up, because they are sure working.

August 3

Today has been a pretty good day. Matt was up and in the chair for several hours today. Getting up and sitting in the chair takes a lot out of him and he gets very tired. Of course before he got to sit in the chair the Physical and Occupational therapist came in and worked with him. They are both impressed with what he can do, many people are surprised when they work with him that he is doing so much and doing it so well. This to me is just another way of God showing me how awesome He is and what He can do with one of His children. The GI doctor is going to do another xray in the morning and see how his intestines look, I would like to see them put the PEG in on Monday, but he seems to want to wait until Tuesday. I am pushing for Monday just so we can get it over and done with and be on our way back up to rehab. Please pray that the GI doctor will come in and want to put it in on Monday. Please also pray for me, I am suppose to start back to school on the 12th of August. As long as Matt is doing well this should not be a problem, however if he is not back up on the rehab floor I am not going to be able to leave him and go to work. They have transfered me to a new building and I am a bit nervous about that, but I know that God will work all of that out. Well that is what is going on today, please know that we appreciate all of your prayers and support, God has surrounded us with a great group of friends and family who love us and are here for us all the time.

August 2

Today is one of those days. Matt seems to be tired today. They were able to put the PIC line in and he is getting his nutrition, I am hopeful that this will help him have more energy. They took him for a CT scan last night and hopefully we will get the results of that today. The GI doctor came by last night and he is going to look into doing the PEG line in his stomach on Sunday, but it may be Monday or Tuesday if the stomach is not gone down enough. Please pray for things to go well so that we can get that PEG in and then we can get back up to the rehab floor and get that going again. I will post again later with an update on the CT scan and any other news that we may get. Thanks again for all the prayers.

August 1 Update #2

Matt has been very alert today and is doing very well. He has been talking just a little, but is communicating with us more than he has in a few days. They have put a PIC line in his arm so that they can give him the nutrition he needs to gain his strength back (approx. 2600 calories). According to what we are told they are taking him for another CT of his head today just to check and see if all of the blood has been re-absorbed. The GI doctor is also going to try and do the PEG line in his stomach in the morning sometime. Please join us in praying that the CT will show that all of the blood is gone and maybe even a surprise that the AVM is shrinking (WOW that would be great news) and also that the doc will be able to get the PEG line in so that we can get the tube out of his nose. I am so encouraged as to how well he is doing and how alert he is today. Your prayers are being answered on a daily basis, please just keep lifting him up and I will keep posting about the miracle that continues to unfold before my eyes. You are all special to us and we appreciate your love and prayers.

August 1 Matt's Update

I wanted to update what is going on. Matt is on an acute care floor at this time. They are trying to get his intestines moving and keep his stomach from getting bloated. The doctors are also re-hydrating him and giving him nutrition through his IV to help get his strength back. They are going to try several different things to make sure that this problem doesn't happen anymore. In the next day or so they will insert a tube into his stomach (PEG) that they will use to feed him and then eventually when he is recovered enough and eating on his own they will remove it. This is just so that they can get the NG tube out of his nose. He is doing well and I have been reading him all of the cards, and emails that you all are sending. Keep praying and we are watching with AWE at how God is working. In our everyday lives we do not get to see miracles, but I am sitting here day in and day out watching as our God is doing miracles everyday. Please know that we love you all and are very thankful for all your prayers and love for our family. Keep praying and I will keep you updated.

Matt's Story

Matt is in the hospital and is very sick. Let me start at the beginning. About a month ago, Matt got a very bad headache and I insisted that he see our doctor and have it checked out. The doctor decided to do a CT of his brain and they found and AVM (arterial brain malformation). It is a group of blood vessels that are in a bundle in his brain instead of just going straight. He has had this since before he was born, it is something that develops while you are growing in the womb. From our family doctor he went to see a neurosurgeon, and he told us that the spot did not look like it had bleed and did not look as if it was going to, so we scheduled an angiogram 2 weeks from then. This was on a Tuesday July 8th, on Thursday July 10th, he had another very bad headache. It was a very bad one, he got dizzy, starting throwing up and had blurry vision. I took him straight to the ER. On the way to the ER he was going in and out of a coma like state. I kept shaking him and waking him up, right before we got to the hospital he went to sleep one more time and I woke him up and told him not to leave me. He opened his eyes, looked at me, and said I am not going to leave you I promise. That was the last words that he spoke. In the ER they did another CT and I was told that he would not live through the night that the AVM had ruptured and that it had bleed so much in his brain that he was going to die. I was then asked about organ donation and so on. I had to go out and tell our boys that their Dad was going to die. I am not sure what I even said to them, but it was the worst thing that I have ever had to do. We were told that his blood pressure would drop and that he would be declared brain dead and it would be over. We called all the family and they came to the hospital. The call for prayer also went out to people far and near. Thursday night came and went and his blood pressure did not drop in fact it stayed strong and steady. During the night he was having spasm like movements and early Friday morning they suddenly stopped. His movements became more like movements that he did on a daily basis. He was scratching his head and doing things that only I would recognize as Matt. The doctors were still very sure that he was not going to make it. Our oldest son Jonathan stayed with me through the night and Friday morning we were standing by Matt’s bed and Jonathan had his hand on Matt’s chest. I said to Matt can you reach up and grab Jonathan’s hand on your chest and to our surprise, he reached up and grabbed his hand. The nurses were shocked. I had been telling them that he was still with us and that something needed to be done for him, they finally called the doctor and they performed an EEG to check for brain activity. They results came back that there was still a lot of activity going on, and the doctors decided to move him to another hospital and see what could be done to help him. On Sunday morning, they took him into surgery to make a drain hole in one of the ventricles in his brain. While the doctor was in there he removed so large blood clots too. About 4-5 hours after the surgery was done they nurse called me into the ICU room and there lying in the bed was Matt and his eyes were open and he was looking straight at me. I cannot tell you how this made me feel. Things were getting better and better by the day. Two days after surgery, they took out the breathing tube and the first words he said was I Love You. It was determined that he was going to have some problems that we would have to deal with, but at this point I was so happy that God had answered our prayers that it did not matter what we would have to deal with. Now let me fast forward a little bit. It is now July 31st and we are at another hospital where Matt was transferred to do inpatient rehab, but we have had a few little set backs. He was started on a puree diet before the transfer, they stopped giving him IV fluids, and he became dehydrated. This lead to his intestines getting backed up, so they moved him from rehab to the acute care floor and we are dealing with the intestine problems now. The doctors are saying that all of this has to do with where the brain bleed was and that is why he is having trouble with his intestines. They are trying several different approaches to fix this, they are also saying that he may have lost the sensations when he had the brain bleed. I know for a fact that this is not true because just last week he was telling me that he needed to go to the restroom. In my opinion once they get him hydrated and the proper nutrition in him all of these problems will be solved, but they don’t see it that way. So, I am asking that you please join us in praying for Matt and that he will make a full recovery and that all of the problems he is having now will be resolved so that he can go back up to rehab and get home soon. He has some weakness on his left side, but with some work the PT doctors say that he will have full use of his arms and legs. We are so thankful for what God has done for us so far and that He is using this to show people that He is in the business of miracles. So many people have been touched by this and I look forward to Matt and I being able to share our experience with many more people when he gets well. One of his nurses told us today that by watching us and seeing the faith that we have that God is healing Matt, that she has re-examined her life and got some things worked out in her personal life because of Matt. I will keep you posted and please have everyone pray that God will take care of Matt and continue the heal him and we will be sure to give God all the glory for this wonderful miracle that he has done for us.