History

Thursday, August 27, 2009 9:32 PM CDT

Wow, it has been so long since we last updated Abby's CB webpage. I was having trouble logging into the site to make an update, but now I have it all figured out again. I have many things to update, but tonight I am heading to bed. I will make an update this weekend when my head is clear.

Just a few things...
We are expecting our 4th baby, due Feb 13, 2010.
Abby recently had her one year biopsy, good results...will update on this more later.
The girls are all doing well, growing, playing, loving.

As always, we are glad that you continue to check on Abby and our family. Many many thanks.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009 8:29 PM CDT

Dreams really do come true!

We spent March 4-10 on Abby's Make-A-Wish trip in sunny Orlando, Florida. We stayed at an amazing place called Give Kids the World, which is just for families like ours that have a child who has been or is sick. At Give Kids the World (GKTW) we stayed in a 2 bedroom villa with a living room, kitchen, and 2 bathrooms. It was very comfortable and welcoming. GKTW has a carousel, a game room, swimming pool, two restaurants, and ice cream parlor and a magic castle. We were treated like royalty from the moment we arrived. GKTW has 1200 volunteers each week that make things run smoothly and keep all the guests happy. The volunteers were amazing. We are so thankful for all they do for the families that stay there. At first the girls thought that GKTW was Magic Kingdom, they didn't even know what they were in for.

The first day when we got to GKTW we got unpacked and then took the kids swimming. Then we had some dinner and turned in a little early because we had a very early start to the day. Oh, I forgot to say that Make-A-Wish arranged to have us driven to the airport in a limo. That was a really fun treat. The kids couldn't believe that they didn't have to be in car seats.

Then our first full day in Orlando we headed to the Magic Kingdom. We got into the parking lot and Abby was really not feeling well, having trouble breathing and complaining of lots of pain. We decided to take her to the Orlando Children's Hospital ER. She has been struggling with lung issues on and off since surgery, because her right diaphragm is still paralyzed. They did some x-rays and blood work and she did start feeling a bit better. The x-rays showed that she had pneumonia. So, they had her use an inhaler and then also put her on an antibiotic. By the time that she left the ER she was feeling much better. So, that evening we made it to the Magic Kingdom by about 5:30 PM. We were able to enjoy some of the attractions and also meet Ariel that evening. Then we stayed for the light parade, which was really great. By the end of that evening the girls were very excited and they already wanted to go back to Magic Kingdom the next day.

So, we got some sleep and then woke up and planned to go right to Magic Kingdom on Friday. We spent the whole day at Magic Kingdom on Friday. It was awesome. What a magical place for children and adults. We rode a lot of rides. Abby's favorite was Peter Pan's Adventure. The first time we rode it she was a little scared, because it was dark and you see Captain Hook, but then she wanted to ride again and again. Because we were there with Make-A-Wish and GKTW we had a special pass that allowed us to go to the front of all the lines and even stay on the rides more than one time in a row. So, we rode the best rides lots of times. Eva really loved It's A Small World and the Winnie the Pooh Adventure. Clare also loved Peter Pan and she also liked everything else. Clare is so easy going; she just loves to do anything fun and what isn't fun at Disney. That day we also met lots of characters including, Cinderella, Belle and Aurora which was a big highlight.

This is getting a little long, so let me summarize the rest of the week.
Saturday we went to Sea World - the best part at Sea World was getting to feed the dolphins; I will change the pictures later in the week and put some of the dolphin pictures up.
Sunday we went to Animal Kingdom in the morning and then to Hollywood Studios in the afternoon and evening. At Animal Kingdom the highlight was the safari, but the Lion King show was also really great. At Hollywood Studios the best thing was the Beauty and the Beast show; it was our favorite live stage show that we saw all week.
Monday we spent another day at Magic Kingdom, which the girls would just never get tired of. It was just the best.
Then we packed up on Tuesday morning and got to spend some more time hanging out at GKTW, and then it was time to head back home.

Every evening at GKTW there was always a fun activity for the kids. One night there was a life size Candy Land game, which was fabulous. A bunny named Mayor Clayton and his wife Ms. Merry are the mascots of GKTW. One night they have a birthday party for Mayor Clayton, with cake, balloon, face painting, dancing. One night they had a pirates and princesses party which was also so much fun. One of the highlights at GKTW was when Ms. Merry came to tuck the kids into bed one evening. They were so excited. Mark said that she didn't do a very good job, because the kids were more wound up after she left than before she came, but it was a great time. I will post pictures of that also.

Abby will go back to the U of M for her next check-up and biopsy at the beginning of May. Hopefully we won't have to go in before then, but we also need to get her lung issue cleared up soon, because it is causing her some discomfort.

Abby and Clare are still enjoying dance classes very much and they are going to start playing soccer in April. That should be great for both of them. Also, all 3 girls start their first swimming lessons this Sunday. That should be a good time for all of them.

Thank you for continuing to check on our whole family. We are grateful for everything and are so happy to report that Abby is doing well and her heart is helping her to live a normal life.

Love, The Ostlie Family
Heather, Mark, Abby, Clare and Eva

Tuesday, January 20, 2009 2:51 PM CST

Yes, no news is good news. Abby's biopsy results were perfect. She is a grade zero, which means that there is still no rejection. We are thrilled about this news.

The recovery from the most recent biopsy was a bit difficult for our dear Abby. Her groin area and leg were very sore for several days after the biopsy and she was having some difficulty walking. She is better now, but it was the most difficult recovery for her so far. It also didn't help that on Tuesday last week (the day after biopsy) Abby started running a fever again and we were back in the ER again. She woke up from her nap on Tuesday and was running almost a 102 temp, so I called her transplant coordinator and she talked with the cardiologist and they suggested that again we come to the ER for her to be checked. So at dinner time on Tuesday we headed to the ER and she had to once again get an IV, they took blood and urine samples and then we waited to see some results. The initial blood and urine samples came back normal, so at about 10 PM they said we could go home. It was a long night running around. Then on Wednesday and Thursday Abby was still running a temp. We could control it with Tylenol, but it would keep climbing back up when the Tylenol wore off. So, Abby did not go to school last week, because we didn't know what was going on. The blood and urine samples continued to stay normal over the rest of the week. Either way, she is feeling much better now and resumed school today.

Everyone else is doing just fine at our house. The girls are all growing up too fast. Actually, I mentioned last month that Abby was complaining about her knee hurting, well in one month she grew from 105 cm tall to 111 cm tall. Which means that she grew about 2 inches. No wonder her knee was hurting, her growth plate was on overdrive. Abby now stands about 1 inch taller than Clare. It is great to know that she is growing normally again.

We are looking forward to next weekend; we will be heading to Grand View Lodge on Gull Lake with the Ostlie family for a little RandR and some fun at the waterpark. It should be a great time.

Well, Happy Inauguration Day to everyone. This is quite a historic day in our lives. It has been amazing to watch the coverage on TV and know that we are witnessing such a momentous event. It really almost brings me to tears to see how thrilled everyone is to have him as our new leader. The feeling for Obama and his family has to be overwhelming.

One last thing, I recently joined the Facebook community, so if you are a part of that community you can see more daily updates about our family there.

Take care everyone!
Thanks for the continued prayers and thoughts.

Heather

Monday, January 12, 2009 9:25 AM CST

Hi everyone,

I am down at the U of M with Abby today. She is having her biopsy this morning. We arrived here around 6 AM today so we beat the snow, but our drive home may be a little more tricky. Abby is in the cath lab now and I will probably see her again around 10:45 or so. Then she will need to lay flat for 4 hours to make sure that the groin incision does not bleed. Another boring day at the hospital. Again, we pray that this biopsy will show no rejection and a perfectly funtioning heart.

One more news item before I sign off here. Our family will finally be taking the Make-A-Wish trip that was given to Abby in early 2007. We will be heading to Disney World during the first part of March. We are all so excited about the trip. Mark and I are just as overjoyed as the kids. It will be our first official family trip with all 5 of us! I think that Abby and all of us are in need of some family fun and time in the sun.

Thanks for checking on us.

Love, Heather

Wednesday, January 7, 2009 6:48 PM CST

Abby came home last night and is feeling really good.

Thank you so much for your prayers and warm wishes.

Thank you, again, to Grandma and Grandpa for having the Clare and Eva at the farm so I was able to return to work this week. They had great fun.

We were all very excited to be under one roof together last night, but a bit tired from the past few days. Abby and Clare had to immediately pack in a lot of play time as they were very happy to be back together while Eva happily clung to Mama.

God Bless - Mark

Tuesday, January 6, 2009 11:26 AM CST

Abby is feeling well, but still in the hosptial as the specific bug has not yet been determined. She should be released today. I don't have much more time to update, but didn't want to leave anyone wondering about her status.

Thanks for checking on her.
God Bless,
Mark

Saturday, January 3, 2009 8:20 AM CST

Happy New Year everyone.

Well, at our house it is not so happy right now. Abby is in the hospital. We took her into the ER at the U of M on New Year's Eve. She was running a 103 temp and was having very labored breathing. Prior to this night she had a runny nose for about 2 weeks. She just couldn't kick the cold and it escalated. We were nervous about her breathing and high temp, so we took her in. She was diagnosed with slight fluid on her right lung, a right ear infection and a sinus infection. Well, they treated her with IV antibiotics and IV steroids. We were discharged to return home on New Year's Day. She was feeling much better and seemed fine. Then last night we got a call around 10 PM from the on-call cardiologist telling us that Abby's blood culture showed a blood infection. This is very dangerous for a heart transplant patient, so we were instructed to bring her back to the hospital to begin another course of IV antibiotics. She is expected to be in the hospital for the next 48 hours until they figure out what infection is in her blood, then they should be able to switch to oral antibiotics. Mom took Abby to the hospital on New Year's Eve and Dad took her last night. We are sad that Abby is having to endure this infection and hospitalization. We pray that the infection will not affect her heart.

I will keep you updated on her status. Then after things settle down we will give a journal update on our holidays and plans for the new year.

Thanks for checking on Abby and all of us.

Love, Heather

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