Pray For Lexi!

 Lexi Thomas, also known as our little Princess (and my beloved granddaughter), needs your prayers.  Only two very long days ago, Lexi was a little mischevious, beautiful and healthy two year old.  She was running and playing with her three year old brother, Christopher and her four year old cousin, Justin.  As I type, she is singing a song.  She loves to sing.  She loves to dance.  She loves to eat donuts, which she cannot right now as she is waiting to be rolled into surgery.  Two days ago, we found out that Lexi has a brain tumor.

The only symptom that Lexi had was that she had spent the last twelve days or so throwing up at least once daily.  Of course, she was taken to the doctor.  She was diagnosed with a virus.  The second time, she was given Ranitidine, a medicine for acid reflux, though she had not ever had a problem before these events.  The third time, she was taken to the emergency room.  Lexi's mother was devastated, of course, never dreaming that her baby girl had a brain tumor. 

While they will not be sure that Lexi's tumor is maglignant, they said they were pretty sure that it is.  They also said that they could not guarantee the outcome of the surgery.  She could come out just like her old self -- or not.  Or not is NOT acceptable. 

Please send a prayer heavenward for our darling baby girl.  There is not a doubt that I would trade places with her in a heartbeat, but I was not given that choice.  Please join our family and friends in praying for Lexi.  Lexi needs the ear of God this morning.  Please pray that the beautiful promise of a future for Lexi will be fullfilled.  We love her so much

 I apologize to everyone for not keeping Lexi's page updated.  We have been on a merry-go-round for so long, but Lexi is going to get better!  As we knew at the beginning, it was, and is, going to be a long, long process.  None of it has been easy for Lexi, her mama or me. 

Lexi has such determination!  She makes me proud and she also makes me feel humble.  Many times in my life, I've wanted to give up on something because it was harder than I thought it would be.  Lexi is showing me that it takes hard work to get what you want, but also that the hard work pays off.  

She can sit and crawl now.  She has tried walking, but just does not have the balance yet to do it without help.  She is talking a little bit.  Her first word was "NaNa."  That is me!  She also says "Mama" and tries a few more.  She still has a long way to go, but she is getting there. 

She can color again and play toys!  It is just baby steps.  She is really about the same stage that Jaiden is (my baby grandson who just turned one).  I have no doubt that she will recover.  She has too much determination for that.

With new insurance in place, her therapy will be starting back up and we will be kicking it in gear for lots of appointments.  She is still, unfortunately, on a feeding tube.  She wants to eat so much!  The doctors will be determining soon whether that will happen before adolesence, which I pray daily that it does.  Right now, she has a paralyzed vocal cord that is stopping her from being able to eat without danger.  We pray that it will reverse itself as soon as possible. 

She knows she is not the same right now.  It is very frustrating for her.  Still, she is not going to give up and shows us that everyday.  She is still a sweet and loving baby girl who needs all the prayers she can get. 

During 2010, Lexi continued to improve. She learned how to walk again and was startihg to talk more plainly so that we could understand her. She even danced a few steps and was starting to sing and play with the other children. Then, in January 2011, we found out that her tumor had returned. It actually showed up on the October 2010 MRI, but we were not informed of it. By January, when we were informed of it, we were told it was inoperable. While we were seeking second opinions, on February 10, 2011, the tumor hemmorhaged, creating what is termed a brain stem stroke.

They wanted to count Lexi out, with some doctors, though none of them experts, trying to strong arm us into pulling the plug on Lexi. Two weeks into the stroke, they said that she was in a persistent vegetative state and would never come out of it. We declined to pull the plug, but followed their advice for Lexi to have a tracheostomy. We were then informed by another doctor of ritalin therapy to bring someone out of a coma. We took her home, still in a coma. We found that a persistent vegetative state until after a year in a coma or vegetative state. The doctor who prescribed ritalin added amantadine.

Slowly, Lexi came out of the coma. Almost a year later, she can sit by herself, but only for a moment or two, and can hold her head up a bit. She also can answer some questions by shaking her head. She is undergoing chemotherapy, which the tumor is responding to.

We do not know the future for ourselves any more than we do for Lexi. Having her has taught us to live one day at a time, while keeping an eye to the future. As long as Lexi is living, we have hope that she can somehow recover. There are amazing medical advances at work. There are also miracles and we continue to pray for one for Lexi.