New Year

Early Sunday morning Bridey left this comment on the last post, "The dream has come true!!! at 3:00 on Jan. 7, 2007 the hospital called to say they found a liver. This is better than a live donor because they wont have to do the vein grafting. Thank you all. Keep praying."

Savanna's surgery was finished after about 10 hours, so late Sunday evening Savanna was finished with her surgery. He recovery will not be easy. They are already dealing with the fact that she must be heavily sedated for the next two weeks or so to help her recover. As you can probably assume a child her age would not do very well with being told that she needs to lay still for two weeks. Savanna's abdomen is still open some because all of her organs are still very swollen, and she can not afford to have any extra compression on them. In a couple of days the doctor's will go back in and sew up a little more, and repeat that every couple of days as needed. It is also just her skin that is being sewn up, Bridey said something about them going back in a couple of years and then dealing with muscle.

The surgery itself went very well, with it actually taking less time that thought. The child that they received the liver from was actually an abused child who had severe head trauma and kept alive until it was decided to donate his/hers organs. So it is amazing what a beautiful thing comes out of something so ugly. Savanna received a complete liver, where if they were using Mikey's liver she would just get a part, I don't know if using a complete liver makes any difference in recovery time. As I am sure you all know her surgery was postponed because the vein they needed to connect the liver to intestines was not available at the time. During all the tests done there was no sign that Savanna had this key piece of anatomy that would make attempting the transplant with out knowing for sure it was there to be fatal. The donor they had did have this vein, however when Savanna's liver was removed there was this tiny little vein, waiting for a new liver.

Despite the fact she is unable to look at her Mother, laugh, cry, or move at this time, because of the sedation, her improved health is obvious. Bridey said her coloring is already changing, and Bree checks her eyes and has seen the yellow fading dramatically. Apparently Savanna's face will even change as she improves. Bridey said that the drawn look and deep set eyes are all very common in patients with her condition, and as she gets better the look of her face will even show the good things happening inside of her.

Happy New Year!

What she has been waiting for...

January 2nd, 2007!!!!

That's the tentative date that is being set for Savanna's liver transplant at the Pittsburg Pediatric Hospital. Bree's sister Mikey will be donating a small, but very valuable peice of her self to help Savanna. While Bree, Savanna and Cassidy were in St. Louis Mikey was cleared as a donor from Children's Hospital, but because Savanna is now at a new hospital Mikey was undergo testing to clear her again. Savanna's doctors are planning that Mikey will be given an okay again. The date is also tentative because the doctors need to make sure that the veins Savanna needs to connect her intesting to liver are available.

So on with more wonderful news...

-Bree has found a job in her new town at Victoria's Secret, so if anyone needs anything special for Christmas you know where to go.

-The sales of the plaques that Barney put together went incredibly well with I want to say $4000 being raised in two different nights. There are still some avaible if anyone is interested.

-Bree's cousin Amy's work has chosen Savanna and her family to sponsor for Christmas. Every year her work (which is some kind of media group here in St. Louis) chooses one family to buy (most likely giftcards to places like Walmart and Target) for. This year they choose Savanna, Bree, and Cassidy.

-Cassidy's new school in Pittsburg, which she has only been at since October, has also chosen their family as one of many to buy Christmas gifts for. Her school sets up a giving tree which students then pick mittens (I think) off of that tell about a child. The tags give clothing sizes and toys that may be of interest.

All this news and it's almost one week before Christmas!

Also here is a slide show of Savanna and Cassidy from the past couple months. The picture quality isn't the best, but that doesn't matter.

Merry Christmas!

11.9.06

With so many people interested in helping out Savanna here is an opportunity...
I mentioned the plaques that Barney and Brian collaborated on, so here they are. The first is a picture of the artwork that is fixed on the plaques. The plaques are again pieces of slate that have been removed from the well on the Gierer property in Warrenton, MO. For those of you that are not familiar with the Gierers or Warrenton let me tell you a little about it. Warrenton is where the Gierer family lives. Correct me if I am wrong, but there are 12 brothers and sisters. Bridey is one of the 12 and Savanna is her granddaughter. The house where the kids grew up is an amazingly warm place that has seen many family get togethers, weddings, holidays, and just weekend trips to the country. The photo on the right is the house I am speaking of. You can see a little bit of the well the slate pieces were taken from, it is on the left hand side of the photo behind the tree and swing set. (You can click on the picture to enlarge it some.) Like I mentioned before the well is circa 1930, and for sometime was used as a water source.

The picture on the plaques is a water color done by Brian Gardner, Bridey's brother-in-law. Barney then presented a photocopy of the painting on the slate pieces taken from the well with an archival fixative. There is also a UV protectant on top to prevent fading. Barney then drilled two holes on the top of the pieces and tied with a leather cord, so that the pieces can be hung on a wall. There are various sizes of plaques. The one we have at our house is approximately 8"x14" and is one of the smaller pieces. There is a suggested donation of $100-$200 to receive a plaque. The donation cost is not set in stone (no pun intended), so if you would like one of the plaques but are not able to donate as much, the cost can be stretched a bit. And of course if you would just like to donate and are not concerned with getting a plaque that is definitely okay.

I spoke to Bridey this evening and she will be going to the bank to set up a charitable fund that will be able to be used to help with the costs incurred during Savanna's care. Right now some people have already made personal checks out to Bridey, but for anyone that would rather donate to a charitable fund one will be set up hopefully in the next week. We are hoping that the money in the fund will help with healthcare costs, but also any financial burdens they come upon with Bree being unable to work after Savanna receives her transplant.

Speaking of her transplant, Savanna is on the top of the list for the Eastern seaboard and also the top of the list for the US. **I am almost positive this is what Bridey told me, but if anyone has heard differently, let me know** Bridey also told me that Bree is very satisfied with the care that Savanna is receiving now that they are in Pittsburgh.

A few of you have also asked if there is anything that can be sent to them to maybe make them feel more at home. Well Bridey just said that she wants everyone up there, but because that isn't possible, we are trying to think of other things. One little thing that us knit night ladies will be doing is sending her all of our little scraps of yarn that I normally find all over the house after knit night, it may sound goofy, but it's these little things that I think will really help. So anything like that, any little memento that you think would make them feel more comfortable would be much appreciated, and obviously just a call or card is perfect too.

Address, pictures, and Happy Halloween!

Whew, after less than 24 hours of the first post I have had more than 10 of you contacting me to keep you updated. Thank you. I spoke to Bridey and Bree tonight and they were just thrilled to hear about the warmth everyone is sending them up in chilly Pittsburgh.

Savanna spent the day in hospital having tests done, but she was able to do some trick-or-treating, as a pumpkin.

So here's what you asked for....
An address....
3224 Eastmont Ave.
Pittsburgh, PA 15216

As you can see I've posted more pictures. Bree and Savanna, and of course we had to put some up of Cassidy. Bree told me she would email me some pictures of Savanna in her pumpkin costume.

Here is a link to the Children's Hospital of Pittsburg where Savanna is recieving care from now. PittsburghPediatric

Also a link about her condition biliaryatresia This link will also tell you more about the procedure she has already recieved called Kasai.

And one more link that tells you about her second condition situs-inversus.

Here is a little about the plaques that are going to be sold, "The 'plaques' are a limited series of artwork including prints from an original watercolor of the family well (circa 1850). The well is still used by the family as a watersource. Barney as a true Artisan has taken roof slate from the well's canopy (circa 1930) and preserved them. He then fixed the prints to the slates creating a very pleasing mixed media rendition of the original watercolor."

Welcome

This is Savanna

Many of you already know this beautiful little girl who was born on January 22, 2006. Many of you know her beautiful, funny and independent mother Bree and her incredible big sister Cassidy. Many of you know that Savanna needs a liver transplant. However what some of you may not know is exactly what is wrong with Savanna, how she is doing, and the fact that this family of three strong females needs your support.

Before I go any farther I will give you excerpts from a letter written by Bridey, Bree's mother, about how Savanna's condition was found out and also what it is...

"Savanna was born January, 22, 2006. Everything appeared to be normal, she was absolutley beautiful. She seemed a little jaundiced, but it didn't appear to be any more than what is normal for any other newborn. The doctors also heard a heart murmur, but a CAT scan reported all was well. Bree was very happy with her little family and Cassidy was ecstatic with her new little sister. The world seemed to be a beautiful thing. However, when Savanna was ten weeks old Bree rushed her to the emergency room with what turned out to be a rare liver disorder and their lives changed forever.

Bree had taken Savanna to her pediatrician that Monday afternoon. She was getting the appropriate immunizations and was making sure that all was well with the baby because she was going back to work. Bree had noticed that her jaundice was beginning to get worse. The pediatrician scheduled blood work for the next day, but said it was probably because she was nursing. Savanna seemed so well in every other way. When her immunization sites were still bleeding at 10:00 that night Bree became alarmed. She called her pediatrician who sent her to the emergency room.

Savanna was diagnosed with the rare illness Biliary Artesia. Biliary Artesia is a condition of the liver which makes it unable to eliminate the bile and waste that our bodies slough off into the liver. This was further complicated by an equally rare condition called Situs Invertus which means that all of her organs are in a mirror image position of what they should be. Her liver became very scarred and deteriorated. The doctors did an initial surgery to try and attach the liver to the small intestines called a Kasai. This surgery only at best has a thirty percent chance of working. Her liver was already so damaged that her specialist believed that the Kasai procedure would just buy her a little time. He was right. At seven months old Savanna is on a list waiting for a liver transplant. Her transplant is further exacerbated by the fact that she has Situs Invertus."

So now you know that. Now let me tell you what we are doing with this blog. This blog will hopefully become a way to be updated on Savanna, Bree, Bridey, and Cassidy now that they are living in Pittsburg, where she will recieve her transplant. We would also like to use this as a way to get everyone involved. This amazing and very large family that Savanna has been born into is incredibly supportive in so many ways. Come on guys, you know you are. I will be posting new blogs as I hear about what is happening with Savanna. I will in the next couple of days give you some links to learn more about her condition and a link to the hospital that she is now recieving her treatment through.

Feel free to post comments, questions, anything!

We are also planning some fund raising oppurtunities to aid this small part of such a large group of wonderful family and friends. Right now Barney has some plaques that we will be selling, and a charitable fund is being set up. To be perfectly blunt about the situation we need to not only show our support in well wishes, prayers, and good thoughts but also monetarily. We will be soliciting business and others to help out with the costs that they are encountering with Savanna's treatment. If you have any advice, or questions please let us know. The way we have gotten this far is with a bunch of little suggestions to help with something so big. That is actually why this blog is being called "an elephant for Savanna", because this little, beautiful, beaming girl needs something so big, hence the elephant.

I think that you can subscribe to this blog so that as new posts are added you will be imformed. Also please pass this site onto anyone who is interested. Thank you all so much for everything that is being done so far!

-Ariel

ps, spell checker is not working, so please forgive the most likely multiple