Blaze ill December 2, 2009

Blaze has a cold right now-runny nose, sniffling, sneezing, small cough, some shortness of breath at times. The doctors are concerned, ordinarily his oxygen saturation levels are on the low side, but because of this cold they are considerably lower. We have an appointment this afternoon with his primary care doctor (yesterday we saw her Physician’s Assistant-who consulted with another physician-who made a bunch of phone calls-including one to his primary care doctor). There is a very good probability that they will want him hospitalized this evening. Our appointment is at 4:30 p.m. They were willing to hospitalize him last night, if I wanted that, but I truly feel they are being just a tad overly cautious. I definitely prefer overly cautious versus them being flippant about it. But, we’ll talk to the cardiologist today and proceed slowly. At the same time they were telling us that hospitalization was an option, they were telling me that if he felt better today, he didn’t have to go in to this appointment at all! No matter what, he’s being seen by someone today! He did test NEGATIVE for the flu (Praise God!) and we did not hear back regarding his chest x-ray, so I am assuming his lungs were clear. They had promised to call if there was a problem. They did say yesterday that he looked like a million bucks, and that if they didn’t know his background or current oxygen stats, they would not be worried. That was good to hear. Even feeling cruddy he is thriving and gaining weight. What a blessing!

We, being Gilzows, have a plan, should he be hospitalized. I think we have everything under control right now, but should we need something, we won’t hesitate to ask! It’s wonderful to have you all behind us in this.

I do want to say that whenever we need an emotional boost, there is always someone to lift us. Yesterday, it was the scheduler at the clinic. I was bringing Blaze in with a “laundry list” of concerns to have checked out. The person who checked us in was kind to direct us to a certain area of the lobby for “non-flu” patients, when I interrupted to explain he was a heart baby, and our doctor doesn’t want him to wait in the lobby at all. She smiled so sweetly and said, “Yes, I remember his name. When I was new here, one of the first calls I made was to arrange an appointment for him in St. Louis, I think. His name stuck with me this whole time. It’s so nice to see him in person.” Then she looked at me and said, “He’s so lucky to have you.” I quickly said we were blessed to have him, but that moment she took to reach out and encourage me, when she definitely didn’t have to…that was precious. And I was grateful!

So, thank you for the prayers and encouragement you give! You will never know how much it means to us.

Please also pray for my cousin, Lori Fox, and her son, Anthony Boley. Anthony is two years old and received a traumatic brain injury last week. If he survives, he may have permanent disabilities from this. It’s a horrible situation, and all we can do is pray. However, prayer, as you know, is the most powerful thing we can do. Blaze is evidence of that. Please join us in lifting up Anthony and his family. My aunt, too, could use your prayers. She has had a stroke and her memory is confused. She has a long way to go! So, please pray, for Betty Fox and my uncle, Charles.

I’ll keep you updated as much as I can, if not through emails, check out the website, http://www.blazegilzow.com/ We’re so blessed to have you!



Joy Gilzow