November 16, 2016

11 days inpatient due to adenovirus. Deanna is such a trooper! She smiled throughout her hospitalization…and made new friends:). We’re glad to be home. Praying for good health…our make a wish trip was rescheduled for February…we will celebrate her 3rd transplant anniversary in Disney! Dear Santa, our wish this year and next is to be healthy …

October 11, 2016

Our big surprise…well…

this time next month, Deanna & our family will be in Orlando, Florida…to see all of Deanna’s favorite princesses! MAKE-A-WISH is grating little Deanna’s wish to go to Disney World to meet Princess Elsa – her favorite. Our family is completely excited and humbled for this amazing invitation.

Deanna deserves so much happiness – and we’re so thankful for everyone’s kindness and generosity…from day ONE! Thank you.

We still are on 3 medications per day. Deanna is attending school full-time; and we pray she stays well enough to stay in school Monday through Friday…she loves school!

Transplant is about celebrating the everyday accomplishments and not letting the small setbacks take away your smile!

Deanna while inpatient this last hospitalization with viral pneumonia, she was all smiles! I must say, since day one, she has smiled so big! Her smile is what motivates us everyday. I can’t wait till we enter the park at Disney and see her expression…I actually will cry (tissues will be ready for MOM)…seeing her happy is my biggest joy….love, Heidi

October 5, 2016

Deanna went back to school today. We are praying she stays well.

We have big news coming soon! Deanna can’t wait to share the news with you all. Love, Heidi & Family

September 27, 2016

Deanna had a rough time last week. 2 viruses and viral pneumonia. She was inpatient for 3 days to make sure she was covered to prevent anything bacteria. Deanna perked back up after 24 hours inpatient. She is home now and resting. She will return to school this Wednesday. She missed dance class this past Saturday, and was super sad about that. I know she’ll be excited to return to dance this weekend!

Thanks for your continued support.

Heidi

June 21, 2016

Deanna turns 3 years old on 7/24/16 🙂 We are starting to plan her birthday party. Icing Smiles is providing a free dream cake for the BIG 3 PARTY 🙂 We’re excited.

We will be collecting board games for HOLTZ Childrens’s Hospital in honor of Deanna. If you would like to contribute a board game, please email me at [email protected]

Deanna is doing well. She is having some problems with her ears; but thankfully, the tubes she has are doing their job!

Heidi

May 7, 2016

Read the latest about Deanna: www.floridatrend.com

March 24, 2016

Yesterday, we had the opportunity to meet our patient fundraising rep, Amy, from HelpHOPELive. I am thrilled to share this because Deanna was just extermely happy to meet Amy. Amy has assisted us with the coordination of all fundraisers since day one! I will post a pic later today!

March 1, 2016

Deanna celebrated 2 years post liver transplant this past Saturday. Want to thank you all for your support and love. Deanna is the sunshine in our lives…everyday I look at her and think, wow, little girl, you are a miracle. And, to think, her Organ Donor made this possible…we think about him and his family often…one day, we hope to meet them,.

February 18, 2016

This past weekend, we held a bake sale in honor of Deanna! It was an amazing day! So many came out to support Deanna and our family. We are truly grateful for the support from everyone! Check out the photos from the day.

We also collected toys which will be deliverd to Holtz Children’s on Deanna’s 2nd transplant anniversary. If you would like to support this cause, you can mail an unwrapped toy to:

634 S.W 11 Street Hallandale Beach FL 33009.

Thanks & MUCH LOVE!

Heidi

February 18, 2016

This upcoming Saturday, we will be hosting a bake sale in honor of Deanna! Please join us this Saturday, from 10 AM to 3 PM – we will have lots of yummy pieces! Check out Deanna’s 2 year post transplant photos in her photo album!

Also, we will have a collection box of toys – these toys will be delivered to Holtz Children’s on Deanna’s 2nd year transplant anniversary, 2/27/16 — the kids on the transplant floor deserve the world <3

February 4, 2016

We are having trouble with eczema – it is basically everywhere on her body 🙁 I am hoping to find the right doctor for this soon….pray for Deanna.

February 1, 2016

Happy Friday Everyone! Deanna was admitted last Sunday, and on Monday a scope was done. Deanna has tested EBV and she has run fevers which are not really pointed towards anything specific; so, her team wanted to make sure all looked okay everywhere. So far, all biopsies look clear 🙂 We are pleased to see our daughter grow up with so much life. She will celebrate 2 years post-transplant next month on 2-27-16. As her Mother, I cannot tell you enough how much I love her, how grateful I am that her person signed up to be an organ donor at one point in their life…we are forever thankful and will pay it forward as long as we can.

Love,

Heidi

December 22, 2015

Happy Holidays to Everyone! We are getting pretty excited about Christmas, almost here! Deanna is doing well. I haven’t updated in a while…uneventful is good 🙂

Deanna did have ear tubes put in this week. She is recovering well and hearing now 🙂 Her labs are looking good too. She will be scoped in January, due to EBV.

We wish you all a beautiful holiday week and a happy new year!

Love, Heidi & Fam

July 27, 2015

Deanna celebrated her 2nd birthday this past Friday. We are truly thankful to see our sweet girl celebrate milestones. Our heart is continously with Deanna’s Donor and their family. Deanna wants to thank you all for being extremely supportive since day one. We are beyond blessed to have you all on our side through her journey.

Love,

Heidi

May 31, 2015

Deanna was admitted last Sunday for abnormal breathing. Prior to that, she underwent an endoscopy due to symptoms of coughing, gagging, etc. Since then, she has undergone CT scans, inserted PICC line; for Deanna has tested positive for EBV. In addition, Deanna is scheduled for surgery this Wednesday at 6 AM for a tonsil and adenoid removal. Deanna’s CT scans show no abnormalities. Also, Deanna has to be intubated every time she has a procedure; for Deanna has moderate sleep apnea. We are praying that once her tonsils and adenoids are removed, her snoring and breathing pauses while sleeping will disappear.

Thank you for your positive thoughts, prayers, and support.

Heidi

March 4, 2015

We want to say thank you all for you support over the last year – Deanna celebrated her 1st gift of life anniversary last week, 2/27/15. This past Sunday, our immediate friends and family joined together and enjoyed a fun-filled day at a local park…what a great day! We are truly blessed to have so many in our lives, near and far. Thank you all so much.

Yesterday, Deanna began coughing a bit, so I took her to see the pediatrician. D has a bad ear infection…she had not pulled on her ear once! She is so strong—doesn’t even show pain, somewhat scary, yet, she has been through so much. You all have been our backbone to say the least. Our support system has made us happy; you all keep us balanced. Deanna is truly blessed…we look forward to celebrating more and more milestones with each of you <3 Love, Heidi, Eric, Christian, Matthew, & Deanna 🙂

January 28, 2015

This past Thursday evening, Deanna ran a high fever of 102.5. She was admitted early Friday AM and her transplant team began evaluating her for every possibility. Thankfully, we have the best team on earth! Deanna was poked, scanned, poked again…but, her doctors wanted to truly figure out what the real culprit was of the “fever”.

Deanna’s gift of life is a precious gift, a fever, a cold, any sort virus can truly impact her new liver. We are fortunate to have an amazing medical team on our side. We were inpatient for 3.5 days…we are back home, and she is happy to be with her brothers, dolls and most importantly, in her own crib.

January 3, 2015

It has been a while since we last updated. Deanna was doing labs weekly for quite a while due to her CMV tests showing positive. Recently, her CMV showed negative; she now goes for labs bi-weekly.

Deanna is having trouble with her nasal passage – sounds nasal-like at times, snores often while sleeping; ENT saw her about 1 week ago…possibly Deanna has enlarged adenoids. If the adenoids are too big, surgery may be necessary.

Overall, our princess is ready for Christmas. We are truly blessed to be home this year—thanks to everyone who has supported us from the beginning, our baby girl is alive today….we thank you so much for your continued love.

Love, Heidi & Family

August 5, 2014

Deanna visited her transplant team last week. She has tested positive for CMV, which is a virus; it can become a major problem for a baby like Deanna, so her team is watching her closely. She will remain on several medications long-term. Deanna will be visiting labs on a bi-weekly basis. Thank you for your blessings and positive vibes.

August 5, 2014

Deanna celebrated her 1st birthday at home with her family on 7/24/14. Deanna loved her smash cake and cupcake. She also had a great time opening her birthday gifts (I think we enjoyed this part too). May God continue to watch over Deanna…thank you for your continued support.

July 10, 2014

Miss Deanna turns 1 year old on July 24th!! We are very blessed to be home and this upcoming occasion will most certainly bring a great deal of happiness to our family. We are beyond thankful for the amazing support received from everyone <3. Deanna now has labs done weekly. She is crawling and standing with support. Deanna loves bath time and watching Baby First TV. We just celebrated her first 4th of July---she loved the firework show outside of our home. Also, we just celebrated her Daddy's birthday...he truly meant what he said when we asked him "what do you want for your birthday?" He replied "I already have it...my baby girl is smiling and home." Deanna is on several medications. We continue to take her to clinic once every 3 weeks. Overall, Deanna is a warrior and continues to show us the importance behind staying strong and never giving up!

May 10, 2014

It has been a while since we last updated our page here.

Since discharge after transplant, Deanna went home, and has since returned back to the hospital ONCE. She had her central line removed as well as a blood transfusion.

Deanna continues to have weekly labs done; her liver numbers were on the rise last week; however, they came down, so her transplant team decided not to admit her. Overall, Deanna is doing good.

She returns Monday for weekly labs, then has repeats if needed. Her clinic appointments are every 3 weeks now. Additionally, Deanna is on roughly 10 medications.

She has several fundraisers going on at this time; and we are hoping to see more organized in the near future—please follow Deanna at Deanna’s Journey on Facebook.

March 15, 2014

Deanna was moved to the regular floor this morning at 4 AM. We are thrilled about her progress. Thank you for your continued support.

March 7, 2014

Deanna received her gift of life at 1 AM on 2/27. Deanna is presently in the PICU at Jackson. Our family is beyond thankful for everyone’s support and kindness throughout this journey.

February 12, 2014

Deanna returned to Jackson Memorial in Miami after 2 days of being home…looks like Deanna will remain at the hospital until transplant.

January 27, 2014

See the latest news story on Deanna
www.wsvn.com

January 25, 2014

Happy 6 month birthday, Deanna!!!

January 25, 2014

Deanna will be coming home tmrw!!! We’ll be waiting patiently for that special call that her gift of life has arrived. May we pray that Deanna stays strong as ever while at home as she awaits her organ…as her Mom, I am just so thankful for the support given to us during this time in our lives…it is something that cannot be put into words…yet, 2 strong words, thank you. *tears*