Anna Dingess's Fight

we are home

2011-02-28T12:33:00.002-05:00

we are home we will be followed closely by Anna's neurosurgeon, neuro opth and regular opthamolagist. If she shows any symptoms we will have another surgery and put the shunt back in. We are just giving her body a rest from foreign objects

Update:

2011-02-28T12:32:00.000-05:00

Sorry its taking so long. The blog logging me out and I finally was able to get it. In January we had to have Anna Marie's shunt externalized for a 8 days to see if we could get an infection to go away. WE put it back in and came home she was home for several weeks then started back to school on Feb 7th. Then I recieved a phone call on Feb 22nd from the school that Anna's back was leaking fluid. Once we arrived she had gone thru a couple of 4x4's. WE took her straight to the ER and waited for 1:45min then was taking to a room once we were in a room they took her straight to the OR for emergency surgery. The found her elbow connector in her back eroded took it out replaced it fixed a spot on her belly then stapled her back up. Then we had another spot show up on her belly we decided on thursday we would probably have to go back in on Friday. So on friday we decide to take everything out and let her body rest.

2010-12-18T11:08:00.000-05:00

Please keep Praying as we are seeking a neurosurgeon. The Dr in Atlanta said he wouldn't take her because Anna Marie was to high risk but did her surgery so we are praying that maybe he would have a change of heart and that Anna and I would be okay with him... Anna isn't really sure about him because he told her she was to high risk and in her world that doesn't give her very much confidence.

THANK YOU

2010-12-18T10:59:00.000-05:00

WE HAVE 2 HUGE THANK YOU'S... 1ST ONE IS TO DENVER LEADS GROUP FOR THERE FUNDRAISER AND SUPPORT, YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH THAT MEANT TO US. THANKS AGAIN

2ND ONE IS TOO KIDS WISH NETWORK -- ANNA MARIE WAS GRANTED A WISH TO GO TO FLORIDA FOR A 5 DAYS. WE WENT TO SEA WORLD, UNIVERSAL, DISNEY FOR 3 DAYS.. AND THE LAST WAS DADDY CAME HOME FOR IT

THANK YOU ALL EVERYONE FOR YOU CONTINUED SUPPORT FOR ANNA MARIE AND THIS HORRIBLE CHRONIC ILLNESS IH/PTC. WE LOVE YOU ALL THE DINGESS'S

Update!!

2010-12-18T10:55:00.000-05:00

Anna Marie's had another surgery Dec 2, because she had fluid coming out of her scar and had made a bubble. So they went in and cut out the pseudo cyst that was in between her H2 valve and the skin. Then they opened her shunt up and let it flow put it back together replaced a connector that had broken cleaned out her belly and back to recovery she went. Anna Marie had a great surprise her grandpe from CO flew in to be with her and stayed at the hospital with her.. So we are on the way to recovery and Praying she can go a little further in between surgery's.

2010-10-21T07:47:00.000-04:00

For anyone who is reading Anna Marie's blog for the first time. Psuedo tumor cerebri and Intercrainal Hypertension it the same thing. Just with several different names. Normally in children they call it psuedo tumor and adults intercrainal hyptersion. You can also donate here by clicking on the donate button and following the steps. Also a big huge thank you to Colorado leads group for doing a fundraiser that is going on right now..

Again

2010-10-21T07:23:00.000-04:00

Well after surgery in Sept. in my opinion Anna never got back to her full self. About 2ish weeks ago her valve in her stomach popped out. Well we went to her ped's and she didnt really like and we had an appt with the surgeon who did her surgery in september he had no clue. But decided to push on it pretty hard well that was last wednesday. After that day she progressivly got worse by monday her face was swollen and she wasnt able to go to school. Tuesday she went to school for 2hrs and came home b/c she couldn't handle the pain. So off to Ashley's office we went we both agreed it was broken but was trying to avoid the er like the plague but Wednesday we got up and Anna was worse, so off to the er we went. Xrays, ct scan later it was very clear her shunt is broken and the valve is not connected. They admitted Anna into Egleston for surgery today. Please pray specifically for anna she is really not sure about Dr "big guy" Kosnik isn't doing her surgery so she's extremmely scared. Love you all joy

Yuck :(

2010-10-21T07:12:00.000-04:00

I just realized in my head I updated the blog but not in reality. So in Septemeber Anna had severe abdominal pain went to the er they sent us home 2 days later we were back ended up in emergency surgery they found psuedo cyst and a fluid pocket and her shunt twisted. Fixed the problem and she was back to Anna almost.

Sorry its taken so long to update they blocked us out of the blog for a while

2010-09-03T15:45:00.000-04:00

Good afternoon, I will take you on our journey since January. We went thru the spring with some nasty migranes and mommy was trying to finish the house since daddy was deployed. Anna started having memory loss as the headaches got worse. We went to Ohio in May and had another surgery while they were in her they found a cyst that had 200cc of fluid. We went home with orders we had to come back in 3 wks. So the first of June we headed back up to Ohio. We started seeing dr's early tuesday morning at the time did an xray and found another cyst in her belly. They referred us to a GI dr on wednesday morning and he said she was fine from his point of view to go back to Dr Kosnik on thursday we went back to see the dr to find out he wanted a ct so downstairs we went to get this down 2 hrs later we completed the ct and went back upstairs. Once we arrived back into his office he sent us straight to the General surgeons. We waited for another 2hrs to see this dr as they worked us in and we got to the back and saw Dr Smith Im not sure why your here. I told him it was becuase she had a cyst in her belly he was confused and said I don't see anything go back to Kosnik's office. Well this was after 5pm and he was waiting for us. He said Joy you have to see this so on one screen was the xray with the cyst and the next one the ct without it. Praise Jesus it was gone in 2 days... Well then we came home and had a pretty good summer with just a few headaches. Then on tuesday August 31,10 anna started throwing up with a nasty headache so on wednesday we went to see Dr Ashley (the best ped's dr ever) and she said I know its bad when shes throws up. We called Dr Kosnik and he said if anna woke on thursday with a h/a we would order an LP. Well I woke up and rolled over and felt anna's head and it was hard as a rock so off to the er we went. Today Anna's back's hurts and is lying flat. I will update over the weekend to let you know what going on.. Thanks again for all your prayers and support.

2010-01-22T16:52:00.000-05:00

Sorry I didn't do this earlier. Anna's surgery went well, when she came out of surgery her hear rate was being funny and would go down then up then down and up. But she is doing GREAT were up walking around doing makeover on our friend avalon. Bugging the nurses which bye the way she does best! The best news yet we get to come home tomorrow!! YEA PRAISE THE LORD!! I am goping to be wore out next week but that will be okay. Thank you for all the PRayers... Anna said to tell yall to please PRay for her friend Avalon b/c she has to have surgery on monday. Please go and read her story. www.caringbridge.org/visit/avalonhavan Love you all Anna and Joy

2010-01-21T15:42:00.000-05:00

Went and saw Dr Kosnik and the bad news of the day is we have surgery @ 7:30am. Prayerfully we will be home on saturday evening. Thanks for all your prayers Joy

2010-01-20T23:29:00.001-05:00

Well today we went to see the ENT to see if Anna's headaches were from the mastoiditis she had a few weeks back. Well her mastoids look great and the pain isn't coming from there. So we called Dr Big Guy back and told him our good but crappy news and he said come in first thing to see me. While we were at the ENT I asked him to look in Austin's ear b/c it had been bleeding and we find out he has a ear infection and needs new tubes so I guess when we get home I will be going to take little man to get new tubes. I will post tomorrow and let you know what the Big Guy says. Anna Marie doesn't feel good at all and needs your prayers we have almost ended up in the er twice since being here b/c her pain is out of this world.
Love to all the Dingess Crew

PS THE GREATEST NEWS OF ALL WE FINALY RECIEVED HER NEW BIRTH CERTIFICATE
ANNA MARIE DINGESS :)

update

2010-01-19T21:28:00.000-05:00

Well we 3 dr appts today and only saw 2. The first one was Dr Hardin (endocrinologist) anna is doing great with her growth. She grew 13 cm over the last year. They are sending her to a rhumatologist (sp) and are going to keep her on the growth hormone and have a check up in 6mths. Now on to Dr Kosnik (neurosurgeon) said that he wants Anna to go see a ENT in the morning and if her headaches are not fronm the mostoiditis then we will go back on thursday morning and repunt. Then we are waiting to see when we will go see the rhumatologist and should find out tomorrow. Please Pray that we other get a paycheck very soon. We have $400. to last us the week and to get us home. God has always provided and thats why we our asking for PRAYERS. Love you all Dingess Crew

2010-01-07T11:16:00.000-05:00

As of today the Jan. 7 Anna is doing better we had a dr's visit on Monday and they want us to go see a ENT so as soon as our insurance gets fixed we will be going to see the ENT. We are going to homeschool Anna for the month of January to see if we can get her immune system better she can go back in Febuary. We go to Ohio on January 18-21st for check ups but so far Anna's shunt is doing great PRAISE THE LORD! in a couple of day's this shunt will be 3mths old Praying it will work for along time..Thanks again for all the Prayers we sure appreciate them and can feel them.

2010-01-07T11:09:00.000-05:00

On wednesday the 30th they checked her CBC and it had dropped back down to normal so they released us to come home. This meant for the next 14days Anna couldn't leave the house unless she has to go tthe dr. The med's have made her not feel to great but were home! I was giving her med's every 8hrs which meant I had to get up in the night to give med's check her temp and so on but thats okay b/c she is doing better and were not at the hospital.

2009-12-29T11:31:00.000-05:00

Well its now Christmas eve I had ran out to do a few erans and Mark (the best dad in the world) had given all the kiddos bath and they were waiting on me to get home to get dressed. Anna had put on her sweats and said Im staying here Im not feeling well. I talked her into going to Christmas Eve service with some pain med's. Then we returned home she yet once again had a fever of a 101' we gave her tylenol and a bath and broke it for a little bit. WE made it thru Christmas with lots of Prayer and tylenol. Then saturday night she went to bed again not feeling great and woke up @ 430 and said mom I have a h/a im nasueated and my eyes are burning. Well thats all I needed to hear and off to CHOA again. Except this time I was leaving till we got answers. And after several test and scans they diagnosed her with Mastoiditis. And attmitted into Scottish Rite, now the fun begins they inform me we will be here 14-21 days. Wow I thought thats a long time so I started talking to all the doctors on anna's team and told them she would do better at home so they are looking into the possibilities of letting us come home and me take care of her 24/7 the next 3 wks. Sorry back to monday I had asked for them to do a LP - Lumbar Puncture - under floroscopy to make sure the infection had not gotten into her CSF and caused menigitis. PRaise the Lord it hadn't. So the rest of the day anna just hung out on her back b/c after an LP you have to lay flat. Mrs Ann Sims from church came and sat with Anna so I could run home and deal with a house issue, love on my babies, take a shower and get a kiss from the hubby. Then back up here I came. WE meet with most of the dr's on Anna's team they have put together up here. Most of her culturals are back and are negative YEA!! They have diagnosed her with Chronis Sinutis (sp) and mastoiditis. Its wednesday now and annas had a couple of headaches that are pretty bad but with the help of tylenol 3 w/codine and Toredol coctailed together we having a smiling girl now.

2009-12-29T11:11:00.001-05:00

I am so sorry I haven't been more diligent and keeping this updated. WE haven't had a great month. It started out on Dec. 8th Anna woke up and couldn't move her neck well her neurosurgeon and pediatrician both had a cow and we were brought to CHOA by ambulance. After several hours they said it was a neck spasm. Then the next day we went to see Dr Ashley and she said I think its a neck spasm. Well we went home and doctored this "neck spasm" which to this day I don't think was a neck spasm. And on the 12th we went back to see Ashely to get Anna's stitches out which was an ordeal. Then we came home and that night really late anna spiked a fever of a 102' we doctored till the next afternoon and it came back so we took her to the urgent care center which then they said she has an ear infection. Sent us home on antibioitics. Then on the 18th we ended back ath CHOA b/c her fever had spiked yet once again on med's. This time they diagnised her with a really bad sinus infection and sent us back home on the smae med's. Well anna really never got feeling great and well I start a new blog now.

2009-11-15T21:58:00.000-05:00

Anna Marie had a pretty good day yesterday. Her MiMi flew in to be with her so I could go to the hotel and sleep. She had a blast with her and I slept for 12hrs. When I returned this morning she was feelling better and they started her discharge papers. I took Mary Anne back to the airport and when I returned they were ready to take off her bandages and her stitches that were in her stomache. This was a very painful ordeal and it caused Anna to cry for along time. Then to top it all of she went and looked in the mirror and said mommy im ugly now and cried more. Her pain med's had kicked in and started working so we talked her into taking a nap and that worked very well she slept for 2hrs woke up and was feeling much better. We were discharged and came to the hotel and it was time for pain med's again so we took those and watch some tv. Anna fell asleep and sleep for 21/2 hrs and when we woke up I ordered in b/c she didn't want to leave. Anna took pain meds again at 9 she went 6hrs w.o pain meds YEA!!!
We go see Dr Kosnik on tuesday morning and we will then find out if we get to come home.. Thanks again for all the prayers we still need them.. love to all Joy

2009-11-14T10:18:00.000-05:00

Is so very thankful for Prayer and friends that you can call in the middle of the night to start praying. Anna's heart rate dropped around midnight and at 1:00 I sent a text out to start Praying. We did everything to get it up and we couldn't get it up we walked, talk to her moved her around. Nothing worked so we started listening to casting crowns quoting scripture and had family and friends praying Finally around 3:ish her heart rate went up and hasn't dropped below 70 anymore. We are now going to try to get her to eat and keep it down then we will go from there. Love to All, joy Ps if you don't believe in the Power of Prayer you need a real come to Jesus meeting :)

2009-11-13T22:15:00.000-05:00

Update: Sorry it took so long had some problems with the blog letting me log in.. Dr Kosnik came out around 3:15 and said surgery had gone well and they he thought she was going to be okay. She finally came to her room around 4:20 and we have been fighting to get on top of her pain. As of right now nothing is working and she is throwing up in so much pain. We are giving her Zofran and Lortab and so it looks like we are going to have to give her a cocktail of med's to see if that will help @ 1:30am. She is also having a hard time getting her color back and is very swollen all over her body. I will update again tomorrow Love to All, Joy

2009-11-13T13:19:00.000-05:00

We came back to Ohio yesterday for a bilateral subtemporal decompression. This is where they go and cut her skull out to make room for the CSF fluid. Please keep still praying that she will keep her strength and God will be glorified thru all this. We arrived at the hospital around 9:15 because of traffic and Anna was very nervous and was hyper up until they took her back then she was very upset. The took her back around 12. so we will update post surgery once we get into ICU and she gets seddled. Thanks for all the Prayers.

2009-11-10T18:31:00.001-05:00

all your Prayer Warriors: Anna Marie cried on the way home from school today and has expressed that she is very scared b/c of the upcoming surgery. Pray for Peace that passes all understanding, God's love to shine thru her now more than ever. I know that this isn't going to be her last surgery but I do know that God has called us to ask and we shall recieve. Thank you, Joy

2009-11-02T12:05:00.000-05:00

Update: We have been home for 11 days and its been pretty rocky. We have been going day by day. Some have been better than others. However Anna got stung on her hand on Thursday and didn't have a reaction Praise the Lord! We go back to Ohio on Nov 12. to have surgery Nov 13. We will be doing a double sub temporal decompression. (yes we are doing it again). Please be in Prayer for Anna has we she is getting over having all these surgery's. And for the finicially aspect as is gets very exspensive going back and forth however we know this is where God wants us to get anna's treatment and has allowed us thus for to be okay. Thank you for your continued support thru all this. We love you all, Mark,Joy, Anna Marie, Alexandria, Austin Mark. :) John 10:10

2009-10-22T12:56:00.001-04:00

So we went and saw Dr Big Guy this morning Anna wasn't feeling to hot. He said her pressure is trying to balance out and thats what I kind of figured. So we are coming home for couple of weeks and will return Nov. 12 and have double subtemporal decompression on Nov 13 @ 8am. This will allow anna's body to heal and her shunt to work properly. Thanks again Joy.

Ps. We are getting a dog:) His name is Champ and is a goldendoodle. We are very excited about this adventure in our life.

2009-10-21T18:32:00.000-04:00

Well they discharged anna to the ronald mcdonald house. We go to clinic @ 10:30 am to find out our next step are we doing the brain surgery now or later. Anna has only eaten maybe 10bites of food today so that was another reason he wanted her discharged to see if leaving would encourage her to eat and help her diziness. So everything is up in the air and Im not sure about anything right this moment. Please continue to pray for anna's body to heal and for Dr Big Guy. After clinic tomorrow I will update the blog and let everyone know the next step. Thanks again for the support. Joy

2009-10-20T18:25:00.000-04:00

Well Dr Big Guy (kosnik) just came in. Anna has been getting very dissy and fell about hr ago. He said this is because of all the pressure she had on her bacl and this is why we are doing things slow. He said you might get discharged tomorrow but I don't think you are going home any time soon. But we will talk again tomorrow. Please continue to Pray.

2009-10-20T17:30:00.002-04:00

Well we had a rough night and daddy sleep thru most of it..He snores really loud!!! Anyway we haved an okay we were up and walking however we haven't done some of the most important things like eat more than 3 bites all day and get pain under control. We are going to try again at dinner time to actually eat and get this pain under control and start drinking so we can get discharged tomorrow. And get to go home on thursday.. We are waiting on the phone call to tell us what day we are doing the brain surgery. I will update again tomorrow. Joy

2009-10-19T22:02:00.002-04:00

Update: Sorry I haven't done this earleir its just been a long day. Well Mark made it in time to see Anna before she went back to surgery this morning. When she went we thought it was going to be a long time however Dr Kosnik came out 2hrs into and said were done for today we brought in General Surgeons to blow up her stomach and found her catheter kinked adn the valve not working. So they fixed the cathiter and replaced her valve. Then to the brain we didn't do it because we wanted her shubnt to start flowing correctly and she would drain to much csf and have a low pressure headache. So we will probably be discharged on wednesday to the otel then go home on thursday. Sad news is we have to come back in 3 weeks to do the brain surgery. Thanks again for all the encourging letters and notes they have ment the world to Anna.

2009-10-18T20:48:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to update. Saturday we just bummed around and Anna had a good day with some exeptions. Today hasn't been so great her pressure is back up and she is very nervous about the surgery. She woke up this morning and said lets go home and not do the surgery but as the day has gone on she's getting okay with the idea. Please continue to pray and I will update this as soon as she comes out of surgery and we have a moment. Thanks again for all your prayers and support. If you would like to give anna marie a word of encouragement you can email her @ annadingess@yahoo.com or leave them on here.

2009-10-16T17:19:00.002-04:00

Sorry about the delay in updating however I wanted results before I let everyone know. Anna had said the that her head had been hurting when we went to the Neurosurgeons office they did a ct scan and xrays and said that she was backed up and that was the cause of the headaches. On thursday we went back into Dr Kosnik's office and he admitted anna to have a Lumbar Puncture (LP) and a 3D ct scan. We were able to do the 3D ct scan on thursday and had to move the LP to Friday because she had a allergic reaction to the sleepy medicine. On friday they did the LP and her opening pressure was 30. So finally they just came in and said surgery on monday @ 1:30, they will be redoing her right sub temporal decompresion, replacing her LP shunt and placing a valve in her brain.

I had no idea when we came up it was going to be this intense so please continue to Pray for Anna Marie, the doctors and me..Mark is going to be coming up hopefully on Sunday then going home monday night after her surgery.
Also please keep Alexandria and Austin Mark in your prayers as they don't understand why mommy is gone again. Also childcare to keep them while Im away.

Thanks again for all your support,

Joy Dingess

2009-10-13T21:39:00.002-04:00

We went and saw Dr Katz (neuro-opthamalogy) her vision was good and he wanted to come back and see him after our apptointments today. So today our first appt. was with Dr Kosnik (neurosurgeon) and after several xray and a cat-scan we have decided that Anna needs to go see a GI dr. Then we went to see Dr Hardin (endocrinology) and recieved amazing news!! Anna has grown 4.2 inches since January 20,09. So we are continueing on the same dosage and Praying that on thrusday Dr Kosnik and the GI dr will have some answers. Thanks agian for all your prayers and support.

2009-07-27T13:17:00.002-04:00

Okay we are going to try this again. I updated the blog the other day and when I hit submit O lost Internet. Sorry about the long delay. Anyway we came home Wednesday after seeing Dr's all day Tuesday. first appt was with the Endocrinologist they are very well pleased on how much she has grown and they upped her growth hormones now on to the neurosurgeon he was very well pleased how well she was bouncing back and that it was an emergency to air lift her..He won't say why it was such an emergency but I am thankful that he takes Anna Marie illness so seriously. Last Dr was the nueroopthamaligist and her eyes looked good.

2009-07-18T18:04:00.002-04:00

Good Afternoon,
Anna was discharged this afternoon she has a ear infection not sure how we got this but she is doing good. Her spirits are getting better but she said yesterday that she was done being in hospitals and unfortanitly with psuedotumor cerebri there isn't a cure or a fix it solution. The shunt is only to help the csf drain however because it is csf it has protiens. Prayer Request: That Anna will hold up emotionally and physically and that this shunt will last a little longer.

2009-07-16T16:48:00.002-04:00

Anna's surgery went well the shunt was broken. Anna is right every time..She had a hard time coming out of surgery and had to have extra toredol to get stable. We are now just letting her rest. If you want to send anna a card go to nationwidechildrens.org Rm 3019 its still under Smith. We should have had her name change but I didn't bring her adoption papers sorry didn't know we were going to be flown from the hospital yesterday.

2009-07-16T11:35:00.002-04:00

Dr Kosnik's sent in his Nurse Practioner to give us the update. Anna will be having surgery this afternoon to replace her shunt. Prayer request: Dr Kosnik and the medical team, Anna Marie to hold her chin up, mommy to be strong, and the medical bills that I am getting a little over whelmed with.

Thanks Again for all you all do for our family,

Joy, Anna and the rest of the Dingess Crew

Update

2009-07-16T09:01:00.002-04:00

Last week Anna Marie had started complaining of headaches and stomache pain so we were just medicating her and seeing if it would pass. On Monday her attitude starting showing that her shunt was malfunctioning on Tuesday she said my shunt is broke on more that one ocassion. Wednesday morning @ 5am she woke me up saying mom I threw up and my headache is a 10/10 she continued to throw up until 745ish were she was able to finally keep Zofran down at 8 she passed out. 9 came and she came too and said mommy I wasn't sleeping but were was I so we were off to Scottish Rite after xray's they said her shunt had come apart in one and the other xray it wasn't so clear. We contacted her neurosurgeon in Ohio and gave him the report of what was going on after speaking to him it was decided that Anna Marie needed to be flown by a transport team to Ohio. So we waited for the medic plane to arrive in atlanta and were taken by ambulance to the airplane then another ambulance waited for us at the airport to take us to Nationwide Childrens. We are now waiting for the dr to come in and give us the plan. Anna isn't allowed to eat so I think they are going to do surgery today. Please continue to Pray for the following: Anna Marie's strength, the little people to be okay while Im away, and Mark while he is away at school.

2009-06-21T00:02:00.002-04:00

Update..Anna Marie is doing great!! Praise the Lord!! She had a check up last week and went very well.. We are doing a two different fundraiser..Next Sunday June 28, 09 Wow Cafe & Wingery is donating 20% of all sales to Anna Marie. To help cover more of her rising medical bills. The other fundraiser is We are asking that everyone donate just a $1.00 and then ask 10 of your friends to donate a $1.00. If this is something that you would be willing to help out with, you can go to www.teamannamarie.org or www.annamariesfight.blogspot.com and donate via Paypal. $1.00 is a can of Coke but if you donate and ask 10 people to donate and they ask 10 to donate etc. it can really help out with the all her medical costs and related travel and accomodation expenses. Its just a dollar, thats just 4 quarters and we all know that we use that much for just a candy bar. Go without a candy bar for a day and know your helping a girls rising medical costs.

Thank you,

Team Anna Marie

www.teamannamarie.org

2009-04-30T18:54:00.002-04:00

Anna Marie has been discharged from the hospital. We went and had a great dinner and then a 2 hr nap. She is now up laughing and playing. We are coming home tomorrow and going to see her pediatrican on Tuesday for check ups. Thank you for your Prayers and support. Love to all Joy and Anna Marie :)

2009-04-29T20:10:00.002-04:00

Anna's surgery went well. The dr did say that her tubing keeps migrading to her back and there not sure why but hopefully this one won't. Please continur to Pray they gave her an antibotic that she is allergic to and now she is on oxygen. I will update tomorrow.

2009-04-28T17:30:00.001-04:00

Anna last name under the insurance is still Smith. Because of Henry County court system. Sorry for the confusion..

Update

2009-04-28T16:23:00.001-04:00

Just an update on Anna Marie. Last tuesday she woke up with a headache and said my shunt is broken, we went to the pediatrician and they gave her decadron to drain her fluids off of her head. On monday we drove up here and this morning went to see the neurosurgeon. At that time he decide to admit Anna Marie and we will have surgery around 2pm tomorrow. If you would like to make anna a card go to www.nationwidechildrens.org her room # A5614. Thank you for your conitinue support and prayers. Joy

2009-04-27T23:26:00.002-04:00

Anna has been having headaches since last week. Dr Kosnik put her on decadron thru her pediatrician to lower the fluid in her head. However that didn't work and now we are going to see Dr Kosnik in the morning to schedule surgery for Wed. to replace her shunt. Anna keeps saying my shunt is broke so please PRay for guidance tomorrow and Wed. WE love you all. The Dingess clan

2009-04-07T21:48:00.002-04:00

We are here in Ohio for check ups. Dr Kosnik (neurosurgeon) gave us great news, Anna's shunt is still working properly and the headaches she had last week where from the barometric pressure changes which then affects her. Then went to see
Dr Hardin (endocrinologist) and Anna grew I have to get the measurement in inches but in cm she is 117.2cm. So we up her growth hormone intake and go back in 3mths for another check up. Then last we went to Dr Katz (neuropthamology) Our quarterback!! and Anna has 20/25 vision and her optic nerves aren't swollen. This has been the best visit ever. After that we came back to the hotel then went and ate dinner then off to shopping where we were able to get size 7 clothes. We had so much fun shopping this was a great day..God is so good!!! Never forget to Praise him in the Storm and in the GOOD TIMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-02-21T10:02:00.002-05:00

Update: Sorry this is a couple of day's late. We went to Ohio this past week for post op check ups. Anna's nuerosurgeon gave us a great report her shunt is working like its suppose to. Praise the Lord!! We recieved all great new's! Its so exciting to give these kinds of updates. Only thing is that Anna's colon is working like its suppose to so we have started the vitamin route on seeing if we can get it back working before we have to go to a GI dr. Well we go back to Ohio in April for another check up.
Prayer request: That anna's shunt continues to work and she stay's headache free
And that her body continues to accept the growth hormones and that she will grow
And Anna to catch up with her classmates in her school work

Praise: Anna has had only 3 h/a since Dec 10!! God is so Good!!!!

Thank you all for your continued support and Prayers...

PS If anyone has any fundraiser ideas pls email Mark or I @ mark@teamannamarie.org or joy@teamannamarie.org

Update

2009-01-19T14:36:00.002-05:00

Good Afternoon,
Well its been a while since the an update. Anna Marie has had only one headache since Dec 8, 2008. This is when she had her last shunt put in. It has been probably the best month of our lives, she has started reading and doing very well at school. Her attitude is different and she actually smile. What a blessing she is. Yesterday
(1/18/08)was a new day for Anna Marie we started her on Human Growth Hormones (HGH). I am very excited and scared all at the same time. She will take a shot a day for 10yrs so she can grow. Now we won't see results over night it will probably take 6mths or more however HGH can cause Psuedotumor. So our Prayer request is that her fluid doesn't get worse and the headaches return. Her doctors are looking out for her she is on the smallest dosage of hormones so we can see how her body reacts to it. We will be going back to Ohio in Feb. for check ups from all of her doctors. Thank you all for your continued support in Prayer and financially we appreciate all of you.
IF you haven't checked out our new website for Team Anna Marie pls do so. www.teamannamarie.org

2008-12-24T11:59:00.002-05:00

The Dingess Family would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. Thank you for your support and Prayers over the last few months and for the years to come. Anna Marie hasn't had a HEADACHE for 16days to GOD be the Glory great things he has done..
Merry Christmas again and we will update soon..

Don't forget to go to https://www.teamannamarie.org Our new website for Team Anna Marie

2008-12-17T17:05:00.000-05:00

Just wanted everyone to know that Anna Marie has been Headache free for 9days:) Praise The Lord :)

2008-12-14T23:02:00.003-05:00

Hello all,

Just wanted to let you know that we have a new site for the athletic team (aka Team Anna Marie). Please visit our new site at teamannamarie.org. You can register and use our Forums

2008-12-14T15:21:00.003-05:00

Sorry, It has been a couple of days. Anna was released from the hospital Wednesday to the hotel. On Thursday we went to see Dr Kosnik and was told that we could go home!! So we went over to Dr Katz office and said good bye and headed home. We stopped over in Knoxville at the Page's house, and drove the rest of the way home Friday. We are so blessed to be home. Anna is doing great we are 6days without a headache..Praise the Lord :) God is so good! We find out this week if we can start Anna on growth hormone's!! I will update soon love to all..PS I will get Mark to put up some new pic's of Anna Marie :)

2008-12-08T21:26:00.002-05:00

Anna Marie just came out of surgery. Her valve in her stomach was broke, so they replaced it and put her cathiter back inside her and flowed very well. If all goes well they will disscarge Anna on wednesday to the hotel then we will go see Dr Kosnik on Thursday then come home!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for your Prayers and Support

2008-12-07T18:23:00.002-05:00

Sorry, I haven't updated. Well Friday was a bad day, from 11 -12 Anna drained 51cc of fluid which is way to much and had the opposite problem and she had a low pressure headache. Anna had a really bad afternoon and got sick b/c her pain was so bad. On Saturday Maryanne flew in and surprised Anna. That was awesome so I went to a hotel and sleep for 13hrs. It was the best sleep ever!!! Sunday was okay day on saturday anna's shunt started leaking from the incension site so we have been watching it carefully. Prayerfully they will move the surgery to Monday b.c of the leak. I will update tomorrow, thank you again for all your Prayers and Support :)

2008-12-03T18:26:00.002-05:00

Good Evening, Dr Kosnik wants to make sure that all of her infection is cleared up. So it looks like surgery next Wednesday. Then we will have to be in the hospital for 2 days then we will see about heading home. Pls continue to Pray for Anna Marie and healing for her infections and that she will start eating b/c Anna has lost 5lbs.

2008-12-01T16:53:00.002-05:00

Anna had a pretty good weekend. We are still waiting on results but everything right now looks good. Thank you for your continued Prayers and as soon as I get more info from the dr's i will post them. We love you all

2008-11-28T12:02:00.002-05:00

The Infectious Disease Dr's came in and said that Anna's white blood cell count had dropped in her CSF. Which is a good thing and the cultures haven't grown anything yet. Praise the Lord. They are going to continue to let the cultures grow b/c it takes 5days to get a clear answer on what it is or isn't. So we are going to wait patiently until Monday to get all the answer however we are already claiming that God is clearing up this infection so we can put the shunt back in and come home! Thank you for your continued Prayers and support... I may not update the blog this weekend due to Anna's daddy,brother and sister will be here. We love you all..

2008-11-26T17:39:00.002-05:00

Anna surgery was faster than expected. She has a infection in her stomach and in her CSF fluid. They externalized her shunt, to the outside of her stomach until we can get this infection all cleared up. Dr Kosnik asked Infectious Disease to get involved to find out what kind of infection this is. As it stands they are saying she has a form of meningitis's, we will know more on Friday what kind and what we have to do about them. They started her on 2 different antibiotics to start clearing up the meds. Once we have this infection cleared up we will then go back in and put her shunt back inside of her. Prayer concerns: Anna to stay strong & Care of Alexandria & Austin while Mark is working. And that the Dr's can figure out everything that's going on inside of Anna Marie. We love you all and are blessed for all of your Friendships. Have a Happy Thanksgiving :)

2008-11-26T12:02:00.001-05:00

Anna is now in surgery for another new LP shunt and for them to explore and watch the new shunt work. She will be in for a while. Pls keep praying

2008-11-25T18:21:00.002-05:00

Anna Marie is having another surgery tomorrow. We don't know what time yet and probably won't know till tomorrow. They are going to take everything out and replace it with new. Prayerfully this will work so we can come home next week.

2008-11-24T15:17:00.002-05:00

Well, its with sad news to tell you that we are back in the hospital. Anna Marie left the hospital yesterday morning to get to the hotel and eat and her head started hurting really bad we gave her a dose a lortab she then went to sleep slept all afternoon woke up and took another dose of med's. We went to get some dinner and she slept thru it we went back to the hotel and she took another dose of meds went back to sleep. Anna woke up around 10 and laid in the bed with my mom and talked for a little while then cuddled up to her and went back to sleep. Then Monday we woke up and I had to completely dress her to go to Dr Katz office Anna was very lethargic and just wanted me to hold her. Then she started throwing up and became very week we called Dr Kosnik and they told us to come in thru the ER. So we left Dr Katz office and came straight to the ER at that time Anna passed out and didn't respond to anything finally they awoke her we sent down for an CT and xray to find a kink in her shunt which means its not working we are giving her around of meds to see if we can get the kink out. If the round of med's don't work then we are going to do surgery again and replace the shunt. That's all for now I will write more as soon as I know the next plan

2008-11-22T12:28:00.002-05:00

Well, they have no idea why Anna Marie's stomach swelled. They are going to discharge us to a hotel for us to continue to watch her and see how she does. However we can't go far in case she worsens, so we are going to be at the hotel till Dec 4. We will continue to update as soon as we know anything. Thank you for your continued prayers and support.

2008-11-21T14:56:00.002-05:00

Please start praying as Anna's stomach is swelling. The surgeons just came in and have ordered a ultrasound of her belly. If there is a opening we are going back into surgery, so now we are just waiting to get the ultrasound to now what the next step is.

2008-11-20T11:33:00.002-05:00

Well, the long awaited news.. Anna Marie went into surgery at 8:05pm and was in till 10. The surgery went well and Anna did very well. They took out the old tubing and replaced it with new they also worked on her shunt, then they installed a valve that releases her pressure when she is laying down therefore it should help her headaches. Anna is up and has been walking. She is doing well and is gratefully not to have a headache. We will update later. Thank you the Dingess Clan

2008-11-19T20:57:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to let all of you know that Anna did not go back for surgery until 8:05pm. So I will update in the morning how the surgery went and how she is doing.

2008-11-18T22:40:00.002-05:00

Well the news everyone has been waiting for. First of its been a really long day we started seeing Dr's at 9am and finished at 7pm. Anna is having surgery tomorrow however instead of the VP shunt in her brain they are going to put a new one in her back because her ventricles aren't opened enough in her brain to put in the VP shunt. And if we did do the VP shunt there are several risks because of the ventricles not being opened. Her surgery is at 2pm. We don't know how long we will be in the hospital it will all depend on how she takes to this new shunt. Nor do we know when we will be coming home due to follow up visits with all the Dr's post op. Thank you for all your continued Prayers and support as we take this journey with Anna Marie. We will update post surgery tomorrow.

2008-11-17T22:45:00.001-05:00

Well we go see all the dr's tomorrow

2008-11-15T23:35:00.002-05:00

Well we are leaving for Ohio tomorrow. We are driving straight through so we should arrive around 9pm. We have doctors appt. on Tuesday. Anna has had a really tough week and has had some pretty bad behavior because of it. As of right now they are doing surgery on wed. med's aren't helping so we are going to put a shunt in her head. Thanks for all your prayers and I will update Tuesday night.

2008-11-11T21:46:00.002-05:00

Well, we are preparing to go back to Ohio on Sunday. We spoke with Dr Kosnik assistant this evening and they are going to put Anna Marie on the schedule for a VP shunt surgery on Wed. the 19th. We follow up with all the dr's on tuesday the 18th. We were suppose to start Anna on growth hormones this last week but due to her shunt not working the encrinologist has decided to hold off until Anna recieves the new shunt. Please continue to Pray for Anna Marie as I think the pain has started to wear on her more and more. I will update more later. Joy

2008-11-06T22:13:00.003-05:00

Good Evening, I just want to update everyone. It was Anna Marie's 7th birthday today..And Praise God we went all day headache free (as far we know she didn't tell us she did if she had one). So we are Praising God for that. As for the other days it hasn't been so good on Monday, Anna said it was a 30 it hurt so bad. We have a number system 0 no pain 10 worst pain. And she said no mom you don't understand its a 30. Tuesday she made it till 12 at school then we had to go get her b/c of her HA. Wednesday she hung in there till we went to Church and Mark had to come and get her. We are going back to Ohio on November 17th, to follow up with all of Anna's specialist and hoping for a VP shunt to be put in.

2008-11-02T20:25:00.002-05:00

Good Evening Everyone, We came home today, Yesterday after we were released from the hospital we went over to OSU and meet with Dr. Katz our quarterback as you will. The plan of action is for him to talk to Dr.Kosnik on Monday and find out what his reasoning was for not doing surgery this week. We are right now going back on the 17th and meeting will all of Anna's doctors. And more than likely doing surgery then so we will probably miss Thanksgiving here in GA. Thank you for your continued prayers for Anna Marie. 2 major prayer request, that Anna eats and her headaches are bearable until we return to Ohio.

2008-10-31T18:06:00.002-04:00

So, here is the new's we are going home tomorrow on alot of Topomax and we will return Nov 17. To see what the next step will be. Please continue to keep Praying for Anna Marie as her pain is still high. We will see you soon.
Dingess Crew

2008-10-30T16:14:00.000-04:00

They moved us rooms to 3013. We are waiting for Dr Kosnik to do rounds to know what the next step will be.

2008-10-30T08:29:00.002-04:00

Update: We took her of the steriods last night to see how well it worked. They have kept her on zantac because she is nasua pretty bad. We will see the doctor tonight and go from there to see if we have to due surgery.

2008-10-30T08:26:00.002-04:00

Good Morning, I just wanted to ask you all to Pray really hard for Anna Marie. This morning she woke up and said " Mommy I want to die and go to heaven because this pain is so bad and I won't have pain in heaven". Thank you for your continued prayers.

2008-10-29T11:03:00.003-04:00

So last week was a hard week on Anna Marie. Then on friday they tried her on Lasik (waterpill) and she had a allergic reaction to that. On Monday we went to the ped. and she felt her decompression sites and talked with Dr. Kosnik who then intern said we needed to be up there on tuesday to see him. We arrived at 2:15pm on tuesday and saw him at 4:00 when he saw Anna he sent us straight to the hospital to be admitted. At around 8 the started her on some really strong steriods, zantac and back on topomax. We are seeing if that will let Anna get some relief, and then we will do surgery on friday. He moved surgery from today to friday so we will see how Anna is progressing. Thank you for your continued prayers if I don't answer right away I didn't bring the laptop with me so I have to go downstairs and get on the computer.
Anna's room # 3019 and my cell 404-569-4742

Thanks again
Joy and Dingess crew

2008-10-22T10:23:00.002-04:00

Good Morning, I wanted to give everyone an update so you can Pray. Since Friday Anna has been having some really bad migraine's. To the point where yesterday she wanted to put her head thru a wall. Lisa is now on the way to school to get her now b/c she is hurting so bad. Also Please Pray for me as its getting harder to watch her be in pain and not being able to take it from her. Thank you for continued Prayers and friendship.

Update

2008-10-15T22:11:00.002-04:00

Anna's prognosis is great. There seems to be more good days than bad. She is still suffering from migraine headaches though. She has completely come off of Topomax. A little history behing the Topomax, she has been on it for about 2 years. So we are excited about that being done. It will be another month or two before we know if her surgery worked, but, we are going on on Nov 17th to see the doctors at Ohio State Medical Center in Columbus, OH. They will make the determination on whether another brain surgery is needed or not. Please be in prayer for us as we make that trip.

A big THANK YOU!!

2008-10-06T22:42:00.001-04:00

Anna's Car Show was a smashing success. There were a few minor glitches here and there. Primarily with us getting the judges all there to start the judging, but I take responsibility for that. I apologize to the car show participants. I was getting pulled 30 different directions all day. I didn't even eat until about 9 that night. A big thank you to everyone that came out and helped to support Anna Marie. A big thank you to Vendetta Pizza Cafe for hosting the show. A big thank you to all the volunteers, from parking, manning the booths, musicians, judges and anyone else who was involved THANK YOU, we couldn't have done it without you. William and Mae (Spelling?) Thank you so much. JT, Thank you so much. All the sponsors, Thank you so much. All the people that showed up, Thank you so much and finally to Anna Marie, you are the greatest daughter in the world and I am so proud of you.

The Car Show is upon us

2008-10-05T00:36:00.001-04:00

Remember, Anna Marie's Car Show is today at Vendetta Pizza Cafe at 1170 HWY 155 South McDonough. Directions are real simple, It is on the Griffin side of the interstate, past the Krystal and Bellamy Strickland Collission Center on the right. Please come out and show your support for Anna Marie. Even if you can't attend the car show, please consider eating there because we get a portion of the proceeds.

It will be a lot of fun with inflatable jumpers, silents auctions, raffles, food, live entertainment, cars (one is worth $750,000) and of course fun. You can pick up a shirt, while your there for only $15. We hope to see you there

Here is a picture of one of the shirts

2008-10-03T16:40:00.004-04:00

Here is one of the shirts that we have for sale. These are the same design as our athletic shirts that will be on our athletes competing in various marathons and triathalons. You can buy one of these shurts for just $15 and become part of the team. All the proceeds will be used for Anna Marie. Just email me at markdingess@gmail.com or call me 404-348-7681 to become a team member today.

Team Shirts are in!!

2008-10-03T12:14:00.001-04:00

Team Anna Marie shirts are done. They are looking really good and I will post pictures on the site later for you to see. If you want to wear the same design shirt that the team itself will be wearing for sporting events, then contact me today. They are available for $15 a shirt and all proceeds go to helping find Anna Marie a cure!! You can contact me at markdingess@gmail.com or call 404-348-7681.

Anna Marie's Car Show needs Volunteers this Sunday!!

2008-10-01T00:08:00.001-04:00

This Sunday, at Vendetta's Pizza 1170 Hwy 155 South McDonough, GA 30253, is Vendetta's Fundraising Car Show for Anna Marie!! They have been planning it for a long time and we hope it will be a success. We aplogize it is on a Sunday, as many of you know, if the church doors are open then we are there, but this is the only day they could use the entire parking lot. The other stores in the strip mall are open Monday through Saturday and so the only day they can do it is Sunday. We need a minimum staff of about 24 volunteers. We need 4 for registration, 4 more traffic, 2 for inflatable toys watching, 6 judges for the cars (you must be at least semi experienced with cars), 3 for security, and 4 to sell raffle tickets. Now this is the bare minimum, so the more, the merrier. The car show is open to the public from 12pm-6pm. We need all volunteers there by 10:30 am, due to the fact that cars will start coming in and registering starting at 11 am and we need to have a group meeting at about 10:35 am to get people on the same sheet of paper. Please email me back or call me at 404-348-7681 if you can help.

2008-09-29T17:42:00.002-04:00

Praise GOD we just received a call from the Dr. in Ohio. And Anna's blood work came back fine. So we will go back to Ohio in November to get checked then we will start growth hormones. Thank you for your PRAYERS. Love you all The Dingess Crew

2008-09-27T22:08:00.002-04:00

We are back from Ohio and are resting. We will post more info on Monday after we speak to the doctors. Thank you for your continued prayers.

Team Anna Marie

2008-09-25T00:08:00.003-04:00

OK, so most of you know by now the disease of Pseudotumor Cerebri and the battle we have been fighting to get her better. Now to add a little bit of fun to the mix. Anna Marie's dad, Mark Dingess is in the process of organizing Team Anna Marie. What is Team Anna Marie? It is a team designed and inspired in dedication to Team Hoyt. We are athletes dedicated to spreading awareness of Anna Marie and Pseudotumor Cerebri. Mark is currently training to run in the ING Marathon in Atlanta in March 2009. In 3 weeks, he is running the Peachtree City Classic 15K (9.3miles) and intends to run in the Atlanta Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon (13.1) miles. At these events, we will have volunteers passing out fliers, soliciting donations and making people aware of Pseudotumor Cerebri and Anna Marie. This is your chance to become a fan or participating athlete from the ground floor. Please support Team Anna Marie. Team Anna Marie merchandise may be added in the future. So if we can work out those logistics, make sure to order and become a fan. Click the link on the left side of our home page or you can click here and go to the site. Please let all your friends and family know about Team Anna Marie and participate as a fan.

Bad News

2008-09-23T19:34:00.002-04:00

Today, we got a call from Dr. Katz's office in Columbus, OH. Anna had some blood work done and the results were that she failed every test that they ran on her. Anna will need to go back on Thursday to Ohio to see Dr. Katz. Just when we thought we had her back for a while, back she goes. Please be in prayer for Anna and family as we have to make the venture back. Also, this being very unexpected, we hope you'll be led to contribute financially. Just click on the donate button and contribute any amount you feel led to. Mainly, just be in prayer.

2008-09-20T00:08:00.002-04:00

WE ARE HOME!!! Praise the Lord!! Dr Kosnik released us to come home, we will take Anna to Dr Ashley O'Shields on monday for a follow up to check on her stiches. Then we will go back to Ohio in 2-3mths. We will start growth hormones once we go back in a couple of months. If you would like to come see Anna on saturday she will be able from 3-6. If you have any questions please call 678-201-3989.

Thank you and we love you
Joy & Anna Marie

2008-09-17T21:21:00.003-04:00

We've had many emails wanting to help with the mattress,sheets and donations. Please take all your questions to Lisa. She is going to be our point of contact. Thank you for all your help. Lisa # 678 201 3989 or lsgr18@yahoo.com.

2008-09-17T21:21:00.002-04:00

Anna and Christian were released from the hospital and now we are resting at the hotel. We go to the neurosurgern's office at 2:30 then we will update and let yall know when we can come home. We will update tomorrow :}

2008-09-17T10:19:00.002-04:00

We moved out of PICU to the neuro floor last night around 7. Anna's blood pressure has been stabilized since about midnight. Praise The Lord.. Anna's only issue this morning seems to be her pain is really high. However she is doing good other than that. We might get to come home on friday :}. And if you did ecards and we get discharged they will mail them to our house... Well thank you for your contiued prayers and we will update tomorrow after the doctor's appt.

We love you all,
Joy Anna Marie

Please send a card to Christian

2008-09-17T01:24:00.001-04:00

Hey all,

Thank you for the response to the ecards that have been sent by you. To date, Anna has received 105 ecards wishing her get well sentiments. Thank you so much for all of your support. Anna absolutely loves getting cards and it has certainly brightened her spirits despite the pain.

Now I have another request. Christian Newell is a young man from Savannah, GA. We have made really good friends with them. He is also in Columbus, OH getting the same brain surgery as Anna. To date, he has only received 8 cards. What a ministry and friend we can be if you all could send him a card. I know that we have already asked a lot from you all, but please step up and do this for us as well and help brighten his day. Once again, you can access the website by clicking on here. It is free and takes 5 minutes of your day. Please do this for him and his family and brighten his day.

Name: Christian Newell
Ward: PICU (He is probably not in PICU, but they will send to his new room.)

Once again, thank you for your continued support and God Bless.

2008-09-16T18:05:00.002-04:00

They moved anna out of PICU and down to the neuro floor. Her blood pressure seems to fluctuates when her pain is increesed. We haven't seen the dr yet b/c he is still in surgery. We will update again later and if you did an ecard they will bring them to her new room and when we leave if there are any left they send them to your house?

2008-09-16T08:35:00.003-04:00

Please continue to pray as Anna blood pressure doesn't seem to want to be normal it keeps going up then dropping. We are staying in PICU and will be here till tomorrow or until her blood pressure levels out.

2008-09-15T21:48:00.002-04:00

Christian is doing great and his website is www.Caringbridge.org/visit/christiannewell
Thank you all for praying for him too.

2008-09-15T21:45:00.002-04:00

Thank you for your Prayers. Anna is doing much better, her blood pressure came up and now she is sleeping. Which she has done alot of today!! We will see how she is doing tomorrow to see if they let us go back to the hotel. We will update you all tomorrow and let you know how she is doing. Thank you for your continued prayers.

IMMEDIATE PRAYER PLEASE

2008-09-15T16:39:00.003-04:00

Anna had surgery again today and even though she is out of surgery, her blood pressure has just started falling at a rapid pace. They are currently trying to stabilize her, please be in prayer for her. Remember to please send her a e-card. It's free and takes 5 minutes, you can send her one by clicking here.

2008-09-15T01:27:00.001-04:00

Hello all, Anna and Christian had a good day! We went to one of the nurses parent's house for a dinner, it was nice to have a home cooked meal.

Please if anyone has Marriott points (we are staying at Towne Place Suites in Gahanna, Ohio)or wants to donate room cost for us let me know, we are charged only $49 a night but it adds up when you are being charged for (currently 13) nights. The hospital is no longer comping rooms for us.

Surgery is tomorrow, 12 for Anna and 2:30 for Christian, Please pray for them, the surgeons and the staf that will be caring for them.

Thank you and we love you all
Joy & Anna Marie

2008-09-14T22:00:00.003-04:00

We are having our second surgery tomorrow at 12. I think she is getting nervous because her behavior tonight is not the ordinary. Her right side is swollen and her eye is black and blue but other than that she is doing good. Please continue to Pray for Anna and Christian. Thank you for helping us out it is very expensive but God is providing and showing me not to worry because he is the one to worry not me.
Remeber you can make Anna ecards by going to Nationwidechildrens.org or you can send her an email at Annadingess@yahoo.com

2008-09-13T12:06:00.002-04:00

Just wanted everyone to know that Anna was released last night from the hospital and we are back to the hotel they have moved her surgery from Wednesday to Monday so all the cards yallsent she will recieve on Monday!! Thank you for all your prayers and support.

2008-09-12T13:20:00.000-04:00

Good afternoon, Anna has had a pretty good day. She is now finally sleeping PTL!! I just wanted to let you know that you can go to the hospital's website and make ecards and they print them and bring them up at 9:30am every morning. Here's the website to create a card for her, its a completely free service. We are still in the ICU but only b/c there a no rooms on the neuro floor and Dr Kosnik only allow's his patients to be in the ICU or on the neuro floor. WE will update again soon

A New Matress and White Sheets

2008-09-12T02:09:00.000-04:00

I know this is completely random from the updates we have been giving. The Doctor has informed us that we need a new matress and white sheets. The reasons being that having had brain surgery, old matresses literally have bed bugs and the dyes from colored sheets can be harmful. This is an expense that we also obviously need help with. Thank you to everyone that has already helped us both prayerfully and financially. If you know of a matress outlet that will donate a matress and white sheets, or can give us a really cheap deal, or if you feel led to help us financially with it, we would really be appreciative.

2008-09-11T18:51:00.000-04:00

Just wanted all to know they put Anna in ICU just so she can have one on one care. However she is doing great!! Praise The Lord!! God is so GOOD! Please continue to PRAY for Christian he is not handling the pain very well and had to keep him in recovery longer. We thank you for your continued prayers as today is the first surgery and next week they will do the other side.