| | Baby Tara's Heart Surgery
Monday, December 15, 2008
Look How She's Grown!
We've just received these beautiful pictures of Tara and her (slightly larger) twin sister Yara.
 Saturday,
February 23, 2008Safely Home in IraqFiled
by
After our big group of six patients with mothers and one
father left in the morning to go to Israel,
we had a couple hours to clean up everything for our new/old guests coming back
from Israel at
night. We all were very excited to see them again. Back in
January they waited at our house in Jordan for the “o.k.” for
traveling. Tara, Heleen, Diar and their mothers arrived at 9 pm, just in time for a little cake-and-tea-time. All the
mothers described how beautiful Haifa
and Tel Aviv are, and that I really have to go there. Heleen was shy,
as I remembered her being from our last meeting, but Diar was
smiling all the time. Hopefully he will
never lose this.
After we finished eating, we sat chatting for a while.
While the mothers spoke about their experiences with hospitals, surgeries and
nurses, little Tara responded to everything with a "ja" (German word for “yes”).
During this
time, Heleen found a little notebook with a
pencil on my desk and wrote me several notes. Hopefully it was nothing
important, because none of us were able to read it afterwards. Diar was
“reading”
a book his mom had lying next to her. He carefully turned every page
(the whole
book was without pictures), looked a few seconds at it, and then kept
going on.
Every child ignored the toys Manuela brought for them. But this time of
sitting
together and talking about the last weeks and months wasn’t as
long as we wanted it to be, because Heleen, her mum and Manuela had to
get up very early the next
morning to get their flight back home. Heleen's mother said that she
enjoyed the time
here in Jordan
and Israel very
much, and the little tears in her eye told that she wasn’t ready to leave
yet. We hope that she will be able to return to Israel
(maybe in the summer?!) to have a surgery for her ears. The specialist in Haifa
said that he would be ready anytime to help her.
The other morning, Diar, Tara and their mothers left our
house. During the time that Tara and her mother were
here for surgery, her husband worked two jobs to have enough money for their
flight back home. He hopes to be able to quit one of them when his family is
back together. Both moms had a lot of stuff with them and even in the morning
they packed and unpacked their things so their luggage wouldn't be overweight.
May the Lord bless them all in their journeys home.
Tonight Manuela called the mother of Heleen and she told us
that they arrived in Iraq
safely. Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at
this
email:
 Wednesday
February 20, 2008Baby Tara Leaves IsraelFiled
by
God
has given the Shevet family a unique door of opportunity, not to
mention an awesome team of believers, prayer and financial supporters
around the world, and favor with God and men. Helping families with
sick and dying children obtain life-saving operations is what
we
do best.
On this day we have Baby Tara and her
mother leaving
for home in northern Iraq (Kurdistan) after the doctors have given her
a green light and a clean bill of health. Although it is a time of
great joy and celebration, the day is also met with some heartfelt
goodbyes.
We started the day at the Shevet house
with a hot meal
made by the other mothers. After a prayer given by Shevet's
founder Jonathan Miles, we pitched down an awesome meal so we could get
on the road.
After
some emotional goodbyes baby Tara was wrapped in a specially made
blanket and rushed to the van. Jonathan and his daughter Elly helped
Tara and her mom get into the van with some last minute hugs, smiles
and video footage.
I
could not stop the flood of emotions that rushed through my every cell
as I observed the gospel being lived out in such a profound and
tangible way. As I pulled myself together, we made our way down from
Jerusalem to the Beit She'an border crossing into Jordan, the first leg
of a two-day journey back home.
Huda
and I had a great conversation as we traveled and I learned
what
an intelligent and well studied Christian woman she was. And then it
happened--we were stopped by a random vehicle check. After informing
the officers what our purpose and intention was, they questioned Tara's
mother because I had informed them that she was Kurdish. He talked to
her in her Kurdish language but was soon corrected. . . he was speaking
some other dialect in Iraq, which Tara's mother also spoke. I wasn't
sure if it was a test to see if she was really Kurdish, but after some
lessons in Kurdish the officer gave us a big smile and told us to go in
safety and peace.
So
you see, as one leaves many more come, continuing the cycle of loving
our neighbors as ourselves.
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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Tuesday,
February 19, 2008Visit to the Dead SeaFiled
by 
When
a simple request to visit the Dead Sea was made, I
welcomed the opportunity to spend some quality time doing what we love
best: fun, food, and fellowship. Summing up what Jesus said to
Mary and
Martha: the worries, the preparation and work surrounding Him will
always be there, but Mary chose what is better, to sit at His feet and
listen to Him, and He said, "That will not be taken from
her." We at
Shevet are compelled to do many things: administration, logistics,
coordination, and all the things that go on within a well-tuned
ministry. It would be easy, like Martha, to be consumed with the things
pertaining to Jesus and His kingdom, but we want to be intentional
about our first love, which is to make disciples of all
nations. We do
this at Shevet much of the time, through friendship evangelism but also
recognize the need to share the Gospel in many different ways, like
taking the time to build relationships and fulfilling the simple
desires of the mothers and children. In turn, as we go
through the
day, we watch the "walls" come down, and many spiritual questions being
asked. So
with eager expectation, Mustafa, Hussein, Tara, and their mothers got
ready at 1:00pm yesterday for me to pick them up to begin their
afternoon of fun. The  women enjoyed the sights en route to
the Dead
Sea, but faces broke out in pure joy when glimpsing the sea for the
first time. Mustafa excitedly shared with his mother, "My
dream came
true. This is the sea in my dream!" As we made our way down to
the
water's edge, basking in the beauty of it all, and sharing in some
laughter, we soon found ourselves in ankle-deep water, with our shoes
still on! The women and boys did many things in our short
time there:
took some pictures on cell phones, tasted the water (yuck!), threw some
rocks, collected some "treasure" (Mustafa's mother's term for sand,
rock and salt). But one thing we did not do was go swimming, as Tara's
mother kept saying she wanted to do.
Dusk quickly settled in
and dinnertime was approaching, so after a long walk back up the hil l,
we piled in the van and headed for home. Just a side note: as
we were going through the
checkpoint, ironically I was the only one to have my passport checked,
which the women thought very funny! On our trip back to
Jerusalem, all three children quickly fell asleep.
While
we were out sightseeing, my wife Michele was preparing "a feast" at the
request of Tara's mother, and was waiting for our return. Upon
entering
our home, all the children quickly found a spot on the carpet and
played with puzzles together, while the mothers enjoyed paging through
"American" magazines until dinner was served. The fellowship
was sweet,
but all too soon, it was time to end the day and return them to the
Shevet house, as the children were becoming tired. But a good
day
cannot end without some group pictures to savor the moments.
We
were richly blessed by and thankful for this opportunity to show
Christ's love. Our prayer is that we can say, like Paul in 1
Corinthians 2:14, "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in
triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the
fragrance of the knowledge of him."
Click
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message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at
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email:
 Sunday,
January 27, 2008Bouncing BackFiled
by
Tara is now out of ICU
and doing very well. Although she is eating, she has lost
several grams of body weight.
She appears to be in
no pain or discomfort, but seems to enjoy pulling and chewing on the
IVs in both her hands.
Tara is also able to sit up
with some help, and feels so well that she is receiving some visitors,
like Shinyar,
at her bedside.
It is a miracle to watch Tara bounce
back so quickly after her surgery, and be so full of life.
Click
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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Tuesday,
January 22, 2008Faith Brings Her ThroughFiled
by 
The next four hours were spent
visiting with
other families from Iraq and Gaza, and walking around the hospital
corridors. We stopped in the children's waiting room with Mustafa and
his mother, and Tara's mom commented on how the fish in the tank had
grown over the last three months!!
At
around 12.30pm Dr. Katz, responsible for the echocardiograms, came to
let Tara's mother know that everything was going very well with the
operation and that Tara wouldn't be too much longer. Tara's mom had
been really calm all morning, and one of the Save A Child's Heart
visitors commented on how relaxed she was, considering that her
daughter was in sur gery. Tara's mother
didn't waste any time in telling
him that it was because her faith was in Jesus.
When Dr. Katz
re-appeared half an hour later, with the news that the post-surgery
echo he had just done for Tara was excellent, Tara's mother was
overwhelmed and we sat together crying, while
praising and thanking God
for his faithfulness and goodness. After a quick lunch in the
cafeteria, and a call with Tara's father in Kurdistan, we were back in
the corridor waiting for Tara to come down, and five minutes later she
was wheeled into the ICU.
Please continue to pray
for Tara
over the next few days, that the Lord will complete His work of healing
in her life. Praise God for Tara's mother, and the strong witness she
continues to be to the other mothers in the hospital.  Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at
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email:
Monday,
January 21, 2008
Surgery Delayed Until
Tuesday
Filed
by
Tara's heart surgery,
which was scheduled for Monday, has been delayed until Tuesday, January
22.
Sunday,
January 20, 2008Tara to Surgery in the
MorningFiled
by Baby Tara has in the
last two weeks broken the five-kilogram threshold which makes her
second surgery possible--and today came the long-awaited call to report
to the hospital. We found Tara and mother staying with old
family friends in a religous, Jewish neighborhood of Jerusalem
(pictured above), illustrating the close relationships that formed
decades ago in
Iraq, and still endure, between Kurdish Jews and their non-Jewish
neighbors.
It
has been so long since Tara's last hospitalization that her mother
remarked she had nearly forgotten the place when our Jerusalem director
Alex Pettett escorted them to the children's surgical ward.
But the nurses had not
forgotten sweet Tara! There was real joy among them at seeing
her beaming little face again.
Tara
did end up screaming and crying, of course, when the nurses had to take
blood for her pre-surgical workup. Please pray with us for
Tara,
her mother, and the doctors as Tara goes into surgery in the morning.
We'll post a full update Monday night.
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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 Wednesday, January 2, 2008Second Surgery Within Two
WeeksFiled
by
It was a great surprise
to see Tara at the echo clinic when we arrived this morning for the
echos of Baveel,
Arya and Hardi.
She was already in the echo room, so I went in to help distract her
while she had the test. My first impression was of how much she has
grown since I met her in Amman in October. Thank God! Tara is now very
close to weighing 5 kilos, and Dr. Tamir encouraged her mother to keep
feeding her so she maintains or gains in weight. He said it is possible
that Tara will have her surgery next week, but if not then, the
following one. He explained that the surgery schedule is very crowded,
and there is no way he can tell at this time when the best opening
might be. Tara's surgery will be long, so that will require a full day
in the operating room.
Tara was less than
happy to be on
the table by the time I saw her, so was a little fussy. But once up in
her stroller, she was very peaceful. Her mother is hopeful Tara will
have her surgery soon, since she is very tired. She is anxious to get
home to her husband, to Tara's twin sisiter Yara, and to the family
members who are caring for Yara while they are gone. Please keep
praying for this miracle baby and her special mom. Perseverance for the
next weeks is crucial for the whole family... yet God loves to bless us
with what we need when we are most vulnerable. May his love continue to
give strength to Tara's mother day by day by day.Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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email:
Thursday,
December 27, 2007A New ToothFiled
by
The
day before Christmas I had a chance for a nice long visit at the Save A
Child's Heart house. It was great to see Tara and her mother there
having a happy day. One of the surprises of the day for me was seeing
Tara's new tooth! I got a video of it, but it is very hard to spot, so
look hard and you can see it on her lower left gum. Tara
is eating quite well, and is very close to the five-kilogram mark which
is the goal she must reach so she can have her second surgery. While
we were visiting, Tara's mother said she had been invited to the home
of a friend of Shevet Achim to share in the Christmas celebration.
Since she is from a traditional Christian background, she was very
excited about this opportunity. She was missing the celebrations which
were going on in her village in Iraq, and said it didn't seem like
Christmas here and she missed being able to go to church. We are
thankful that she was able to go and celebrate this special time
remembering the birth of the Saviour of the world. The
doctors have told Tara's mother that the surgery may be in the coming
week, and we're hopeful that will be the case. This will bring them to
that unique place of joy at having the surgery they've waited for
becoming a reality, even while the emotions and strain of the day keep
them focusing hopefully and prayerfully on a good outcome. Please pray
for them as this will be a complicated surgery. Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at
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email:
Sunday,
December 9, 2007Gaining Weight, Without
HoneyFiled
by  Tara was
brought to the Wolfson hospital this morning, just to be
weighed.
A simple procedure no doubt, but it is one which brought much joy to
everyone. For Tara has grown and put on much
weight in
the past two weeks.  She has gained 0.37 kg and is
now 4.76 kg. Another 0.24 kg and she can 'qualify' for her
next surgery! Tara's
mother is a happy woman indeed. She is thankful that Tara has been able
to consume more milk in the past two weeks, even though she
had stopped adding honey to Tara's milk. From the previous entry to
Tara's blog, you would have known that Tara was being given milk with a
little honey added in, as suggested by an elderly
Iraqi relative. But after that blog was posted, two persons
informed me that infants less than a year old should not be given honey
as there may be a possibility of a form of infant botulism caused by
the presence of miniscule botulism spores found in  honey. I conveyed this information
to Tara's mother who promptly stopped giving her baby
girl any honey. Together we thank GOD that no ill effect came upon Tara
after being given the honey and that Tara has put on some weight
instead. While today's main
mission for Tara is to be weighed, her mother had two other tasks. To
get some baby cereals from the pharmacy to supplement Tara's current
liquid diet of milk, and to assist Diyar's mother in filling out a
questionnaire requested by Save A Child's Heart. The older lady was
indeed appreciative of Tara's mother taking time to attend to
this matter, and having to delay her own lunch till after the two
errands were completed. Click
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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 Monday
November 26, 2007The Land of Milk and HoneyFiled
by
It
was disheartening to hear that Tara's weight has gone down over the
past few days because of a bout of diarrhea - from the last recorded
weight of 4.505kg down to 4.390kg today. Tara's
mother said that an elderly friend from Iraq once told her
that adding a little honey to the milk will help increase the
baby's appetite and encourage the baby to drink more. So while the
other Iraqi mothers were with me in the computer room looking at their
children's blogs, Tara and her mother took off to
the hospital's "canyon" (mall) to get a jar
of honey and a pair of new jeans... well, we can easily figure
out which item is for whom! Save
A Child's Heart volunteer Tova was at hand to cuddle Tara while mummy
was preparing the milk. And when you watch how Tara wails
to signal she is hungry, you would believe that in no time she would be
able to gain back the weight she has lost.
Drink milk she would, and honey, drink milk on demand she
must! (Click the arrow below to play a video clip.)
Tara's
mother was in a cheerful mood (that is the difference a
little shopping spree can make!) and she seemed to
have adjusted quite well to the prolonged delay to
Tara's operation, which will not happen until the 5
kg target is reached. Besides, she had contacted a distant
relative living in Jerusalem who has since then visited her twice at
the Save A Child's Heart house in Azur. So it really helps to
lift up her spirits when friends and relatives are around to show love
and concern. Click
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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Tuesday,
November 20, 2007Admitted to Children's Ward
with FeverFiled
by Tara
was admitted to the children's ward yesterday evening because she was
running a fever. Today, the thermometer read 39 degrees centigrade. But
other than this, the baby looked fine and was well enough for her
mother leave her for a while to go next door to help Rayan with
his physiotherapeutic exercise. Tara
is slowly but surely putting on weight, yet not fast enough for her
to qualify for her operation. As you may recall, the target is
for
Tara to reach at least five kilograms before she can be operated on. As
of today, she has to gain another half kilo to reach the target. Please
pray for Tara's speedy growth, and for us to be able to get her supply
of milk powder which, strangely, is not available in Israel! Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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Wednesday,
November 7, 2007A Good ImpressionFiled
by 
High-school
students from the Anglican International School in Jerusalem joined
Shevet Achim for a two-day community service project. Today's
assignment included visiting Iraqi and Gazan patients at Wolfson
Medical Center and at the Save A Child's Heart children's
house; and by day's end, blogging on the children they had become
acquainted with. Shevet thanks the AISJ students who
freely gave of their time and energy!
Tara
has a twin sister who was born healthy. They were
identical--the only difference between them was their sizes.
Tara was smaller than her twin.
Tara was born with a hole in her heart with
tiny veins. She was admitted to the hospital on the 10th of October,
the day she arrived in Israel. Tara had a low oxygen level, making her
fingers, lips, face and other parts of her body dark blue in color. Her
first surgery was on the 11th of October. It went well, and Tara's 
oxygen level had increased from 7 to a miraculous 85, according to
Tara's mother. Before coming to Israel, Tara was
fed water and fruits, but doctors in
Israel advised Tara's mother to feed her milk for the time being.
Tara needs a second surgery, but to be operated on, a minimum
of 5kg is
required. Last week, Tara was weighed and the scale read 4.165kg.
Tara made a very good impression on us. She is beautiful
and adorable. She was well behaved and she kept quiet most of the time.
She would smile when we laughed, and she would giggle when we played
peek-a-boo with her. When
Tara's mother showed us the scar on Tara's
chest, she started crying a lot, and later we found out that the scar
stings a lot.
Pray that:
- Tara will gain enough weight to go for
her second surgery.
- The surgery will be
successful and Tara would grow up to be
a perfect, healthy, normal girl.
- Her
family will continue to trust God and rely on Him.
Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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email:
 Sunday, November 4, 2007Growing SteadilyFiled
by
Baby
Tara is feeding well and growing steadily! Today, she weighs
in at 4.165kg, up from 4.085 two days ago. Tara's mother has been
diligently making notes on Tara's feeds, and reports that Tara is now
drinking an average of 80-90cc of milk every hour when she is
awake. Occasionally Tara would cry for a feed at 1.00am or 2.00am, and
when she gets her 'late supper', then she would drink less for
'breakfast' the next day. Tara was back at
Wolfson for just a day trip, and to have her progress monitored by Dr
Alona. After Tara's check-up, Tara's mom was mostly at the waiting
lounge, where she spent time chatting with the
mothers from Gaza. She paid particular attention to the Um Ahmad, who
was rather anxious as her son was having his second
operation today. It
is a blessing to have Tara's mother around to help with interpreting
into both Arabic and Kurdish for the Gazan and Iraqi mothers,
what they needed to know. She is a much happier woman these days as she
accepts the need to be patient while waiting for Tara
to be ready for the next phase of her treatment, and at the
same time, finding her "interpreting services" very much appreciated by
the Wolfson medical staff and our Shevet team. We thank GOD for the
progress both mother and daughter are making. Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
at
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Thursday,
November 1, 2007
The Goal: Five Kilograms Filed
by  Tara
and her mother were in the lounge area when I arrived at
Wolfson today. They had come from the SACH house for Tara's check-up --
to have her weight taken and her vital signs monitored. All's well,
except that Tara has lost a bit of weight over the past two days since
she contracted a minor viral infection. Tara now weighs
4.085kg. The
nurse noted the formula milk which Tara is
being fed with, and asked Tara's mother to take note of the
quantity and frequency of Tara's feed. We are all looking forward to
the day when Tara reaches 5 kg... that's when she can be considered
ready for her next operation. When
I talked to Tara (in English, of course!), she seemed to understand
what I was saying and responded with open arms. Tara's mother
insisted on putting the pretty pink head-band on Tara, in case her
darling daughter gets mistaken to be a boy. Today
was the first time Tara's mother got to see the photos of Tara on
Shevet Achim's website. As the mothers of our patients from Gaza were
also with us, Tara's mom did not have the time to read through the
blogs on Tara, but she will probably be able to do so when she gets
back to the SACH House as I've texted her our weblink
( www.shevet.org). Tara's
mother is adjusting better now to staying at SACH while waiting for
Tara to get better (from her bout of viral infection) and to gain
weight. Thank you for praying for both mother and child, and do
continue to pray for Tara to be ready soon for her next operation.
Click
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message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
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Sunday
October
28,
2007 Back at Hospital, Full of
SmilesFiled
by  Tara
was at the Save a Child's Heart house near the hospital and came back
to Wolfson today as she had a little cough. When we got to
her ward we noticed this beautiful baby full of smiles. A
friend from Australia had given us little teddies and I gave one to
Tara and the way she held it up and looked at it she seemed
to know that it was her little teddy and she just talked to it her baby
language. We spent a lot of time with her and her mom and
during this time. Tara had a full bottle to drink
but was still watching that David was there and had not left and she
just played so beautifully with David. Even Ahmad from Gaza who
was in the same ward wanted a picture with Tara; she had really made a
good friend there even though she is only 6 months old! Please
continue to pray for Tara and her mom that they may be able to go home
as soon as they can, as Tara has a twin baby sister waiting at home for
her. Click
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
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email:
 Tuesday
October 23,
2007 Released from the HospitalFiled
by
Today
Tara reached a milestone on her journey to health as she was released
from the hospital to go to the Save A Child's Heart children's house -
thanks be to God! I arrived only a few minutes before their departure,
so did not get to spend alot of time visiting. However, Tara's mother
told me that Tara is able to take the formula we found for her, and is
eating well. My favorite part of the visit was hearing Tara laugh when
her mother played with a stuffed toy with her. She was getting bored in
her cradle as she waited to leave the hospital, but found the stuffed
green elephant an amusing diversion.
Dr. Houri was not at the hospital today, so we have no
further update from him about Tara's second surgery. Tara's mother
shared that when Dr. Tamir did the echo before deciding to
send Tara to the SACH house, he said the first surgery was
looking very good, and maybe the
second could be done after several months. Of course the
doctors will not decide until they see how Tara continues to heal, and
monitor her readiness for surgery.
Please keep lifting up this sweet baby and mother in your
prayers. As it stands at the moment, the other three Iraqi children and
their mothers are in the hospital, so Tara's mother will not have their
companionship when she arrives at the SACH house. Thankfully
she speaks excellent English, so will be able to communicate easily
while she's there with others whose children are also in
different stages of recovery from heart surgery.
When
I presented her with more prayer letters today, she was encouraged to
know people from around the world are praying. So are we at Shevet
Achim.
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
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Monday,
October 22,
2007 Comfort From Milk and EmailsFiled
by Tara's mother was delighted to see
another familiar face today when I turned up at Wolfson after a
week-long absence (because I had a bad cough). Her joy overflowed when
I showed her a little pink tin of milk powder -- Nestle Guigoz!! That's
the brand of milk powder which Diyka ("mother of") Tara says Tara has
been whining for... never mind that this was Guigoz 2 and not Guigoz 1,
which is for the younger infants like Tara.
Dikya
Tara has been rather stressed up the past few days when Tara didn't
seem to be taking well to another brand of formula milk when the supply
of her preferred formula milk ran out. Besides, the devoted mother
couldn't understand why her baby was often crying. Indeed Tara has been
crying fretfully on her bed when I visited. But when Dikya carried Tara
in her arms, the baby was quite contented and quiet.
 Tara is very responsive to stimuli such
as the snapping of her mother's fingers and as well to Diyka
Rayan's happy "jhik-jhik" sounds. (Click the play arrow below to watch
video).
(Diyka Rayan visited with
Diyka Tara
while waiting to see her son in the ICU
after he came out of the operating theatre). Tara loves the
attention she was given and during the rest  of my visit, she hardly
whimpered.
A big "thank you" to all of
you who have emailed your words of encouragement to Tara's blog-site.
Diyka Tara is much comforted and delighted to read your emails which
have been printed out for her. This is the time when the mother simply
has to be patient and wait for the child to take time to heal well and
gain strength. Indeed, the nurse affirmed again that Tara's condition
is stable and her progress is good.
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message to Tara's mother.
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me when Tara's page is updated
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You may
help other Iraqi children come to Israel for surgery by clicking here.
 Sunday
October 21,
2007 Making up for Lost TimeFiled
by
Tara
was contentedly drinking a bottle when I arrived today, and her mother
says this is what she wants all the time now. She seems to be eating
enough to make up for the time when she was struggling to breathe.
Today the nurse noted that her weight is now 4 kilos - praise God! But
because Tara needs a particular formula, we are searching to find more
of the type she brought from home before she runs out. It is the
challenge of the different countries involved that not every product is
available in every place... but we have several options which we're
pursuing and should be able to take to her tomorrow just what she
needs.
Tara was more active today and very alert, and
sharing smiles with others - to our delight! Her only complaint came
when she wanted her bottle and mommy couldn't get it in her mouth fast
enough.
We still have no news about Tara's second surgery date as
the
doctors continue to observe her recovery and see how quickly she
regains strength. This is frustrating for her mother not only because
she is anxious to see Tara healed, but also because of the turmoil in
her own country which could affect when she might come and go if there
is a lengthy waiting time between surgeries. Please pray for the peace
of God which passes understanding to envelope Tara and her mother, as
well as her family back home. She is such a devoted mother, and wants
only the best for Tara, as most of us can relate to. But not many of us
can imagine having to balance decisions related to war-affected areas
and the dangerous travel involved. As I have said before when writing
about these families, especially the mothers who travel with their
children, they are some of the bravest people I have ever met. The love
they have for their children compels them to make great sacrifices and
brave amazingly difficult challenges to get the help needed to heal
them. We thank God for His love which opened the door to allow help to
be given to precious children like Tara by her neighbors in Israel. Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at this
email:
 Thursday
October 18,
2007 Moved to the WardFiled
by
Today we were delighted to
find that Tara had been moved to the children's ward already!
She is now under the oxygen dome only, which is keeping the
blood oxygenation in the low 90% range. What a vast change
from the life - threatening low readings we saw one week ago tonight
when we arrived at Wolfson, and doctors took Tara immediately
to the ICU where the percentile was only seven, and then it
went lower. We thank God for all He has done so far in this precious
girl's life, and trust all that He will do when it is time for
her second surgery.
Currently,
during this healing time, Tara is not eating as much as
normal,
and her mother is concerned. Please pray for Tara's mother to
have
perseverance and patience as she continues to attend to her daughter's
needs. She is a wonderful mother and wants to see her daughter healthy
as soon as possible, and as all parents would be, she is anxious to see
major improvement quickly. But the healing process takes time,
and
therefore I ask you to pray that Tara's mother will clear this hurdle
of anxiety and focus instead on the amazing progress Tara has
made
so far. It is a relief to me to remember that when our team cannot be
there, God is there with her to
help and comfort her in this challenge. Thank you for
continuing to pray for the medical staff, and Tara and her mother, as
the days unfold and the timing of her surgery
is determined.
Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at this
email:
Tuesday,
October 16, 2007God At WorkFiled
by I don't think people ever get tired of
looking at one of God's most wondrous creations - a beautiful baby. In
the case of a beautiful baby being healed of heart problems, the joy is
multiplied when one sees the beauty of God at work to meet
the baby's needs. This was my thought today as I visited with
Tara and her mother in the ICU. After being taken off the ventilator
yesterday, today the oxygen which was being supplied to her
body through a tube in her nose was also removed, and she was
receiving oxygen from the oxygen dome only by the time we left. Praise
God!! Her sweet
disposition  was evident as she
lay looking contentedly around the room and making precious cooing sounds like every baby does.
Her oxygen level was hovering around 87-92 %, and her pink color was
still there, attesting to the oxygenation of her blood. Another piece
of good news is that Tara is able to take bottles.
I
took with me the prayer letters which have come for Tara and her family
and gave them to her mother to read while we visted. She was very moved
by them and I saw her looking at them several times before we left the
hospital. Thank you for praying, and for being a support for these
families in this way.
Please
keep praying for Tara's recovery. The doctors will meet soon to decide
when Tara's next surgery will be, and her mother is hopeful they will
not have to travel to Iraq and then return to Israel. Only the doctors
can make such a decision no matter how much we might wish to help make
things happen. We will keep you posted on her progress. Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at this
email:
Monday,
October 15, 2007 International CelebrityFiled
by Tara
went off the ventilator today. Here she is taking a breather from her
oxygen tent. She is an international celebrity now; she was
photographed by Reuters today. Click
to send an e-mail
message to Tara's mother.
Notify
me when Tara's page is updated
at this
email:
Sunday,
October 14,
2007 Tara On  VentilatorFiled
by
Before we found her, Tara's
mother found us this morning while we waited in Karwan's room to see if he would
be able to go to surgery or face a delay due
to an emergency. After we knew that Karwan's surgery would be
tomorrow, I walked with Tara's mother down to the ICU to see her
daughter. Yesterday Tara was placed on a ventilator, and the
doctors hope to try taking her off tomorrow. Today Diyka
(Kurdish for "mother of") Tara wanted to speak with Dr. Houri
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