Calvin

This is an email we just sent to our friends and supporters, but I know I missed many of you that check our blog...so I'm posting it here too. We are having a problem getting pictures up but hope to have that solved soon.

As most of you know we were blessed with a beautiful boy, Calvin Luke, on November 24. About two weeks before the baby was due I (Kara) travelled from Phnom Penh, Cambodia to Bangkok, Thailand to prepare for the delivery of the baby. At that time I had an ultrasound and the doctor noticed the head of the baby was much smaller than normal and there was extra fluid in the right frontal lobe.

After delivery more testing was done and calcifications on his brain were found. Often these are a result of a congenital infection while the baby was being carried. From what we have understood from the neurologist, calcifications can result in a huge range of things from mild development delays, blindness, cerebral palsy, loss of motor skills, and so the list goes. At this point the doctors are running some tests to try to determine the cause of the calcifications which would give more direction for his prognosis.

So far Calvin is doing very well. He is eating and sleeping well, crying, follows us with his eyes, and generally acts like a very normal baby. If there has been significant brain damage, it is possible that the symptoms may not show for quite some time (months to a year). In the meantime we will be tracking his development, checking head growth, watching for seizures or any other abnormality. We are also awaiting advice from several doctors in the States who are reviewing his case to determine the course of action from this point.

Thank you for upholding us with your prayers. Please continue to pray for healing for Calvin and submission to God's will, whatever that may be for Calvin. We rest in our dear Lord who gives us strength for each day. The uncertainty and fear for the future of our son often seem ready to overtake us but it keeps us running back to the Lord, placing our cares in his hands and asking Him to undertake for us. We are giving thanks for the joy of Calvin, his sweet soft cheeks and soft black hair, little baby noises, his dark intense eyes, and realize what a precious gift he is.

It has been humbling, and such an encouragement, to receive notes from so many people, many of you whom we've never even met. What a blessing the body of Christ is. Thank you dear friends.