Have you ever had days like this? One of those days where is seems as if everyone wants a piece of you, your time, your abilities? Even though the procedure or tests have their benefits, it doesn’t make it any easier to endure them. In the face of trials and bad days it may seem that the day or the bad experience will never end. But, the sun sets and the sun rises the next day. Somehow, a little distance of time between the event, things look a little better. In reflecting this past week after experiencing Easter, the tale of these two pictures tell the Easter Journey well…What a difference a day Makes! I am sure, to the apostles and those who followed Jesus so closely, the day of and the day after Jesus was put to death were pretty bleak. But, on the third day he rose! There is new life and things do look better. Thankfully, in our case, things look great for eternity!
The pictures of Matt in this post are from the day before Good Friday where he had another EKG and ECHO of his struggling heart. Matt has a leaking mitral valve. This is something that we have been watching since he was born. As time has gone on and he has grown, we have been given good news that the valve may be repairable instead of the conclusion early on that was that they were going to have to replace it with an artificial one. But, no surgery is without risk. At this point, along with his medical “team” from Grand Rapids and the University of Michigan, we are still monitoring and taking some time to contemplate what our next course will be. 
There are tough decisions that we will have to make on Matt’s behalf on what to do, even if that decision is to do nothing at all. We are looking at quality of life against quantity of life. Please pray for us as we search for the right thing to do.
As for Matthew, he had a great time with the bunny ears. When we tried to remove them, he wanted them back on. We are constantly amazed at how much Matthew is full of life (and mischief) each day. He can quickly go from having a bad day to having the best day of his life in a matter of minutes. I wish I could say the same…
Kevin you are an amazing brother, you are an amazing person, I’m proud of what you are doing with Matthew, and sharing your life experiences with Matthew, I’m blessed to be his Aunt. You are a great support to Theresa and a wonderful father to Hannah, Megan, Matthew, ans Sarah Anne. I love you!
Kevin,
My prayer’s go with Kevin and Theresa & family, I know God has a plan for all of us. But your faith is strong and I know he has an answer for you,
that he will be healed.
CAROLYN TROUPE
P.S.
Your story of your life with Matt, is very good.
Kevin and Theresa & family-
Great story, needs to be published your story–
CAROLYN TROUPE
Kevin,
You’re such a great dad – I see it in the way you interact with all of your children including Matthew. Thank you for sharing your family’s journey, and for letting us be inspired by your and Theresa’s faith.
Sincerely,
Joel
Kevin,
super blog and you are a talented autor and the story is heartbraking. About the mitral valve regurgitation – some very interesting information to find:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mitral-valve-regurgitation/DS00421
Better get it fixed soon as long as it is possible. The clinic must be specialised on that. Waiting too long can make the heart too weak. Quality of live – how far can you drive a car with a broken engine?
Nobody wants to have kids in hospital, but this is a decision for Matthews future. However, take this advice from me, I`m working in the medical sector. I`m sure he will recover soon and everything will be ok. I`ll pray for him and maybe you should open a new chapter with advise for a special pray for him. Thank you, may god bless you all!
Sincerely,
Melanie
Melanie, Thank you for your kind words and advice. We are in the processing mode right now as to which direction to take. We will take a look at the link and the information that it contains.
Kevin