https://www.facebook.com/108002918794709/

Asher's Turnaround, Houston, TX (2025)

08/25/2025

We have the best neighbors. Sadly, I’m just now coming to realize/know this, and we’ve been in this house one year. When we first moved in, we were coming off our summer heart cath complication that required 8 weeks of hospital staying and neuro to our team. It was hot. Asher doesn’t do well in the heat. So, I rarely went outside. One neighbor and I have been pretty friendly because Grayson and her son love playing together and they are in and out of her house and mine. The rest I would notice would congregate some evenings in a driveway and all the kids would play. My kids always played but I was usually inside with Asher, sometimes because I had to be and other times because these people aren’t my friends from MS. Who knows how long we will be able to stay in this house. It’s best not to begin more relationships I’ll just have to leave behind again. Too painful.

Fast forward to this week. Our power was out a total of 8 hours this past Wednesday. The estimated restoration time came and went twice. At first I Lun said it was fine and then she said they were getting hot. She had heard a built in generator kick on and was going to ask if they could step inside that house for a while. When she got outside, she say the garage door opening across the street, so she went over there since she had seen this lady before. She welcomed I Lun and Asher with open arms. The couple sat them up in their kids’ playroom, let her store some meds and milk for Asher in their fridge, and said sure have your speech therapist come here today. The dad was so nice when I came to get them. He said anytime. Sure. Let me keep your milk and meds until your power is back on. Then, today, I get a text from an unknown number saying she lives a couple houses down and knows the twins for playing. She was inviting us to come swim with a few families today. Yall - it was like a block party. All the families on the street with grade school kids.

The best part - total acceptance and outreach to Asher from all these families. What does he need? Can I hold him? He’s just so cute! He looks like hes doing so well. I’m an RN - let me know if you need anything. I stay home and homeschool, come over anytime there is a need.

I told my BFF back home a couple days ago - being here in Houston is such a blessing and yet so lonely for me at the same time. This week/today was definitely marks on the blessing side.

A few pics of Asher and I Lun over at the neighbors during the power outage…

08/19/2025

I was asking some of the students in my groups today about their favorite thing they did this summer. Many of them had wild tales - vacations overseas or doing super cool things. One student couldn’t think of anything fun. He said he just stayed at home. I said, “Well other than seeing my family, me, too.” Fun is relative. I posted a few weeks ago about all the things we did this summer. At home can certainly be fun. But, mostly, at home can also be “normal.” We just had a normal summer, and I’m super grateful for that! Every day with you is a gift, sweet Asher. ❤️‍🩹

08/05/2025

Update on the heart cath:

We went to see our cardiologist last week. Asher’s numbers had improved. His leg blood pressures were better and easier to get, and his color looked better. The cath is off the table, and we get a whole 6 weeks until we go back!!! The cardiologist mentioned a few reasons why the number improvement might be - active level during cath being the probable one he said. I’m going to go with…the Lord.

Thanks for your prayers!

Below is how Asher feels about living in no cath land. ❤️‍🩹

07/24/2025

Asher had an ER visit today. A fall and a knot on the head a couple weeks ago that we had been watching and communicating with neuro about turned into needing a trip to the hospital just to be sure. The CT scan showed that everything looked the same as his last scan and that there was just the hematoma on the forehead. Due to the multiple blood thinners, the team said it might be there a while. We follow up in one month. Praises and thankfulness that this wasn’t something more. ❤️‍🩹

07/11/2025

Summer Update on Asher’s Health and Development:

This week back home after our Back Home Tour has been full of appointments and adventures. Asher now has SMOs (ankle braces) and cute new shoes! He also has a walker/gate trainer. For those things we sing praise. I don’t know what Medicaid looks like in the future, and this is not a Medicaid or political post, but I am grateful for each item, service, visit, etc. we are able to get through Medicaid. The SMOs were $2500 and the walker was $15,000.

He continues to increase his motor, communication, and cognitive skills. Asher also continues to increase his ability to throw tantrums. 🤪 We are learning some more specific communication (e.g. signs and pointing) to help with that. Asher has used signs for quite some time to request music and specific songs but now he is requesting more things like books and water. He really enjoys drinking water from his special cup, but feeding is still a challenge…swallowing is his issue.

Asher had a cardiology visit yesterday. Looks like he’s needing another heart cath sooner than later. We are waiting to see what the decision is. The aortic arch is small again. The AV valve regurgitation is more. It’s possible he has collateral vessels that will need plugging or coiling. So, of course, that gives us pause considering last summer’s complications. Our cardiologist said that all these things go together and helping one will help another. It was hard to get leg blood pressures, which is another sign that the heart cath need is approaching. Prayers are appreciated as we navigate through the rest of the summer.

Asher has an ENT appointment today to evaluate whether or not tonsil and adenoid removal would benefit sleep apnea. We are thinking this wouldn’t benefit because his tonsils and adenoids don’t seem to be enlarged. So, in order to help his sleep apnea (21.6 sleep disturbances per hour), we will most likely be doing cpap at night. We have another sleep study scheduled for August that will use cpap so that the professionals can provide us with exactly what the cpap and oxygen titration may need to be. Then, we will have to wait for that equipment to come in. I’m not sure how difficult it will be for the cpap mask at night but I’m grateful for this solution and hopefully better sleep for Asher, instead of bandaiding it with oxygen at night.

Asher remains stable in vision and with pulmonology. His next neuro appointments are in August.

Asher continues to be Asher - loving life and a happy boy. ❤️‍🩹

07/09/2025

We had a glorious 16 day trip back home. Asher was such a good sport.

“I’ve been everywhere, man. I’ve been everywhere. St. Amant. Sumrall. Hattiesburg. Gulfport. Laurel. Barlow. Wesson. Brookhaven. Farmerville. Shreveport.”

We saw family and friends - some new faces for Asher. Dinners. Lunches. Ice cream. Play places. Swimming! A new Ms. Rachel book. The park. Church. No electricity. Bubbles. The Cabin. The sprinkler. The hospital. The nursing home. Lots of snuggles. Some fits. Miles logged. It was long but not long enough. I’m grateful Asher was well enough to make this trip. So many memories. We miss yall already. ❤️‍🩹

06/14/2025

Asher’s development continues to soar. He is picking up signs, making requests (okay, really, demands 🤣), and getting some words. Peep his 2 words here. ❤️‍🩹

06/13/2025

I haven’t updated in a while. We are living our best summer life! Well, other than Asher catching the flu and the rest of us having the stomach virus last week.

Fun stuff ahead…We are taking a trip home in a little over a week. Asher gets his ankle braces and walker the week after the 4th.

Honestly, we are just enjoying “normal” life, and what a blessing it is to say that. ❤️‍🩹

05/31/2025

It’s been a year! On this day 1 year ago, complications arose from a heart cath the day before and a coil traveled from a vessel in Asher’s heart and blocked blood flow to his brain.

Since then, Asher lost:
- all his speech sounds
- the ability to swallow
- the ability to suck from a straw and take in food
- his motor abilities
- his smile
- his laugh

Asher became more medically complicated by:
- 2 strokes
- onset of seizures
- 3 cranitomies (maybe 4 - I lost count)
- hydrocephalus
- leaking cerebral fluid
- sepsis
- a pacemaker
- a VP shunt

Today, Asher has gained:
- more providers
- a daily injection
- more medicines
- fall and bleeding risks
- that smile!!!
- his fun laugh
- all his speech sounds and more
- many signs (ASL)
- the motor abilities he had plus MANY more
- the ability to suck from a straw

What ifs aren’t helpful. We can’t change the past. All we can do is move forward. Learn lessons and continue on. It would be amiss not to say that this year has been tough. Looking back to last summer spent in the hospital is traumatic. I try hard not to dwell on those days. Some of those memories are very vivid. I can picture myself in the room with him, having conversations with providers, monitors beeping as if it were happening now. Other days are a blur. The constant is yet again the Lord allowed Asher to continue with us here on earth. And, for that I am grateful. Asher hasn’t just continued here. He has exceeded expectations. Asher is thriving. He’s learning and growing and requiring less support than he has had in the past. He’s a full fledged toddler and full of life.

Thank you to those of you have walked and continue to walk this journey with us whether by prayer, physically, encouraging comments on his page, etc. I appreciate you!

Pictured below are before the heart cath, imaging of the migrated coil, after the first craniotomy and stroke, and today in all his greatness.

Asher's Turnaround

08/25/2025

08/19/2025

08/05/2025

07/24/2025

07/11/2025

07/09/2025

06/14/2025

06/13/2025

05/31/2025

Address

Website

Alerts

Contact The Practice

Shortcuts

Featured

Share

Category