Happy Birthday, Little Buddy!

Hip Hip Pooh-ray!! Our Little Tornado is 4 years old today, August 22!!!!!

I met this little guy about 10 months ago, and he just worked his way right into my heart! :o) Lawrence was born with a lot of medical problems, and the doctors didn't give him 1 month to live! But, as you can see, our little Tornado is a tough little guy! He sure showed those doctors a thing or two! He is a "Fighter", and with a lot of prayers that have been answered, he has beat the odds!! So, my Little Buddy, this page is dedicated to you! And sprinkled with your precious "Silly Ole Bear" & his friends! Happy Birthday, Sweetie! May you have many many more!

~ Miss Bobbie ~

Here in Barb's (Lawrence's grandmother) own words is a medical history of Little Bit.(what I call him! :o) After reading it, you will see why I think Barb is pretty special too!

This is a rather long story but it will help you understand why I am the nut that I am and why I am always asking for special things like Prayers and cards for Lawrence.  Nothing I ask for him or that he does is ever to silly when you know that at any moment of any day we could lose Lawrence. I know this is true of each and every one of us on any given day, that from the moment we are born we are dying. But you have to admit that it would be a surprise unless you have some kind of warning.You just don't expect a tiny child to die.
                About Lawrence Brizuela
Now Lawrence is my grandson. He was born on 22 August 1996. He weighted in at 5 lbs. 8 oz.  here in San Bernardino, California. Lawrence was born with a syndrome called Shprintzen Syndrome with Di George Sequence/also called Velo-Cardio-Facial Syndrome. It is a genetic disorder in the area of missing chromosome 22q11.  This missing gene causes a lot of
problems. Now because of all his medical problems and mass appointments and time consuming treatments his Mom, my eldest daughter and the mother of my other two grandchildren, felt it was best for Lawrence to come and live with me for I am alone and have the time to give to him.  The team of High Risk Doctors at the NICU unit in the hospital all told us that Lawrence was going to die as a result of his condition.  Mainly his heart was badly deformed. Tetralogy of Fallot. Doctors felt the heart was the biggest issue.   All kept telling us that Lawrence would not live to be one month old.  That there was no way he could survive.    They were sending him home to die. Tetralogy of Fallot: a congenital malformation of the heart characterized by an abnormal opening in the interventricular septum, misplacement of the aorta so that it receives blood from both ventricles instead of only the left ventricle, narrowing of the pulmonary artery, and enlargement of the right ventricle. Narrowing of the pulmonary artery, Lawrence didn't even have one. I saw the film of his first heart cath done at 4 days old.   He had 3 collateral's feeding into and around the heart doing the job of keeping him alive. No pulmonary artery. Just the very beginning of one and then it just stopped forming. Seeing his tiny heart and watching it work was totally amazing.Here is a list of his medical problems:

Tetralogy of Fallot (heart), Aortic arch, Facial paralysis on left side with poor muscle tone on the right side and around the mouth. Poor sucking ability due to muscle tone. Crooked jaw line.
       Fishmouth deformity, doctors say. (Me I don't see it, just a teeny tiny mouth) Nasal regurgitation, Speech and language impairment, (we know now he has Aphasia).  He may or may not ever talk. Very difficult to get sounds out. A real struggle. He has to force out the sound and it comes out hypernasal. Almond-shaped eye margins and he is far sighted and should wear his glasses.  (He looks cute in them) Coloboma of the right iris. (very rare!) Ears have no cartilage. Small nose with very thin skin Tongue problems. Weakness and poor muscle control.Possible sub-mucous cleft palate Pharyngeal (throat) muscles are poor, Cellular immune deficiency, small thymus Gastroesophageal reflux Feeding problems, was forced fed with a NG-tube for many months.Getting him to eat is still a major problem. He still drinks from a bottle as well as a cup, straw, sipper cup, and sports bottle. He still eats or drinks his formula every two and half to three hours all night long.  The feeding schedule is the same today as it was when he was born, as far as his formula intake. Dental problems.   Microsomia (short stature, small hands and feet)  Hypoparathyroidism, low serum calcium and high serum phosphorus levels, resulting in seizures.  Hypotonia of the lower extremities, Low muscle tone of his legs.His ankles turn in and he is flat footed while standing. Still has difficulty in walking.  Falls a lot and has to wear a special helmet when out side playing. Scooted on bottom, never crawled.  He is doing that now and still falls over to the side. Poor balance Poor ability to gain weight. Hernias Tactile Facially defensive Ear infections, a lot Viral infections, a lot of these due to his abnormal immune system. Developmental delay. So far no learning difficulties. Thank God. Emotional and behavioral problems are starting.

Lawrence gets a lot of therapy for many reasons.  We work very hard to give him all that he needs. Lawrence has had 4 heart caths, 2 open heart surgeries, dental surgery, a circumcision, Rota virus, and pneumonia. He has had so many colds, flu, ear, and throat infections. He is on a multitude of medications between 2 and 4 times per day. I want only the best for Lawrence and will fight to get it for him. Lawrence has 15 different Doctors and therapist that he sees on a regular basis.  He will always have a lot of them.   He has a life threatening condition and always will. Well, there you have it, just about.  Except to say that I am always asking for Prayers for Lawrence. Now about the nick name Little Tornado.  A tornado is strong, fast and leaves destruction behind.   That is our Lawrence.  He is not strong of body, but of heart and mind. Fast, as to when he started scooting on his little tushie all over the place.  Destruction.   Our home has not been the same since he started scooting and now walking, Oh my aching back. :0) I love Lawrence so very much. I feel so special that God has chosen me to care for and love Lawrence.  I take that responsibility very seriously.God has been so good to us.  The doctors have no real idea about the power of Prayer. My faith in God has grown stronger each and every day in the past 3 years.  He shows me a miracle each and every day that Lawrence wakes up and starts another day. Lawrence won't live to be a month old they all said. He is now over 3 years. He won't walk they said.  He walks and is even trying hard to run.  They said he may never talk.  He never did coo or babble, but he can hum the whole Winnie the Pooh song and the cleanup song.   And he says Mama, now Owl. He will have to have a G-tube placement one doctor said.   Not for Lawrence God said.  He may only take teeny tiny bites of food, but he takes them.Oh I could go on and on about Lawrence and all that he has been through and is still facing, but I just wanted to let you know of the Miracle called Lawrence. Thank you for you time. Thank you for your prayers. And please, don't stop praying for him. There is something so special about Lawrence that he has this ability to touch people all over without ever having seen them.
     Lawrence is Love.

Piglet is sharing the news that The Tornado is 4!!

Looks like Pooh is bringing a sunflower just for Lawrence!

Lawrence, I sincerely hope you liked your surprise!!!!

If you would like to send Lawrence or Barb an email, just click here!

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Page created August 22, 2000