June 6th, 2009...10 months...Remembering Amit

On this, the sixth of June, Deepika, Amit's family and friends, and the community of Chico remember the loss of a beautiful man, Amit Tandon. His heart was enormous; his generosity, overflowing; his smile, from ear to ear; his talent, unending; and his loss, felt by people the world over, deep, raw, angry, sad, heartwrenching....there are not enough words to describe such a tragedy, such a loss.

I look at Deepika and I am filled with love, deep respect, and a bit of heartache. Such a wonderful person with such a good heart that has endured such heartache and tragedy and yet she continues on with great strength, hope, and faith.

I see Jevesh and think of all the terrible things that child has had to endure in such a short time and I hope and pray that he beats all the odds to grow up to be a bright, strong, healthy individual with all the wonderful qualities of his mother and father. When I look at that child I see his parents and I have hope and warmth in my heart (and admittedly tears in my eyes occasionaly).

Please continue to offer your kind words, prayers, and thoughts as the struggles continue. Please remind those around you to never drink and drive and never let anyone around them drink and drive. No one should have to suffer such tragedy and heartache, we must all try to make a difference.

Here are a few recent pics of Jevesh (I will post more on the 9th...his 6 MONTH Birthday!).

May, 2009...A Happy Weekend

Though I am a bit late in posting this, I wanted to make sure to send out my Birthday Wishes to Jevesh who has turned a beautiful 5 months old. He is home, he is healing, and he is hopefully getting healtheir every day.

I also want to send out my Happy Mother's Day wishes to Deepika..a woman with a beautiful heart, a beautiful mind, and a beautiful spirit. Her strength and heart are inspiring.

May the future hold happiness, good health, and blessings.

April 2009...Home Sweet Home

Just a quick post to let you all know that Jevesh is healing well and the hospital released him to go home. He and the family are now trying to get settled in and find some normalcy in their lives (at least as much as one can given the situation).

The road has been long and will continue to be a long road to follow, but with strength, support, prayers, and positive thoughts, the road will not be so hard to travel as it has been.

Thank you all for your prayers, kind words, and thoughts, every one counts and please continue to send them on to Jevesh and Deepika.

April 16, 2009...Fun Photos

Here are some nice pics we took before the surgery...just a little something to bring a smile to your heart :)

April 09, 2009...Happy Birthday baby...

Another short update for you all. I spoke with Deepika and Jevesh is recovering well. He is in a bit of pain right now and the doctors are trying to keep him comfortable. Deepika is by his side comforting him. They removed the last drainage tube on Friday and she was finally able to hold him.

On a happy note, today, Jevesh turns four months old...he has gone through more in these last few months than some may go through in a lifetime, but he is strong and courageous - just like him mom and dad. I wish you stong health, a quick recovery, and plenty of love and prayers to keep you going.

Happy Birthday Munchkin.

April 08, 2009...Recovering

I wanted to update you all regarding Jevesh's surgery. On Monday, April 6th of this week Jevesh went in for his second major heart surgery. Everything went as planned and Jevesh is currently recovering.

I wish I had more to tell you but at this point in time, all we can do is wait and think positive thoughts, pray, etc. He is a strong child with the good and strong spirit of his mother and father to keep him fighting.

I will post again when I find out more on how he is recovering and how mom is doing. In the meantime, please continue to keep both Deepika and Jevesh in your thoughts and prayers.


This picture was taken a few weeks ago while Jevesh and family were waiting to hear about when they would be able to get him in for surgery.

March 28, 2009...Still patiently waiting...

I know that most of you have been very patiently awaiting an update to this blog...fortunately and unfortunately, I have nothing new to report. Currently we are still in Limbo. The doctor was out of town and their are other kids ahead of Jevesh for surgery this weekend.

Please keep Deepika and Jevesh in your thoughts, prayer etc. It looks like the surgery will be this coming weekend (first weekend of April) just a week shy of Jevesh's 4 month birthday.

I will try and post as soon as I know, however, I will be potentially without an internet connection next weekend. Do not fret...as soon as I know and have an internet connection, I will post.

AND NOW, for your viewing pleasure, some beautiful pictures of our growing Jevesh...he is now about 24 inches long and weighing in at 4.6 kg!

March 17, 2009..Waiting

Just a quick update as I know many of you are anxious to hear what is going on.

Last week, the doctors catheterized Jevesh's heart, checked pressures and took samples to evaluate oxygen levels in the heart tissue. After evaluating the results, the doctors decided that Jevesh needed to be scheduled for surgery as soon as possible.

Initially, the doctor's tentatively scheduled Jevesh for surgery on Saturday, however there was no operating room available. Sunday an emergency with another child arose and Jevesh's doctor was needed for that surgery so they have again postoned the surgery.

Currently we are in a holding pattern. Waiting...each day, adjusting feeds in preparation for the surgery in case they are able to get him in to an operating room.

Jevesh is stable and doing well. He is often smiling with a twinkle in his eye. Unfortunately, he has lost some weight, so Deepika is making sure that Jevesh is getting a fortified feed to increase his calories so that he can regain his weight and strength.

I promise I will post another blog entry if and when things change.

Please continue to send your kind thoughts and prayers to Deepika and Jevesh. As always, please feel free to post your well wishes to the blog, as Deepika does view the comments.

March 09, 2009...Another Birthday in the Hospital

Another quick update for you all.

After two days(slightly less than that actually - the early AM of Thursday to the late evening of Friday) at Sutter General in Sacramento, it was decided by the doctors looking after Jevesh, that he should be transported back to Stanford, to the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. Friday Evening, they made the transfer by ambulance after ensuring that Jevesh was stable and ready for transport.

Deepika was permitted to travel with Jevesh in the ambulance and is now back at Stanford, where she will likely have to stay for some time. Currently, they are still conducting tests to determine why Jevesh went in to stress and what will be their next course of treatment.

This week, the doctors will conduct a procedure on Jevesh that involves catheterizing the heart. During this exam they will evaluate the structure, development, and condition of his heart.

Given his dropping oxygen saturation levels and fragile nature, the doctors appear to be strongly considering moving Jevesh's surgery date up by a month. The surgery will involve attaching the superior vena cava to the lungs. The surgery is referred to as the Glenn surgery I believe(I am not sure yet, if this is an acronym or named after the doctor who developed the procedure. I will share more information as I come to know) and it is very serious. Normally, they do not like to do this surgery on children younger than four months, however, the situation may necesitate doing just that. It is riskier to do this surgery at a younger age and the recovery time is much longer, however, it may be the best, safest choice for Jevesh. Fortunately, he is in very good hands with the doctors and nurses at the Children's Hospital.

I will keep you posted as I learn more. I will also post some very nice pictures and maybe video - with Jevesh smiling. (Despite his frailty and discomfort, Jevesh is a strong and brave soul, just like his parents. Many times you would not know his suffering to look at him. He smiles a genuine big smile - just like his mom and his dad - from ear to ear...warming the heart and the soul...Please, Keep them all in your prayers...may only kindness, good health, good fortune, and positivity surround Deepika and Jevesh).

If you look at the past photos I have posted, you may notice that Deepika always made sure to have Amit's picture next to Jevesh where he could see it...you will also notice that Amit had one of his trademark smiles - ear to ear...Jevesh would often look at that photo...and now he too is smiling...I don't yet have those pictures loaded to my computer, however, in the meantime, here is one of Amit's pictures. You cannot tell from the picture, but the one of Jevesh, he is looking at the picture of his dad that Deepika placed in his crib. Friday marked seven months since Amit was taken from us...Monday marked Jevesh's third month Birthday. In such a few short days, we have such heartache and hope. Please keep them all, Deepika, Jevesh, and Amit in your thoughts and/or prayers...and as always, thank you all for your kindness and support.

March 05, 2009....unwanted changes

Just a quick note...I will post more as information becomes available...

Jevesh's Oxygen saturation levels dropped last night. He was taken to the Chico Enloe hospital ER. After running some basic tests and taking some blood samples, the doctors at Enloe consulted with the pediatric cardiologist that is taking care of Jevesh and with Stanford.

Stanford did not have any beds available so Jevesh has been life-flighted to Sacramento (Sutter General I believe). They will conduct echocardiograms and further tests to determine what type of care will be needed.

With optimistic thoughts, hopefully this is just a "hiccup" of sorts and Jevesh will be able to go home after a few days of observation. If it is anything serious, they will likely keep Jevesh in Sacramento until a space opens up at Stanford.

Please keep sending positive thoughts and prayers to Jevesh and Deepika...every single one counts.