This weekend has been a roller coaster of emotions. From Friday until today I have heard news that broke my heart. With permission, I am now sharing the story of Molly Mutz and her parents, Jacob and Rebecca. Rebecca is the daughter of Dennis and Barbara Rainey of Family Life. Rebecca is one of my best friend Christy’s best friends. She is super sweet and has an infectious smile that lights up a room. Molly is their first child. Please take some time to read their story and lift them up in prayer. I truly can not imagine the weight this places on Jacob and Rebecca. Feel free to leave comments, I will makes sure they get the chance to read them all!
Rebecca and Jacob welcomed Molly Ann Mutz Friday morning at 5:27am. Molly didn’t breathe for 4 minutes and her oxygen levels were all wrong when she was born. They immediately took her to NICU. They said she had a significant heart murmur and ran various tests, etc.
Since then Molly has been transferred to a Children’s Hospital. Molly has Pulmonary Hypertension which is making her little body “extra sensitive.” So even a bath (or a wipe down) discomforts her. However the PH should go away eventually.
The main problem that Molly has is AVM (Arteriovenous Malformations). AVM’s are masses of abnormal blood vessels which grow in the brain. They consist of a blood vessel “nidus” (nest) through which arteries connect directly to veins, instead of through the normal elaborate collection of very small vessels called capillaries. As a result, blood that is pumping in Mollyʼs body cannot keep its oxygen level high enough as a significant portion of that blood does not re-circulate back through the heart and lungs in time to get fully re-oxygenated. She is on a breathing tube to help regulate her heart and to keep the oxygen levels where they need to be. She has a 2nd tube in her mouth that goes to her tummy to help keep air out of her little tummy.
Rebecca and Jacob now have the hardest decision to make. No parents should have to make this decision. Since having an MRI done on Saturday they have learned that Molly has a brain annuerism. She also has congenital heart failure…on top of AVM. She is legally blind and up to 50% of her brain is damaged, so she is already mentally disabled to a degree.
The decision that has to be made is if they should seek treatment for all these things or not. To seek treatment would mean 10-20 surgeries, obviously Molly would have a very hard life ahead of her. If they seek treatment the first surgery will be as early as this next week. If they do NOT seek treatment…the doctors will simply make Molly comfortable and Jacob and Rebecca will enjoy the days they have with her.
As you can imagine they are grieving. Grieving for the news they already have on Molly, and for this huge decision they are having to make. Dennis and Barbara are also grieving with them and they are just going through such an emotional rollercoaster right now as you can imagine.
So many people read this blog from all over. I am hoping that we can get even more people praying. If you blog, will you think about posting about this? We are all praying for a miracle for her. However, more than anything, we are praying for wisdom. This is a hard path for Jacob and Rebecca.
Full of Boys 
Thank you Jenn! I love you.
Oh, that breaks my heart. I have one healthy daughter, and another baby on the way. I have an uncle who is “severely retarded”, after a bout with spinal meningitis when he was 12. I see the life that he leads, and how his parents try to keep him comfortable and happy, 40 years later, even as they undergo major surgeries and illnesses as well. Molly is in our prayers!
Jenn, thanks for posting this. I will be linking this to my blog http://thestegers.blogspot.com. I’m friends with Christy and Becca.
This is truly so very sad. I will continue to pray!
so sorry to here this, I believe in the prayer chain the more
people pray the more relief they find. bless this family my
heart goes out to them and I will keep them in prayer.
Rebecca, you and your family are in our prayers.
Praying…..
Thank you for sharing this story. I know of Rebecca from college and I had no idea she was going through this. I will be lifting her and her precious family up to Jesus in prayer.
Hi Jacob and Rebecca,
I will be praying for you and your baby. About 7 years ago I gave birth to a sweet little girl, name Kristen, who wasn’t expected to live. She was born with a condition called holoprosencephaly. He has gone through about 6 neurosurgeries during her first two years of live. We have learned so much from this experience, and God has been faithfull each step of the way. She is still with us today, and we are thankful for her life, and all we have learned through her. It is a very hard path to go through, but one that will touch many lives. God bless your family,
Roseli