Please Help Baby Cliff!

Today my post is not about me or my book, it's about Baby Cliff. This sweet little boy is the nephew of my cover design artist (and sister-in-law), Julie Thompson. Precious Cliff is nine-months-old and was born with a very rare syndrome; so rare there is only one other case exactly like it recorded. He suffers from a variant of Alagille Syndrome, which affected the growth of his organs. His kidneys and liver do not work properly, but they have responded well to medication. It is his pulmonary arteries that have everyone very concerned. His arteries haven't grown since he was born. Just trying to drink from a bottle was so exhausting to him, because of the exertion put on his heart, that they had to fit him with a tube that goes into his nose, down his esophagus and into his tummy to supply his food without him having to nurse from a bottle. However, even that is causing congestion and they hope to be able to fit him with a tube that goes directly into his stomach.

I am writing to ask all of you for your help. Baby Cliff's parents are in dire need of help with the medical costs that are accruing for Cliff's care. Many have expressed their desire to help in this regard, so Julie and her sister TeriDel (Cliff's mother) have compiled a cookbook with some of their families' favorite recipes. This is not just a spiral bound book with type-written recipes---they went all out! It is a beautiful cookbook with brief, insightful descriptions and beautiful pictures of the food they prepared themselves and photographed. The cover itself is a work of art. They worked incredibly hard to have something to be able to raise money to help this sweet baby get the medical attention he needs.

I'm asking you to visit their blog at www.babycliffnotes.blogspot.com to learn more about Cliff and perhaps purchase a cookbook to benefit him. (If you prefer, you can just donate to his cause on the blog site as well.) All funds go to help with his medical care.

Please give just a few moments to see how you can help Cliff, and feel free to pass this message and Cliff's blog address along to others you think may be interested in helping. My heartfelt thanks to you for your time.