Grant's Journey

The stars are aligned and indeed....we made it to the wedding! Grant decided to be a stinker and not sleep last night which made for one cranky mommy and daddy this morning, but we got over it so as to not spoil my little sister's day. We took a lot of photos today and I am so excited to share them with our friends who were not present for Kellie and Spencer's big day. We started out the day with a little of this: Two hours later, one curling iron burn, lots of hairspray, and one cranky baby (making it very difficult for me to get ready on time!).... we had this: Because we have to be SO cautious to keep Grant healthy before surgery, Kyle's parent's came into town (from Arizona) to watch Grant so that we could attend Kellie's ceremony in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple. It was a great thing to see them make such sweet promises to one another and then, we got to let Grant meet many of his extended family members that he has not yet met! Grant got his first experience m...

I am so relieved. Grant is out of the cath lab (he has been for a few hours now....just no place to sit down and update) and things went well. Because we were prepared for the worst, we got the best case scenario!! Dr. Cowley reported that Grant's heart held strong and did not slip into SVT patterns this time, so hopefully this means that he is getting stronger and outgrowing this! There were some interesting complications in his femoral veins. As I had suspected, Grant's femoral vein in the right leg was not suitable for a cath because the vein loops itself (remember this is where his blood clot was and likely due to the other lines that have been), but what we learned is that his left leg is identical and that femoral vein in that leg also could not be used. Because of this, they finally ended up going through his neck. That will complicate any future heart caths, but at least they could find the access they needed. Grant's heart pressures looked good....right where they ...

Grant is in the Cath Lab as we speak. We checked him in this morning and met up with Dr. Cowley (I am SO GLAD that he is the one doing the cath!!). We had a great discussion about Grant's rhythm problems and complicated Inferior Vena Cava problems that could complicate the cath. With all of this said, I gave Grant a big kiss, only teared up as I walked out the doors, and now I am set up with my internet and laptop to wait for a few hours until we see how he did. Since I have some time, here are some pictures!! Grant has discovered a new love of all things soft and silky. He is developing a preference for a certain slinky blanket and his cute little teddy bear that is the perfect size for him to hug tight! I think it is Adorable!!! He continues to be all smiles whenever someone will get down on his level to talk and play with him. Love that all gums grin! Grant had had lots of attention from his two doting Grandmas in the last week. Yesterday, I remembered to pull out the camera jus...

Ahhh Internet. I missed you. It is kind of sad to see how much enjoyment I get from looking at my google reader and having 88 new posts to read after a few week absence from consistent internet access. I appreciated the comments posted on Grant's blog though I assure you I meant to cause no contention and am a bit surprised by many comments. It was nice to "see" a few new faces who have been following Grant's blog leave us a note. Thanks for thinking of us and letting our little boy into your lives. It is official! We are into our new home and though the pictures are not hung and some boxes remain, we are in! We do love it and it has been so nice to let Grant get used to his new home. The best part is that I finally have a place to hang a BEAUTIFUL picture that Kyle gave me for our wedding. He promised me when we got married that we would one day have a house to hang it in (it is HUGE and has been in a box since we got married due to lack of space in our other apartm...

We have had a busy week. As I type, Kyle is supervising the moving company unloading our belongings into our new home! We closed yesterday and things are moving along nicely (no pun intended!). Over the last few days, Grant has had several appointments that I want to document quickly before I head over to our house to begin unpacking. 4 month checkup: Grant looks GREAT! His growth is right on track. He weighed 14lbs 3 oz and was in the 41st percentile. He had grown an inch and is now at 24.5 inches (also 41st percentile). His head circumference was small and only in the 7th percentile (ironic because prenatally he always had a huge head, but looks like it grew plenty then and has now slowed down!). I think if they would have measured his adorable double chin the results might have been different! We have to wait for his next round of immunizations for 6 weeks before and after surgery since the bypass machine he will be on will clean out all of his blood and wash out any vaccines that m...

I have so many thought tonight. A new heart baby is preparing to come to this world. My brother (Aaron) is married to Allyson. Allyson has a brother named Aaron (are you getting confused yet? Kind of funny that we both have an Aaron and an Alli(y)son in the family). Aaron and his wife Diana are expecting their second little girl who believe it or not was diagnosed in utero with HLHS and the doctors suspect that she also has heterotaxy. Since we have absolutely ZERO blood relations, this is not genetic at all, just a total random coincidence. I have been able to talk to Diana and try to help her get an idea of what to expect in this journey to come. Diana is being induced tonight and they are hoping to welcome their little girl into this world tomorrow sometime. I have not sought permission to direct people to their blog, but please keep this great family in your thoughts and prayers. It has really taken me back to just a few months ago when we were doing the same thing. It all feels so...

A new scar (look at the forehead) appeared on Baby Grant during the night last night. Perhaps the true source of his super powers? It is missing a little piece of the lightening bolt, but perhaps Grant is really Baby Harry Potter! I plan on making Grant's blog into a book after he turns one, so I wanted to add some photos of our nightly routine. Grant likes to get fussy in the evenings and he has the most perfect frowny face. It is tough to catch on film because this frown precedes the crying, but last night we caught one *sorry it is a little blurry*. The come the tears. And finally back to playing. Every little boy needs an oxygen cord to play with! Life is good. :-)

Grant has been super sleepy today giving me a chance to get a few things done....like a blog post! I spent the morning on the phone with Linda, one of the great cardio-thorasic Nurse Practitioners. We made the plan for Grant's surgery and it is official. Grant will have the Glenn on AUGUST 6th . Yikes. I made the mistake today of reading the carepage of a little boy from the South (who was born several years ago) and had an extremely difficult road after his round of HLHS surgeries and ultimately passed away. I know that this is a very difficult and complex heart journey to be on, but I have almost forgotten how sick Grant is now that we have settled into a routine at home. We get to play with him and make him laugh and giggle and life feels wonderful. Setting a new surgery date brings back so much uncertainty and fear. I hate the hospital (not Primary Children's.... they staff there are wonderful! Just the whole knowledge that your kid is sick enough to require hospitalization...