Thinking back to just three short months ago...I was getting ready to become a mommy. I had no idea what God had in store for me. The next day would be the happiest and scariest day of my life. Since that day my life has changed so much. My whole little world shifted on its axis the day my Jack came into my life. I've never been more thankful than I am right now for the blessings of my God. Just look at that sweet little face. Every little thing he does is magic.<3
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This weekend we spent our first holiday with our precious boy. And what more wonderful holiday is there to celebrate with our sweet son than the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We will spend our lives and dedicate our mission as parents to teaching our son the magnitude of what God did for us when he sent his son to die on OUR cross. We are literally eternally grateful for his sacrifice. Thank you Lord.
Jack had a great time at his first family get-togethers. He got to meet new aunts, uncles, and cousins. He got to hunt Easter eggs and even went to church for the first time with his mom and dad. Everyone was so glad to see him. It was a great weekend.
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Now that Easter is over, its time to start focusing on Jack's heart catheteriation that is going to take place next Wednesday, April 18th. We got the call today with all of the information that we need and now we're in major prayer mode. We're praying for a BIG miracle that day.
Josh and I will take Jack in to be admitted into UAB at 6am. We'll get a private room where we'll then go and wait for them to get ready for him. He's the youngest, so he's the first patient of the day. They'll let me and Josh walk him to the door of the cardiac unit, then we'll give him LOTS of hugs and kisses and say one more prayer for him, then we'll have to go back to his room for the hard part. The waiting.
Jack will be put under with general anesthesia. They'll then give him an IV and then put him on the ventilator. They'll go in through his groin and up the vein. Once they're in his heart they'll just measure pressures and take some pictures. They said it could take up to four hours depending on how difficult it is to maneuver though his small veins. Once they are done, Dr. Law (the cardiologist) will call me and Josh and let us know how it went. They'll take him off the ventilator and get him breathing good on his own again and then he'll go into recovery where Josh and I will meet him. At which point I will scoop him up and love him to pieces. <3 We'll be in recovery for around an hour and then we'll go back to his regular room for at least six hours and possibly the night.
That's the plan. We're praying that everything will go as smoothly as possibly and that it will be quick and easy for him and for us. The nurse who called me today said that it will be much harder on us than it will be on him. She said the incision is tiny and shouldn't be too sore. And they're going to wait until he's under to do his IV so he won't be in pain when mommy's not there to hold his hand.
Please pray with us. This is his first really invasive procedure. It's his first time to be put to sleep. His first incision. His first time to be on the ventiltor. His first time to be away from mommy when they're poking at him. It's very scary for me and Josh. We just pray that God will hold him in His almighty hands. Bring him comfort if he gets scared or upset. Be with the doctors and nurses while they do their work. Let this procedure go as smoothly as possible. Allow for a quick and easy recovery. And most importantly, AMAZING results.
We are trusting our God 100% for the results that we want to hear. We know that He has an amazing plan for Jack's life and we are believing in His will. He has brouht us this far and given us miracle after miracle with our sweet boy. How could we not trust Him?
Ephesians 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within.
Our God is MORE than able to do MORE than we could ever ask or imagine. Miracles ARE possible.
Our little guy (who is now a strong and healthy 17 year old) did his heart cath at 6 months and the protocols were exactly the same for us as you listed in your post. Jack will do great and the cath is an excellent source of answers and bases for plans for his repairs in the future. Our son came through it just fine and Jack will too! Praying for you all!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing that with me. It always helps to hear stories of those who have gone through this before us. Especially the good stories! <3
ReplyDeleteMy son had a heart cath done at 5 days old. To make a long story short his heart defect wasnt caught before we left the hospital. So we went from thinking we had a perfectl healthy son to him being intubated and having a heart cath done within hours and having open heart surgery at 13 days old. I didnt know about all these support groups on facebook, I wish I did so I could hear storys (good storys of course) to ease my mind. I just prayed and prayed and prsyed some more. Today ive got a amazing 7 month old son that never seems to amaze me! He is healthy as can be just regular check ups with his cardiologists who remindes us of how much of a little miracle my son is. It will be a hard time but by reading your blog I can tell with your faith and the prayers that everything will turn out for Jack. I will continue praying for him. You can never have to much prayer as we all know :) God Bless.
ReplyDeleteMy son, who's picture I posted on Jack's page, had his first cardio cath at 26 days old in 2007. We did not discover his CHD until he was 19 days old & that's only because I asked the dr why he was breathing so hard when we went in for a weight check.(Which we were doing every couple days cause he was losing weight.) It was a whirlwind from there. He went downhill real quick after that so they had to do something fast cause the surgery he needed was going to be too hard to do cause his heart was so small. They did a temporary fix to hold us over so he could grow some more & it worked! At 9 months he finally hit 12 lbs & they decided it was time to fix the problems. They weren't able to fix everything but they said they would keep an eye on things & see if the last hole could heal itself. Well, praise God, it did!! At his last checkup everything was closed & they said his heart looks strong & healthy. That was a year ago & our cardiologist said he didn't need to see him for 3 YEARS!!! He starts kindergarden this fall & I love him sooooo much (so does dad, & his big brother & 2 big sisters!! LOL!!) I KNOW Jack will get thru all this with all your love and God's!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Chelsea and Melissa for sharing your stories and words of encouragment with me. Knowing others who have been in my shoes and now have healthy happy children just makes this time a little bit easier to handle. Its so scary as a mommy and knowing that you all have been there and are praying for us just helps moret than I can say. Please continue to pray. <3
ReplyDeleteMy daughter (who is Now 3 years old ) was born w/ Downs , A.v Heart canal defect with mitral insufficiency,(which she had to have a feeding tube because her heart couldnt take,being breast or bottle fed )denial atresia , polycystic kidney disease, hypothyroidism, gastroesphageal reflux, And corpus callosum . She has been thru many procedures (including heart cath And an open heart surgery @ 6 months old ) And that nurse is right ,it is always harder on the parents than it is on the child ) . Jack Will do great ! At the age of two my daughter was taken off her captopril And lasix for heart ( matter of fact the only Med she is on @ 3 years old is for her hypothyroidism ) And only has a very small Heart Valve leak. So just keep praying because Prayer does change things . They didnt expect my daughter to make it after birth but three years later she's still here and She's doing great ( and so will jack :-) ) keep the faith ! I Will continue to keep jack in my prayers .
ReplyDeleteI Will also be praying for his Mom And dad also because i know how hard it is to have to to watch your Baby have to go thru something like that .
DeleteI will be praying for Jack and your family. Words cannot described what a parent feels and is going through when their child is sick and needs intensive care. My son Tyler has a single ventricle, transposition of the great arteries, and a pulmunary stenosis. He is now 3 years old and doing well. He had three stages of surgery (BT shunt, bi-directional glenn, and the Fontan surgery which was last March 2011. Just know that what helps your child the most is for you to stay strong and to be there as much as possible but don't be afraid to ask friends or family to help you out. Stay strong and God Bless.
DeleteYour little boy has already had amazing miracle after amazing miracle! I am praying for a seamless heart cath, good results and for true peace and calm from God for you.
ReplyDeleteBethany L.
Hi Crystal,
ReplyDeleteOur family is praying to Father God for miracles from Heaven. May the mighty hand of our Lord rest upon Jack as he heads in for his procedure this week.
'Father we lift up this family to you and ask you to pout down your favour and delight upon them. We pray for complete restoration and healing to come now to Jack in every part of his being. Father we are in great expectaion to see the plans you have laid out for Jack and his family. We praise your most Holy name. Thank you in the name of Jesus.'