No News is Good News!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful summer! So far, we've been very busy visiting family, taking swimming lessons, and playing with friends. A few weeks ago, Emma Kate had her quarterly cardio visit. She did great for her EKG and Echo. Dr. Cardis said her heart function is optimal! We're so grateful that she is doing well, but we don't take a single day for granted. That being said, it is easy to forget that she will need another open-heart surgery.  It's crazy how she defies her limitations!  Emma Kate is one fearless kid. Constantly jumping off the couch, climbing on counters and chairs, running around, swimming, and pretty much everything I never thought she'd be able to do. It's amazing. She keeps us laughing every day and she's such a blessing!

She loves to wash dishes, help me bake and cook, and play with her baby dolls! She told me the other day that she wants to be a mommy when she grows up. I know you will, baby girl.  One of her new found favorite things to do is chew gum. She asks for it constantly. It's so funny to see her chomping away, looking like a grown up. I think she feels grown up chewing it. 

A big milestone we have coming up is Emma Kate's 3rd birthday! So hard to believe that kiddo will be three! She has yet to decide on a birthday party theme. I've asked her several times, and she either says she wants a Caillou party or a Tangled party. (My vote would be for Tangled... and if you know who Caillou is, then you understand why!) I'm sure she would be happy with either!  Another big milestone we have reached is being potty trained. Emma Kate has caught on pretty quickly and mostly wears panties every day. When we are out running errands, I usually keep a pull-up on her still, but she's getting the hang of things and stays dry most of the day! I'm so excited about that. It's mandatory that she is potty-trained for 3K, which starts August 24. And I have a feeling she'll be just fine by then.

I almost forgot; she now weighs 24 pounds!! I'm so excited about that! Looks like the Nutella sandwiches are working!

Having fun on the swings.

She loves the camera!

 Sweet sister.

 Sleeping with Jessie and Daddy.

Last day of swimming lessons!

Pool girls!

Busy Summer

We are having such a fun summer! Emma Kate is doing very well. It's hard to believe she will be three years old in just two months. She has a cardiology visit coming up in a little over one week. I don't anticipate anything major happening at the appointment, but I will keep the blog updated with anything heart related. Thanks for checking in!

February-March Update

 

Hey friends! Thanks for checking up on Emma Kate! 

Things are going really well, and there isn't a whole lot to report, thankfully. We have been enjoying the spring weather and have been making summer plans. February was a pretty uneventful month, with the exception of CHD Awareness week. I did a little bit of researching online and found out that there will be a Congenital Heart Walk in May in Washington, DC. Since my parents live in that area, we plan on attending. So far Team Emma Kate has raised a little over $200.00. All of the funds will be donated to the Children's Heart Foundation. We're super-excited about walking with our friends and family and Team Charlotte, too!

In March Emma Kate had her quarterly cardiology visit. This appointment just included an EKG and a visit with Dr. Cardis. He gave us a great report, and declared that she is not "in need" of having her Fontan yet. As I have said before, her doctors are going to wait as long as they can for the surgery.  The idea behind this is that years after the Fontan is when health problems arise that are not seen in post-Glenn patients. Also, the Fontan is the end of the repair process. Once this has been done, there isn't really anything else surgical that can be done for her heart. So, basically, they are buying time on the back end, if that makes any sense. In any case, the doctors will be ready whenever Emma Kate  is ready! She is satting right around 82ish at this point. She weighs 22.4 pounds, and while that is still below the 3rd percentile, she is making steady weight gain, even if it is just a pound or two per year. She has not fallen off the curve, so that is definitely positive. Once her energy levels decrease, she starts losing weight, her sats are dipping into the 70s, or her heart function decreases, then the Fontan will be given more consideration.

Emma Kate is continuing to enjoy school twice per week. She loves playing outside, and when we go to the park or to her grandparents' house, she immediately wants to get on the swings! She's so full of energy, it amazes me! Usually, she gets up around 6 am (much to my dismay) and she does not stop until nap time. At one point she was napping for up to four hours, but she's napping about two hours on a pretty consistent basis. Bedtime is usually at 8. We recently had a visit from the Paci Fairy, who brought  Emma Kate a Newborn Baby Doctor Barbie in exchange for all six of her pacifiers. She still asks for the paci daily, but she's now going to sleep a little bit easier without it.  Next up: potty training!

Here are a few pictures from the last couple of months! Enjoy!

December-January Catch Up

Hey faithful blog readers! December was such a busy month for our family and I have lots of stories to share! At the beginning of the month, if you remember, Emma Kate had a regular appointment with her cardiologist. It is a blessing that we have nothing new to report. EK was perfect through the whole appointment. Her EKG and echo went well, and her heart function still looks great. Dr. Cardis only brought up the Fontan (final stage of surgery) to say that he didn't feel it was time for it yet. EK's oxygen saturations hovered around their normal, which was 82-83. Her energy level is really good, she doesn't get over tired in her normal, daily routine, which is what we like to see. When these specific factors begin to change, or if her heart function starts to decrease, it is at that point that her team with begin discussing specifics on when her Fontan will take place. Cardis cleared her for our flight to Hawaii, too!

We flew out on December 13th for an eight day vacation to Honolulu. On the flight there, we ended up having oxygen with us and a pulse oximeter. EK did not need continuous oxygen, which was awesome. But we did need it a few times. However, the lowest her sats got was about 72-73. I was pretty impressed. I think I scared myself into thinking she would drop down into the 60s. I'm so glad I was wrong. 

When we arrived at the airport, it was night time and it was very HOT and muggy, which was especially weird since it had been snowing when we flew out of Atlanta. The kids were exhausted, as were the grown ups. We actually stayed in Waikiki Beach, which was beautiful. It was very surreal to be in such a tropical place in the winter time. I can see how it would be easy to lose track of time in a place like that when all the months of the year carry the same weather patterns. For us, the weather was perfect and we had such a great time. The girls enjoyed the beach and the sightseeing we did. It was hard for them to appreciate that we were in such a cool place, of course, but I am glad that we were all there.

The beach was such a hit with the girls! The sand was totally different than the sand we are used to! Normally, when we go to the beach, it is somewhere in Florida or South Carolina, and the sand is very soft. The sand was quite coarse and harsh on our skin in Hawaii. The girls didn't like that. The water was also pretty cold. We had to keep bringing Emma Kate up to our beach chairs every now and then to warm her up. She would get so cold and turn purple-y blue and start shivering. It was hard to stop her from playing, she didn't understand why she had to get out of the water.

We returned home on December 21st and spent Christmas here at home before flying up to Virginia to visit my parents and brother. We had a great time there, just relaxing and spending time with family. Brooks and I took the kids into DC one day. We went up the Washington Monument, which held amazing views from the top! We also went to the Museum of American History and spent far too little time there. I wish we could have explored the entire place!

 

Showing off some of the contents of her stocking Christmas morning. The kid has Bieber Fever. I need to get a video up of her singing!

  

 They love their Uncle Zach!

Emma Kate is trying on one of the wooden shoes my parents got in Holland many years ago.

EK's favorite activity while at Nana & Papas house: lining up the baby Jesus' from each nativity. 

The girls adored the largest dollhouse in the US and wanted to take it home.

The view from the top of WaMo. 555 5/8 feet!

Nana & Knox. And Aunt Erin's painting. I think she did a great job, even if she is 25. 

Haha! Love you, Erin!

Little mama helping me feed her baby brother. 

I'm so glad we are back home now and into our routine again. We're back to work, school and church and visiting with friends. Good to be home. Right now I am getting in gear for CHD Awareness Week 2011. Still trying to decide what unique ways I can spread awareness in our community. If you have any you'd like to share, I would love to hear about them!

October-November Catch Up (In Pictures)

Whew! November has flown by! Here's a glimpse of life over the last two months.

 Hangin' with my bro.

AB, Knox, EK at Nana & Papa's.

The swings are her favorite. They also put her to sleep. :)

Fun times at the pumpkin patch with Daddy!

Had a sweet visit with Charlotte while we were in the DC area.

Halloween! It's hard to tell in this picture, but Emma Kate was dressed as a ladybug. AB is a butterfly!

Walking to the fall festival at our church.

Reading to her baby brother.

Enjoying a snack before bed.

Visiting the alpacas at Aunt Teri's work. Pretty neat!

Enjoying Thanksgiving feast at school.

I promise, she really loves her teacher Mrs. Caren. I do, too. She's awesome.

Coming in from the playground.

I wish my updates weren't so spread apart. Things have been crazy, though, and I while I would love for things to slow down, I don't see that happening any time soon. December promises to be just as crazy. We are leaving in less than two weeks for a week-long vacation to Hawaii! Needless to say, we're quite excited about it. There's a lot to prepare for when you are taking three kids on a 10+ hour flight. Not to mention one of them is required to have oxygen on board just in case. Coordinating that hasn't been as much of a hassle as I thought it would be. After we get home from Hawaii, it will only be a few days until Christmas and then we are off to visit my parents in the V-A!

Emma Kate has a cardiology appointment next Thursday. I feel that all will go smoothly, but we may have more of an idea of when her Fontan will take place. She's started getting a bit more blue. But the good news is, the kid never stops going. She's definitely not lacking energy. I am planning to update after her appointment, but please know that no news is good news, just in case I don't have time for a blog entry!

Thanks for checking on Emma Kate!

Some Major Catching Up

Having three kids hasn't been easy. I have really been slack about blogging. There's just not enough time in the day to get everything done. And honestly, blogging is the last thing on my mind if it's there at all!

Emma Kate had a cardiology appointment about two weeks ago. It went well. Her sats were at 82, she weighs 21 pounds. She sat perfectly still for her EKG and our visit with Dr. Cardis was great. We are still planning on holding off on the Fontan surgery as long as possible (could even be age 4 before she has it). We informed him that she is now attending 2K twice a week. He was okay with that. The germy-ness kind of scares me, but she's really enjoying the interaction and loves her teacher! She's no longer eligible to receive Synagis, but we do plan on getting flu shots in the near future. Hopefully she can fend of germs and not get sick.

Yesterday morning, however, Emma Kate woke up at 6 am with a 101.3 fever. We took her in to the after hours care at our pedi's office. Just an ear infection. Or something. But her lungs sound clear and her heart sounds good, which is what we were mostly concerned with.

We are still working on packing on the pounds with EK. Her little brother is going to pass her quickly! (He's already 13 pounds at two months old!!) I'm trying pretty much everything. If you have any suggestions, please let me know! But she eats when she's hungry, has boundless energy and seems to be growing ever so slowly.

She adores her baby brother!

She's a little jealous...

...so maybe she thought she could trick me into thinking she was her brother by wearing his bib.