Jeff and Andee were married in 2003. We were both born and raised in Utah. We have three sweet children. During a 23 week check up with our second child, the baby was diagnosed with Pulmonary Stenosis, a heart defect. She was born on December 16, 2009 when the doctors discovered she actually had Pulmonary Atresia, Tricuspid Atresia and Atrial Ectopic Tachycardia. After she was born she stayed at Primary Children's Medical Center for three weeks. During that time she had a BT Shunt and stent placed in her heart.
On June 4, 2010, Gracelyn received her Glenn shunt. During that time they removed her BT shunt and stent. She is doing great! The next step will be the Fontan procedure some time after she turns two.
We intend for this blog to keep family and friends aware of what's going on as our story progresses. We have learned so much and found strength from the blogs and websites of those that have previously gone through this that we want to share our story for those who will unfortunately face this as well, as there is currently no cure for Congenital Heart Disease. We are grateful for all the prayers on our behalf.
UPDATE: July 2013: Gracelyn was scheduled to have her Fontan this summer. Doctors feel like she is doing so great it can be postponed until next summer. We have recently contacted the Children's Hospital of Boston for second opinion. They believe they have an alternative to the Fontan. In September we will head to Boston to see what they can do for her.
UPDATE: April 2015- Gracelyn had her Fontan surgery on April 27, 2015. She flew through the procedure and recovery. It didn't happen immediately, but by day two she was a beautiful shade of pink.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Eating Solid Food...
We've been wanting to feed Gracelyn solid food for awhile now. However, we felt it would be best to wait until her surgery was over. She wasn't making a fuss when we were eating and it just didn't seem fair to give it to her just to take it away. (Besides, the box of rice said to wait until six months for allergy reasons, so really she was only 3 days late. :) ) Last weekend (19th) while we were camping we decided to give it a try. Jeff had promised Mr. C that he could be the one to introduce her to "real" food. He was excited. Since everything at our house is boy we went an bought her a new princess bowl and spoon. We got it ready and she went to town. She takes her aspirin every morning by spoon, so eating with it was nothing new. She did great. So did Mr. C. She loved it and got upset when it wasn't coming fast enough. Finally it cooled down and she stopped eating it. She would spit it back out and cry. Once I figured it out, we warmed it up and I fed her the rest. She finished it all. MMM...mush!
We have that same kind of chair, except it's green. And you give Gracelyn her aspirin in a spoon? Do you just crush it up and put some baby food on it or what? Cuz we've always put it in Kaleb's bottle but lately he's not finishing his whole bottle so I feel like he's not getting all the aspirin. And he's on some antacid medications also and those go in the bottle too. You'd think I'd have this down pat with having to give him meds for 8 months, obviously I'm missing something! ha haha
".....Heaven's kindness will never depart from you, regardless of what happens......Bad days come to an end, faith always triumphs, and heavenly promises are always kept."
--Jeffrey R. Holland--
"Life is hard, but life is simple. Get on the path and never, ever give up. You never give up. You just keep on going. You don’t quit, and you will make it."-Lawrence E. Corbridge
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." -Winston Churchill
We have that same kind of chair, except it's green. And you give Gracelyn her aspirin in a spoon? Do you just crush it up and put some baby food on it or what? Cuz we've always put it in Kaleb's bottle but lately he's not finishing his whole bottle so I feel like he's not getting all the aspirin. And he's on some antacid medications also and those go in the bottle too. You'd think I'd have this down pat with having to give him meds for 8 months, obviously I'm missing something! ha haha
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