A Decade

(Photo Credit: Jessica Greenfield Photography)

My Dearest Maddie,

Today you are 10. What a day to celebrate! You have lived a decade...and boy have you lived. I am so proud of you and the strong, kind, silly, spunky, and tough young lady that you are. You are loyal and sincere, loving and accepting those around you well. I wish that I had your patience, your sheer determination, and especially your ability to "not sweat the small stuff". Though you're only 10, you are oh so wise. Your perspective on life, on the little things, is one to be desired. I learn from you each day and thank God for you Maddie. I love that we have each other in our house filled with boys!

I'm so grateful to be your mom, and though it is going by much too fast, I will choose not to be sad about it. I cherish each day with you and consider it such a gift. You have taught me to not take anything for granted. Watching you grow and cheering you on from the sideline has been such a gift and when I look back on my life someday, being your mom is one of my greatest blessings. I adore you my sweet girl and I couldn't have dreamt up a more perfect daughter than you! I pray you will continue to love the Lord with all of your heart, and may He lead you each step of the way. Your eyes sparkle with love and light, keep shining Maddie Moo...

Happy 10th Birthday my sweet girl.

I love you, Mom

Cardiology Appt.

 

Maddie Moo had an appointment back in November...and I'm a month late posting about it. We've just been relishing in the fact that she had no alarms or "wait and see's" on this visit! She had a fantastic visit! I think this was the best report she's ever been given.

Her sats were the highest we've ever seen in clinic, even with her fenestration still open, the pulse ox read 93%!!! Dr. C was pleased with her echo, blood pressure and ekg. He even talked about spreading her visits out to once a year but decided we should have 1 more good appointment like this before doing that so in 6 months she'll have another cardiology appointment. She continues to grow like a weed, shocking us all with being in the 94% for height and weight. If only her brothers took after her? I joke that the extra calories we fed her to get her to grow as a a baby have finally kicked in, causing some fast growth in this girl! It just reassures us that her heart likes it's plumbing and tall genetics have kicked in.

What I took away most from this appointment other than her awesome numbers, was witnessing how grown-up and mature Maddie has become at her dr. visits. She carried on a sweet conversation with Dr. C, answering his questions and visiting about her experiences in 1st grade. One question she had for him was if she could play basketball...she was recently told by a peer at school that she "can't play because of her heart" which has bothered her. When she came to me with this, I explained that I thought she could but the best person to ask would be her Doctor. Luckily, we had an appt. the following week, so it was a perfect time for her to talk to him about it. I absolutely loved his answer... "Maddie, you can play and participate in almost any sport  I can think of" then he winked at me and whispered, "lets not take up kick boxing or anything like that." She sure puffed up when he gave her the go-ahead. She's been wanting to play basketball, like her big brothers do, and she is so excited to be doing that on Saturday mornings now. I love that my HS coach and good friend are the coaches.

As we watch Maddie grow (oh how she's grown!) and become this dear little girl, we stand amazed. Amazed at His goodness and at His provision over her life. I know I've said this a million times but we never expected life to be this good. We are so very blessed. Thank you for following her journey and for your prayers on her behalf. They have been answered!

Cardiology & the Zoo!

Maddie had her 6 month follow-up cardiology appt on Monday in Seattle so Nany joined us and we set out for an overnight, little spring break get-away. I'm still in shock a bit as this was the best "report" we've ever been given after an appointment!!! Dr. C didn't have any bombs to drop about her heart, he thought she's looking great and doing remarkable! I would agree and we feel so blessed by this great news. She was satting 88, still has her fenestration and there are no plans on closing it, her BP was 95/53, and she's still growing! Her pulmonary arteries look great and he mentioned that if you didn't know her history with PA stenosis/hypoplasia, you'd never guess they've been a sore subject these past 6 years on what to do with them. As for the jets that were seen on her Nov. echo, Dr. C couldn't see them this time so he's sure they had to be an imaging error. Huge relief. 

After her appt, I ran up to the new ICU wing (so fancy) and visited a heart mama friend, Devon. Her daughter, Karlee 5 yrs, had a transplant at 3 months old and recently had a whirlwind weekend, ended up having to have surgery on her intestines/bowel where a mass was found. Long story short, this tough little heart kiddo now has Stage 4 Lymphoma. It is completely heartbreaking. The strength Karlee and her family has is amazing. She's started chemo and is making improvements each day. We're praying for her recovery and healing. Please join us in praying for Karlee and her parents... 

At the beginning of this journey with Maddie, Bryan sweetly said when I was complaining/crying about all of the trips we'll have to make over here, "just think of all of the shopping trips you can make out of coming over for her appointments"...he was right. He probably regrets saying that now! We do really look forward to our Seattle appointment trips! We enjoyed eating out, a little shopping at U Village and outlets (Maddie loves shopping), swimming at the hotel pool and the zoo before heading back to the country... here's Miss Maddie posing with the zoo's "PeaHock" as she called it.

Nany was telling Maddie that Peacocks make a really loud, yelp sound so she imitated one and this guy wanted to impress...he yelped back at us and strutted his stuff. Too funny!

 Sam doesn't pose or smile much for pictures, he is pointing to lion tamer big sis though...

 And the carousel was probably her favorite. Smiling the entire way... 

Sammer and I, he was a little scared so we ended up riding double...

It's such a relief having this appointment behind us. Maddie starts soccer on Monday and we're getting busy with Jace's baseball games in Moses Lake each week as well as farming. The boys have been working this spring break with Bryan, putting in pipe, shoveling trenches, and putting in a sprinkler system. It's been a beautiful week, time to head outside!

Bry & Jace

It's CHD Awareness Week!

It's been a little over 6 years since I heard the words in that dark ultrasound room, "Your baby has a Congenital Heart Defect"... I had no clue of what CHD was. Six years later, I live with a survivor. A fighter. She lives each day of her life with only half of a beating heart. Simply amazing. We are incredibly blessed.

Miss Maddie relaxing in Hawaii, Thanksgiving 2013

I have several unfinished posts about our family's happenings, and I really need to get those on here but with CHD Awareness Week and National Wear Red Day today, I'm going to try to continue the tradition of posting something heart related each day this week.

Life is good for us...our Heart Hero is doing amazing! I'm passionate about spreading awareness of CHD so stay tuned as there will be more to come...and thank you for following our journey.

Our preschool graduate

 

 

 

 

Our last day of preschool was a water field day & BBQ!

 

Maddie-girl is officially a Kindergartner now...she (as well as 11 other students) graduated from Preschool on June 5th. Not only did Maddie finish preschool but so did I...I'm stepping down from teaching and welcoming the much needed time I'll have without running a preschool in my home! Having four kids and all of their activities, being a farm wife, and the PTO President is going to keep me busy enough!

 

Maddie is so ready for school this fall. I had a meeting with our school nurses and we developed her 504 Emergency Care Plan. After going through that meeting, I had a harder time with it all than I'd anticipated...just another way that it "hits me" that she lives daily with a miraculous, little half-heart. Our life is in such a great place right now and we're so blessed Maddie's doing so well that I don't dwell on it much. I love the staff and do feel good about her starting all-day Kinder but I'm going to miss my little girl so much and I do have some anxiety about this next step for her. Not being with her 24/7 is the hardest. Trust, guidance & reliance fill my prayers when I pray over my girl. I can't help but be excited for her though...she is ecstatic about this change! Oh, to be 5 again, without a worry in the world. I'm learning so much through this sweetheart.

Fontanniversary!

Today is Maddie's 2nd Fontanniversary! Two years ago, Maddie was in the OR, having her third open heart surgery, the Fontan. It's hard to believe that at this time two years ago, her heart was stopped and she was put on bypass so Dr. M could put a fenestration (hole) in the gortex tube he placed in her heart, which does the work of returning blood back to her heart. No pumping of the blood back from her body to her heart...it just flows by gravity and bypasses the teeny, underdeveloped heart side of her heart. Bizarre to think about.

So what is Miss Maddie doing two years later? Well, she's 4 days away from finishing preschool...

Our preschool recently toured Red Rock Elementary's Kindergarten classrooms as well as ate hot lunch in the cafeteria, this little girl is SO EXCITED and talks daily about going to Kindergarten. She also mentions things like, "Mom, you'll be ok, I'll come back home" or "You can come visit me but I will stay and you'll go home and take care of Sammy"...can you guess who has the anxiety about Kinder? It's not Maddie!

She just had her ballet performance, which she add-libbed some moves in the routine a few times (and it was stinking cute that she did) she loves to perform!

Maddie's enjoyed the kittens we've had lately...2 batches within a month of each other. Thanks to Maddie & Sam, these kittens don't stand a chance at being wild! Those two are kitty tamers extraordinaire!

Life post-Fontan is awesome! Maddie is doing so well and by looking at her, you would never guess she's been through so much in 5 years. She just had her bi-annual check up with Dr. C on May 6th. Her echo was clear, Laura was able to get awesome pics of her heart, which we learned is doing great! Her sats were 90%, she's 47" tall and weighed 52 lbs. That's 17 pounds in 2 years! I'd say her heart really loves it's repair...her growth spurt proves that!

 

Life has really moved on for us, we do keep in touch with fellow heart families but the heart world doesn't overshadow our lives like it did 2 years ago. I've loved this new normal and I'm so in love with this little girl. She amazes me everyday and the gratitude I feel for her and for His grace over her and our family overwhelms my heart at times.

Disneyland!

During Spring Break, we took a quick girls trip to Disneyland. Although 2 nights and 3 days was short, we did get a LOT in! Our goal was to meet princesses, watch parades and of course go on some favorite rides. Since the boys have been a few times, they were really understanding about it all. They enjoyed all of that boy time with dad anyway!

The weather was so beautiful...upper 70's. Our group was Nany (my mom), Maddie and I as well as my sister-in-law Jessica, cousin Kylie and her Grandma Rose Mary.

Rapunzel was the first princess we met. She was so sweet and after standing in line for a half-hour, it was well worth it, even with a shy Maddie at first. This didn't last long, she warmed up quite well to the princesses!

Then there was Merida from Brave...

We spent quite a bit of our time in Fantasy Land...she loved riding the carousel :)

We made appointments for the girls at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique which was so much fun! I was wanting Mooms to go with more of the traditional princess look but she chose the Princess Diva :) SO funny! Of course, it was pink!

If you look in the mirror, you can see the girls hugging after Kylie was "revealed" in the mirror by her Fairy Godmother in training :) It was very magical and cute. Along with the hairdo, the girls got their make-up done, nails painted as well as were given a sash & bag. Nothing is cheap in Disneyland but I thought this was soo worth the money!

After their make-overs, we were off to see some more princesses! It was a short line and they hit the jackpot- getting to see Aurora, Ariel and Cinderella!

Ariel was our favorite...taking time with the girls, answering their questions, visiting with them at their eye-level. She was wonderful!

 



Nany & Maddie enjoying Casey Junior's Train ride

Pinochio's ride

Our second day, we got up early and hit a fun character breakfast at the Pink Plaza on Main Street. Maddie was excited about Minnie...I teared up thinking about Mia when I saw Minnie. She did chose a Minnie Doll as her souvenier for the trip. I guess I chose the same doll when I was 4 and at Disneyland for the first time :) I love that Minnie doesn't go out of style.

It did take her awhile to warm up...she's come a long way with these types of dressed-up characters!

 

 Pixar Parade in the Disney California Park

 That evening, Bryan surprised me by having dinner reservations all made and paid for at the Rainforest Cafe for my birthday! Here's Nany & Maddie being silly together :) The next morning, my real birthday, he had room service delivered. Such a sweet guy I have and I really missed him and the boys while away.

 

Then we saw Belle...

She loved Splash Mountain! So much fun! This was the "biggest" ride we hit and I'm afraid we have a thrill-seeker on our hands...she wanted to go again right away!

We also had the opportunity of meeting up with our California heart friends, the Masons!

Carlie & Maddie are both Right Hypoplasts...having very similar hearts. Carlie is now in 1st grade and doing fabulous! She's an amazing little dancer. She's always an inspiration to see and it's always so great to visit with Shannon :)



And right before we were to get on our shuttle to the airport, guess who we chased after...Goofy!?!

 

What a wonderful trip, filled with so many fun memories. I'm so glad we were able to get away and do the "princess experience" for our little princesses. Thanks to Bryan for handling everything at home and with the boys so well, and thanks to Aunt Lesa and family too for their help while we were away!

Let's get caught up!

Sam is now 16 months! He's starting to talk and mimic us, which is super cute and we love getting him to say "dora", "oh man", "uh-oh", "ooh ya". He catches on really quick and keeps us entertained! Sam's a great eater but a petite little guy...his nickname from Papa was "Stubby" since he has the shortest legs of any of our kids, maybe taking after his grandpa?

 Maddie just finished up Hoopster Tots...she enjoyed it but had to sit down and catch her breath a couple of times at each practice. She's satting in the upper 80's now which is ok- wished she was into the 90's, maybe she'd have a little more stamina. I'm glad she's learning to self-monitor herself and she's not afraid to tell me or the coach that she needs a break. She turns 5 on Wednesday and we're busy gearing up for her party!

Jace won 2nd place at the Scouts Pinewood Derby...thanks to Dad and our cousin Bud for helping him build a fast Hot Dog car!

We enjoyed a little get-away to Silver Mountain in Kellogg, ID in February. The kids absolutely love this place- skiing during the day and swimming in the evening! There were several families from Royal who went as well which made it such a fun trip!

 Maddie even tried out skiing one day! I wouldn't say she loved it but she's given it another go since! We'll see...I'm not super pumped but Daddy would love her to be able to ski.

Preschool is keeping us busy! This is my last year...I'll miss it but my family keeps me busy enough :) These kids are so social and a blast...lots of characters in this class!

 My mother-in-law treated me, her sister and my sister-in-law to a fun weekend trip to Las Vegas. I hadn't been there in 13 years and whoa, it's changed! We enjoyed shopping, the warm weather & seeing Carrie Underwood in concert. Lesa and I also went to Bodies...so incredible. I highly recommend it! Amazing seeing the many hearts, especially a fetus' heart- made me cry.

Have I mentioned we've taken on skiing as a new hobby? We've went more this season than I have probably skied my entire life! We've made a lot of fun memories with the boys this winter. Caden is a spectacular skiier. Really. He's a natural and now enjoys going over jumps, skiing backwards, doing 360's down the hill as he skis. He'd also like to race he tells us...

I can't keep up with these guys anymore and frequently hear them yelling, "Come on Mom!" Cautious, that's me with these three dare-devils :) Fun times!