cardiology check-up

Maddie's 6 month Fontan follow-up was Monday in Seattle. She had a full work up at the hospital and everything looks great! Dr. Chun was very pleased with her echo, he was able to see her PA's and the Fontan site, thanks to clear pictures and a very cooperative little girl. It's usually difficult getting clear shots of her PA's, due to the scar tissue from past surgeries. Her fenestration (hole created in the conduit) is still there and she seems to be very dependent on that so no hurry on getting it closed anytime soon. Dr. Chun feels like we should address it though in the next year, in which she'll need to have another heart catheterization in order to close it. Her 02 sats were 85-88% which is where he believes they have leveled out at. We had hoped she'd end up more in the 90's but with her anatomy and likelihood of forming collateral vessels, her sats are on the low side for a post-Fontan kid. Fortunately, it doesn't seem to bother her a bit and since she's as high as she's ever been oxygen wise, her body is loving it! Maddie has had more activity, color and just overall better health since her surgery so we'll take the upper 80's and not complain :) She weighed 39 lbs. and was 40 inches in height--yes, she's grown a bunch since her surgery too. I can't believe she's in the 80th percentile for growth! Miss Maddie doesn't need to be seen again for 6 months, unless something comes up. When I stop and think of all she's been through this year, it's truly amazing and reminds me of how remarkable that little heart of hers is.

this little turkey...

likes to sleep all day and wake up every 2-3 hours at night. Yes, we're still on that newborn-type schedule. I don't know if you can predict "personality" at 1 month old, but this guy knows what he wants, when he wants it. There is no "talking him out of it" and he can be impatient and fussy or super sweet and cuddly!

We had a really relaxing Thanksgiving at Grandma and Papa's...enjoying family, good visits and of course, lots of food!
these 3 cousins have become quite the trio--they are much louder than I ever remember the little boys. They sure know how to have some fun! And, no, we did not coordinate their outfits, turned out so cute though!
Our cutie pie Sam was one month old last week!
And big sister was 6 months post-op from her Fontan surgery on Thanksgiving day. So, so grateful that a half-year later, we're here. I'm thankful for this...and so much more.

Sweet little Sam

I'm in love with this baby. I love breathing him in, love listening to all of his sweet little sighs and grunts, and I've loved being able to breastfeed again. He has the cutest little toes & stubby boy fingers, and when he's awake and being talked to, his eyes get extremely big and alert, as if he's taking in every word that I say. But what I've enjoyed most is catching tiny glimpses of each of our children through Sam...ways that they resemble one another, reminiscing about when Jace, Caden or Maddie were newborns. It's like re-living that time again but getting to share in it with them now.

Watching the boys & Maddie with Sam has brought us many smiles. "Our baby is loved" is an understatement and I'm thankful that his older siblings feel this way about their baby brother, even if it's a bit "aggressive" at times! Can you guess who gets lectured on being more "easy, gentle, soft" with the baby? As I was giving Miss Maddie a quick reminder one day about not picking Sam up, she looked up at the ceiling, hands thrown up in the air, and through a frustrated sigh said, "Why can't you just be nice?" Yes, I've been a bit short with her on this subject...

Sweet little Samuel is a blessing. And he fits the meaning of his name--"Heard God; asked of God." We are so grateful for our healthy baby, for the joy he's brought to each of us, and the Lord certainly heard our prayers.

October recap

October came and went...too quickly! At the beginning of the month, I thought I had 1 month to go until baby's arrival, but by the end of the month, we had a 10 day old baby boy! We had soccer games for the boys, scouts, ballet, teaching preschool twice a week, weekly doctor's appts, as well as finishing apple harvest. It was a crazy month to say the least...

Jace played on the Royal Dynamites this fall...great group of boys and they really learned so much! They were a fun team to watch. Jace was awarded "Most Improved" at the end of the season. (photos by Dorsing Designs)

Cade was a goal making maniac on his Kindergarten team...

and it's fun having your cousin on your team too.

Mom and I went on a little get-away to Portland for the Women of Faith Conference, which was inspiring & wonderful just spending time with her. Here were are at Multanomah Falls.

We went to the Pumpkin Patch 3 times in one week between preschool fieldtrips & taking our kids...

Maddie at the Super Sister's Pumpkin Patch

Carving our pumpkins...Miss Maddie played in the goop, she was baking "cookies" for us while Jace really got into carving his skull & crossbones pumpkin

I loved seeing many of my sweet preschool kiddos & mom's as they came by to trick-or-treat...here's a couple of Maddie's pals as fellow Disney Princesses

Jace as Tennessee Titans Matt Hasselback, Caden as a Dragonoid, and Maddie as Cinderella ...where's Sam, oops forgot to grab him for the photo!

Oh, here's our little punkin'! He's hiding under his pumpkin hat and not happy about wearing it either. Nany knitted him this hat and my friend Lisa gave him this cute outfit, he was festive & so adorable.

We went trick-or-treating on our farm/preschool bus...worked great for the kids getting in and out. Cousin Kaylee joined us too. Cade and I came down with Strep Throat following this fun evening...good times. We're on the mend now thanks to amoxicillin :) Happy Halloween!

It's a...

BOY!!!

It's true, our baby was born! We welcomed Samuel Wells Allred a little early (2 1/2 weeks) on Friday, October 21st at 7:54 am by c-section. He weighed 6 lbs. 5 oz. and was 19 inches. Bryan and I had a tough time deciding on names for this guy but quickly came to the conclusion that he just looked like a Sam and it fit perfectly. His middle name is after Bryan's Grandpa Allred.

I started having contractions Thursday evening and by 11 that night, they weren't just "Braxton Hicks" like I had been convincing myself. So since I couldn't sleep, I decided to do dishes, a load of laundry, pick up the living room, finished packing my hospital bag and then finally called the hospital. Since I was a scheduled c-section for 11-1-11 (no VBAC at our hospital) they said to come on in. By this time, they were about 7-10 minutes apart. After arriving at the hospital, my doc was called and the c-section was scheduled for 7:30 Friday morning. I was monitored through the night, given IV fluids and luckily never went into active labor so I could withstand the contractions coming 5-10 minutes through the night...was just uncomfortable and unable to rest. I've always needed the help of Pitocin to get my contractions really rolling with my other babies, so I figured they'd just stay the same and they did.

The c-section went great, I was awake for it this time (Maddie's was a crash c-section and I had been intubated & out for it) and we did really well. I was a little nervous and shaky but tried to enjoy the birth of this baby and not let what happened last time overtake me. When Sherry pulled him out, we were a little surprised...I hadn't gotten very big with this pregnancy so we'd convinced ourselves it was a girl, as did most of our family but we're THRILLED he's a boy! God knows what we needed and it was another baby boy. How I love my boys. He had great APGAR scores and his cry was so beautiful and strong...I'll never forget it.

Sam did have a little issue with keeping his respiratory rate regulated throughout the morning so the nurses monitored him in the nursery but allowed me to come in there on the stretcher to be with him. His sats were 100% and he looked wonderful with no heart murmur, so it was determined it was more of an "early baby thing" and by lunch time, he had figured it out and we were able to come back to our room as a family. Mom brought in the kids and watching them meet their new baby was so special... How lucky little Sam is to have siblings who adore him. There is never a moment this baby isn't being held around here between those 3, Bryan and I. We are relishing every minute of it and I'm afraid he's going to be pretty spoiled!

Sam & I were discharged Saturday afternoon, we like to do things quickly. It's been so nice being home, he's nursing well, his milk supply came in last night and he's waking every 3 hours on the dot to eat. The first night, I set an alarm and Bryan asked me why...I mentioned that I'd need to wake him up and he laughed. My brain is still in "heart baby mode" at times...He was right, Sam let's me know when he's hungry and so far, he hasn't missed a meal. He's already back to his birthweight today but he's a little jaundiced so we are checking his bili levels. Hopefully tomorrow we'll start to see the number go down, it was at 10.7 today and up from 5.3 on Sat. We're all very much in love with this little guy and the word blessed doesn't even begin to describe how we feel right now with our newest addition. These past few days have been incredibly healing and my heart is so full of joy.

Arrrgh matey...somebody's 6!

He's growing up too fast...Cade turned 6 a couple of weeks ago. He chose to have a Pirate Party at his Grandma & Papa Allred's pool which sure made it easy for mom!
Cade with his buddy Bennett & cousin Randi Kay

He's feeling pretty big these days, since he now needs 2 hands to show off how old he is...apparently this is the cool way to show 6 on your hands! Happy Birthday to our all-boy, talented, sweet, and amazing son. We love you Caden Larry and we're very proud of you!

firsts...

Somebody's started preschool around here! Miss Maddie is officially a preschooler now...attending Apple Country Preschool (mom's preschool.) She just has to waltz downstairs with her backpack on and voila, she's at school! She's loving it and her class of ten 3 & 4 year olds is a fun one! Girls way out number the boys 7:3, so there are lots of "little mothers" in the classroom. I love this age and as their teacher, I'm learning just how long they can sit at a task, complete a project, and that many breaks and transitions for these little ones helps pass our two hours/2 days a week together quickly! Singing is Maddie's favorite part of preschool. I love having the opportunity to teach her and I don't know if I would have been ready to send her out to a preschool at 3...hence, another reason I'm teaching preschool now! Two sessions actually...with a total of 20 kids coming here, 2 days a week. Yes, it's keeping me busy.She is fortunate to have her two favorite cousins, Kylie and Jill at preschool with her...
These two boys started school three weeks ago...we now have a 2nd grader and a Kindergartner! They're doing fantastic and love their teachers. It's nice having them both in school...our days without them home are really quiet and Maddie and I have had plenty of one-on-one, girl time together which is nice, since baby will be here in 6 weeks! This picture depicts their personalities to a tee...our smiley, silly one and mister serious.
Cade also has cousin Randi Kay in his class...these two are quite the pair and really good buddies. We've learned how shy Caden really is this fall. He tends to stand back, watch and wait. Luckily, his cousin is more outgoing which is great for him, we're crossing our fingers that Randi can help Cade get out of his shell a little more this school year. He's doing awesome academically and we love seeing the work he's completed at school--Cade's a bit of a perfectionist and his papers show it with his beautiful writing, coloring and drawings. He's a bright boy and school is a great fit for him. He starts soccer tomorrow!
And his Kindergarten teacher??? Mrs. Stewart (aka Aunt J). He adores her and has already earned enough gold coins to trade in for her comfy, spinny chair one afternoon :) We're so grateful to have her...what a nice transition into formal school, having your aunt as your teacher! It's especially comforting for mom, knowing my little guy is always under her loving care and watchful eye.
Jace with his teacher, Mrs. Vermeer. What a wonderful teacher she is! He also has two cousins in class and lots of his buddies. I'm amazed at how much he accomplishes in a day in 2nd grade...he's doing great and is loving school too. Jace is also playing soccer this fall and started Cub Scouts as well. His schedule keeps us hopping!
And another first in our household this fall is "balallay" (ballet). Our tiny dancer waits all week, eagerly asking when she has ballet class again. This girl LOVES it. She tends to do her own thing though, gracefully moving her arms and standing on her tippy toes while admiring herself in the full-length mirrors. It's precious and I think she could acquire a talent for it with how much she practices at home :)
And #4...what a mover this baby is! I've felt belly-bruised this pregnancy from all of the kicks, rolls, and jabs! We do not know what we're having and I have no clue or hunch this time!!! I go back and forth on it's sex. We are still discussing names, trying to come up with two that we both like and agree on :) I'm really looking forward to this little one and eagerly await it's arrival--the c-section is scheduled for Nov. 1st. I had some cramping & contractions Friday morning for about 6 hours and after laying for a couple of hours, they quit and have not returned. After talking to the nurse, it's best that I drink more water and try to rest/sit down more...which is a bit challenging for me. But I'm taking this advice seriously- we don't need this baby arriving yet!
Here he/she is showing off one of those fierce kicks...how cramped it must feel in there! We're so grateful that this baby has been healthy, it's been healing for me knowing this and has also caused me to reflect quite a bit on my pregnancy with Maddie. I've been able to enjoy this pregnancy so much more, with little worry and stress (though I've probably complained more in the last month than I ever have with my previous pregnancies, yes, shame on me.) When I was pregnant with the boys, I took it all for granted. I am truly blessed with this baby and look forward to meeting this little one. The kids are also very excited, the boys are voting for a baby brother and Miss Maddie talks incessantly about her "baby sister" and what plans she has once it's out of my tummy. She can't wait to be a big sister and I look forward to watching all three kids with this baby. We have so much to look forward to and our surprise will be here before we know it!