keep on growing

To the never updated blog, here are some recent pics of Myah and Drew. They are both doing great!!

Please comment if you read this blog, I often wonder if I should be updating it.

Happy 2nd Birthday Drew

Oh how much joy you have brought into our lives!! You are an amazing little boy and we wish for many, many more happy birthdays for you!!

We had a great party on Sunday with Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins. Drew loved being the centre of attention and opening his gifts. After opening each present he just wanted to play with that he didn't need anything else. He even liked the clothes he got saying a big "ohhh nice" to each item! lol I believe the Tow Truck Pez dispenser was his favorite present, they sure are easy to please at this age!

He ate very little for supper with all the excitement but was thrilled with his chocolate cake covered in balloons.

He blew out the candles perfectly then shouted "again, again" so we re-lit them a few times so he could blow them out a gain. He then ate his cake (I mean icing) with the bottom of the candle rather than the fork. lol It was adorable!

We have now discovered GeoTrax which are amazing toys, both Jason and I ended up playing with them after Drew went to bed.

He had a great birthday and I am so thankful to have this happy little boy in my life!!

Drew's portrait & update

Ok is this kid cute or what!! lol Alright I'm a little biased!!

Drew will be turning two in a few weeks and is suddenly starting to seem so grown up! He learns so many new words each day and gets frustrated if we don't understand what he is trying to say. Every morning when I go to his room I am greated with a great big "MORNING" and he grabs all the animals in his bed one at a time and tells me their names. My personal favourite is Hoar-hey the horse, we all just started calling the horse Hoar-hey, lol! He is definetly a morning person and wakes up full of sunshine!

He loves anything with wheels and enjoys watching monster trucks, 4-wheelers and motorcycles on tv while making all the proper vrrrmm vrrmmm sounds and making out like he is steering. I can see a future of worries for mommy & daddy if he keeps these interests up!

He shows us his softer side too with his love of baby dolls. He grabs a blankey and bottle and climbs up in his rocking chair to take care of his baby. He will say Shhhh if anyone says anything because his baby is asleep, lol. His shhh's always have him with his finger on top of his nose instead of over his lips, it is just too cute to correct!!

Updates on Myah coming up later.....

way too long since I updated

Well hello again... I am just such a busy mommy these days. I was thinking about this blog and realized it has been almost a full year since I updated it, terrible. I am working full time and spend the rest of my time cleaning, cooking and playing with the kids!

Drew is a smart, happy little boy who will be turning two soon. I can hardly believe it! Here is a picture of him a few weeks ago. He has really been into potty training, loves to talk and has many clear words. All around he is just a really happy kids and we feel so blessed to have him in our family.

Here is picture of Myah, now 6 years old and in Grade one.

She loves school and is learning to read so well. She has been the one with the medical problems lately. She has had to have her tonsils and adenoids out which went really well and has improved her health greatly, she hasn't had a sore throat in months which is amazing.

Recently we have been seeing a pediatric dentist because all of her six year molars (which are your first permanent teeth) have grown in with no enamel on them. They broke through the gums BLACK, poor thing. This has required some very expensive caps on all those teeth, what a nightmare for her. As I child I also received 4 silver caps and I remember screaming thought the entire procedure, she got to have nitris gas so that helped a lot. These teeth will eventually have to be removed because they will not last her more than 10 or 15 years.

That's all for now, bye!

Drew is now 1 year old

Drew is jsut about 15 months old and is doing so wonderful!! He is starting to talk, he has walked a few steps, loves to eat witha spoon & fork, crawls up the stairs and so much more. It is amazing what they learn in there first two years.

Drew loves to eat and put anything in his mouth, including coins. We had to rush him to the hospital in January because he chocked on a dime then swallowed it. It was so scary but he was fine. I had to be on poop patrol for 10 days but we finally found it and I'm glad it went through! That boy is giving me gray hairs!! lol

He loves to blow kisses and give hugs and cuddle and play. He falls into a heap on the floor crying if you say no to something he really wanted to do. It's cute more than annoying and it's so hard not to give in but I know I can't.

I will update again hopefully a bit more often than last time. lol

update on Myah

Myah is doing just great, she loves school and figure skating. She is being a great big sister and loves it now that Drew can play with her and they can chase each other.

Myah was a fish in the Finding Nemo skating carnival this past weekend. She did a great job and the whole family came out to watch her. She got the cutest photos done in her costume.

She is about to lose her two front teeth if she would ever pull them out, they are just hanging there. She is looking forward to another tooth fairy visit, her first two teeth fell out over a year ago.

In the spring we will be signing up for gymnastics and soccer, she is quite a little athlete.

Does anyone still read this??

Just a quick update, it has been a while once again. Sorry!

Things have been keeping busy at our house, I am now back to work full-time which is both good and bad. I found a great sitter, the kids really like her. I jsut need more time to get all the housework done and play with the kids as much as I can.

I work as a internet trainer and website designer and it is a job I really like. I get great pay and holidays and a retirement package so it would be very hard to give up! It is hard to be away from the kids all day but I did get to enjoy an entire year home with them thanks to t he Canadian government!!

Sorry for slacking

Hi everyone!!

I thought I had better post an update I haven't been spending much time on the computer. Drew is doing great!! He is right on schedule for all of his milestones. He is rolling over and sitting up by himself. Drew is always babbling up a story that I wish I could understand and giggling at all our funny faces and games.

He is such a wonderful baby, we are such a blessed family.

We go for his kidney check up on June 27 to see how things look. Apparently the heart and kidneys really work as a team so there could be some improvement with the kidney function now that the heart is fixed. I sure hope so!!

Myah got her ears peirced yesterday, she looks so cute! We were at the mall and she saw the place where she could get it done, she said "I think I want to get my ears peirced today" I said sure and she bravely climbed up on the chair and got cute little crystal earrings. She cried for one second and then was so happy she had them done. She is such a cutie.

I am now busy getting ready for the Curtis Cadman Memorial Walk in memory of my nephew. We are raising money for research at Childrens Hospital of Western Ontario in London. I need sponsors so contact me if you would like to make a donation. Thanks!

Pics in CCU

Here are links to pictures of Drew in the hospital Critical Care Unit.

• Drew 1



• Drew 2



• Mommy kissing Drew

He is feeling so much better. The nurse who visits our house said she will come back for a visit in a few weeks just to check up on him and then she will close his case. He can now sit up by himself!! He really enjoys his rice and oatmeal cereal and all the new veges and fruit that we have been trying.

Posting from home!!

I am sooo glad to have my family at home together. Drew is in great spirits and he was so happy to see Myah.

Thanks soooo much to our wonderful family and friends for the fantastic surprise when we got home. How wonderful to come home to a fridge and freezer full of food a heartfelt card and balloons. We couldn't have asked for more supportive people while we were going through this.

I feel so fortunate to be home with our precious baby boy. Many other families are not as lucky to be coming home 1 week after surgery. Being at Sick Kids hospital make me realize how important family is and how lucky we are to have a healthy girl and now a healthy boy!!

WERE COMING HOME TODAY

Drew has just been discharged!!! My dad is on his way to Toronto to pick us up. I can hardly believe just one week after surgery and all the stress and set backs that we are getting out of this place.

After all the tubes were removed yesterday Drew has been feeling so much better. He looks wonderful and we are leaving without so much as a band-aid on him. He has one stitch where his chest tube was and we have to see our doc next week to get that removed.

He has been full of smiles today and started happily breast-feeding again at his 1 am feeding. I am so thrilled the last 24 hours has been such a relief but I was still shocked when the doc told us this morning that we would be going home. I can't wait for him to sleep in his own crib with no monitors beeping.

I am looking forward to being with Myah again and getting back to our routine. I may sleep on the floor in Drew's room tonight but I will try not to worry too much!!

Thanks for all your support and be sure to come and visit us at home soon!!

Lots of news

Sorry for taking so long to update but I had no internet access on the weekend.

Drew moved to out of the step down unit into his own private room yesterday afternoon. Jason and I are now completely in charge of Drew's care except for every few hours when a nurse comes in to check his vitals. He had a long night and had lots of trouble sleeping (so I did too, whew) he was still so uncomfortable. We kept him on Tylenol with codiene and that seemed to help but he still is not himself. One by one his lines came out he just had the chest drain, pacemaker wires and nose feeding tube left. We got the go ahead to breastfeed since he would not talk the bottle of expressed milk and he has decided to stage a feeding strike. We continued to try the breast which he refused and we managed to get him to take some milk from the bottle but most of the milk was fed via feeding tube. I could tell he was having trouble swallowing but not sucking and I think the tube in his throat was bothering him.

At 2pm they finally took out his chest tubes, we were asked to leave the room for a while so they could do what they needed to do. I insisted they take the feeding tube out with the knowledge that they would put it back in by 8pm if he did not eat. When we got back to the room all his tubes were out and he was sleeping as peacefully as I have seen him all week. It was such a nice feeling.

After a few attempts to breastfed with no luck we tried the bottle again and after a few minutes Drew sucked down an entire bottle. Hooray, I am so proud of my little guy and glad I insisted they take out the tube. I knew he could swallow properly with it in.

If he contiues to eat well, we will be discharged tomorrow or early the next day!!!! I know Drew will LOVE to be home and do very well when he is finally out of this strange place. NOw if we could just get a little smile out of him I will be thrilled. I think that is it for now.

Moved to Unit

Drew is now upstairs on the 4th floor cardiac unit. He is doing wonderful and will in his own room by tomorrow. All his stats are great and he is breathing with very little additional oxygen through nose prongs.

The are up-ing his feedings through a tube and getting tylenol for pain. He is much more alert and aware but no smiles yet.

I finally got to hold him today!!! I was nervous but it felt wonderful to have him in my arms.

Myah is coming to visit us today and I can't wait to see her!!! Thanks to Dwayne and Bernice for bringing her to Toronto!!!

Breathing tube is OUT!!!

Whew, what a relief. They were going to take it out this morning but delayed it again because he wasn't awake enough an dhis lungs were still a bit wet.

Aroung 3:30 they took it out and he did so much better. He is now breathing on his own with a little oxygen tent around his head. The are still monitoring him very closely to make sure he breathes deeply enough. The also took out his cathetar. So we are moving inthe right direction with less tubes for poor Drew

He has been moved to a new room where the babies go right before moving up to the cardiac unit. He can now cry but it is very hoarse sounding. I love to hear him cry it has been so long.

The library here is closing gotta go.

Drew is getting stronger

Drew had a good night. All his stats were very good and the are cutting back on his morphine. He woke up and looked at both Jason and I. He seemed confused but regocnized us. He seemed to really like following the Winnie the Pooh balloon that we hung on his bed.

The plan is to take out his breathing tube by noon today. He is inhaling and exhaling on his own now and the irritation in his throat seemd much better. Please pray that all goes well. I will let you know as soon as I can how things went.

One more day on breathing tube

They have decided to wait until tomorrow to remove the breathing tube. The docs don't want a repeat of what happened yesterday. They have put Drew on a drug that helps to reduce swelling and want him to be on it for 24 hours before they attempt to get the tube out of his throat. He is still being assisted but is initiating all the breaths on his own. His breathing is a bit shallow and he is skipping a few breathes once in a while which makes his machines all beep.

He will have to be in critical care for at least 2 more days which is twice as long as we expected him to be there. His blood pressure, oxygenation, blood work and heart rate all look good.

Myah is coming to visit on the weekend and I hope we don't have to cancel because he isn't allowed visitors in critical care. Please send him your strong breathing prayers.

Still on the breathing tube

Yesterday was a busy day, we had trouble getting in to see him in the morning because he didn't do so well when they tried to take his tube out. Drew was breathing well on his own with the tube in but when they took it out his cried for 10 seconds tried to breathe then jsut stopped breathing. They tried to bag him and give him a chance to breathe on his own but he just wouldn't so they had to re-tube him :( They think there is some swelling in his throat or he had a muscle spasm which blocked his breathing. I was so upset that it didn't go as planned, he shocked the respitory tech and the docs and nurses who thought the extubation was going to be very smooth. I spent most of the day beside Drew's bed just holding his hand or stroking his forehead.

His stats are all good and he is breathing with little assistance today so they will try to take the tube out again late afternoon. He is receiving breastmilk through a tube in his nose so at least he isn't hungry. They have cut back on his morphine so he will be alert when they do the extubation later. He opens his eyes every few hours and looks at us witha drunk look in his eyes. I am sure he is very confused as to what has happened ot him. He really hates all those tubes.

I will try to update later today.

Update

Drew is doing so good this morning. He keeps waking up and they have to sedate him so he doesn't pull out his tubes. He is breathing on his own and they will take out the breathing tube shortly. If he does well without the breathing tube they will start tube feeding him.

The saddest thing is that they had to tie down his arms because he keeps pulling at everything and flailing around. We can't touch him or talk to him right now because he keeps waking up when he hears us :( They need to let him sleep longer but they want to cut back on his sedation. He will want to eat when he wakes up and he won't understand that Momy can't feed him or pick him up.

We went to the hotel last night and I surprised myself buy sleeping through the entire night, I was exhausted. The other kids in his room are not doing as well as Drew so we are aften asked to leave the room while they do procedures. I look forward to him being moved to his own room so we can spend more time with him. He is getting amazing care, the docs and nurses are wonderful.

Just saw Drew

Drew is looking ok, I expected it to be worse. He is covered in tubes and wires. He has a tube in each nostril and in his mouth, a chest tube, a central line in his neck and a couple of IV's. He is getting all sorts of medications. I can see the incision in his chest, it is big. He is getting blood and platelets as he lost a lot of blood during the surgery.

The doc is pleased with how he is doing, his temp is up just a bit and his heart rate is a bit fast but both are normal after surgery. I have just been standing by the bed rubbing his head.

Both Jason and I are being strong. We have had some tears but the worst is behind us. I will update again tomorrow.

Surgery is done

We spoke to the surgeon and the surgery went well! Drew is recovering and we can go see him in about 1/2 an hour.

His didn't have a complete Tetrology of Fallot as we thought but the repair was similar. The valve repair went very well and the surgeon was able to save the connection to the pulmunary artery which we hoping he could. The surgeon expects a great outcome.

I am prepared for lots of wires and tubes but I can't wait to see him!!!!!

I will update again when I can. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers they are working!!!!!!!

Be sure to comment on this site if you want to contact me a I won't have access to my email.

Sitting and waiting....

I just came down to the hospital library to post an update. Drew went in for surgery just beofre 8am and should be coming out aroun 1pm. They don't give you any updates during the surgery so we sit and wait. It is hard to pass the time as every hour creeps slowly by.

Drew was just a happy sweet little guy last night and this morning as usual. I fed him just before 4am which was the last time he was allowed to eat. He didn't seemed bothered by not having breakfast. We gave him a bath in special soap and the got him preped for surgery.

The hardest part was handing him over the the OR nurse. I gave Drew to her and he smiled and looked over her shoulder at us as he went off through the OR doors. As soon as he was out of sight I started to bawl. This is the longest I have ever been away from him. I miss my Drew and I'm saying my prayers that all is going well in surgery.

Keep thinking of us and sending those prayers. Thanks.

I am sooo nervous!!!! We have started packing for our 10 days in Toronto for Drew's open heart surgery. Time is flying this week and I am praying a lot and hoping that everything will go well. He has a bit of a sniffle which I hope is just teething not a cold starting, they will postpone his surgery if he is sick.

I am worried about his taking care of him after surgery. He will have restrictions like no tummy time for 3 weeks, no picking up under the arms for 6 weeks and no exersaucer, front carrier or jolly jumper for 12 weeks. He is such a heavy boy it will be hard to cradle hold him for this long.
Drew is now 5 months old which is hard to believe. We started him on rice cereal and now he takes oatmeal too, he is such a good eater. He get so excited when he sees me preparing his food and opens wide for every bite.

I had Drew's portraits taken this week and they are so adorable. They did one where he held a heart pillow and peeked over top of it, too sweet.

Here is a recent picture, he look sooo much like Myah!!

Pre-Op trip to Sick Kids

Last night we went to Toronto to spend the night at a hotel. My Mom and Dad drove us which saved us so much stress. They took us out to dinner at Red Lobster and watched Drew for a 1/2 hour while we went for a swim, it was so nice of them.

Our appointments started at 7:30 this morning so we got up bright and early. First we went for blood work, they take way to much blood for such a tiny person if you ask me! He really isn't that tiny they weighed him in at 17 lbs even. Everyone we saw commented on how big and chubby he was! Then we were off for a chest x-ray. I held him on a bicycle type seat with his hands over his head while the tech put this plastic tube tightly around him. Needless to say this was not an enjoyable 5 minutes for either of us he looked (and I'm sure felt) so uncomfortable. He was crying, I held it together somehow.

We went up to the cardiac ward for our "learning day". We met with a wonderful nurse Natalie who would be our guide for the day. She weighed him, got his height, took his blood pressure and oxygenation. Asked us a bunch of questions about his medical history and family history. She took us to meet with Dr. Golding his cardiologist, he was so warm and caring. He explained the surgery to us and told us more details about Drew's condition.

Then we met the cardiac surgery fellow and the surgeon that would be working on Drew. As a shook Dr. Chris Caladrone's hand I thought "My God, these are the hands that are going to fix my son's heart". He looks like a regular guy, I thought he might have a halo around his head or something ;) I asked him how many surgeries he has performed and he said well over 1000, 250-300 similar to Drew's condition so I think he is in great hands. Of course he had to tells us about all the possible complications, very scary, I pray Drew's surgery goes very well. He said the surgery will take 4 -6 hours from sedation to going to recovery with about 2 hours on the heart.

Then we met a doctor doing a research study that he wanted Drew to participate in. It is monitoring kidney function using diaretics (sp?) after surgery. We agreed to participate pending the results of his kidney test last week. Then they sent us to have a quick bite to eat.

Next the nurse showed us a Powerpoint presentation on the infant caridac surgery preparation and after care. She didn't know how to use the program and it took a lot for me not to jump in with a lesson LOL. It was very informative and included pictures of babies after surgery to prepare us for how many tubes and wires that we will see on Drew after. It was scary to see but I feel better prepared so I'm glad they showed them to us. He will have a breathing tube and be completely sedated for at least 24 hours after surgery. They expect him to be ready to go home 7 - 10 days after surgery.

Finally we headed down to the 2nd floor where the surgery will take place. We saw the waiting area, critical care and the pre-op waiting room. We met with anestesia (sp?) the doc was very nice. He showed the doors where we say good-bye :( :( and assured us that he would be asleep within minutes of leaving our arms and not even an IV would be put in until Drew was asleep. I am glad he won't be feeling all the pokes. I am allowed to nurse him until 4am for his 7:30 surgery which gives me great relief, I was worried it would be after midnight and we'd have a very cranky boy.

It was a long day we arrived at 7:30 and started to head for home about 3pm. It was a lot of people to meet and information to take in but I feel much more clear about everything. Very worried but informed.

Kidney testing

Friday Drew was off to the children's hospital in London again to get his kidneys tested. We finally made it to the appointment after having to cancel it twice because Myah and then Drew had the chicken pox.

First Drew had to have an IV put in. The could not find a vein in his arm to try so they decided to put it on his bald little head. The first attempt failed :( They moved to the other side where the veins were now much more visible thanks to Drew's screaming fit. He did not like the IV at all. I nursed him and he settled down and fell asleep. I carried him while Jason push his IV pole along side us.

We headed down to nuclear medicine and laid Drew on a special table and he was injected with a radioactive medicine that the tech took out of a lead lined case. (That was kinda scary seeing that go into our baby) Drew didn't seem to mind at all he was still sleeping. The tech put a lead lined blanket on him, gave him a medicine called Lasik to make him pee more and started the test. All the kidney pictures were taken from a camera in the table below him. He woke up after about 1/2 an hour and we kept him happy with toys and songs until the test was done, it took 1 hour. We then had to wait for 2 hours and come back for 5 more minutes of imaging to see how much the kidney drained.

The tech couldn't tell us much except that the right kidney was slow to drain but we already knew that. I told them the test results must be back asap to prepare for his heart surgery but they said they take a week. I sure they will hurry along when our cardiologist calls them. It is very important that the surgery team knows what is happening with his kidney function.

I really want to get these results to see what the problem is so we can decide what to do to correct it.

FIrst trip to Toronto Sick Kids

Drew was so good today, I'm so proud of my baby boy! He had an appointment today for an Echocardiogram and an EKG at 10:15 this morning.

We got up at 5am, I fed him and got him up to play so he would sleep on the car ride. He was happy as could be. I got myself ready and Jason put all the baby gear in the car. I fed Drew at 6am as he wasn't allwed to eat again until after his procedure. He ate again thank goodness and off we went to my parents. My Dad drove us to Toronto (Thanks Dad!!!!) and we arrived at 9:30. Drew was happy the entire drive and it was quite easy to find and get a parking spot.

The hospital is just wonderful, I have never seen such a perfect place for kids to get well. We found the check in desk got our paperwork done and waited for our turn. I was amazed how happy Drew was because I thought he would be starving by this point. Drew was called in the room, they took his blood pressure and oxygenation levels which were hard to get because he is so chubby. He was given a liquid sedation; apparently it was very bitter tasting and he protested a bit but took it with only a few tears. The nurse said he would be asleep within 10 - 30 minutes. I picked him up to cuddle and he was asleep within 2 minutes, the nurse said he set a new record.

I carried him to the Echo room and the tech started his ultrasound, she then went to get someone else as she was having trouble getting the pictures she needed. The other tech did the rest of the echo while she watched. They said it would take 30 -90 minutes but it took just over 2 hours. They had us worrying, he woke up half way through but we put in his soother and he went back to sleep. The doc came in to get a few more pictures and told us that his condition was just as they had described to us in London.

A tech came in to do an EKG (lots of wires attached to test heart rhythms) and he woke up. He was just full of smiles and coos, the tech was thrilled. She said every other child she woke up today screamed at her. It was 1pm by this point and Drew hadn't eaten so I am amazed he was still happy, the nurse said he was still a little drunk from the medicine.

We left the room and I fed him and we were ready to go home. The worst part of the day was the awful 2 hour traffic jam we sat in on the way out of Toronto. It was sooo frustrating but thank goodness Drew slept the whole time!

We go back to Sick Kids on Monday for our pre op visit. We will meet with the docs and have blood work and x-rays and they will give us a hospital tour and we'll learn about aftercare. His surgery is coming so quickly, I am getting sooooo worried but I know he will come through just fine. He is one strong and brave boy.

On Friday I am taking Drew to London hospital for renogram of Drew's kidneys to see why they are still enlarged. They want the result of these tests before he has his heart surgery but I have had to postpone them because of the chicken pox. Poor kid has to go through so much!

Drew's doctor visits

Yesterday I took Drew to see the cardiologist and his peadiatrition. It was nice to have two appointments on the same day to save a trip to London. Between appointments I took my friend Kim out for lunch for her 30th birthday at the Delta Armouries. It was a great lunch and Drew was so happy and good while we ate. Happy Birthday Kim!!!

A med student examined Drew and I knew more than he did about what to do. He was a very nice guy so we worked together to get Drew's examination done, lol. His blood oxygenation levels are down to 80% which is not very good. It's a good thing his surgery is so soon. When the doc came in he said the they are low because it take a lots to get oxygen to Drew's big beautiful thighs! My big chunky baby!

He weighs 16lbs 12oz now! He got mennengitis vaccine since he will be going into the hospital, I don't want to risk him getting that! He is meeting all his developmental milestones and doing well otherwise.

My eye is getting better

I went for a follow up with my eye surgeon last Monday and got good news. The vision in my "bad" eye is up to 20/30, I can see 6 more lines on the eye chart!!

I got to see pictures of the inside of my eye before surgery compared to the current look. What a diffference. I can see where the scar from my surgery is inside my eye but it isn't too bad.

The doc was very impressed with my progress and I don't go back to see him again until September! It's so nice to post some good news!

Feeling Better

Drew is over the chicken pox! He came through it just fine. He stopped getting new spots about three days after they started and now he just has some scabbed over spots. He got to have lots of oatmeal baths which he loved. I don't know how uncomfortable he was but he didn't really try to itch them.

He was up a lot during the night!!! I counted 21 times that I got up the second night UGH! I was pretty grumpy the next day but I managed. He seemd to have gotten into the habit of eating several times a night again and I am not sure how to break that. I don't know how long he will have to fast before the surgery but I'm sure it will be a long night with no Mommy's milk for him!
He sure is growing, today at the baby clinic I had him checked, he is 16 lbs 8oz and 26 1/4 inches long.

I am starting to get more prepared for (and nervous about!!) Drew's surgery as it is only a few weeks away now. I have a schedule of where Myah will be staying and all her info to keep her on schedule with school and soccer.

Drew has... chicken pox!!!

OMG, whats next!!! Poor little thing has chicken pox all over his head and a few throughout his body. I was soooo hoping that he would not catch them from Myah but living in the same house I guess it was just impossible! Several doctors and nurses told us that babies under 6 months would not get them especially if they were breastfed. I guess they were all wrong or we just have very bad luck!

I started to notice a few spots on his head this morning when we were at church to have him baptized. I feel bad for taking him there around the 2 other baby boys that were baptized. I hope I haven't spread it to anyone else.

That baptism was nice; all three boys were totally quiet and let the minister carry them around the congregation. Drew seemed completely amazed by the minister's clothes and I am surprised he didn't pull on his sash! Our family came back to our house after and we had a nice lunch.

I will be dealing with a pretty cranky boy the next few days with chicken pox and a new tooth. That's a lot for one baby boy to handle (and his mommy too)!

Drew has a tooth!!!

At 4 months and 3 days old my little boy has his first little tooth.

Drew has been drooling so much today and sticking his tongue in and out. He wants to chew on everything! I thought he might be teething so I rubbed his gums with my finger and I was surprised to feel a pointy little tooth on the bottom. I didn't think he would actually have a tooth this early! He was up a lot last night not crying just making noises and sucking his soother a lot. I guess I know why now, hopefully tonight will be better.

He hasn't been too fussy, he really is a little trooper. Myah is so excited her brother has a tooth she just had to feel it and was giving him lots of "Good job Drew you grew a tooth" It was really cute!

Myah and I went to the dentist today for a check up so I guess Drew was jealous and decided he'd better have a tooth too!

Getting prepared

Drew is getting baptized on Sunday and I am having some friends and family over to our house after for a brunch. I am looking forward to it but I need to spend most of the day tomorrow cleaning up the house and getting food ready. I hope Drew is his cute happy self during the baptism with no screaming!

I have started getting things ready for our trip to Toronto for Drew's surgery. I booked our dog into the kennel, which she will hate but she's just going to have to deal with it. It is a great kennel but our dog just wants to be with her family of course.

I called a few hotels for room prices and talked to VIA Rail about times and rates for taking the train to Toronto. I booked a room at the hotel closest to the hospital for Drew's pre-op appointment on May 2nd. We need to go there the night before because our appointments start at 7:30am.

I have created a calendar for the month of May in WordPerfect to keep track of where Myah will be staying and the places she has to be like school and soccer. There is a lot of planning to do to get ready for this and I just want to be sure I have all things covered. Thank goodness my family is so willing to help with Myah, travel and anything else we need!

Myah is feeling better

Whew, what a week! Myah is back to her normal self the past couple of days, she went back to school today and she was so glad to go. I was glad to send her after dealing with a sick girl for over a week, lol! When I dropped her off her classmates rushed up to her and had to hear her tale of the chicken pox. It was funny. Her poxs are all scabbed over now and some are clearing up, she is having trouble not picking at them. She has a couple more days of antibiotics to take and I will be glad when we are done so I have 3 less doses of medicine to remember each day. I hope her face clears up soon because I would like to get a family photo taken this month, it won't look to good with her face covered in red dots!

After school Myah went to dance class then we came home for supper, It was such a beautiful day we ended up going to the park with my friend Julie and her girls. It was lots of fun and she went to bed so easily because she was so exhausted.

Drew had a great night sleep last night and so did I, I felt so refreshed this morning. Drew and I had a nice day just the two of us he was so sweet and happy today. It is so easy to make him laugh now by playing peek-a-boo or pretend sneezing. He had a 3 hour afternoon nap so I was able to get a lot done around the house.

It was a great day!

Now Myah has the POX!!!

Poor Myah, on Easter Sunday morning we got up and had a great time hunting for eggs. After we had chocolate and gummy bunnies for breakfast we went to get dressed, that's when I noticed the spots. I knew immediately that it was chicken pox. Both of us were upset about it but she only had a few spots on her back, belly and neck.

I called Jason's family to let them know that we might as well all get together since now everyone but Drew has had the chicken pox. We had a great meal and a really fun day. Myah and Cassandra both lifted to shirts to compare how many spots they had, it was too cute!

I called my sister to let her know about the damn pox and we decided not to get together to celebrate Easter and Jason's 34th birthday on Monday at my place because her kids have not had them yet. The turkey was already thawed so I cooked the meal anyways and had my parents over. We enjoyed the meal and packed up some of everything for my parents to drop off at my sisters house on their way home so they could have dinner even if we weren't all together. Mallory my 3 year old niece called to thank me for the cake and the dinner too.

Last night after supper Myah complained that her throat hurt. I got a flashlight to look in her throat and I gasped at what I saw. There was a giant white glob in the back of her throat the size of a mini-marshmallow. I took her temperature which was 99.8. I called Telehealth to ask the nurses' opinion on what to do. She said to take her to the doctor within 24 hours. By this time Myah was screaming and/or bawling each time she swallowed, she was getting hysterical. Our doctor's office doesn't open again until Saturday so off the the emergency room we went. We called ahead to let the hospital know we were bringing in a contagious girl and they said to come on in.

Myah slept most of the 1/2 hour car ride there and felt a bit better when we got there except that she grabbed her throat or mouth each time she swallowed. Poor thing, I was feeling so bad for her. We checked in with the triage nurse and her temp was 101. They put a hospital bracelet on her nd had her wait in a wheelchair (which she loved) until the isolation room was ready. The brought a dose of Tylenol out to the hall to help her fever.

We were put in the and the doc came in within a few minutes. He looked in her mouth and told us she had a very infected chicken pox in her throat, owwweee! He gave us a prescription for amoxicillin and advised us to give her Tylenol for pain and fever. We got to the hospital just after 7pm and were out by 8:30, it was great I thought we would be there for hours. I guess they didn't want our contagious little girl there for very long.

She is taking her medicine well and her throat is looking much better. She get two oatmeal baths a day and is itching much less today and I don't think she is getting any more new spots. She has at least 500 spots, she is covered. My poor girl, now I just pray Drew doesn't get them. So far he has no sign of them and ER doc said it very rare for a breastfed infant under 6 months old to get them so I am hoping he doesn't. He was supposed to have a renogram of his kidneys on Tuesday but we had to reschedule as he had been exposed. It is reschedule for April 15th, they want to have the results prior to his heart surgery in May.

No one ever said being a parent was easy, I am certainly being put to the test lately. It is amazing how little sleep you can actually live on, LOL!

Easter Hunt & Chicken Pox

Our Easter plans with Jason's family have been reorganized. My sister-in-law Bernice called yesterday to say our niece Cassandra has the chicken pox. We saw her on Tuesday night at Myah's dance class so I really hope my kids don't get them!

I called the cardiologist to ask him if we should still go to Easter dinner if there is chicken pox at thier house and he said "Absolutely not, don't risk it." We just thought we wouldn't go, but Bernice decided to not have Easter at her house. Jason's oldest brother and his wife are going to host it and Bernice and Cassandra will stay home. I feel really bad about it but she insisted that this is what we should do.

I hope you feel better soon Cassandra, having the chicken pox on Easter weekend really sucks!

The annual town Easter Egg Hunt was held today so I took the kids. It was fun! Drew just hung out happily in his stroller which was dreadful to push through the mud and snow. Myah found lots of eggs which the kids then traded in for a bunch of candy. She was thrilled.

She had been talking for weeks about how she couldn't wait to see the Easter Bunny who always comes to the hunt. When we go there she wouldn't go anywhere near him, she was scared of him, silly kid!

I am having Easter and Jason's 34th birthday party for my family on Monday. I have a lot to do to get ready but I am looking forward to having everyone over.

Have a great Easter everyone!

Ped visit & shots

Drew & I went for a well baby visit to our paediatrition yesterday. Drew weighs 15lbs 10oz and he's not even 4 months old yet. The doc called him a tank. He is getting so many chubby rolls and dimples now it's so cute. Myah was always such a skinny baby this chubby baby thing is new to me. Drew's head is growing well and he has grown over an inch in length this month. I am always proud that he is growing so well, I am still exclusively breastfeeding which the docs were sure I would not be able to do because of his conditions. We are showing them, my little guy is so strong.

He had to get his RSV immunization and his regular 4 month shots, so 3 needles. Before the doc gave him the shots he explained to Drew that he was doing this to help keep him healthly and that he was sorry he has to be poked so much. It was really sweet, he only cried for a about 10 seconds and the doc was quick with the shots.

Drew is getting a small flat spot on his head so we have to give him more tummy time and have him sleep on his right side so it doesn't get worse. He also has a bit of eczema on his forehead and arms. I will use some hyrdocortisone cream and Aveeno to try to clear up the rash.

We go back in one month for another RSV immunization, the last one. The doc has seen a lot of cases this winter so I am glad we got him immunized as the results could be tragic if he got it with his weaker lungs.

Our next appointment is on Tuesday, March 29th to have a renogram. This is a test to see what is happening with Drew's kidneys. They will insert an IV and put some dye in it and watch it's path through his system. The results should tell us what the problem is so we can come up with a plan of action to monitor or correct the issue. I am not looking forward to this test, I hope it doesn't make Drew too uncomfortable.

More tests and surgery

Drew continues to do better than expected. He has not had blue spells or breathing problems which we were told he would have. I am always prepared for problems but I am so glad I have not had to experience any. He gets all the regular vacines and the RSV immunization just as a precaution because we can't risk a chest infection in his weakened lungs.

His weight gain has been wonderful, he now weighs over 16 lbs at 3 1/2 months. He has big chubby rolls all over.

On March 29th Drew will have a IV dye test where the docs will follow the flow of the liquid through his body and see what his kidney problem might be. They think it is either a blockage or so physiological malformation. Poor kid, I hate seeing him get stuck with needles all the time!

I received a package in the mail last week that had all of Drew's open heart surgery information in it. We go to Toronto (3 hours drive from home) on April 27th for an ECG and echocardiogram for his surgeon. We have our pre-op appointment on May 2nd and the surgery is scheduled for May 10th. I am soooo nervous about this surgery. A doctor with his giant amazing hands is going to open my sons chest and fix his heart. Apparently this is a routine procedure but not when it is my son's heart!! The risk is very low and Drew is so strong. I pray that he comes through it well and this is alla distant memory for us. He will never remember any of this.

I am worried about being away from Myah. We can't take her with us as we will have our hands full dealing with Drew. We might be at the hospital for 2 weeks. Both sets of grandparents are happy to watch her and mine will even bring her down to Toronto for a visit or two. I'm sure she will make it through but it will be more stressful on her than on Drew!

Can't see the eye chart E

While the new year has come and we had enjoyed Christmas as a family of four. We have been in denial a bit about Drew's diagnosis because he is growing and seems perfectly healthy. I had been noticing that the vision in my right eye had not been good but I had been ignoring due to everything else that had been going on in our lives. I have always had 20/20 vision so I assumed now that I was almost 30 I would need glasses.

I finally called the eye doc and said that I needed to get checked out. She checked my left eye and I could see way down the last line of the eye chart. Then she checked my right I, and I couldn't see the giant E! I was shocked that it was that bad, my left eye had been compensating so much that I really didn't notice how bad it was. She looked in my eye and said "I don't want to tell you this but you have a serious problem. You need to go immediately to the eye institute." The doc knew what I was going through with Drew and that I didn't need anything else to deal with. When it rains it pours as the saying goes.

Off to the clinic I go with my hubby (and Drew) because they would be doing eye tests and I wouldn't be able to drive. We checked in and they sent us to a different location saying our appointment was at a different clinic and then after a quick check back to the first place. This infuriated me! A few of the tests couldn't be done because I am breastfeeding. So the head of the department made the diagnosis of Ocular Histoplasmosis Syndrome. This would need surgery to correct. It was schedule for 10 days later.

I spent that time pumping milk because I would not be able to breast feed for 24 hours after the meds givin for my surgery. I was awake during the procedure and I was glad I couldn't see anything. They actually drained my eye of all the "jelly" to do the work, ewwww. The stiches ON MY EYEBALL itched for about a week. The worst part is that I would have to spend 3 days FACE DOWN!! Talk about impossible. My husband and family were great they helped out so much. Drew was a wonderful and took the bottle like a pro! It was long three days and nights. Sleeping face down on lactating boobies is not a comfortable adventure! It took some very creative pillow positioning!!

It is all over with now my eye is still red two months later but my vision is coming back. It is not back to normal yet and it may never be but it is getting better. I go for a check up in early May.

Cute Kids!

Here is a recent picture of Myah & Drew.

Drew's TOF diagnosis

The day after we left the hospital with our new baby boy I took Drew to Children's hospital to see a pediatric cardiologist. My husband stayed home with our daughter, I was sure there was nothing to worry about; boy was I wrong. Drew was hooked up to an ECG machine and the tech was friendly but very reserved, I started to worry. The doc listened to Drew's heart with a stethoscope and said to me "I hear a very abnormal murmur, we need to do more testing but I think we are in for a long talk this afternoon." Now I was really starting to worry.

They did an ultrasound of Drew's heart for 2 hours and no one really said anything to me except for small talk. They talked in medical terms to each other but it was nothing I could understand. I did my best to keep my 3 day old infant calm while they did the testing by this time I was crying knowing there was a serious diagnosis coming my way. After they were through the doc, a nurse-practioner and I went to a room where they explained to me that our perfect looking little boy has Tetrology of Fallot (TOF), a congenital heart defect (CHD) with four problems in the heart, it is the most common CHD.

I was shocked and I lost it, I was 3 days post-partum and I think I would have bawled if they told me he was healthy after the day I experienced. It was awful hearing that he would need open heart surgery and would start turning blue and may have life threatening "tet spells". I did my best to absorb all the information they were giving me and the staff treated me with the greatest care. They gave me print out of all the info they discussed with me.

I got myself together and called my husband to tell him the awful news, it was so hard. He was very supportive and wanted to know if he should drive to get me, but I insisted I would be ok to drive home. I got home and we hugged and cried together for a while, then called some of our family to tell them. I must say we have the most supportive and wonderful family, friends, on-line buddies and co-workers. People have been there for us no matter what we need whether it's a hug, encouraging word, help with our daughter, food or help around the house. I am so glad we live close to our family and in a small community where people really reach out to help one another. (Thank you all, your help will always be remembered and appreciated!!!).

We now have this serious heart problem to deal with but we still have to figure out what is going on with our little guys kidneys. Just before Christmas we took Drew for an ultrasound of his kidneys and a catheter test where they inserted dye through a tube in his penis and watched to see if they was any kidney reflux. It was determined that there was none further testing would be needed. We have to watch for any fever which could be a sign of infection and make sure there is no decrease in urine output.

Drew's birth

I was 3-4 cm dialated at my 39 week appointment so my doctor decided to induce me on my due date. I was already having contractions when I arrived at the hospital so they started pitocin to get things moving and turned it off a 1/2 hour later because I was in active labour. The contractions were intense but I was moving along quickly so I managed to get through them.

I opted to deliver naturally as I had with Myah because I didn't want to our baby's kidneys to have to deal with any extra medications. After 7 hours of labour Drew Thomas Cadman was born at 10:02 pm on December 5, 2004 weighing 8 lbs 1 oz. He looked beautiful and we were thrilled to add a baby boy to our family.

I was worried about my little one before he was even born, we knew he would have kidney problems but we were confident that they would not cause him any problems long term. After he was born his "plumbing' was working just fine he pee'd all over and we were thrilled. He went right with us to our room and was very alert for about 2 hours. He fell asleep and we both got a great night sleep. When the pediatrician examined him in the morning he heard a heart murmur I was taken aback but not overly worried. I had heard of lots of people with innocent heart murmurs and I assumed everything would be fine after our cardiac check up. We were released from the hospital on December 7th and we were a bit nervous taking our baby home. He had to take oral antibiotics once daily to prevent any kidney infection. He takes the medicine through a bottle nipple and never gives us any trouble.

Loved and lost :(

James Thomas
On April 22, 1995 Jason's younger brother James died suddenly at the age of 22 of complications of the flu. We still talk of James often and we know he is watching over us. I can't believe he has been gone for 10 years already. Drew shares the middle name Thomas in honour of James and of my great-grandfather.

Curtis
When I was pregnant with Myah our dear nephew Curtis died very suddenly at 11 months old. Curtis was the 3rd child of Jason's brother and his wife. He had an undiagnosed rare genetic condition called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome - Vascular Type 6. We miss him dearly and every June we have a memorial walk to raise money for research into rare genetic diseases in children. We have raised over $65,000 dollars in the past 4 years. Curtis is our special angel and I know he always with us!

Grandparents
My mother's parents Peggy and Earl have both left us in the past few years and both died far too young. I spent a lot of time with my granparents when I was young, they were wonderful and sp special to me. My sister and I were lucky enough to each have a great-grandchild while they were here to love and enjoy them. I really wish they had the chance to meet Drew on earth but I know they sent me this special boy because we would take good care of him.

My other grandfather George died of cancer when I was 12. I enjoyed lots of good times on his farm and I have great memories of him. He would be thrilled that Drew's middle name honours his father. My Grandmother is 82 and is currently being treated for ovarian cancer. She is fighting hard and the prognosis is good.

Having children

We got married young so we wanted to wait a few years before we had kids. We thought it would be neat to have a millennium baby; we started trying and got pregnant right away, unfortunately we had a very early miscarriage. We got pregnant shortly after and had our beautiful daughter Myah on September 7th, 2000 weighing 6lbs 2 oz. I had a great pregnancy with some morning sickness in the beginning but nothing too bad. I gave birth naturally and though painful was an empowering experience.

When Myah was 3 we thought it was time to add to our family. It wasn't as easy as we thought it would be and we had 2 more devastating miscarriages. Finally we were pregnant again with a baby that seemed to be sticking. At our 17 week ultrasound they discovered that our baby (we waited to find our the gender) had an enlarged renal pelvis. I got plenty of ultrasounds during the pregnancy and the kidneys continued to be enlarged. Our beautiful baby boy Drew was born December 5th, 2004 right on his due date weighing 8lbs 1oz. Drew pee'd all over everyone right after birth which was a relief to all knowing that his plumbing was working properly. The pediatrician examining Drew heard an abnormal murmur when listening to his heart and sent us to a pediatric cardiologist. You'll find out more about Drew by reading this blog.

Our beginnings

Jason & I met in 1990 at a hockey dance, we were teenagers and have been together ever since. Jason proposed to me on my 20th birthday just after I graduated from college. We got married August 24, 1996; I was 21 and Jason was 25. We bought a home in a small town in Ontario, Canada. We still live in the same house and we are very happy here.

Jason works as a heavy machinery operator at our local municipality and I work for our county library as a computer trainer. I am lucky enough to get 1 year of maternity leave which I am enjoying now.