November 2012

Oh my goodness it has been way too long! There has been so much happen since I last posted that I don't think I could even fit it in one post, even if I tried. A short synopsis, I was pregnant for 9 months and had a baby girl, Gwenyth Elise Mattox on June 11th, 2012.  She is so precious and lots of fun.  The big thing with her is that we found out she has multiple atrial septal defects, (click here for an explanation) which means she has multiple holes in the atrium of her heart.  We found out August 29th, after she went to her two month old appointment and the pediatrician heard a heart murmur.

This is a picture of her the afternoon we found out... As you can see though, she's not too bothered about this whole thing!

I remember this afternoon like it was yesterday and so many things kept running through my mind, but this is also one of them,  and it gave me peace then, and still continues to.

To say that we were shocked, devastated, confused, scared, and/or hopeful would be an understatement.  We have definitely had time to come to grips with this and Gwen is doing well right now, so we are very thankful for this.  She was also approved for a Synagis shot, which is kind of like a vaccination for RSV.  This is a VERY expensive shot, so I am so thankful that she was approved and even more thankful that we don't have a copay for this.  Since this isn't a vaccination she has to get a shot once a month, which we had our first one in October, and go back for our next one on November 19th.  We will be going back to the cardiologist after Thanksgiving and I'm not expecting a change, but I hope that he will be pleased with her growth, which is one of the concerns with this condition. We call her "Chunky Monkey" and poor girl got mommy's cheeks and thighs!

January 2013

Update from the above post...We went to the cardiologist and Gwen is doing great! The dr still heard the murmur, which was expected, but did say he is very pleased with her growth.  He also said that she doesn't look like a "heart" baby and that we don't have to go back until June, when Gwen is one.
At that time the dr will do another echo-cardiogram to see if there are still holes, how many there are, and the size of them. He did say though, to continue to think that she will need to have these repaired when she's two, which will first involve a catheter procedure.  If they aren't able to repair them that way, she will require open heart surgery.  This is something that is difficult for me to think about, so we are just continuing with prayers of healing.
My 7 month old with two teeth (but still not wanting to eat!)

As you can see, no problems here with growth, which I am so thankful for!  If I could just get her to eat some solid foods, we'd be good.  She acts like I'm trying to give her lemons, and then squeezes her lips together and won't budge.  We can tell that we are going to have an opinionated, independent, and strong-willed little girl on our hands.  She is already "bossing" everyone around!  But how can you say no to this face?!

On to this little girl's handsome brother!  I cannot believe that he is 3 1/2 years old! He is turning in to such an amazing little person, who is also the best big brother any little girl could ask for.  He loves her so much, and tells us that regularly, which of course makes my heart melt!

He also loves to be silly, which is good for me because I'm not naturally "silly" and I love that he brings that out in me.

This picture was taken at his allergy Dr's office.  He now has to get allergy shots 2-3 times a week, which he has become a CHAMP at.  Again, I'm so proud of him!!  He handles it way better than his bullriding daddy :) We also found out that he is allergic to soy and have since had to completely change his diet.  This has made such a difference in how he feels, which means that he eats more, has more energy, and is generally in a better mood because he doesn't feel bad all the time.  It was so hard having him feel bad all the time and always complaining of his stomach hurting.  I thought for a long time that he was just saying it to get out of eating, but the day he turned down the cookie at the grocery store because he said it hurt his stomach, I knew something more was wrong.  It's amazing to find out how much they put soy in!!  He has learned to ask me before he eats something if it has soy in it, which also tells me that he can tell a difference when he eats it.
He also LOVES to play baseball, and I realize I'm a little bit partial, but he has a pretty good swing and loves to hit them over the fence and go get them.  His daddy and Papa have become pretty good pitchers too since he has them play all the time.  Crawford wakes up wanting to play and goes to bed wanting to play baseball!!

He said he wants to be a fire fighting - baseball player!! I've told him he can be anything he wants to be! :)

I am definitely going to be better about keeping up this blog, because I love looking back at it and want to be able to have these memories.