Mitchell is 5- Happy & Stable!

We were asked to update our blog.  Hard to believe our last update was in 2011! 

 

 Mitchell had his 5th Birthday on May 20th.   That was also his last day of 4-year old Kindergarten.  We have much to be thankful for!  He had a wonderful school year with an amazing teacher!  He learned alot, and is enjoying singing new songs and reading his little books.

 

Mitchell continues to see his local cardiologist on a quarterly basis.  His echocardiograms are still acceptable- his stented pulmonary artery still has adequate blood flow.  We anticipated that we would have approached his 3rd heart surgery by now, but are happy to wait for the Fontan procedure.

 

Mitchell is also playing his first team sport through a local church program.  He was very excited to start t-ball; and enjoyed picking out his new gear!  His endurance is low, but he is participating well- batting, running bases and fielding balls.  We never imagined watching him play ball.

 

We are very thankful for our little boy with a sweet spirit.  He loves Jesus & has asked Him to be his Savior.   We treasure each day we have, and we appreciate everyone who prays for him.

 

December 2011

Sorry for the lack of updates recently.  In this case, no news is good news!
Not a lot to report.  After his cath we had a follow-up and Chest X Ray at Nemours Cardiology here in Pensacola.

He is making great progress- acceptable weight, walking, talking & normal appearing 2 yr. old.  We are so thankful!  He is 24 1/2 lbs. with sats in the 80s.  He does get tired with activity & asks to be held; but such a happy boy in spite of everything.

He has a routine Cardiology appointment next month, and we anticipate his 3rd heart surgery in approximately 2 years.  We will delay it as long as possible, given the complications that children have had post Fontan as a result of increased pressures to the liver.  Hoping for some new solutions/treatments in the mean time.

I am posting from mom's computer, so no access to our pics right now.  Will add some recent ones later.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in Iowa!  We were able to visit our family friends, the Humphreys in Northern GA on our way up; and saw lots of family in IA!- Ted's great grandma, Aunts/Uncle, & cousins' families were able to meet Mitchell.  We had a great time with everyone.  We were able to see Jodi's cousin's family when we were headed back.

11.11.11 brought the arrival of a new cousin, Lilly Grace Huff, born to Jodi's brother & sister-in-law.  11th grandchild for Grandma Huff.  We're all enjoying having another baby in the family!

Christmas brought all of Jodi's family, with the exception of Kim (sis-in-law), who needed to be in AZ with her dad.  Praying for the health of her dad, Sid; & wisdom for the doctors treating his Congestive Heart Failure.

We had a wonderful early Christmas with everyone- dinner at our house, gifts & stockings at grandma's & family play at the park.  The cousins always have a great time together!  As do the rest of us.  1/2 the gang headed out on Thursday night to drive to AZ for Christmas.  And Ted flew to CA on Friday to see his family- parents, sister & brothers.  Mom & the girls & I had a nice Christmas Eve & Christmas.

We are so thankful for our many blessings in 2011, and wish you all a Happy 2012!

Remembering Christ & his birth, as He is the Reason to Celebrate.
Luke 2:11

Mitchell is back at the hotel and resting. He had an uneventful cath and successful dilatation of the stent in his left pulmonary artery. We are thankful that everything looked good, given his heart condition.
He is a little sore with 2 cath access sites, but recovering nicely.

Thank you for praying for him.
We appreciated all of your messages today.

After consulting with Cardiology, we have decided to wait on the 3rd surgery, the Fontan. Given his size, his physician believes we can wait a couple years. The plan is to further dilate the stent during his pre-Fontan cath. There is a potential of about 2 more mm.

Will follow-up with our Cardiologist sometime during the next month.

In Cath Holding

We are still in holding waiting. Mitchell is the 2nd case this morning. Anesthesia has come and talked to us, and we are waiting to see the Interventional Cardiologist. Shouldn't be too much longer. Mitchell said, "All done. Time to see the girls." :) but he is staying entertained playing cars and throwing the ball with daddy.
Praying for a smooth procedure without complication.
Thank you for remembering us today.

Heart Cath Friday Morning

Just an update on Mitchell's procedure Friday - it is scheduled for sometime between 9 and 9:30 a.m. EST. Thank you again for your prayers!

Heart Catheterization

As you know, Mitchell has a stent in his Pulmonary Artery. This was placed after his 2nd surgery, October 2009. As he has grown, he is now requiring a larger area for blood flow. He will be having a heart cath on Friday morning to dilate the stent.

He has been stable, but we had noticed increased shortness of breath with activity. His last echocardiogram (earlier this month) was similar to the last, but given the images, symptoms and known size of the current stent; Mitchell's cardiologist consulted with the team in Atlanta. They decided it was time to address it. This cath can also serve for diagnostic purposes for his 3rd heart surgery, the Fontan for up to 6 months. I guess that means sometime before spring... Ready or not!

We appreciate your prayers as we travel to Atlanta tomorrow afternoon, and for Mitchell's cath on Friday morning. I will update once we have a time. Our timeframe for now is 6-10 a.m. EST.

Anticipating an overnight stay, since it is Interventional in nature.

Thank you!

Ted, Jodi, Madison, Mackenzie & Mitchell

2 year old pictures

Not much to report.

Mitchell continues to make progress- more active & very happy.

His vocabulary gets bigger every day.

His new favorite is, "Why, cuz?" about almost everything :).

And he is quite appreciative- everything is followed with a "thank you, welcome"

The most exciting is the "I wuv you, mommy or daddy or mimi or sissy..."

He really is a sweet boy!

He is starting to show more interest in foods. He doesn't consume a lot, but he is licking a lot of things, taking small nibbles of crackers, and taking sips of drinks.

I finally took his 2 year old pictures this week. He looks like such a little man wearing his tie.

Here are some updated pictures:

Also took the kids to Palafox Pier last week: