New Pictures

We've had two great doctor visits over the past week. First was the pediatric ophthalmologist. His verdict? Owen's eyes are completely normal! Whew!

Next we went to the cardiologist yesterday. It couldn't be better news! Owen is in sinus rhythm, his color is great, his saturations range from 80-83%, and his physical exam was perfect. He wasn't too happy to be there; he bawled through the whole appointment whenever anybody other than mommy and daddy was in the room! However, he's doing so great that his next surgery does not appear to have to be for another year or so... in fact, we're not even going back to cardiology until APRIL! Can you believe it? It's so far out they wouldn't even schedule us; they're just going to send us a reminder card to schedule later! What a praise!

Here are some recent photos of the boys; both are growing and changing every day!

Wow!

Hard to believe it's been so long since I posted! We've been incredibly busy with the boys. They already look so much older than the pictures I posted in June!

This month is a doctor-heavy month for us. First up was the developmental pediatrician. He was very pleased with Owen's growth, interaction, and overall appearance. He pretty much told us to keep doing what we're doing for now, so we're in a holding pattern with his therapies and feeding.

Next was the regular pediatrician; both boys saw her last Friday. And they both got shots. It was a little hairy - they were both really unhappy at the beginning of the visit, but they eventually calmed down and we got things taken care of. Gavin is 50-75th percentile for height, and 25-50th percentile for weight. So he's like Owen, longer than he is heavy. But unlike Owen, Gavin actually has a chubby tummy on him. It's adorable. =) So as of Friday, Gavin weighed 13 lbs 14 oz, and Owen weighed 18 lbs 7 oz. It won't be long before Gavin is overtaking his big brother in the weight department!

Next up is the pediatric ophthalmologist on the 26th, and the cardiologist on the 31st. That will be the big appointment, the one we're most anxious about. I have a feeling the cardiologist will look him over, do an ECHO, and release us for several more months in order to let Owen grow more before his next surgery. Everyone (medical professionals included) keeps telling us how great Owen looks, especially his color. And he really doesn't appear to tire out terribly easily to us. So I really think there will NOT be a surgery this fall, and that it'll happen closer to next fall. But we'll see. We may go in and find out his heart function really isn't so great after all. We're praying that's not the case.

Developmentally, Gavin was ahead of the game with rolling; he started rolling over both ways when he was just over 3 months old. It was a little sad for me. In fact, I cried when I first saw him roll over on his tummy. I'm happy he's growing and developing well, but it just seems too fast!

Owen is sitting on his own very well lately; in fact, he's started to appear much more comfortable and "normal" doing it. His favorite toys right now are his star stack up tower and his Duplo table. Today while he was playing with his Duplos, he stood up from his chair all by himself! He still is unable to transition from lying down to sitting, or from sitting on the floor to standing. He just doesn't want to put any weight on his hands. This is one of the main things we're working on in therapy.

And that's about it - everyone really is doing great and we're very thankful for Owen's continued good health. We still are able to function fairly normally as a family, and we're having a wonderful time being the parents of two sweet little boys!

Pictures

I tried to take a picture of the boys for Mark for Father's Day... It's tough to wrangle two babies and get them both 1) to look at me 2) not to close their eyes and 3) to smile at the same time! And apparently for Owen the temptation to deliver a few jabs at his brother was just too great!

Happy Anniversary!

One year ago today, Owen came home from the NICU. At 10 weeks of age, he slept in his bed, in his house, for the first time. I, on the other hand, barely slept at all that night! I have to say that God really knew what He was doing when he gave us Owen first. At the time, we didn't know any other way than having a baby in the NICU. That's just the way it was, and we dealt with it with relatively little emotion.

Now, our Gavin is 8 weeks old, and I canNOT imagine him being away from us and enduring what Owen did. When Owen was in the NICU, other parents would look at me in amazement - that I wasn't constantly breaking down, that I was able to carry on and prepare for Owen to come home. I didn't understand, but now that I've had a newborn at home, I do. And I don't think I could have gone through it if the boys had been born the other way around. I hate that NICUs have to exist, but I trust God's infinite wisdom. After all, He gave us Owen first.

Owen's first day home

Owen today!

Garage Sale-ing

This morning I got up, got the boys up, packed up their accessories and the double stroller, and we went garage sale-ing! I definitely got some cute, fun things for the boys, but after about an hour of pushing the stroller around with Gavin sleeping and Owen fussing, I began to doubt my sanity. I was about to turn back to the car, when I decided to head down just one more street.

And then it happened.

At the next garage sale I visited, it was time to feed Owen. I hooked up his tube and gave him a pour. The two little boys at that house were curious, and their mother apologized for them staring. I told her it was no big deal and explained to them what I was doing, and that it was because Owen has a heart condition. Another woman at the sale asked which one. I told her it's hypoplastic left heart syndrome, and that he also has a chromosome abnormality. She was shocked and said her daughter had also had the same condition, including a rare chromosome abnormality.

We chatted for a while, and the way she looked at Owen told me there was a reason for me deciding to head down that street. In fact, I don't believe I "decided" as much as I was led that way. She was amazed to see a child with Owen's conditions doing so well, and I know Owen was able to be a testament for the glory of God today.

What a blessing that Owen's purpose in life is revealed to us daily in such wonderful ways!

New Baby Sweetness

Whirlwind

Well, a baby came! Gavin Drew was born at 12:50pm on April 11, 2009. He's our bruiser at a whopping 9lbs 9oz and 21 inches long. We went in to the hospital at 6am that day. I was hooked up and getting Pitocin by 7:30, had an epidural placed around 9:30, and was ready to push by 12:30. Pushed through two contractions and Gavin arrived! We were thrilled to meet our new baby boy.

Since then...

I fell in the hospital and hurt my foot. Thought it might be broken, actually. Got it x-rayed and found out it wasn't, thankfully. But still, I could barely walk for several weeks. It made taking care of two babies really difficult for a while, but it's all better now!

In the meantime, I spent 6 weeks at home taking care of Owen and Gavin. 5 of those weeks were by myself, and I must say, I don't know how you stay at home moms do it! They rarely slept at the same time, but they inevitably needed fed at the same time. It was enough to drive me bonkers, although I did love that I had the time to spend with them. That said, I've been back at work for a week now, and it's nice to feel like a grown-up again!

Pictures coming soon!