Cardiologist Appt November 28

Yesterday was Tyson's appointment at Sick Kids for an ECHO, ECG, and cardiology clinic.  Everything went peachy :)  His ECHO and ECG remain unchanged from last time in June.  It's always good to hear when there are no new surprises!

I brought up the concern about Tyson sleeping so much at nights.  It started around the time he had his last bout of pneumonia in June.  When it continued afterwards, we passed it off as him taking a while to overcome the pneumonia.  When it continued throughout the summer, we thought it was due to him being outside for long hours during the day being active with his older siblings.  But now with fall here and he is not as active, he is continuing to sleep 13-14 hours every night.  We were starting to get concerned that his heart may be slowing down.  But according to the ECHO and ECG, everything is as good as it can be for him, with no new changes.  The mitral valve is still leaking mildy, and his Fontan circulation is still a little 'off' but as McCrindle says, "It seems to be working for him."  The ECHO report actually said there were no obstructions in the pulmonary veins but McCrindle snickered and said, 'You and I both know *that's* not true!"  LOL

Anyway, to be on the safe side, Dr McCrindle ordered some blood work to make sure there's nothing wrong with any of his other levels that could be causing the fatigue.  Tyson was very angry at me as we walked down to the lab for bloodwork. He scowled and protested, "You LIED to me Mom!" because I had been telling him all day that there would be no needles at today's visits.  Ooooops.  I guess I shouldn't make promises that I'm not sure I can keep.  Since bloodwork was done at 5:30pm, we didn't find out results right away.  But I heard from Dr McCrindle this morning that all the numbers came back normal, and Tyson is just fine.  So we continue to keep a close eye on him, let him sleep as long as he needs to, and we don't need to go back to Sick Kids again for SIX MONTHS!  Yay!

We talked a bit about some precautions that we need to be aware of in preparation for when Tyson starts Kindergarten in September.  Nothing new, just some things to think about and talk about with his teacher and the other staff members.  All in due time. 

Once again, we appreciate prayers for a healthy winter for Tyson.  He was approved for RSV needles again this winter.  We'd appreciate prayers for that too, that Tyson doesn't get too anxious about the needles.  He *hates* needles, and the RSV ones are big and juicy.  Because of his size he needs to have 3 in one visit (multiply that by 6 months of the year....) but I am hoping we can talk the nurse into using a slightly bigger needle and dividing the serum up into two needles instead of 3.  That would be far less trauma for him.

That's the update for this time.  I hope to post pics of our Sick Kids visit sometime within the next few days, so come back soon and check them out.

Melissa

Our Gift from God turns FOUR!

Take a minute and scroll back up to the picture at the top of your screen.....come on, just do it! 


 I'll be here waiting for you when you get back.......

Isn't that the SWEETEST face you've ever seen??????

I'm sitting here staring at this picture of my beautiful little boy with huge tears in me eyes.  Happy tears of course, because today Tyson turns FOUR YEARS OLD!  We are so thankful that God has blessed this little warrior with four full years of LIFE!   Oh, how God has blessed and enriched our lives by giving us this spunky boy!  Not only has God taught us so much along the way, but Tyson has also taught us many things.  He has taught us so much about being brave, staying strong, persevering to the end and *never* giving up, and he absolutely is my hero.  Most people never get to meet their hero in their entire lifetime.  I was blessed to have given birth to mine.  Friday, November 21, 2008.  A day that changed our lives forever.  The day I became a heart Mom and we all became a heart family. 

Most of us, when we celebrate our birthday, or the birthday of one of our children, we spend a few minutes reflecting on the past year and all the exciting things that have happened in the year gone past.  But on Tyson's birthday, we are not just celebrating another year.  We are celebrating his entire LIFE!  Thank-you God, for Tyson's life!  We love his life!  We wouldn't trade it for the world!  As much as it has had its ups and downs, the ups are GREAT! 

Tyson was able to have his first birthday party with friends yesterday.  We invited all the boys in his grade and a few other special friends too.  Not everyone could make it, which we expected given the time of year with all the colds and flus.  We politely reminded everybody on the invitation that only healthy children were welcome :)

It was a fun morning, with cupcakes and candy, presents and Pin the Tail on the Donkey, and it was small enough group that Tyson didn't get too overwhelmed.  Thank-you to those who were able to come out and celebrate with us.  It meant a lot to Tyson and to me too.  And to those of you who couldn't make it, I hope you feel better soon and that you can come next year. 

Next week Wednesday, Nov 28 is the much-anticipated "Sick Kids Day."  Tyson is having another full scale ECHO, ECG, and a check-up with the cardiology team.  It's *always* nerve-wracking for me.  I'm always plagued with the "what ifs."  And the drive downtown TO always makes me nervous, but thankfully this time Brian will be driving because he is coming with me this time.  Maybe I will have a better sleep the night before too :) 
 Many prayers for a good birthday, another year of heart health, and a good check-up next week!