Update!!

Nathan is doing great! He woke up a bit cranky but after a few minutes he was fine. He fell back asleep for a couple of hours and spent the whole day watching cartoons. He started drinking and finally eating. He was a little grumpy because he REALLY wanted to get out of the room but the rule is he had to lay flat for 6 hours. They ended up having to coil one vein. So when they have to do interventions like that you have to spend the night. So we got all settled in. Nathan finally got to walk around the halls and that made him happier. We passed the doctor and he took one look at Nathan and said....."Do you want to go home?" Heck yea! whooo hoo. So we went for the x-ray and all is fine. Since it was just one small coil the doctor said he was good to go. Jason and Joshua picked us up and we are now home! So good to be home. I know he will get more rest here.

As for the results of the cath. The doctor said he is a PERFECT candidate for the Fontan. His numbers are GREAT! He should handle the new circulation wonderfully.:-) The issue that we were concerned about isnt there anymore. So this will be just a basic Fontan. Great news!!!

I hope to get some pictures posted tomorrow. So check back when you can!

Laura

Nathan is having his Cath now!

This morning Nathan and I woke up at 5am.....guess the early bedtime kinda backfired on me:-) But he drank his last cup of apple juice around that time and watched cartoons. Then he asked to eat....from there the morning got hard! I had to tell him he couldnt eat:-( Nathan didnt like this one bit!! But we made it to the hospital at 8:30am. However the doctors were running late. I think the hardest thing to do is keep a 2 year old happy when they are hungry!

At 10am he received his pre-meds:-) I think this is the only time a mother thinks it is cute to see their child high:-) He was in good spirits after that! He got to watch part of Toy Story. When it was time for him to be carried to the OR he was alittle upset that he didnt get to see the ending. But once he got to see the inside of the OR his first words were "OOOOOO AHHHHHH" something like that:-) I have pictures but they are not uploading so I will have to do that once we get home and I will make sure to post it. I layed him on the OR table and he immediately grabbed the doctor and started to point to his pillow. There was something on that pillow that he NEEDED to discuss with that doctor! It was funny:-) I took that as the ok to leave and I noticed that the other doctor was getting his mask ready to put him to sleep.

I am waiting for updates. I had to grab something to eat because when your child has to fast for surgery so does the mother. I am figuring that out. Even sneaking foods to the bathroom in hopes that he wouldnt find me didnt work. Plus I felt guilty!

I will update again soon.

Laura

Pre-Op Day

Nathan and I got to the hospital at 7am this morning. He was full of energy!! The day was full of pre-op testing. Nathan as usual did amazing! I actually was worried that he wouldnt do well for the blood draw so I waited till Jason could get there to help me "hold" him down. Well the boy never really cried! I was so proud:-) Then I thought for sure he would need cuddles from his mommy......nope a sticker and daddy bouncing him around was all he needed. I secretly was crushed. But Im sure by the end of this he may ask for me to cuddle with him. He is growing up though. I met a mom that had a 5 month old that was getting ready to have his first heart surgery. Nathan of course loved seeing a baby and wanted to give him toys. It was very sweet. Kind of a strange feeling that he is getting older and meeting all the babies that will go through what he has already been through.

We ended the day with meeting with Dr. Breitbart. He mentioned that this cath will also tell us if Nathan will just need the straightforward Fontan or the Fontan....plus a bit more:-) This is concerning the obstruction that I have spoken about before. If he does need "a bit more" than the Fontan it could result in a pacemaker. Which we do want to avoid. But, like I have said before, it is what it is. Just another piece to learn more about.

We were out of the hospital by 2pm. Came back to the hotel and "tried" to nap but Nathan wanted nothing of it. So by 6:45pm he was sound asleep for the night and is snoring as I type. Tomorrow we are scheduled for the cath at 8:30am. I will update midmorning!!!

Also- It seems everytime Joshua is in the exam room he always has one question for the doctor, This time it was "What color is a heart" Soooo cute:-) The doctor told him red and Joshua said ok. I think it made him feel like he was apart of the discussion:-)

Thank you everyone for all your thoughts and prayers!!

Love
Laura

Nathan's Surgeon

Dr John Mayer will be Nathan's surgeon for his Fontan!

http://children.photobooks.com/directory/profile.asp?dbase=main&setsize=5&last=mayer&pict_id=9900960

This is the week of Nathan's Heart Cath

Well, it is beginning. Today I am going to try and get things ready for Nathan's heart cath. Jason and I decided that Nathan and I will spend the night in a hotel near the hospital on Tuesday and Wednesday night. We live about 45mins from the hospital but with rush hour it can take about an hour and a half to get there. Love Boston traffic! We just dont want to have to wake both of the boys at 5:30am both mornings to make it to the hospital by 7am. So the plan is for me and Nathan to spend Tuesday night in the hotel and on Wednesday he has a FULL day of pre-op. Then on Thursday is his heart cath. This is to make sure he is ready for his heart surgery on the 28th. They will check all his pressures to make sure he can tolerate then Fontan circulation. He will be in the hospital till Friday.

Jason will take Joshua to gymnastics on Thursday morning. This way he wont miss a class:-) He loves gymnastics.

I will update a few times this week! Especially on Thursday during the cath. Hopefully I will get to have a tour of the hospital while he is having his cath so I see how our life will be during his surgery.

Hope everyone is doing well!!!

Laura

Thank you!

I just wanted to thank everyone who is sending gifts to Nathan for his hospital stay!! We have received a lot! It looks like Christmas in Jason's office. I know Nathan will enjoy them while he recovers. I will make sure to take pictures when he receives them.

Next week he will go in for his heart cath on July 15th. We still havent told Joshua or Nathan. I am trying to find the right time and well.....the right words. I am going to wait till Monday to tell them. That way there wont be a lot of time that passes until everything starts. Joshua is very smart and I worry about how he will feel during all this and if it will scare him. For Nathan, I still think he is young and things wont click for him until he is in the hospital. Also, Nathan has amazed me at how brave he is so Im sure he will take this as best as possible.

I will keep everyone updated on this website! So check back soon!

Love
Laura

Next Surgery is Scheduled!

Hello Everyone

Well as most of you know, Nathan's next heart surgery is scheduled for July 28th. He will have a cath done on July 15th which he will stay in the hospital for one night. Then the big surgery will be July 28th. I will use this website like I did last time to update everyone on his progress.

Thank you everyone for being here for us during this time. The move to Boston has gone extremely well! The boys love it here, as do Jason and I. Didnt realize we were going to have his surgery so soon after moving, but everything has fallen into place so far Im sure this will be for the best.

Hope everyone is doing well!

Laura