I'm A-OK!

Lexie went to see the cardiologist and her surgery was a success. Blood is flowing normally and not crossing through the passageways and it looks like the opening in one of her valves has gotten smaller because of the surgery, so that was good news.

Before Lexie's operation, she was helping me plant seeds for school. My kindergarteners plant flowers for Mother's Day gifts and I always make extras because it's not fun watching children cry when their plants haven't grown.

Lexie loved getting all dirty and she was such a big helper.

Lexie has been recovering extremely well. She has never shown any symptoms of ASD which is loss of appetite and fatigue. But it's interesting that since her surgery, her energy level has increased a lot and she's eating more than usual. We've also noticed that her speech has also improved. In the past, she talked very slowly because she really had to think about the words she was going to say. Now, she's talking non-stop and her sentences are getting longer. We don't know if this is a result of the surgery, but we're happy by this outcome.

It has been an exhausting few days trying to keep Lexie out of trouble. All of us took a long nap this afternoon, something we desperately needed. We're going to need all of our energy for at least the next few months. Even though Lexie is fine on the outside, the device inside of her is still very delicate, so we have to make sure our daredevil of a daughter doesn't do anything crazy. She's already swinging under our countertops because we removed the chairs that she used to climb on. It's going to be a long few months!!

Speedy Recovery

Lexie was admitted today for her catherization surgery. She was in good spirits when we went to the hospital. The staff was wonderful with her and made sure we knew exactly what was going on and what we could do to make this as painless as possible for Lexie. Because she was the youngest patient, she was first in line for the procedure.

When it was time, Eric carried Lexie into the operating room. He placed her on the table and they put a mask on her so she could breathe the watermelon flavored gas. That was the hardest part because Lexie was crying and we did our best to comfort her and let her know we loved her. Then within 30 seconds, she was still and asleep. It was so hard to leave her there. She looked so tiny and helpless.

The procedure was done within an hour. There was a possibility that besides closing up the hole, they were also going to insert a balloon into one of the valves because there is an opening there as well. They found that it was too small and the balloon might do more damage, than good. We're crossing our fingers that we won't have to put Lexie through this again. She looked so fragile as we waited for her to wake up.

When Lexie woke up, she was very confused and did not like all of the things that were attached to her body and legs. I sat with her on the bed for a little while to calm her down and then Eric carried her. She was very thirsty and wanted orange juice. Then she asked for her kimi balls and munched on that and watched tv.

The nurse brought Lexie french fries and pizza. She was very hungry and ate half of the fries and a slice of pizza. She complained about the IV in her leg, but the incision on her thigh didn't really bother her. They took off the wires from her chest so she could move more freely.

The nurse gave Lexie this cute tiger that has a big red heart. She held on to him very tightly. After her lunch, Lexie fell asleep with her tiger in her arms.

Lexie was definitely feeling better when she started to make silly faces. We finally left the hospital at 2:00pm. Lexie wanted more fries, so we got her some plus an apple pie and she ate all of that. Then at dinner, she ate everything we gave her. I guess that's a good sign that she wants to eat.

I thought the surgery was going to be stressful, but being at home is making me insane. Our directions were no vigorous activity for 2-3 weeks. Lexie's existence is vigorous. She doesn't stop moving. We removed the chairs in our kitchen so she can't climb. I even had to bribe her with M&M's to sit and watch tv. Then she tried to get more M&M's by just sitting for a few seconds and I told her she had to watch an entire show before she got more candy. She opted to jump on the couch instead.

Lexie went to sleep as soon as we put her to bed, which means now I can go to sleep as well. Thank you so much for keeping Lexie in all of your prayers. It was comforting to know that everyone was thinking about her.

Prayers for Lexie

Lexie was born with atrial septal defect, which is an opening in the wall separating the upper chambers of the heart. It also causes a heart murmur. For the past two years, her pediatric cardiologist has been monitoring this hole. We were hopeful that it might close on its own, but it didn't. We were grateful that the hole never got bigger and it didn't affect Lexie's health in any way.

Our doctor decided that it's time for the hole to be repaired. Lexie will be having a procedure called cardiac catherization. A device will be inserted through a blood vessel in her thigh and it will close the hole.

We are amazed that this operation is an outpatient procedure and unless Lexie has major complications, we will get to take her home with us at the end of the day. Nevertheless, we are still worried about having to put this tiny baby under anesthesia and not being able to help her understand what will be happening tomorrow.

Sometimes I wonder if Lexie senses what is going on and is trying to put on a brave face so that we don't worry so much. Today we took her to her pediatrician for her pre-op exam. Usually she cries or we have to distract her so she can be examined.

Today was different. She walked into the exam room. She stood on the big kid scale and was weighed and measured. She let the nurse take her blood pressure and listen to her breathing. Then when her doctor came in, she was very cooperative and even talked to him. We were so proud of Lexie.

We have just been showing Lexie how much we love her so that when we have to leave her tomorrow she knows that we will be at her side when she wakes up. We know that Lexie is in good hands and will be well taken care of. Please keep Lexie in your thoughts and prayers and that she has a speedy recovery.

We love you, little Lexie-bug.

Easter Sunday - Good & Bad

We've been trying to relax this weekend as we prepare for Lexie's surgery on Tuesday. Of course, when you want to relax, things just don't seem to go right. It started on Thursday night when we noticed a lump under Maxx's eye. Horrible thoughts like cancer or a tumor went through our minds. When we tried to examine it, Maxx was in so much pain, he hit it with his paw and a bloody pus squirted out. We took him right away to the vet and found out his tooth was infected which caused an abscess. Luckily, he was able to get his tooth extracted and the swelling and pain have gone away. He's back to his old self again.

We thought when we woke up on Easter morning, it was going to be a relaxing Sunday. We had a nice breakfast. Lexie ate almost all of her Daddy's eggs.

We did a little practice egg hunting. Lexie is still learning what to do.

Look, there's an egg!!

I think I get it now! I pick up the egg and put it in my basket.

I see another egg.

Hey, there's something different about this egg!

It's M&M's. How did the Easter bunny know I liked M&M's?

I hear something in this egg? Could it be more M&M's? I hope so!

It's money! I love money too!! Wow, that Easter bunny is really smart! I wonder how he knows what I like?

I love Easter! I can't wait to do this again with my cousins.

So we had a nice morning, but while Lexie was looking for eggs, our little Gohan wasn't feeling so well. The poor guy is constipated. He's resting right now and just wants me to rub his tummy. We'll be keeping an eye on him because we may have to take him to the vet if he doesn't get better. We're hoping that this family can stay healthy because on Tuesday we need to be giving Lexie lots of TLC and can't be taking care of the furry kids as well.

Easter Celebration

Lexie had an Easter party with some of her friends last weekend. Savannah couldn't stay long, but she got in some swinging time with Lexie.

Lexie showed everyone how high she could jump.

Lexie is still learning how to be a good host and share her toys with her friends.

Lexie showed Savannah how to use the egg spinners.

Bouncing time!

Not a happy camper. "Why is everyone playing with my stuff??"

Cute bunnies!

Why are they making us wear these bunny ears? Don't do it Nolan, stand your ground!!

Finally, I got my slide all to myself!! Where did everyone go?

Yay!!! It's time to color eggs.

Lexie was sort of interested in the eggs.

Then, she thought it would be more fun to put the egg holder in her mouth. When does that stop??

Lexie managed to decorate one egg!! Who is that silly man in the back of me??

Getting ready to look for eggs.

As soon as Lexie saw that balloon, she dropped her basket and forgot all about the eggs.

She found 2 eggs, hooray!!

Then she got sidetracked by more balloons.

At the end, everyone was counting their eggs. Lexie didn't have many, but she sure seemed interested in Seth's eggs.

Lexie had lots of fun with all of her friends and hope we can do it again next year!

2 Years Ago

Where has the time gone? Two years ago, I was checking my messages on my phone after school and I had several missed calls, voice mails and a text from Eric that changed our lives forever. We got the call that day. The call that we had been waiting for what seemed like forever.

I remember thinking that this wasn't really happening because it was very unexpected and so out of the blue. I rushed home so that Eric and I could see our first glimpse of Lexie. When I opened that file, we just fell instantly in love with her. No matter what we read in that medical report, she was our daughter.

We knew from the beginning that Lexie had a heart condition. It hasn't slowed her down one bit, but we had hoped and prayed that it would correct itself. Please keep Lexie in your prayers because she will be having her surgery soon to fix this problem.

All Aboard!!

We go to the mall a few times each week to go walking. They have a train that you can ride. Lexie will always say "all aboard" when she sees it or hears the bell ringing. We've been waiting for a day when it wasn't crowded and this was it.

She was so excited to be riding it. There are 4 cars on the train and we had our pick, so we took the caboose.

She had a great time waving to everyone. The driver was really nice and took us twice around the mall since it wasn't crowded.

When the ride was over, Lexie didn't want to come out of the caboose. She kept telling us to close the door.

She got to sit in the driver's seat and pull the lever that rings the bell.