Tummy trouble

Sigh...It's been an exciting morning.  Jack woke up crying at 6:00 a.m. so I let him come snuggle with me in bed. A few minutes later he started coughing and wham! He puked all over me, him and my bed. Awesome. So I threw him in the tub, stripped the sheets, got him out of the tub and let him watch a show while I jumped in the shower to clean off the vomit. When I got out he said he felt good, then threw up again all over my bed, so we did it all again.

Normally I would just assume stomach bug, but he threw up Sunday (in nursery) and about a week ago in the middle of the night as well.  Every time he throws up and doesn't feel well for a little bit but then perks up and is fine.  No other symptoms.  Then a Heart Mom mentioned her daughter was throwing up too and cardiology was concerned as vomiting can be a sign of heart failure. (Plus his other HLHS buddy Kylie got sick a few days ago and is now in the hospital really struggling.) Of course that got me worried so we've spent the day at the dr.  First stop was the pediatrician. He's lost some weight, but otherwise looks pretty good. After consulting with cardiology they decided we should go get a chest xray just in case.  Thank goodness for the Riverton PCMC office.  Jack was a trooper and we were in and out in 30 min. The pediatrician called a little while ago and said everything looked okay, so we're back to assuming it's just a weird stomach bug.

Sweet Jack has definitely been slowing down lately.  His cousins run circles around him, and at his bday party he sat in the shade while his friends played the games I had prepared.  We called cardiology a few weeks ago about it and we have a sedated echo scheduled for September 12 to see what's going on. My guess is that we are getting closer to needing the Fontan.  As a result I pulled him out of preschool for next year just in case. He would have loved it but some days he just doesn't have the energy.  We'll have more answers in the next few weeks, but as of today we at least know he's not in heart failure so I don't mind a little vomit.  Now if he would just learn how to aim for the bowl.

Happy Birthday Jack!

Three years ago this little boy and his very special heart changed our lives.  How grateful we are for him.  He is smart, charming, gentle, sassy, funny, polite, stubborn, creative, snuggly, naughty, loving, and hilarious. 

We love you so much Jack! 

Keeping busy

We're still just bummin' and enjoying our summer.  A few weeks ago Hardy and I took the boys to Red Butte Garden.   Jack ran every where and Tyler slept through it all.

We went with Jack's best buddy Caroline to the Aquarium.

Last weekend we went with some friends to Park City.  Here is Jack, his buddy Paisley and their dads going down the Alpine Slide.  We haven't done that in years.  The kids LOVED it.

And this little cutie usually just sleeps through all the fun as I drag him all over the place, then wakes up ready to eat.  Both boys just had their Wellness check ups and both are 50% for their weight and doing great.  

We've been playing so hard one day Jack just fell asleep at the dinner table mid-meal.  Actually, he really is slowing down these days. I've been noticing a difference in his stamina lately so tonight I checked his sats and they were 74.  That's a big drop from 82 where he was in May.  It's to be expected and is his body's way of telling us the Fontan (his next surgery) is getting closer, but I hate to even think about it. 



Brotherly Love

Tyler is a little over 3 weeks old and already these boys are best buds.  Jack's favorite thing in the world is to lay with his brother on his playmat which Jack has decided is a spaceship.    He gets so excited any time Tyler looks at him or holds his hand, and he's constantly asking to snuggle with him. He's so gentle with him, and only once has he thrown a fit and refused to let me hold Tyler.  I've been really proud of how well Jack has adjusted to not being the center of the universe.   

This past weekend we took the boys to the South Jordan Country Fest.  We let Jack go on a few rides at the carnival and he was in heaven.  I can't wait to take him to Lagoon in a few weeks when he can go on the rides as many times as he wants.  

So, so sweet.  I love these boys.

Big Brother

Look at that face!  Jack is a HUGE fan of his new baby brother Tyler.  He almost wouldn't let Grandma and Grandpa have a turn holding the baby and just kept saying, "Awww. He's so cute" while giving him sweet hugs and kisses.  Good thing Tyler was born big and sturdy (8 lbs 6 oz) so he can handle some good brotherly love.

Jack is now going to spend the holiday weekend with his cousins at my parents cabin in Heber while Hardy and I stay home and figure out what to do with a newborn since we've never really had to care for one as Jack was 3 weeks old before he came home. What a huge difference this labor and delivery has been from what we experienced with Jack. This little guy arrived just 2 short hours after they broke my water. He's pink and healthy and we've spent the day snuggling and trying to figure out how to eat. It's been a delight and so much less stressful.  We can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. 

Jack's Crazy Kitchen

This weekend I got the “Awesome Mom” award.


On Saturday morning Jack woke up and the first words out of his mouth were, “I want to play with my kitchen.” He was shocked and sorely disappointed when I informed him that he does not have and has never had a kitchen. I don’t know where he got the notion that he did. Thankfully Hardy distracted him with some good morning yard work, which Jack absolutely loves, but a few hours later Jack was requesting his kitchen again.

Lucky for Jack I was having a rare burst of energy and I recalled an article in Family Fun magazine a few months ago that showed how to make a kitchen out of boxes (I even managed to find said article without much effort). So a few random boxes, some duct tape, and about an hour later and Jack now has his very own kitchen. It has a sink and faucet, stove top, microwave, upper and lower cupboards, and eventually will have an oven when I can bend over again. It’s kind of crazy, but thankfully the audience isn’t picky, and maybe, just maybe I’ll invest in some spray paint to fix it up nicely. Not this week though. I’ve got a baby coming in 3 days. In the meantime, Jack loves it.

I’m totally giving myself a pat on my back for creating this, especially at 9 months pregnant.

My Little Letter Lover

It's long, but he's brilliant. What can I say? Some kids carry around blankets or stuffed animals. Jack carries around a foam letter E (his favorite). Crazy kid.

Cardiology Appointment

Yesterday Jack had his semi-annual cardiology appointment. Thankfully it went fantastic. His past 2 check-ups have involved him screaming the entire time ‘til he cries himself to sleep in my arms so Dr. P can listen to his heart. But finally he seems to be old enough that it went much, much smoother. He cried a bit during his x-ray, but then he held still and listened to a story while getting his blood pressure and O2 sats checked. He helped the nurse count the stickers as she put them on his chest for his EEG and told her the colors and letters on each of the “noodles” as she attached them to the stickers. We played with bubbles and ate M&Ms to keep him happy and entertained as Dr. P listened to his heart. The nurse even said he was her easiest all day. I had heard rumors that appointments would eventually get easier, but I finally believe them.


The best news is that Jack looks fantastic. His o2 was 83-88 which Dr. P was even impressed by. I got the impression that he was kind of thinking we’d do his next surgery, the Fontan, this fall, but looking at the numbers, his best guess was that early next summer would probably be a good time. We like the sound of that. How nice to have another normal year without the stress of pending surgery.

Just 4 more weeks until Jack’s baby brother arrives. He is getting very excited and keeps asking if he can have a baby. Sure thing – I’m working on it. Any time I groan because of a big baby kick Jack will run over and kiss my belly. Very sweet. I think we’re all ready for this little fella to make his appearance any time now.

The nurse asked Jack to help her put on the "noodles" (wires) so he put one in his mouth.

Look at those cute big muscles

Catching bubbles

The Zoo, Farm, and such

Jack and I went to the zoo a few weeks ago when it was nice weather.  He LOVED the train. I had to drag him off kicking and screaming. I promised him we could ride the train all he wanted when we go to Lagoon this summer.  That should be fun.

Then last week we went to Wheeler Farm with my sister and her kids.  Jack was frighteningly brave when it came to feeding hay to the horses, but thankfully they managed not to nibble off his fingers and he thought it was great.

He thought feeding ducks was almost as cool as "shooting hoops" and had to throw every piece over the fence.

But his favorite part was splashing in all the puddles where the previous days snow was melting off the roofs. He was so tired and filthy by the time we got home but it was a good day.

Currently Jack is obsessed with his ABC's.  He's always liked them and been good at them, but for the past week or so I swear he sings one version or another of the ABC song from sun up to sun down. My mom got him a new ABC show and he screams and cries to watch it all day long.  Actually, the screaming and crying happens every time it ends and I refuse to put it on again. I found him a foam alphabet puzzle at the dollar store that I pulled out the other day and now and he has to carry them all over the house identifying objects that start with each letter. I spend my days hunting for missing letters he's dropped in one room or another. Crazy kid.

Just 7 short weeks until Jack's a big brother.  I'm getting very excited and a little nervous at the prospect of a normal, healthy child.  I can barely keep up with the half-heart one I've got let alone throw another one in the mix.  It will be interesting to see the contrast.  I can hardly even fathom coming home from the hospital after only a few days and without a great big set of instructions on medications, feedings, etc. but it's a challenge I'm willing to tackle.

Where did March go?

I feel like March came and went really fast this year and I forgot to document any of it, and with my pregnancy brain I just can't rememeber anything at all these days let alone think to take out my camera.  

If I remember correctly, the first week in March Hardy's basketball team was in the State Tournament so that kept us busy.  Then Jack and I went to Idaho to visit my sister Erin the following week while both Hardy and my brither-in-law were at the MWC basketball tournament. Jack loved hanging out with his cousin's and had a blast until Saturday morning when he woke up with a firey hot fever and sick as can be. Thankfully he did pretty well on the drive home despite his misery and got better within a few days, but they were a long few days.

Last weekend Hardy and I dropped Jack off at my mom's a took a fabulous, toddler free vacation. Grandma claims Jack was an angel the whole time which is such a relief because he was awful as soon as he saw me on Sunday.  I guess payback is fair.  On Monday he kept asking to "go see the fish" so Tuesday morning I loaded him up and we went to the Living Planet Aquarium (see photo above - it's about the only picture I took of him this month).  Jack spent most of the time pushing his stroller around rather than looking and interacting with the fish so when we got to the end and I told him it was time to go he was very upset because he had yet to "see the fish."  Maybe next time we will leave the sroller in the car to encourage a little more observation. Today he "helped" me put my new glider together for the baby's room rather than take a nap. That was awesome. :(

We are very much looking forward to the spring weather that is headed our way so I think we're going to the zoo on Friday with friends.  I bet we're not the only ones with that idea, so DON'T meet us there. ;)  I have no doubt it will be a zoo in more ways than one.

Urine Town

Can I just say how much I hate potty training?  We made great progress from Monday to Tuesday, but then he woke up sick on Wednesday and felt too yucky for me to push much potty time so today we seem to be back to square one. Blah. I'm hoping by next week at this time we will all be happy campers, but currently while we are in the trenches it sure seems tedious.  Anyone have any magic tips?  

Happy Valentine's Day!