Yesterday was our Cardiology appointment and echo. I got off work and picked-up Steve and the kids. We got to Iowa City, hauled in the kiddos and our umpteen bags, then got seated. They called Olivia back for her vitals, which is usually a bit of a task. She'll usually sit on my lap and cry while they do her 4 point blood pressure and O2 SATS. This time was different...Our big girl climbed up on the chair all by herself and was a peach the entire time. The nurse blew bubbles to keep Olivia entertained and Olivia talked her ear off, asking all about her appointment.



Once we were done we headed over to the cath lab for her echo. This is where things got tricky. As soon as Liv sat on the table, panic set in. She clung to me and kept saying, "No, no no...." It took some coaxing, but we finally got her to lay down and hold fairly still. After this we headed back to the room and Olivia got to open her super special surprise for being such a good girl. Trudy came in a little while later and took a look at Livi. She was such a good girl, talking to Trudy and playing with her toys while Trudy listened to her heart.








When she was done Trudy took Livi to get a snack, since she was asking for some food. Have I ever mentioned how awesome Trudy is? Then her and Dr. Law took a look at the echo. When they came back in we talked at great length about Olivia and the next open-heart surgery. He also took a look at Miss Livi-Pie, which she didn't mind. When he was listening to her heart, Olivia put her hand on his face and started rubbing his cheek. It was sooo sweet!

Dr. Law felt that her echo looked stable, but the time is coming. With most heart kiddos things don't happen quickly, it's a slow process of decline before things get to the point of surgery. He felt Olivia's body was starting to get ready for it and he thought doing a heart cath sometime in the next couple of months would be a good idea. Dr. Law said this summer is a reasonable time to go ahead with Olivia's 3rd open-heart surgery. We knew it was coming, we just thought we had a little more time...We weren't even supposed to have an appointment until June. But, it is what it is....We have to do this someday and that someday has now become this summer.

We had a great day last Thursday. After we got up and around, Thomas, Olivia, and I hit the road and drove to see Ellie, Katelyn, and Heidi (cp:elliejoschmidt). It was the perfect day, in fact, it was our longest play date yet. The girls hadn't seen each other since before Christmas, so they were completely engaged in playing kitchen, having a fashion show, and riding in the "train." At one point they disappeared and played quietly in Ellie's room while Heidi and I got a chance to relax and chat. After my first week back at work and some other things adding a bit of stress to our lives, this was exactly the reprieve me and Olivia needed.


"Don't take my picture!" This is just as the fashion show was beginning...




She takes a fall and is still all smiles, what a fashion diva!






All aboard!


Thomas and Katelyn liked checking each other out. There was even some hair pulling, but Thomas didn't seem to mind. These two kiddos are about the most laid back babies I've ever met! Ahhh, we deserve it, Heidi!



Things have been going ok here. It's definitely been a change in routine for everyone with me not getting home until 5:45pm. I've been trying my best to get supper made, baths given, meds ready, and put Thomas to sleep all in the hour and a half I have after work. Sometimes things haven't gotten done, but eventually things will fall into place. Olivia has been such a good helper. She even fed Thomas a bottle the other night (check out lefty holding the bottle!).





As most of you read in the last update, Olivia has been quite tired and out of breath lately. I had been shrugging it off, trying not to worry. However, my husband and now my parents have voiced their concerns to me as well. I figured it was time to send our beloved Cardiology ARNP an e-mail. I told her Olivia's symptoms and let her know her SATS have been in the low 80's (which isn't awful for Olivia). Trudy e-mailed me back a few minutes later and told me we need to bring Olivia in for another evaluation and an echo within the next few weeks. She said Olivia's body may be ready for The Fontan (her 3rd open heart surgery). To say the least, I was shocked. We weren't even due for another appointment until June. I figured Trudy would tell me not to worry too much and to keep an eye on her SATS. We go next wed at 2:00pm for the appointment. Please pray for the doctors and nurses to have all the knowledge they need to proceed in the best possible way for Olivia....

Hello. Sorry it's been awhile since my last update, but I do have an excuse! Ha ha. Actually, I probably should be getting things ready for next week (back to work) while I have a second, but I wanted to say hi while I could before things get even busier. Olivia is doing well. She has been very busy playing with all of her new things. She's also managed to stay healthy after our outings this past month, thank goodness! However, I've noticed her being quite out of breath the last few weeks. Whether she's singing or running around the house, she will gasp for a breath mid-sentence. Sometimes she will even sit down for a minute and tell us she needs to take a little rest. I suppose it's probably just part of the trend we will see until it's time for her third open-heart surgery. Let's hope it's a very slow trend. I'm just going to keep an eye on her SATS and her and only time will tell.

Olivia has been asking Daddy to take her sledding. These two are always outside together shoveling snow, building snowmen, or what we like to call “improv sledding.” Since we didn't have a sled yet and Daddy's little girl wanted to sled, he got a trash can top and built her a hill in the backyard. Ha ha, only Daddy! *PS We did eventually buy this babe a sled and Daddy took her to the park to go down the big hill!*




Daddy also decided to bury her in the hill!

On December 23rd Thomas had his 8 week check-up. Dr. Rick was all smiles as he reported our “Big Guy” was off the chart for weight. He weighed in at 14 lbs 10 oz, higher than 99.9% of babies his age! Steve and I had to laugh. Both our kids are off the growth charts, just at different ends of the spectrum, ha ha!













The kids have been doing great. They made it through all 4 Christmases without too much of a fuss. Luckily we were able to spread it out, so we didn't have more than one a day.





We hope you all had a great Christmas and a Happy New Year. It's a busy time of year, but such a great time of year. I'm always a little sad when it's time to take down the tree. That soft glow of the lights sure warms up an atmosphere. I turned the big 29 New Years Day, so Steve and I got to go out for the night to celebrate New Years Eve. My mom had the kiddos so we got to relax and have fun for the night. It was nice, but I think this is going to be my last recorded birthday, ha ha!

I took a ton of pictures over the Holidays (as I'm sure you could guess). I've narrowed it down and thought I would let the pictures speak for themselves! They do a pretty good job!












Olivia with her new apron and new dollhouse, a few of the new favs!


Tommy and Grt. Grandma Spencer




Christmas morning at our house!




The Art Show! One of Olivia's top picks to ask Santa for.








“Oh boy! A Camera! Now I can be just like Mama!!!!




Yes...our daughter tries to ride our dog! Ha ha!

I'll try to do another update sometime within the next month, although I can't promise anything with starting work again. I'm not used to working 4 days a week instead of three and adding another kiddo in the mix too. It's going to be hard to go back and leave my babies again...but, at least I know they're in good hands with their Grandma's. I feel blessed to have spent a maternity leave at home with my family this time and I'll just have to make the best of it. It always works out...

Take Care