Happy Birthday Maddy!!!

Yep! Maddy turns 2 years old today, at exactly 10:40pm. Click here to read her birth story. She is such a sweet girl, and is so precious to us. We thank our Lord Jesus for everyday we have with her (we feel this way about Tristyn too!) She is doing so many new things, and is a little spit-fire who can keep us very busy!! She has learned how to climb up and go down Tristyn’s big slide by herself and she is starting up put together some 2-3 word sentences.

Maddy, your Mommy, Daddy and big sister Tristyn are very proud of you, and we love you very much!!

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1 out of 74 in Wisconsin – Why?

Nationally, the incidence of Heart Defects is 1 out of every 125 newborns. But in the state of Wisconsin, the rate is 1 out of every 74 newborns. Why? That’s what everyone wants to know, that’s why the Wisconsin Pediatric Cardiac Registry has been created. Click here to go to their website, and here to see some preliminary results. Maddy is a part of this registry. While she was still in the hospital I filled out the huge packet of paper work. They asked everything ranging from what type of cleaning products you use to the type of industry you work in or live near. They took blood samples from Maddy (before any transfusions), samples of her meconium, and DNA. Also DNA & blood from, Tony, Tristyn & I. I hope that in some small way the information we gave them will help answer some questions.

The national incidence for her particular defect (TGA) is about 2-3 in every 10,000 live births. The most common heart defect is ventricular septal defect (VSD), a hole in the wall dividing the left and right ventricles of the heart. I wonder what the statistics are for these in Wisconsin?

On a side note, Maddy and Tristyn both got their MedicAlert bracelets about 2 weeks ago. I don’t anticipate anything happening with Madilyn’s heart, but once you’re a heart mom you’re always a heart mom. She does have scar tissue where her aorta and pulmonary arteries were reattached, which could create a weak spot, and in an accident you just never know what could happen. As for Tristyn, she doesn’t have any medical conditions, but in an emergency she may have difficulty communicating.

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Maddy has pneumonia!!

It's been a long few days here. It started with her comming home early from daycare on Monday with a 101 fever. Since then her fever has yo-yo'd up and down, on Thursday it was back up to 103, so it was time for a doctor visit, because this is no normal cold. Well after some chest x-rays we found out that she had the start of pneumonia, but we caught it early, she just had a small spot on her right lung. So today she is on antibotics and still has a slight fever. The poor girl just feels miserable, but her cough is improving, so I hope in a few days she'll be back to her chipper self!!

Sigh of relief !!!

Maddy had her 18 month checkup on Friday and I am so glad she was able to get her H1N1 shot! I've been hearing of a lot of cases where children have gotten really sick, espically when they have underlying health conditions. She will need to have her 2nd dose in a few weeks, but at least she is partially protected now.

Tristyn will be able to get her shot soon, the school disctrict will be having clinics sometime in the next 2 weeks, as soon as they get their supply. So we will all be able to breath a little easier!

When I took Maddy to her appointment it was like walking into a space ship! Every one wearing masks & gloves, parts of the building closed off, it was just really strange! Luckily we had an early morning appointment and we were the only ones in the pediatric waiting area, but we had to walk past the walk in clinc to get there!

As for her checkup itself, she is healthy as a horse! 21 pounds, 15 ounces, 31.5" tall. Her doctor is very happy with how her physical therapy is helping, her speach is right where it should be for her age, and her motor skills have caught up. she figures that in 6 months to a year she will be totally caught up! Yay Maddy !!!


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Sorry !!!

OK I’ve been slacking these last few months with posting. There has been a lot going on here in our household! Maddy is doing great, she just started walking a few weeks ago, at about 17.5 months old! She’s also saying a few words: dada, momma, up, ball, all gone, and kitty. She is still on the small side at about 20.5 pounds at her 16 month visit, but health wise her doctor is happy.

In May Tristyn was diagnosed by her school with Autism. She was diagnosed very late at 4.5 years old, most children are diagnosed between ages 2 & 3, so this leads us and her teachers to believe she has very high functioning Autism. This is just an educational diagnosis, we are in the process of getting a medical diagnosis which will open up more therapy services for her. I am so glad that the school finally tested her, because we were beginning to think we were doing something wrong as parents and this finally answers questions about all of her quirks, which I will talk about in another post.

In Sept she started school again, we decided to let her have one more year in pre-K this year, she just turned 5 in July, and she’s just not ready for kindergarten yet. She has speech therapy again this year, and we added Occupational & Physical therapy because she has very low muscle tone (hypotonia) Well, that’s about it for now, I promise to start posting again more regularly!

Physical Therapy

Maddy is going to be starting physical therapy. She was evaluated on Monday and they found she has about a 40% delay in her gross motor skills & she has muscle weakness. That means that right now she is at about the level of a 5 month old. It's hard to believe that in just a few days she will be 11 months old, and the BIG ONE is just around the corner. Just in the last 3-4 weeks she has finally mastered sitting. She still falls when she's tired. Her therapist is espically concerned that she is not willing to bear any weight on her legs, and she still has a hard time rolling.

On a good note, she is right where she needs to be cognitivly, verbally & socially, her therapist is impressed that Maddy is already trying to feed herself with a spoon, most of the food ends up on the floor, but some makes it to her mouth.

I think we broke a record!

I think we have broken the record for the fastest moving virus. Here's the schedule:

Tuesday: My Mom & Dad watched Tris & Maddy all day.

Wed. night: My Dad calls & tells me he came down with a nasty cold & hopes the girls don't get it (Thanks Grandpa!)

Thursday: All is fine.

Friday 7:30 am : (here's where I start the stop watch because I don't know when her symptoms actually started) On Friday's Maddy is watched by Tony's Dad, he comes to our house. So, Grandpa comes over & I leave for work, Maddy is just fine at this point. I get home at 5pm, and she is just a mess! Fever, red cheeks, snot everywhere & she is just miserable! (Thanks again Grandpa!) So I give her Tylenol, after about an hour the fever is gone & she is feeling better. She goes to bed early & surprisingly sleeps through the night.

Sat. Morning: She's still a little warm so she gets another dose of Tylenol & the fever goes away and doesn't come back. She is fairly happy through the day, except for the constant runny nose. She goes to bed early again & sleeps through the night.

Sun Morning: She is just fine, no fever, no runny nose, perfectly happy all day long!

I have never seen a cold virus move so fast! Less than 48 hours from 1st symptom to being symptom free? I just pray that this wasn't just the start & that it comes back with vengeance.

By the way, Tristyn never got the cold at all!

It's about time!!!

OK, I've been slacking with posting pictures, so here you go. Enjoy!

Here is Maddy at 7 months, showing off how well her boo boo has healed.

Here is Maddy at 7.5 months with our pastor. We are so thankful to have him as a Pastor. The night she was born he came to the hospital at 2 am, and waited with us as they prepared to transport her. The day she had surgery he was there when we got to see her in recovery, after a 7 hour surgery.

Maddy at 9 months. Is that a mischievous grin or what?

Tristyn showing off her missing teeth

Maddy & Lucky

Maddy on her 9 month B-day (eating or playing with macaroni)

Tristyn & Maddy at a vintage snowmobile show. That's Tony's 1973 Arctic Cat Panther.

Tris with her brand new helmet

Me & Tris getting ready to go for a snowmobile ride.




Lucky has a heart! I did not edit this photo, he actually has a perfect heart on his right side! There is a small white line of fur towards the left side, almost like a broken heart? How fitting that he found our family, we now have a heart baby & a heart kitty. Read about how we rescued Lucky after being hit by a car.





Lucky & our eldest furry daughter Jasper who is 8.5 years old.
(Spunky is 7 years old, she's not pictured)

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Time to build some muscle

Maddy saw her ped today. All is well as I expected, but she is concerned that Maddy is not sitting on her own yet, she's not bearing any weight on her legs, and that her overall muscle tone seems week. So, Maddy will be starting physical Therapy from our birth to 3 program. I'm very familiar with this program, Tristyn did her physical therapy with them also and I was very pleased with the results. The doctor said Maddy could be having this problem for a number of reasons: Heredity - seeing how Tristyn was delayed also - could be from O2 deprivation right after birth - or from the surgery. On a good note, she gave Maddy a little test & she scored very well cognitively & socially, she is using her prinser grasp (thumb & pointer finger), feeding herself finger food very well & babbling constantly with vowels & consonants. So, she will start the physical therapy in a few weeks, I am glad we are catching this early. I ordered her a Fisher Price Jumeroo, so I hope she likes it & builds some strength in her legs. It's time to crack the whip and start doing, situps, pushups, pullups, (LOL)

Daycare blues!!

We had the perfect person watching Maddy for the last 6 months, her family attends our church, so we know her quite well, she was a part-time nurse, and therefore certified in infant/child CPR, and she was just a great match, Maddy loved her. About a month ago her husband lost his job & she had to take more nursing hours. So, we adjusted Maddy's schedule & made it work with hers. So on Monday, she called me and said she was offered full time & had to take it because they really need the benefits & money, (she has 3 kids of her own) So we have been scrambling to find daycare & it's not easy!! I understand why she had to stop daycare & she was upset about it also. I also feel for the other parents, she watched 4-5 other children. We really need to find someone quick, we are wearing out our welcome at the grandparents! Please pray that we can find a good Christian home to watch her.

Great Appointment

Madilyn's apt went great today. It started with the EKG which only took 15 min!! This is because she had 2 wonderful nurses who really seemed to know how to entertain her. The first nurse made a game of putting all the stickers on and the second held Maddy's hands & talked to her & kept her attention the whole time, Maddy was just fascinated by her and just laid calmly & listened to her. They only had to restart the test once, because Maddy decided something the nurse said was funny & giggled.

More good news, because her EKG looked so beautiful, Dr. Dyke decided she didn't need an echo today, and she probably won't need one until she is 3 or 4 yrs old, unless a problem is detected by the EKG. If she needs an echo before this age she will probably need to be sedated.

Her heart mummer has gotten softer, so that means her heart is adjusting well. I did bring up one concern: Her arms & legs tend to turn blueish very easy, especially when sleeping. You can notice it a little in the picture at the top of the blog, but sometimes they are even more blue. He reassured me that is normal in the first year of life. He called it "some kind" of cyanosis, I can't remember the name and said that it happens even with babies whose heart is perfect. He said he would be concerned if her lips, tongue, or torso became blueish, or if her hands & feet didn't pink up when she started moving around.

So, Maddy is doing GREAT! She is up to 16 pounds 4 oz & is 27 3/4 inches long. And we don't have to go back for a visit for another 6 months now.

Next Monday she sees her regular Ped. & I'm sure that apt. will go well also! She'll be happy to see that Maddy is finally starting to gain some weight!

Cardio appointment

Maddy has a big cardio apt coming up on Monday. She's scheduled for a Echo & EKG. I'm not nervous that they will find anything wrong, because she has been doing great, its just that these apts always last so long. The she had these same tests at 4 months old and the EKG took 45 min, the Echo took 1.5 hrs & the Doctor visit took 1/2 hr, ad all that up with the wait time in between & we were there over 3 hrs. The reason the tests take so long is that the machines are very sensitive & we have to try to keep Maddy still & keep her from pulling the stickers off. We resorted to feeding her during the tests, kind of holding the bottle in front of her & letting her drink, we couldn't hold her because that would mess up the readings also. Now that she's almost 9 mo old I don't know how we are going to keep her still, maybe the docs have some tricks? We'll see.

Sitting Pretty!!

Maddy is finally starting to get the hang of sitting. She sat up for almost 5 minutes last night. I did have her Boppy pillow behind her just in case. She teetered a couple of times but kept her balance. I could tell she was starting to get tired after about 5 min, but that's not bad, after all she is using new muscles that are not used to being worked. If we keep doing 5 minutes a night, maybe by the weekend she'll be up to 10 minutes! Way to go Maddy!

Mark your calendar: Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Day is Feb. 14, 2009. I'll try to gather up some interesting facts on CHD's & post them throughout the month of Feb.

What's that strange noise?

Yesterday Maddy was sitting in my lap playing with her favorite butterfly rattle and I heard this strange, soft, grinding noise. I know her rattle doesn't make noise. I hear it again, it sounds like Maddy is grinding her teeth. OK, how can she grind her teeth when she only has 2 and they are both on the bottom. So, I look in her mouth and sure enough, 3 more teeth popped in on top. She was a little fussy over the weekend, but I though that was because of her sinus infection that is finally getting better. So we are up to 5 teeth, way to go girl!

Tristyn went for a snowmobile ride with Tony. She loves riding with him, and was asking to go all weekend. They only stayed out for about 45 min because the temp started dropping, a cold front moved through last night, when I got up this morning it was -20 without the windchill (Burrrr).

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, we sure did. about 2 weeks ago Tris lost her 2nd tooth, so all she wanted for Christmas was her "Two Front Teeth" :) It's so cute!! She loved opening her presents & opening Maddys for her, what a good big sister. This year she is into Thomas the Train & My Little Ponies. Maddy enjoyed playing with the bows & wrapping paper as you can see in the picture.

May God bless everyone with a happy & healthy new year to come.

The worst birthday present

Happy 7 mo Birthday Maddy! Here is your present: Ear infection with a perforated eardrum, sinus infection, nasty wet cough, and to top if off a red, raw, sore throat.

Maddy & Tris both had colds about two weeks ago, and besides a cough that lingered for Maddy both recovered, or so I though. They both had a scheduled apt for a flu shot this morning, so when we got there I asked the Doc to give Maddy a once over because of her cough. The Doc says she has probably been fighting this since her cold two weeks ago. The little sinker NEVER complained, never had a fever, was not overly cranky, ate perfectly fine, and slept fine, she was even smiling & giggling as the doc was examining her. How am I supposed to know something is wrong unless you tell me, you little stinker! Talk about a tough girl! I enjoy having an easy going baby, but this is a little crazy. If I had all those things I'd be crying!!!

Well anyway, Tristyn got her flu shot, Maddy will have to wait about 3 weeks to get hers. We got Maddy started on an antibiotic, which she will have to be on for 10 days. Looks like the start of another great cold season!

Cover Girls & Kittens - Oh My!

I am so excited. I work in an office that publishes a local weekly buyers guide. Quarterly we puslish a coupon book. The last to coupon book covers have featured some of my co-workers grand babies, well this time it's Tristyn's & Maddy's turn. The cover is so cute, our production department does an excellent job! The book has a distribution of about 32,000 houses & businesses, so this will be their 15 minutes of fame. I'd post a picture of the cover, but it's copy righted & I don't want to get in trouble. Here is the original picture before they did their magic of editing to it. They enhanced the color, zoomed in, and added some wording.

Lucky, came home this weekend. Our older cats, Jasper & Spunky were not too happy, but they are warming up. He is such a cutie & very playful. He has made a great recovery, he has a slight limp in his back hip, but that's all. Here is a pic.

6 Month Doctors Appointment

Maddy had her 6 mo Doc appointment today with her Pediatrician. She now weighs 13 lbs, 14 oz, and is 26.5 inches long. Her doc. is not happy with Maddys weight gain, she only gained 14 oz. in 2 months and dropped from the 25th percentile to the 10th. She also noted that her heart murmur has gotten slightly louder. Maddy will always have a murmur because even though her heart is "fixed" its still not quite anatomically correct and therefore there is some turbulance in her blood flow. (In a normal heart the aorta straddles the pulmonary artery. In her heart in the pulmonary artery is in front of the aorta). The Doc is not real concerned, but please pray that this is not a sign of a more serious problem such as narrowing of the arteries, leaky valve, or a leak at the switch correction sites.

On a good note Maddy is hitting all of her milestones on time and some of them ahead of schedule. She is a very alert and happy baby, with good muscle tone, and she doesn't seem to get tired easily. She really likes baby food, we have progressed from just rice cereal, to oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and applesauce.

May 1st 2008 - Mayday

A few days ago I was watching the video tape of Maddy birthday. My mind was kind of fuzzy right after she was born and I didn't know exactly what happened in the minutes after birth until I watched the video. The video starts right after she was born. She is laying on my chest and the nurses are rubbing her vigorously trying to get her to cry. After about a minute they take her over to the incubator and are working on her. I hear little tiny cries coming from her, and one of the nurses repeating "come on baby, breath! Stay with us baby! Come on! Come on!" When Tony goes over to get a picture of her the nurse sternly says "You will need to stop taking pictures NOW" the video goes instantly blank. I felt my own heart skip a few beats while watching this. I though to myself that it was like watching a sad movie because that is how the nurses talk in the movies when a baby is in trouble. Thankfully I know this movie has a happy ending!

The video picks up again the next day at Childrens hospital in the NICU. We did alot of taping in the hospital, I wanted to have a good record of everything so Maddy would know her birth story, and with everything happening so fast I didn't trust my memory. We have done alot of video and pictures since we got home, every first has been recorded, just as it was for Tristyn when she was born.

More Photos

Just wanted to share a few favorite photos of my girls:

Here is Tris feeding her baby - just like Mommy feeds Maddy.

Here is Maddy - deep in thought? 8 weeks old

Sisters forever!!

Look how nice my boo-boo is healing - 16 weeks old

Yep - that hair is RED