Graduation Day

Tonight, we attended Zach's pre-school graduation. I still cannot believe that he is 5 and ready to go to 5K! Anyway, he looked so handsome in his cap and gown. (sorry I didn't take the time to edit out the glowing eyes!)

They marched in to Pomp and Circumstance, sang a couple of songs and recited 2 Bible verses, then each of them shared their dream job for when they grow up...

Yes, you heard it right... when he grows up he wants to be a PIRATE! Too funny!

For a graduation gift, we gave Zach tickets to see the Imagination Movers at our local auditorium. He's jacked! They put on a really good show and have some great music.

We are so proud of our BIG boy! Congratulations Zach!

4 in 1

I wish I could blame my absence on the issues that Blogger has been having lately, but no, I have just been very busy and when I have had any time to update, I have been very lazy :)

So, this post is about 4 updates in 1. A lot happened in the month of April... well, let me show you...

Easter Morning

GQ!

 Daddy is so proud of his beautiful girl! So is Mommy!

Zach's 5th Birthday Party

Pigging out with Cousin Eli

Why did we buy him a playground when we could have gotten off cheap with a cardboard box?

Bill took advantage of our party guests... Brother-in-law, David and our neighbor Mr. Joe

Zach is testing out one of the swings to see if Daddy installed it properly. I think it passed inspection!

Mother's Day Tea at Zach's Preschool



This is Zach with his teacher, Mrs. Amy. She is awesome! This was such a special time for us mothers! They had all kinds of surprises for us --- artwork, a special song, and a handmade necklace.

The New Playground

Let me just brag on my husband a minute. He did such an awesome job putting together Zach's playset! It was quite an undertaking! Lots of blood, sweat, and tears!

Putting the last screw in the playground... or so we thought (more on that in a minute...)

Enjoying the slide for the first time

Thanking Daddy for all his hard work

My boys!

OK, so I promised to tell you more about Bill finishing the playground. First, answer one question:

Have you ever seen a playground do a somersault?

Neither have I, but apparently it doesn't go very well.

Unbeknownst to us, last Sunday night during the night there were some pretty strong storms that passed through. When we walked out to get in the car to go to school Monday morning, the playground was laying on its side about 30 feet away!!! I cannot believe that I didn't take a picture of it! I NEVER would have dreamed that the wind could have done that to it! I was so sick and felt so bad for Bill. The funny thing was, Zach did not get upset in the least. I don't think he really understood what had happened. Here are some pictures of the damage...

When Bill got home from taking Rebecca to school, there was a message on the answering machine from our neighbor, Mr. Joe, offering to help. Another neighbor, Mr. Al, also came over. We have some incredible neighbors! They detached the side extension and the slide, stood the house part back up, dug some really deep holes, cemented in some 4x4 posts, which are bolted to the house. Bill says it will still be standing at the Rapture!!!

Today he screwed in the last screw... again!

If we have any more disasters with the playground, I think we will go back to our trusty old cardboard box!

Guessing Game

Can anyone guess what Zach is getting for his 5th birthday? Here are some hints...

Here's another hint... These two are going to get honorary engineering degrees when they are done!

April 29

It was five years ago today that our family took a HUGE step of faith and drove a couple of hours to a small town hospital to meet our newest member.

We were risking our hearts on this little one, so precious as we lay eyes on him for the first time, his birth mother and grandmother weeping bittersweet tears nearby. The tables could have easily been turned on us that day --- we could have been the ones weeping as his rightful mother could have changed her mind. But it was God's divine plan for Zach to be a part of our family --- to complete our family --- and we are so thankful.

I can hardly believe that it has been five years. I cannot believe that Zach is a five-year-old. It just can't be possible that the little 6-pound baby who was fighting for his life is now a BIG BOY who is full of life. God has been so faithful to carry us through the hard times and smile with us through the good times. We are so thankful for you, Zach, for you have shown us what it is really like to live every day. You are a blessing!

Happy Birthday, Zach!

Dancin' Fool

Click on the link to go to Zach's 4K blog --- scroll down to the last item in the latest post to watch a video.
This is a video of Zach on a field trip that their class took this week to see "Mr. Al".

http://prek4a.blogspot.com/

So, I guess you might can tell from the video, but Zach's side/arm is feeling much better. The Tylenol did not help all that much but Dr. Raunikar recommended ibuprofen, which is better for muscular/skeletal inflammation, which Zach has not taken since he was a toddler because of nosebleeds (ibuprofen thins the blood). Nonetheless, it really has helped a lot and he has not had a nosebleed yet. :) It is good to know that we have another option for a painkiller/fever reducer for him. He complained the other day when I picked him up under his arm, so I think it is still tender, so we are continuing to dose him for a few more days. All we can figure is that whatever position he was in during his cath caused him to have soreness.

Now that we are through with the flu season (it was raging for a few weeks around here!) and we have gotten through Zach's cath, we are going to take Zach back to Sunday School in the morning. It will be so good to have all 4 of us in church together again!

Hope you are all having a wonderful Spring weekend!

Update

OK, to make up for all the pictures I have NOT taken lately, I thought I would post a few to document our last few days.



They have a sense of humor in the cath lab. You never know what you're going to find afterward...

When they did the cath, they went in both sides --- the left and the right groin. This is one of the 2 pressure dressings that Zach had on his catheter sites (along with a strategically placed washcloth). You can see the smiley face there as well as the time that the dressing was placed, to let recovery know how long to keep him laying flat. The tape is very thick and very sticky. Zach did great when we removed the first one and hollered like a banshee when we removed this one. I have written about the extreme trauma caused by Band-Aid removal around our house... he will need therapy later in life, I'm sure!

There has been an awful lot of this going on these past few days!

Cheeeeeesy grin!

You can see how he is holding his right arm. He is using it very little. 

  

Bill took Zach to the pediatrician today and he agreed that Zach is definitely in some pain. He sent him down to x-ray and they did about 8 or 9 films! It wasn't long before the nurse called back to say that they did not see anything at all. So, what now???

I just got off the phone with our wonderful cardiologist, Dr. Raunikar. He said that it is possible that the position they had Zach in for the 3 hour cath may be the cause of his pain. (I guess I can relate it to the jaw pain I recently had after a 2 hour root canal. Ow!!!) When we put our bodies in positions they aren't used to, we feel it!

Silly boy --- even when he is in pain!

So, we are to give Tylenol for a couple of days and use a warm compress and see how he does. If he is not better then we will make a cardiology appointment for later this week.

These Cardiac Kids... always keeping us on our toes!

Feedback needed...

I need to draw on the experience of all you other heart moms out there. We are trying to figure out something that has been going on with Zach...

Ever since we got home from MUSC, Zach has been complaining that his right side hurts up under his arm. He is really guarding that arm, holding it against his side and not using it much. We cannot pick him up under his arm and he does not want to lift his arm over his head. He has been on restricted activity since his cath, so he has had not opportunity to injur himself. I called MUSC and they had never heard of anything like this after a cath. I also talked to cardiology over the weekend and he could not think of any reason for the pain, unless it has to do with them raising his arms over his head during the cath. We have an appointment with the pediatrician at noon and have a call in with our cardiologist.

Anyone ever experienced anything like this post-cath?

I went to the doctor Friday because of a painful rash on my shoulder and under my arm and was diagnosed with shingles :(  Very painful. The blisters are about dried up now but the pain continues... My fear is that this pain Zach is having is the precursor to the rash, although no one is supposed to be able to catch the shingles from me. If anything, he would get the chicken pox (but he has been vaccinated so hopefully he is covered there.)

I appreciate any light anyone can shed on our issues!