*there's a quick announcement

I'm just spreading the word for other blogging mothers that Stefanie (of When Life Hands You a Broken Heart, Create Hope) is hosting another Every Heart Has a Story blog event on Feb. 15th for Congenital Heart Defect Awareness week.

This is where she explains what this year's topic will be and what to expect.

I'm planning some special posts for that week too. I don't like talking about heart stuff all year long so I'm going to fit a lot into this month.
~Jody

*there's the Pediatric Heart Institute

Watch this to hear some of the staff that I've talked with about Will talking about their work: Dr. Bichell (Will's surgeon), Dr. Baldwin, Dr. Dees, Dr. Fish, Dr. Johns (Will's cardiologist), and nurse Yvonne.

*there's a million visits to the doctor

ER trip #4

Yes, that's an exaggeration. But I was wondering about this a few months ago. Every time we leave an appointment within the Vanderbilt system I'm given a print out of future appointments. Each time that sheet has 6-8 appointments listed. So I checked my calendar, looked up Will's info on the medical records system, and remembered what I could about the rest of them...and came up with the following totals between February and November of 2010:

14 Pediatrician
4 Cardiologist
1 Cardiac Surgeon
3 General Surgeon
3 Gastroenterologist
2 Urologist
4 Emergency Room
9 Home Health Nurse
5 Early Intervention Coordinator
10 Early Intervention Teacher
16 Speech Language Pathologist
10 Physical Therapist
1 NICU Follow Up Clinic
1 Ophthalmologist
1 Hearing Screening
1 Nutritionist
 = 85
+ a handful of other miscellaneous medical things (weight checks, etc)
= 92

If only there were some way to estimate the phone calls...

I just wanted to add those up in an attempt to try to measure what we have accomplished as a family. I don't have to wonder "Where did the time go?". It went to Vanderbilt! Luckily it is a nice place with good sweet tea. And sometimes they came to us so we didn't have to leave the house. Soon enough these visits will be replaced with visits to a school and a critique of the tea from that cafeteria.

But back to the near future, these upcoming appointments remind me of this:

February 2010, Will's discharge from the hospital

Next month we see the cardiologist again and will record year #2 of this photo. If he gets the all clear for annual appointments then we will won't be able to get the 3rd installment of the photos until February 2012!

*there's a video

Sorry, not a video of Will. We still haven't figured out how to get those on the blog. But this one is really fun too. Remember this guy?



I almost warned you to get a tissue but maybe that was just me. (I think the girl named Ellie is my favorite.) That is OUR hospital with doctors, nurses, kids, and parents that we recognize! I could take you to all of those spots. Better yet, I will pray that you never need to go there and see the inside that hospital. The brunette nurse holding the butterfly sign is Brittney that I've mentioned before (Best Nurse PCCU Category; Medical Division). I told you she was beautiful!

*there's his first play in the snow!

 And by "play", I mean sat without moving and stared at it.

Maybe the snow suit was too big or too puffy.

 Will's tiny snowman

Katie tried to show him how to play.

 

He just didn't know what to think.