found the mirror

At 11 weeks Drew LOVES the mirror! When he finds his reflection he starts to giggle!

Cardiology review

 Andrew was born with a heart murmur that was found on the day we were being discharged from the hospital. Mommy was not happy about this. On the day of discharge, we met with the pediatrician (one we don't use anymore) for his circumcision and sent him on his way. About 20 minutes later she returned stating everything was done and went well and he would be returning momentarily. Almost 30 minutes later he still hadn't come back (mind you we were all dressed and packed up waiting to be released). So I walked out to the nurse's station to find out where he was. I find the nurse on the phone trying to get a cardiology consult?? Surely that wasn't for Andrew??  sure enough when I asked, she said that she had heard a heart murmur and they were trying to get him an echo before we left. WHAT!? We had been here three days and now this pops up. I was not excited about this news at all!  How many nurses and doctors had listened to his heart and we are just now finding it?. Apparently it was fairly loud since she was letting the students hear as well. So after waiting a couple more hours to get the test done and talk to the cardiologist, Drew was found to have a PFO and two small VSD's. The VSD's were in the muscular (lower) part of the septum which was good news since this is the area that is most likely to close on its own as he grows.

These were all fairly small holes and not likely to need any intervention even if they did not close on their own.

So yesterday we headed back for his 2 month follow up and echo to see how his little heart was doing.

Taking a snooze on Daddy while we wait

 He was such a good little patient. I thought for sure when they took his blood pressures (both arms and both legs) he would not be happy. But he actually laughed and giggled at the nurse. It was so cute! He had height, weight, blood pressures, ekg, and echo done.

"what exactly are you doing to me"

"now my legs? wow...that tickles!"

He was hilarious! all hooked up with leads for the EKG but still thought the nurse was funny.

And getting ready for the echo!

 Look at that belly. We have always known this little guy to have gas but you could see all the air that was actually in there, on the ultrasound! I am surprised he wasn't more fussy with that much air!

Great job Drew!! You were such a great patient!!

 We are happy to report that Drew is doing great! ( Not that we questioned that of course. hehe!) The cardiologist , Dr. Zamora, was really wonderful!!  He spent a good amount of time with us and explained everything in detail. He could still slightly hear the murmur and Drew's echo showed his holes are still there but have gotten smaller. When he was born you could see the holes with the naked eye but now you can only see them when the color doppler is turned on. The PFO has not completely sealed off but only slightly opens every several beats or so. These are all signs of improvement!! He will go back in one year and hopefully that PFO will finally seal off and the VSD's close completely. Again, even if they don't they are so small that there is no need for intervention nor limiting any sort of activity as he grows. YAAAY!! Good news all around.

I will admit that I was a little shocked when we found out he had a heart murmur but Brandon's mom, paternal grandfather, and maternal grandmother all had heart murmurs. pretty crazy :-)

Here is a cardiology review:

The normal heart is a strong, hard-working pump made of muscle tissue. It’s about the size of a person’s fist.

The heart has four chambers. The upper two chambers are the atria, and the lower two are the ventricles. Blood is pumped through the chambers, aided by four heart valves. The valves open and close to let the blood flow in only one direction.


•The septum is the muscular wall separating the heart into the left and right sides.


•The atrial septum is the wall separating the atria (the two upper chambers).

•The ventricular septum is the wall separating the ventricles (the two lower chambers).

The foramen ovale is a small hole located in the atrial septum that is used during fetal circulation to speed up the travel of blood through the heart. When in the womb,

a baby does not use it's own lungs for oxygen-rich blood, it relies on the mother to provide oxygen rich blood from the placenta through the umbilical cord to the fetus. Therefore, blood can travel from the veins to the right side of the baby's heart and cross to the left side of the heart through the foramen ovale and skip the trip to the baby's lungs.

.Normally the foramen ovale closes at birth when increased blood pressure on the left side of the heart forces the opening to close.

Patent Foramen Ovale

If the atrial septum does not close properly, it is called a patent foramen ovale (PFO). This type of defect generally works like a flap valve, only opening during certain conditions when there is more pressure inside the chest. This increased pressure occurs when people strain while having a bowel movement, cough, or sneeze.

Ventricular Septal Defect

A ventricular septal defect (VSD) is a defect in the septum between the right and left ventricle. The septum is a wall that separates the heart’s left and right sides. Septal defects are sometimes called a “hole” in the heart. It’s the most common congenital heart defect in the newborn; it’s less common in older children and adults because some VSDs close on their own.

What causes it?
In most people, the cause isn’t known but genetic factors may play a role. It’s a very common type of heart defect. Some people can have other heart defects along with VSD.


How does it affect the heart?
Normally, the left side of the heart only pumps blood to the body, and the heart’s right side only pumps blood to the lungs. When a large opening exists between the ventricles, a large amount of oxygen-rich (red) blood from the heart’s left side is forced through the defect into the right side. This blood is pumped back to the lungs, even though it has already been refreshed with oxygen. Unfortunately, this causes the heart to pump more blood. The heart, especially the left atrium and left ventricle, will begin to enlarge from the added work. High blood pressure may occur in the lungs’ blood vessels because more blood is there. Over time, this increased pulmonary hypertension may permanently damage the blood vessel walls. When the defect is small, not much blood crosses the defect from the left to the right and there’s little effect on the heart and lungs. (as in Drew's case)

Only ONE!

A night with just one baby was so QUIET and RELAXING!!

My parents were going to watch the girls for me while we took Drew to his cardio appt but since they wanted to spend a few days up the lake decided to take them for the night last night! Wow...what a relaxing evening we had :-)
I left the girls around 2pm and Drew and I headed to run a couple errands. First stop was Kohls where we did a little bit of damage in there! They had some GREAT sales and I had coupons for even more savings! The prices were soooo good that the whole family got stocked up on some clothes!! After a few other small erands Drew and I headed home for some good one on one playtime together. He feel asleep about 6pm and slept for two hours until around 8ish. wow! a sleeping baby and no toddlers to tend to. I will admit it did feel a little odd not to be pulled in 10 different directions, as our night normally goes, but my goodness the quiet felt soooo good!!
Brandon's friend Jonathon stopped by for a little bit and brought us a rather enormous load of clothes and shoes for Drew! WOW!! It was wonderful and so unexpected!! I don't think I am going to have to buy Drew anything for the next year! wahoo!! Thank you so much Jonathan, Christina, and Alex!! You guys are awesome :-)
While the boys chatted outside for a bit, Drew and I played on the floor watching American Idol and sorting through all the clothes. I would never have gotten to do this if the girls were home! They love to "help"me fold the clothes but as we all know help from 2 year olds isn't always the "help" you want. lol!
So other than my intermittent crying spells (watching Idol gives back....they had some really sad stories. Gets me every time) it was such a great evening.
Drew stayed up with me until about 10. Fed him and put him to bed and he didn't wake up until 5am!!! wahoo!!!! I couldn't have asked for a better night. Although the day started at 5, I still felt so refreshed getting so much uninterrupted sleep! i wish I could keep him up until 10 every night!! hehe.

I always miss the monkeys when they are gone but its also nice to have a night off every now and again. They had a great time up at the lake too! so much exploring, bug collecting, and trekker time. They were some happy girls!!


Thanks Tita and Toto!! As always, not sure what we would do without you!

Elizabeth and Drew

I am totally amazed by the bond that Elizabeth and Drew already share! She wakes up every morning telling him "good morning" and wanting to "hold him". When we do put him in her lap she gives hugs and kisses while saying "baby Andrew" and "cute"! You can just see the joy on her face. Melts my heart every time. Whenever he cries she will usually call for me, cover him up with a blanket, or ask for his "pa-fier".
Drew already knows when she is around too. He can be unhappy laying on his play mat or in his swing and I will ask her to go tell him "it's ok andrew" and he will quiet right down when she talks to him. She is just so sweet with him. It is amazing how much he reacts when she is around him. He makes consistent eye contact when he hears her.
Livi on the other hand (although very sweet to drew) is totally content letting Elizabeth have most of the baby time for now :-)

lots of kisses

and hugs

This girl cannot get enough of her brother!

Drew

Drew running through the bluebonnets at 2 months old!! way to go buddy! hehe :-)

andrew and tia carmen

Andrew enjoying some quality time with his Tia Carmen (technically his great aunt) over Easter weekend,

and he's out!!

I love this picture!

if that isn't one happy baby, I don't know what is!

We love our Tia Carmen!

Mommy and Drew

My sweet pea

These are the sweet moments

Even though he has grown so much already, he's still so small :)

Not a flattering picture of me but he's just too cute all curled up

he does like the ergobaby carrier. I love it so much more than the baby bjorns we had with the girls.

It's getting warm enough for him just to be in onesies and I LOVE IT!