My Recent Obsessions

1)  The Maxi Cosi Pria 70 car seat-  on the recommendation of a very experienced mom I purchased this for Steuart and I could not be happier!  Easy to install, easy to clean, SUPER comfy for him.  He is as happy as a clam!  I love it!

2)  Metallic leggings-  Fashion meets comfort in a whole new way.  You can be sassy and breathe!  It is amazing!

3)  Gold-  I am usually a silver girl but recently have been wearing a lot of gold.  And very traditional pieces.  It's like I am getting old.

4)  Claude Moore Jeweler-  They have the BEST customer service ever and I love playing in there.  Especially while making out wish lists.  It's super easy just to say- Jason- check out the list!

5)  Ford-  I love my car.  Still.  I am just OBSESSED with it.  Especially after the road trip from hell to Maryland and back.

6)  Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls-  For curly hair it is the best product I have ever used.  It doesn't make your hair crunchy or sticky.  Just soft and bouncy!

7)  Coco Chanel Mademoiselle-  It's not my signature scent- that is Carolina Herrera but my mom had it so I wore it.  It just smells good.

8)  My hairdresser- Jason Chambers.  He is the best.  Ever.

9)  Veuve Clicquot-  Just had a bottle on NYE and it remains my favorite.

10)  Moms Day Out-  I need this time every week to be a normal person.

Comfy as can be!

Gold leggings!  LOVE!

Easy? Clearly NOTHING Can Be Easy!

“Reality is the leading cause of stress amongst those in touch with it.”  -Jane Wagner

Last I wrote we were a couple of weeks away from having another surgery for baby Steuart.  This had been planned for quite some time and was going to be our "easy" outpatient surgery.  When your child goes under it is never "easy" but compared to lung surgery in Birmingham with a 5 day hospital stay on the special care floor of Children's and chest tubes- this was going to be fairly simple..... until it wasn't.

We went to the Infirmary early in the morning as we were supposed to for pre-surg prep which all went well.  Our doctor came out and met us, explained the procedure again and then took back a very happy and alert Steuart who was just shy of 11 months to have his procedure.  

While we were waiting we had our beeper and went to the cafeteria to eat some breakfast.  When we returned to the waiting area we sat around, as most people do.  I was reading, Jason was working on his iPad since he was out of the office.  The doctor came out.  "We have had a little issue.  I don't want to alarm you, but he had some problems breathing so we have given him a breathing treatment and he seems to be doing fine.  We are finishing up now and then he will be in recovery."  So.....the albuterol helped?  Or not.  Clearly I start freaking out because my infant who has a history of pulmonary issues and already had lung surgery is now having a problem breathing.  So we sit.  And we wait.  Not much longer the doctor comes back out and tells us that there is a medical transport team en route to pick up Steuart and take him to the PICU at USA Children's and Womens Hospital.  He went into respiratory distress on the table and they have had to intubate him.  We can see him before he goes but cannot ride on the "bus" with them as there are a number of people working on him and they need all the space available.  We walk in to kiss our baby, on a stretcher with a tube in his mouth and like seven people around him.  They take him away, we get in the car and drive down the street and go up to the PICU.  And we wait.  And wait.  And wait.  About an hour later they finally let us back to the room.  He is completely sedated, with a breathing tube, and restrained so he cannot pull his tube out should he wake.  So our "easy" procedure ends with an emergency ambulance ride to another hospital and a stay in the PICU.  

Long story short we were home a couple of days later.  Being in situations like this and our previous ordeal with my pregnancy and Steuart's birth really puts things in perspective.  This is real life and this is real stress.  Not "I can't find anything to wear to dinner" stress but REAL LIFE STRESS.  Shit just got REAL.  You find out really quickly in situations like this who your friends are and who your acquaintances are.  And I can tell you now, without those friends you're going to have one heck of a time getting through it.  

It's times like this that you realize it really is the people that you can call up and say "I'm about to come un-glued and I need to get out of my house" that are really important people in your life.  If you're not comfortable being real and raw and unguarded then you don't have REAL CLOSE friends.  

It also makes you realize that the person that may not like you for no other reason than you are friends with someone they don't like- they don't matter.  That football game you are worried about- it doesn't matter.  The volunteer project you are working on- it can wait.  Those are all "extras" and "distractions" and things you do on the side.  What is real and what is important is life.  And part of that real life is your family.  Nothing is more important than that.  And if it can't wait while you focus on your children then it isn't that important to begin with.  

You get through it all the best you can and navigate it in the way that best suits you.  And at the end of the day there is nothing wrong with happy pills and wine!

Steuart before his surgery

Steuart and Daddy having fun waiting to go back

In the PICU after being ex-tubated

Alert and HUNGRY!

Busy...Busy...Busy...

"Working mothers are guinea pigs in a scientific experiment to show that sleep is not necessary to human life"

To say that we have been busy for the past few months is the understatement of the year.  First and foremost, we are all doing well.  Steuart had his major surgery in April at Children's Hospital of Alabama in Birmingham.  Everything went well and he has been fully recovered and is just perfect.  He is 10 months old now!!!  He is crawling everywhere, cruising like crazy and LOVES to jump.  His favorite word is "Da-da" and really only says "Ma-ma" when he needs something :-)  He is his fathers clone.  Hunter is amazing.  His personality is is unique and he is such a smart and funny child.  It has been a blessing to be his mother and watch him grow over the past 6 years.  I cannot believe he is 6 now!  He started first grade at UMS this fall and gets to wear a uniform to school that he refers to as his "grader suit."  He is playing soccer and LOVES science!  So far he has gotten all A's on his tests.

We spent a month in Maryland this past summer with my parents.  I was glad to be able to do that since we don't get to see them much.  Hunter went to Imagination Camp and had a blast.  We were also able to go to an Orioles game with my dad and catch up with family over the 4th of July.  It is always great to see my Aunt and Uncle as well as my cousins.  Hunter LOVES playing with cousin Zoe.

The fall has been busy in a good way.  My business has completely taken off and I love working again.  I feel very fortunate to be able to work from home and take care of my children but it is a challenge trying to balance everything.  I have the tendency to throw myself into my work to take care of my clients but in the process often work too much and that cuts in to family time.  I am working to find the right balance but it is, like many things are, a constant struggle.  I love what I do and enjoy doing it and that is very important.  It is a good problem to have and luckily I have had a lot of referrals and taken on several new clients.

We have one more surgery on the books for Steuart coming up in a couple weeks then (fingers crossed) we will be out of hospitals for a while.  It has been a long year and a half :-)

We have some wonderful friends and family who have been extremely supportive and helpful!  I know I would not have survived this time without them.

WE ARE HERE!

After 9 months of worry, stress, fear and anxiety the moment we have been in pins and needles waiting for has finally arrived.  Steuart had his lung surgery on Thursday at Children's Hospital of Alabama in Birmingham.  We had an idea of what we were dealing with but were not 100% sure until the surgeon got in but now know exactly what it was.  He was diagnosed with a CCAM at 18 weeks gestation. At about 34 weeks the diagnosis was changed to a CCAM/ BPS hybrid as they found a feeder vessel from the Aorta to the mass.  The CT scan he had up here at about 3 months of age showed the mass still there, vessel still there but also showed a second vessel that hooked to the right lung.  They had never seen anything like that before.  They were under the impression that they were going to have to take the entire lower lobe of his left lung.  As it turns out the mass was not fully in his lung but was attached to his lung.  It was an extra lobar BPS.  They did not have to take as much of the lung because of this and were able to cut the blood supply to that vessel and cauterize it.  The second vessel as it turns out was not feeding a second mass- more good news.  Baby Steuart is doing well and is 5 months today.

The staff at Children's has been amazing.  We have had a wonderful experience here and although I am ready to be out of the hospital for a while, if we ever had to come back for Steuart or Hunter this is where I would want to be.

We have been on the special care floor since Thursday and may be moved to the surgical floor tomorrow which is a step down.  At this time they will likely remove his chest tube and then we should be able to come home on Monday.

I appreciate all of the support, thoughts, prayers, and kind words from everyone at this most stressful time.  I am very happy with the outcome and very glad to be able to put this behind us soon.

I hope everyone has a great weekend and thanks for checking on Steuart and the rest of us!

I've said it before and I will say it again.....a million times.....I LOVE MY OB TEAM!

"People pay the doctor for his trouble; for his kindness they still remain in his debt."  - Seneca

Many of you that keep up with my blog know of the issues that we have had concerning Steuart's medical issues.  Although his particular case could not have been prevented it was made much easier to get through by my primary OB team.  I say TEAM because every single one of them was crucial to getting me through my pregnancy.  And they remain a huge part of my postpartum care.  

When I moved to Mobile I was looking for a good "girly doctor".  Everyone told me to go to Helen Rogers.  They were right.  She is amazing and I just thought she was the sweetest doctor.  Then I became pregnant with Hunter and saw her more.  And her nurses.  They were a really nice group but just nice people I saw when I went in to the doctors office.  The few years in between we grew closer as I was in much, much more.  I never realized what an important role EVERYONE in that office plays until recently.  

Let's start with the first person you see when you check in.  Everytime I walk in that office she knows me by name.  Greets me with enthusiasm, asks how Hunter is doing and when I leave tells me to have a great week and she will see me next time.  That personal touch is important at a doctors office.  Especially when you are stressed and scared.  The next stop is the lab.  I have had the same lab tech there for years and she is GREAT.  You cannot even feel needles when she takes blood and she speaks while you are sitting there.  She doesn't seem annoyed to be there, she is always very friendly.  I hate needles and always have to look away and so she will engage me in conversation to pass the time while I am sitting there so I don't pay attention to the needle in my arm.  I'm convinced that Jennifer the ultrasound tech helped save Steuart and were it not for her we may not have had such a great outcome.  She is the one that initially found the mass on his lung at 18 weeks.  I also saw her just about weekly for the duration.  Leana and Jenny, my doctors nurses are beyond amazing.  They have been there ANYTIME for ANYTHING.  Seriously.  Anything.  And by anytime I mean I have had to contact them on holiday weekends and they were there.  And Dr. Helen I just adore.  She is the most caring doctor I have ever had.  She genuinely cares about my health and well being.  And I know that.  She is very popular and hard to get in with.  Sometimes the wait is long but it is so worth it.  That team has been through a lot with me.  Starting before Hunter.  They have been there when I was trying to get pregnant, through pregnancy loss and through a high risk pregnancy and were caring and attentive every step of the way.   You know you have a great group when they will call you to check on you just to make sure you are ok.  When they go out of their way on their day off to care for you or make sure you are able to get the medication you need.  Hunter adores them.  He asks if we can go see the "ring pop" doctor.  Every time he is in there with me the nurses will come get him and take him to get a ring pop in Dr. Helens office.  Then, after the appointment she will usually let him go in and pick out another one.  He loves it. 

I adore that team.  For the care that I have been given I will gladly wait two hours in the lobby to see them.  Especially since I have been the patient that has been the reason for the delay in the past.  You never know how important each role of the office is until you are in a situation like some of the ones we have been in and I cannot begin to articulate how much I love all of them.  

So..........if you are looking for a new doctor I HIGHLY recommend them.  They really go above and beyond the "job" and truly care about their patients.  I have seen the same people in that office for 7 years now.  I like the familiarity of it, it's like a family.  I am looking forward to going through menopause with them and the day the doctor retires I truly do not know what I will do.  

Promise Yourself.........

"..........To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear and too happy to permit the presence of trouble......"  - Christian D. Larson

I made a new friend last week.  Shocker, I know.  But this friend has an idea of what we are going through with baby Steuart.  I know a lot of people can relate but it really is nice to have someone that you can ask questions and someone that can tell you what to pack for what could be over a week at a hospital.  We had dinner and wine and she came prepared with a list of so much of what I needed to take with me, where to stay, questions to ask and many warnings.  It has helped ease my mind on matters of logistics and specifics.  Of course the whole thing is scary but now I don't have to stress over whether or not I need to bring my own bottles.  And, although I would not wish it on anyone, it is nice to know someone else has been just as scared as you have been about their child.  

In six and a half weeks my little baby boy will not quite be 5 months old and will have major surgery to have half of a lung removed.  If I said it did not scare the hell out of me I would be lying my butt off.  At this point I have to completely trust the medical professionals we have entrusted to care for our baby, stay strong to keep things as normal as possible for Hunter, and hope and pray that everything goes well.  In the mean time I will likely have a few breakdowns and need a couple of wine nights with the girls........and maybe some date nights with the hub.  Anyone know if Veuve is traded on the NYSE?  Maybe I should buy stock now.