The Ladybug and Eeyore

I have long thought I have super cute kids. Tonight, that was just proven more true :) We dressed Eden as a Ladybug and Josiah as Eeyore and took them trick or treating. Eden could have cared less about taking pictures and was not to willing to cooperate. Josiah was easy because he can't walk away yet. Here are a few of my favorites of Josiah and some that Eden wanted to be in briefly.

I'm outta here!

not a happy ladybug

Trick or treat country style :)

Tonight was one of those nights when I felt I had stepped back in time to enjoy a holiday.I felt like I did when I was a kid, only this was much better, it was with my kids :)

Gary and Amy invited us to join our neighborhood children in a tractor pulled hayride and trick or treat. We went through the subdivision, then down the road to visit other church member's homes. 3 other tractors pulling trailers joined us and I would guess there were 100 children and adults. We knew most of the people we visited, and made some new friends. It was nice to know all the candy and food was safe for the kids because everyone knew everyone. At one point I started to tell the kids not to eat their candy until their parents could check it out. (That was the rule when I was growing up.) Then I thought about it and realized that the parents all knew each other. One of the benefits of country living.

It was so much fun to be a part of this and to watch Eden enjoy herself so much. She liked the tractor ride more than the trick or treating. I don't think she figured out that it was candy she was getting in her basket until the very end. She got some coloring crayons and playdoh as well. Josiah fell asleep before we were done. Afterwards we went to Gary and Amy's for a big bonfire, complete with hot dogs on a stick and smores.

You know, I really love this county living :)

Gary dressed as Fred Flinston on his John Deere
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Walking back to meet the group. We were slower than most of the kids

Wait daddy, we might have missed a house!

Not sure who this other ladybug was,

but she loved walking Eden around to the different homes.

Another tractor full of friends

Dorthy and Toto

aka Daylin and Macy

This is Amy

Aka Wilma Flinstone

You can see by her smile how we had such a great time.

These people are great!

Smiles in the sun

The weather has been BEAUTIFUL the past few days.
I took these as I grilled dinner tonight.
I love how the sun looks in Eden's hair.
Josiah's not so crazy about being outside just yet, give him time. He will :)

Eden Update

Larry and I took Eden to see her cardiologist this morning. We've got good news and I won't call it bad news, but it's a prognosis that I would rather not have to face.

The good news is that Eden's EKG was great. She cried through the whole thing (it was nap time) So it showed her with a little stress, which for this test was not a bad thing. The doctor said the EKG looked great, but so did the one they took in the ER less than 5 minutes after the SVT episode. She has to be in a tachycardic state to get a different reading.

One of my major concerns was if the SVT edisodes could have damaged her heart. He didn't think so, Which is a BIG relief!

The medication that Eden is on is supposed to keep these tachycardia episodes from happening. She's doing well on the medication with no side effects. Her medication levels look great on the EKG as well. He also told us we would not have to have her blood tested every six weeks like the pediatrician wanted. The levels can be checked through an EKG done in their office every 6 months. That is also a big relief.

Now the not so fun part. We decided that we would keep Eden on the medication for the next year or two. ( sometime between the ages of 4 and 5.) We will start to wean her off of the medication. Then Eden will undergo a test that will try to trigger an episode. If SVT occurs then they will do ablation therapy to destroy the bad areas of her heart that trigger the tachycardia. This is a heart cathetherization surgery that will be done under general anesthesia. Thankfully, this is a one shot deal. They will do the cathetherization immediately after the test if it is necessary, So she will only have to be under anesthesia once.

The reason we decided on this course of treatment is that there is a 10% chance that Eden will outgrow this condition. We wanted to give her the time to do that. Plus, she will be more verbal and better able to communicate her heart issues more clearly in the future.

So for now, we're going to enjoy our sweet little girl. The doctor said not to make ourselves crazy following Eden around with a stethoscope or limiting her activity. She can play and run around like a normal toddler. We just have to watch for signs of SVT.

This is something that I do not want to consume my thinking or allow me to become fearful of Eden's future. It's more than likely that she will have to have this heart surgery. BUT we never know what this time and Eden's heart can do. So for now we will make this a daily prayer. For me it's easy to remember twice everyday for the next two years as I give her medication. I will pray for the Lord to heal her heart, to make it strong. My long standing prayer has been for God to be a in Eden's heart. I have always prayed that in a spiritual way, now it is in a literal ways as well. We have faith that whatever happens. God is in control and we pray He will be glorified by Eden's life and her fast beating little heart :)

Eden's heart

Yesterday morning I received an e-mail from a friend who has a baby that has been very sick since her birth. She had received some additional bad new. This mom is a great lady of faith and I tried to encourage her with scriptures and prayer. Larry came home for lunch and I shared with him the latest news and we both said how blessed we were to have healthy children. That we should never take them for granted. We prayed, and went about our day, but I was unable to get that baby and those thoughts out of my head.

Later that afternoon, Eden Josiah and I went to Larry's office. Eden knocked on the door. I asked if he wanted to have a study break and come play with us (see post below) I am so glad he did. We had a wonderful time playing and laughing together. Enjoying being a family. It was such a beautiful time. I am so glad we had that time together because 2 hours later we were in the ER with Eden.

After we played, Larry went back to work. The kids and I came home to rest and get ready for Wednesday night service. Josiah was pooped so I laid him down for a nap. Eden got some juice and watched Dora while I was reading through my lesson. Eden came up to me and wanted to be held. (Not like my independent girl.) She said, "night night Momma," and laid down on me. I could feel her heart beating so hard through her chest wall and realized how pale she looked. I ran and got out the stethoscope and tried to count Eden's heat rate, but I wasn't able to keep up. It was beating too fast. I called Larry and he ran home. He couldn't get the count either.

So I called Amy. She's a friend of mine who lives nearby. She also a nurse. I explained what I thought was going on and she was at my house 5 minutes later. ( Amy, I love you and am so thankful you were here) She couldn't get a count either. So she cradled Eden in her lap and put her feet up. She said her best guess was that it was in the 260's. We called Eden's Cardiologist and he was paged. We took off to the ER.

On the drive to Pitt, The cardiologist called my cell and wanted us to go to the local hospital to get her on a monitor ASAP. (We live 45 minutes away from Greenville. The local hospital was 5 minutes away) We pulled in and Eden was on a monitor within 3 or so minutes of us walking in the door. While the nurse was hooking Eden up, the Cardiologist was calling the ER to give them instructions on how to treat Eden, I love our Cardiologist!

The Nurse said give me a minute and I'll give you some numbers. Eden was scared at this point and looked wiped out. She didn't want to be hooked up to the monitors. She didn't understand what was going on. I had to hold her and show her the monitors didn't hurt. We got her hooked up and I couldn't believe what I saw. 278!!!! I said, "is that right? Is it really 278 beats per minute?" The nurse said, "yeah, it's 278." She yelled something in the hallway and then the room was full of people.

Larry and I were told there was two ways we could treat her. The less invasive was to stick her face in Ice water. That is a Vagal nerve stimulus, and should reset her heart. If that didn't work they would use medications or shock her. We agreed to do the water first .

They filled a bucket of water and I pushed Eden's face in it. She was angry and cold, but her heart immediately converted when she took that deep breath. So did all of us in the room. I sat there thanking Jesus and watching the monitor praying it would stay at the 145-150 range. It did! Then it lowered down into the 130 range. I cuddled Eden and the room emptied. Larry and I just stared at one another, not saying anything. Just dazed and thankful that she was ok. An hour later we were on the way home.

Now is the hard part, the wait and see part. The Cardiologist has put Eden on a heart medication to slow her heart down. We have to have blood test done regularly to make sure that she doesn't get toxic levels of this medication. But it is supposed to be free from side effects.

Eden's condition is called SVT. (Supraventricular Tachycardia) She was diagnoses at 2 months, but hasn't had another episode that we knew about or had recorded until yesterday. We're in a wait and see because Eden is so young and can't really tell us how often it is going on. We are praying that this episode has not done any damage to her heart. We have an appointment on Oct 19th to do further test.

I am so thankful Eden came to cuddle with me and that I noticed her heart. I wonder how many other times it could have happened and I not noticed. I worried it was because we were outside playing. The what if's seemed overwhelming last night. The worry was overwhelming. The tears came when I calmed down and the kids were safely tucked in bed. The reality of the situation was sinking in. We had thought Eden had outgrown this, but she hasn't.

After a great talk with my sister and prayer with Larry, I realized that I needed to be thankful for so many things that took place. I am thankful I noticed this episode. I am thankful that there is medication that can help. I am thankful that Eden converted to a normal rhythm without medication or being shocked in the hospital. I am thankful for the sweet nurses and doctors who took wonderful care of Eden. I am thankful for Amy's friendship, calm nature and her willingness to watch Josiah while all this took place. I am thankful for the many people who were praying for Eden while we were at the hospital. I am thankful for our church family who love our children as they would their own. I am thankful for our family who love us and would leave in an instance to be with us if we would ask.

Most of all I am thankful that I can look back on the Scriptures I shared with my friend that morning, and know the Truths I was trying to share with her are applicable to our situation as well. I told her that there is nothing that ever happens to us that hasn't been sifted through the hands of our loving God. God has given us a child with a special heart. He trusts Eden to Larry's and my care. He knows her and loves her better than we do. And no matter what happens with Eden, God is in control! In all of this, I pray He receives the Glory!

Thank you Jesus for my sweet girl and for her special heart.

Time with Daddy

Yesterday was a great kite flying days with perfect temptures, and lots of wind.
Eden and I went to Larry's office to give him a study break. Who could say no to that? He taught Eden how to fly a kite. Really what happened is he would get in up in the air, then Eden would run off with it. She LOVED it and had a blast. It was one of those moments you wish you could just freeze in time because you realize how happy you are, how perfectly content you are in that moment. Oh, how fast things can change!

On your mark, get set...

GO!

Eden loves to say that as she slides :)

My cute girl!

Just a swingin'

Ok Mom, Not real sure about this thing?

Ummm ok so it swings back and forth.

Gotta figure out how to balance

Yeah, I like this!

Ok, lets just lay here for a few minutes. I'm pooped!

Is it time for another nap yet?