Ethan's Heart Walk

This morning was Ethan's Heart Run/Walk! I was SO excited to go and meet so many heart Mom's that I know through blogging and friends. It was really fun talking to them and getting to know them. I would have loved to stay and visit longer but it was very windy and cold. I only got a few pictures because I forgot to charge the battery and it was almost dead! Ugh!!! Oh well, I did get a few and I'll have to get some from the other Mom's who took pictures. Here are a few of the ones I took.

Here is the beginning of the 10k. I was so impressed by all of the people who did it!

They had a pancake breakfast and bounce houses for the kids. Lots of fun!

Here's a picture of Jared and Kyson. Poor Kyson was so cold!

Heidi Skidmore announcing the winners of the races. She is Ethan's Mom and organized this whole event. Good job Heidi! It turned out GREAT!

Here's a picture of a few of us heart Mom's...Andrea Simmons, Caryn Beck, and me.

I really wish my battery hadn't died so I could have taken more! It was so fun to meet everyone!!!

Two Sister One Heart

A Young Woman in my ward, Erika Crandall, organized this concert in behalf of these two girls. I am so excited to attend and I wanted to encourage ALL of you to join me! This is going to be a great event and it's only $5 a person! You can get more information by clicking HERE or by going to the website www.twosistersoneheart.com. I personally was able to attend a concert by the Duttons a couple years back and it was very fun and family friendly! I am excited to watch them again, especially for only $5! Please come join me this Thursday night and have a lot of fun while supporting a great cause.

What is CHD???

I first read this on a fellow heart Mother's blog, Andrea Simmons (thanks!). It is an amazing poem! As heart week comes to an end, I wanted to share it with all of you. Enjoy!

What is a CHD???

You passed me in the shopping mall
(You read my faded tee).
You tapped me on the shoulder,
Then asked, "What's a CHD?"
I could quote terminology,
There's stats that I could give.
But I would rather share with you
A mother's perspective.


What is it like to have a child with a CHD?
It's Lasix, Aspirin, Captopril
It's wondering...Lord what's your will?
It's monitors and oxygen tanks
It's a constant reminder to always give thanks.
It's feeding tubes, calories, needed weight gain
It's the drama of eating...and yes it's insane!
It's the first time I held him, I'd waited so long,

It's knowing that I need to help him grow strong.
It's making a hospital home for awhile
It's seeing my reward in every smile.

It's checking his sats as the feeding pump's beeping
It's knowing that there is just no time for sleeping.
It's caths, x-rays and boo boos to kiss
It's normalacy I sometimes miss.
It's asking do his nails look blue?
It's cringing inside at what he's been through.
It's dozens of call to his pediatrician
She knows me by name, I'm a mom on a mission.
It's winter's homebound and hand sanitizer
It's knowing this journey has made me much wiser.
It's watching him sleeping his breathing is steady.
It's surgery day and I'll never be ready.
It's handing him over, I'm still not prepared,
It's knowing that his heart must be repaired.
It's waiting for news on that long stressful day,
It's praying...it's hoping...that he'll be okay.
It's the wonderful friends with whom I've connected,
It's the bond that we share, it was so unexpected.
It's that long faded scar down my child's small chest,

It's touching it gently and knowing we're blessed.
It's watching him chasing a small butterfly,
It's the moment I realized I've stopped asking why.
It's the snowflakes that fall on a cold winter's day,

They remind me of those who aren't with us today.
It's a brave little boy who loves Thomas the train,
Or a special heart bear or a frog in the rain.
It's the need to remember we're all in this plight,
It's their lives that remind us we still need to fight!
It's in pushing ahead amidst every sorrow,
It is finding the strength to have hope for tomorrow.
And no, we'll never be the same. It's changed our family,
This is what we face each day.
This is...a CHD.

**Written by Stephanie Husted (fellow heart mom)

It's heart week!!!

I know I previously put this on my blog but since this week is Congenital Heart Disease Awareness Week I wanted to share it again. (Look for our little man at about 6 minutes.)



Here are some interesting facts about CHD:
*Every fifteen minutes a baby is born with a CHD.
*Congenital heart defects are America’s #1 birth defect. Nearly one of every 125 babies is born with a CHD (almost 1% of all children born each year!).
*Congenital heart defects are the #1 cause of birth defect related deaths. 1 in 3 children who die from a birth defect have a congenital heart defect.
*This year almost 40,000 babies will be born with a congenital heart defect.
*In the U.S. twice as many children die from congenital heart defects each year than from all forms of childhood cancer combined. Yet funding for research of pediatric cancer is 5 times greater.
*From 1993 to 2003 death rates for congenital heart defects have declined by 31% due to advances made through research!
*There is not yet a preventative cure for any type of congenital heart defect.
*Of every dollar the government spends on medical funding, only a fraction of a penny is directed toward congenital heart defect research.

Just as a little reminder...next Saturday the 20th is Ethan's heart walk/run. Come and support CHD and have some fun doing it!

Last of all I want to encourage ALL of you to sign up to be an organ donor.

Click HERE if you would like more information.

Let it SNOW!!!

Last weekend we went up to Show Low for the weekend for my Uncle Paul's wedding reception. We knew there would be a lot of snow but as we drove we were amazed when the snow pushed to the side of the road was above our car! I don't think I've ever seen that much snow in my life! Once we got to my parents house there wasn't much snow left there so we headed up to Pinetop to Jared's parents cabin to play in the snow. It was about four feet deep and even deeper in some places. We had a lot of fun playing it in. I'm pretty sure Kyson's favorite part was swinging in the swing!




Caleb makes a pretty cute snow angel:)



Daddy helped Caleb make snowballs to through at Mom!



Daddy found a huge ice sickle! Notice Kyson's gloves in the snow...he didn't want to keep them on. No wonder he was getting cold and tired.


Mr. Snowman.


While we were making the snowman Kyson was swinging in the swing again. He had stopped and wasn't asking for me to come give him another push so I went over to check on him and this is what I found:)

I think we all had just a little too much fun!