Calving Class, Sugar High & Peek-a-Boo

It's definitely time for an update! There has been a lot happening with the Hartwell's this past week!

Michael and I attended a baby class at Methodist Hospital called "Baby Bump to Bassinet" or "Calving Class" as Mike so effectionaly called it. He was a good trooper though, and didn't complain when we had to be up by 5:30 a.m., or when he had to act out a labor scene with me. Overall the class was pretty good. Quite a bit of stuff we somewhat knew, but it was great to have it reinforced- and to get a tour of the hospital where Baby H will be born.  Methodist Women's Hospital is only a few years old, and the labor & delivery rooms are practically as nice as a hotel room. I'm not sure if I would call our stay there a vacation however! :)  Most importanatly, Michael now knows which doors to check in at, depending on what time of day or night we may arrive!

My day off work on Monday was no vacation either! Again, I was up and at 'em by 5:30 to be in trek to Omaha for my 3 hour glucose test (that I had to take after failing the 1 hour).  I was told to fast after midnight, which was no easy task being a hungry pregnant lady! I started the test about 8 a.m., when the drew my blood. I then drank the super sugary substance, 3 times the amount of the 1 hour, and waited an hour. They drew blood at 1 hour, 2 hours, and 3 hours then sent me on my way.  I met my mom for lunch, and after waiting about 20 minutes for a table it was a little after noon and I was HUNGRY!  I made the mistake of ordering a lemonade and drinking it while we waited for our food. As soon as the sugar from the drank hit me I started getting hot and sweating. We quickly asked the waiter for some bread and adverted a possible scene of me passing out!

Wednesday was a big obgyn appointment for us, as we finally got the chance to check out Baby H by ultrasound!! This was the first time since our December appointment, so we were a little anxious beforehand. Both the ultrasound tech and doctor looked over the baby very carefully, and all else seems very well! All organs looked good, amniotic fluid was good, baby was practicing breathing. We were able to see a good picture of the heart, and were able to see very clearly that the right ventricle was underdeveloped. The baby's measurements all looked okay, and at 32 weeks baby weights about 3 pounds 13 ounces. They said this was very normal. The leg bone measured a bit small, so we are wondering if it might take after it's Grandma Donna & Aunt Jenna and be on the shorter side?! The baby also takes after it's daddy and did NOT want a photo of it's face taken.  It had it's hands in front the entire time!

I'm now scheduled for weekly doctors appointments, and our "BIG" appointment with Children's, the cardiologist and surgeon is scheduled for March 2nd.  We ask for continued prayers for this appointment, that the doctors and surgeons do not find any additional problems, and that their confidence in the plan for surgery and outcome is very positive!  As always prayers for complete healing are always said! :)

Heart Day!

Happy Valentines Day! This year has an additional meaning for us since it is also congenital heart disease awareness week! We have a very special valentine with a special heart that we are sending lots of love to!
I had a regular appointment with my ob last wednesday and heard the baby's heartbeat. I also did my glucose test. Dr. De Vries called today to say I failed the one hour, so back I go on Monday for the three hour. He also told me I didn't pass the hemoglobin one meaning I'm low in iron. He started me on an iron pill. For those of you who have known me forever, I have never been able to swallow pills! Needless to say these look like horse pills to me, but I've gotten much better at taking all sorts of pills the last fee months!
I also started having ob appointments every two weeks now. Can't wait until next Wednesday when we have an ultrasound. We will let you know how it goes!! We have our all day "baby class' on Saturday at Methodist. I'm sure Michael will be more than entertained.
Thanks again for all your prayers! We are so grateful!

Do not be afraid of tomorrow for God is already there!

A few weeks ago, but about 29 weeks!

Shopping for Baby

Mike and I headed to Lincoln a few weeks ago and started doing some shopping for the baby. We looked at some crib options but didnt end up buying anything. We did spend a few hours registering for baby things at Target. Talk about overwhelming! So many options! The next weekend we were in Omaha and registered at Babies R Us. We also made a successful trip to Nebraska Furniture Mart and got both a crib and dresser. We made sure to get only the best mattress for Baby H- lots of coils! Mike and Stew got everything put together with awesome help from Peg, Mikes grandpa Glenn and myself.

The baby room is coming together, Ill make sure and add pictures. Only 10 weeks to go!!

The crib is almost ready!

Finished project- dresser!

Hypoplastic Right Heart Syndrome

Hypoplastic right heart syndrome (HRHS) refers to underdevelopment of the right sided structures of the heart. These defects cause inadequate blood flow to the lungs and thus, a blue or cyanotic infant. The major problem is pulmonary valve atresia (absence). This valve normally opens and closes to let blood flow to the pulmonary artery. Secondary problems include a very small (hypoplastic) right ventricle (lower chamber which normally pumps blood to the lungs); a small tricuspid valve (this valve allows blood to flow into the right ventricle) and a small (hypoplastic) pulmonary artery. Also, the blood flow into the coronary arteries may be abnormal causing damage to the heart muscle.

The infant is born with two connections that help blood flow. These are a foramen ovale (hole between the atria) and patent ductus arteriosus (or PDA, a blood vessel between the aorta and pulmonary artery). As these connections begin to close, the infant becomes critically ill.

Because the blue blood cannot pass through the right side of the heart to get to the lungs, it crosses into the left atrium and mixes with red blood returning from the lungs. This mixed blood is pumped out of the aorta. The only way in which blood gets to the lungs is through the PDA. The PDA must be maintained open with medicine (PGE1). Surgery is usually performed shortly after starting PGE1 to create an artificial connection (shunt) between the aorta and the pulmonary artery to deliver blood to the lungs.

Congenital Heart Defects

I mentioned in my first blog that I would explain in greater detail Baby Hartwell's heart defects and the surgeries he/she will need. I’m thinking I will explain each defect over the next several days. It is all very overwhelming so I thought I would start off by explaining what complex congenital heart defects are before describing each individual defect.

So here it goes.....

Congenital heart defects are problems with the heart's structure that are present at birth. These defects can involve the interior walls of the heart, valves inside the heart, or the arteries and veins that carry blood to the heart or out to the body. Congenital heart defects change the normal flow of blood through the heart.

There are many different types of congenital heart defects. They range from simple defects with no symptoms to complex defects with severe, life-threatening symptoms.

Congenital heart defects are the most common type of birth defect, affecting 8 of every 1,000 newborns. Each year, more than 35,000 babies in the United States are born with congenital heart defects. Most of these defects are simple conditions that are easily fixed or need no treatment.

A small number of babies are born with complex congenital heart defects that need special medical attention soon after birth. Over the past few decades, the diagnosis and treatment of these complex defects has greatly improved.

As a result, almost all children with complex heart defects grow to adulthood and can live active, productive lives because their heart defects have been effectively treated.

Most people with complex heart defects continue to need special heart care throughout their lives. They may need to pay special attention to certain issues that their condition could affect, such as health insurance, employment, pregnancy and contraception, and preventing infection during routine health procedures. Today in the United States, about 1 million adults are living with congenital heart defects.

Baby Hartwell- Our Heart Hero

Michael and I are beyond excited to welcome a new member to our family this spring. Baby Hartwell is scheduled to join us around April 15, 2012. We've decided to keep it's gender a surprise, and can't wait to find out if it's a boy or girl! We've recently learned that Baby Hartwell has a chronic heart disorder, and we will be using this blog to keep all of our amazing friends and family up to date.

On December 7th, Mike and I went to my regular 21 week appointment, thrilled to get to see our baby for the first time on the ultrasound. The tech was very nice, and mentioned that the baby was being stubborn, and she couldn't get a good picture of the right side of the heart. My obgyn Dr. De Vries then came in, and also tried to get some additional pictures. I received a phone call the next day from Dr. De Vries when he informed me that after re-looking at a few of the pictures, he thought the right side of the baby's heart looked a bit "small" and had gone ahead and set up an appointment with us to meet with Dr. Danford, a pediatric cardiologist specialist at Childrens Hospital Omaha on January 6th. Mike and I tried to not assume the worst, but just that they couldn't get a "good" picture.

We met with Dr. Danford on the 6th and learned that Baby Hartwell has Pulmonary Atresia and Hypoplastic Right Heart Syndrome. More or less, blood is unable to pass through the pulmonary artery due to lack of pulmonary valvues and an underdeveloped right ventricle of it's heart. We've learned that HRHS is rare, and most information and cases are usually Hypoplastic LEFT Heart Syndrome. Dr. Danford was able to draw us a "map" of Baby Hartwell's heart, and also describe the surgeries he/she will have.

At this point, we've been told I'll have a "normal" delivery at Methodist Women's Hospital (plus about 20+ people, specialists, etc in the room I'm guessing LOL). The baby will be immediately stabilized and transferred to Children's Hospital. Mike will go with the baby until I can be released. It will  be given a drug to keep one of it's valves open temporarily. It will undergo open heart surgery within it's first week. This procedure is to put in a shunt, which will direct blood to the lungs.

Baby Hartwell will undergo it's second open heart surgery at age 4-6 months. At this time they will be doing a procedure called a "Glenn" which will replace the shunt that the baby will have out-grown.

It's third open heart surgery will be around age 2, where they will finalize the process by doing a "Fontan" operation.

Each of these procedures is incredibly scary. Baby Hartwell will never have a "normal" heart, but instead function on a single ventricle heart, where the left side will do all of the pumping for both sides. The first two surgeries are designed to temporarily relieve blood flow to and from the lungs. The third surgery is to improve overall circulation. The procedures do not cure the defects, but rather re-routes the blood flow around the defective areas. 

As unlucky as this may all seem, we are very lucky for several reasons. One of those is the fact that we live so close to a town where we have access to a wonderful team of physicians who are dedicated to the care of patients with heart disease. We are also very lucky that the Children’s Hospital in Omaha has surgeons who perform surgeries on babies born with heart defects. So, with all of this said, I have decided to start a blog. We feel so grateful to have our family and friends. It is during times like this, we realize how truly blessed we are. We can’t thank each of you enough for your prayers and support thus far. My hope is for this blog to keep each of you updated on my pregnancy and updated on Baby Hartwell's progress. I'll update with additional posts that explain the exact defects Baby Hartwell has.

It Feels Like Home

I'm starting this blog, basically to keep track of the fun, exciting and memorable moments in our lives. We've been married for almost four months, and I'm amazed at how fast the time has flown by. With our incredibly busy work schedules, our time together sometimes seems few and far between.
Upon realizng the other day that my memory seems to be starting to forget the more important things that have happened in my life, I'm hoping this blog will allow me to look back and share the laughs and tears again.