A CHD Super Mom & Gerber Baby

 VOTE

My cousin. Its hard to explain thirty years of knowing someone. A quiet, reserved, smart, independent woman. A woman who took a leap of faith to meet and then marry an incredible man. We may not be BFF's and share all our secrets, but we have forged our own friendship.
How little I knew her until the pregnancy of her second little boy.

You see he was born with a Congenital Heart Defect. This photo of Heather and her brand new born baby is from the precious first moments before he was taken away. (Visit her Blog, The Sweet Geek's Blog Here)

While its not hard to agree to placing your baby in a lifesaving device like this one, knowing that your baby is going to undergo heart surgery in a few days... there are few words to express the emotion, but you can read the birth story of Aiden here.

The surgery went well.
That is to say they were able to close most of the hole and open up the blood flow.
He was a trooper.

His parents finally breathed.
Finally slept.
Finally hoped.
Months of waiting were over and months more were ahead.

5 months old and already a second surgery is being proposed - the hole has grown and the artery has shrunk. They will have to monitor him over the coming months to see if it will correct (it's only grown worse) or if they will bring in him for another surgery.
In spite of it all, Aiden is a very happy young boy. He adores his older brother. He laughs, smiles and loves to be held.
And my cousin, the beautiful brave woman that she is, is happy. She is happy that he is growing, that he is off the feeding tube, off the oxygen tank and mostly that he is such a happy baby.
She celebrates his life. All the little moments so many mothers forget about or want to sleep through.
To that end she entered him into the Gerber Baby Contest and I can't think of a baby or a family who deserves it more. Please take the time to vote.

She is also the second woman to be awarded the Super Mom Award!

To read what it mean to be a Super Mom - Please Click Here

Heather has done and gone through so many Super Mom Moments its hard to choose which one to award this too - but I pick putting her baby into the Gerber Baby Contest.

In spite of all the struggles and worries - they celebrate!

How amazing!

 

We will end this wonderful story, with an explanation of  Congenital Heart Disease

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 her…(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 normalcy…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…him 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 loved Thomas the train…
Or a special heart bear…or a frog in the rain….
It’s the need to remember…we are 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