Faith's Mom's Blog

Today was the dreaded day. Faith's botox appointment was at 12:30 and now, thank goodness it is over. She is happily at home watching one of her favorite Elmo DVDs. While we were getting ready to go, she asked who we were going to go see. Usually I volunteer this information but I wasn't sure what to say to her. I told her we were going to see Danielle (who helps Dr. Eggert, the one who injects the botox). Faith loves Danielle and I think the feeling is mutual. She asked what we were going to do with Danielle and I told her we were going to talk to her. Then Faith asked, "Mommy are you going to be there with me the whole time?" She knew something was up. Danielle met us out in the waiting room and we went back to her office. She applied some topical ointment to Faith's skin that would help lessen the pain of the needles. Faith was totally fine with that. We had to wait about fifteen minutes and during that time I tried to explain to her that Dr. Eggert was goi

The nice summer weather makes it easy to take Faith out and about and being the little social butterfly that she is, she loves to go visit people. The month of July proved to be quite the month for socializing, as you can see by the photos below. We enjoyed seeing Faith's aunties Tesa and Dawn and also Faith's cousins, Donnie and Preston. Also, uncle Robert who is taking the photo! Faith really likes to visit with Dave and his wife Lisa but she might like their dog Ginger even more! Faith enjoys visiting with Kimberly and her sister, Melanie Faith says good-bye to Kimberly and Matt before they move to Kansas Faith enjoys her first campfire with some friends Faith loves seeing her Grandma and Grandpa!

Yesterday, Faith cut her little toe. Rob was in the back room with Faith and I was in the adjoining bathroom taking a shower. Rob had put Faith on the floor beside the door so she could talk to me while I was in the shower. Faith was yelling, "Mommy can you hear me?" I yelled back, "YES!" Then when I got out, I put on my robe and opened the door. Faith got so excited and starting giggling. "Did you have a nice shower?" She asked. She was acting like her normal cheery self so I was surprised to look over and see bright red blood on the floor. Immediately, I bent down towards her to find out where she hurt herself. I saw blood on her toes on her left foot. I called Rob over and we tried to wipe the blood away so we could figure out where she cut herself. It wasn't until Rob and I started fussing over her that she realized she had hurt herself. While Rob picked her up and held her, I went to get bandages and other first-aid supplies. The blood

Faith loves to bake. And as she informed her respite care provider the other day, "I'm really good at mixing!" She likes to watch all of the ingredients go into the bowl, and then I help her stir it all together. She watches intently as I put the baked goods - usually muffins or cookies - into the oven. I turn on the timer and she knows our creation is ready when the bell goes, "DING!" I'm not sure if it's a good thing or not that I don't really bake all that much. Probably better for weight control but those baked goods sure are yummy with a cup of coffee. Faith still gets her baking time in though as all of her respite care providers have baked with her at one time or another. One of her providers even bought her the cutest little apron. Yesterday, while Kimberly was watching Faith, she informed Kimberly that she wanted to make something in the kitchen. So she and Kimberly searched in the pantry for something they could make. Aha! A little bo

Growing up, I really never thought about having children. The fact was, my cardiologists always told me I would never be able to have a baby. It never really bothered me. Instead of having children, I figured I would just have cats and dogs. Seriously, I loved animals and the pets I had while growing up gave me great comfort and lots of joy. Then one day, as a twenty-four year old, I went to visit a co-worker who had just had a baby. When I left after seeing my friend and her tiny little girl, I felt sad that I would never be able to have that experience. Fast forward two years. Due to the heart surgery I had when I was 25, I was doing very well, healthwise. I was also seeing different doctors - those from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester instead of those in Minneapolis. These cardiologists told me they had success with women who have had the fontan surgery having babies. So, after getting married in 2002, my husband and I decided to go for it. When I did find out I was pregnant. I w

We do not travel with Faith very often. Once had to take her to Minneapolis because Rob had an interview with the INS and his wife and child were required to be there. She was only about 10 months old at the time. We also flew to Toronto for Christmas when she was fourteen months old. Both of these trips took place pre -wheelchair and pre -feeding tube so it wasn't so bad. As she got older, however, she attained more equipment and it became more and more difficult to travel with her.   There was one trip where I had to go to Rochester for possible gallbladder surgery and we actually rented a jeep in which to fit all of our stuff. The only vehicle we had was a 2001 Hyundai Elantra . It was January and very cold. We took Faith to the Mall of America (where she is shown to the right getting a feeding) so we could try to warm our spirits on such a freezing cold trip. Two years ago, we flew once again to Toronto. It was a nightmare and we vowed never to do this again. Faith had her K

It's one of the most anticipated events of the summer. We wait and wait and try to be patient. We moms question each other why it hasn't happened yet. We begin to stalk the school, driving and walking by even when it's well out of our way.  Then, finally, it's there. We see it! The white paper with typed names posted on the school door. The class list is out! Moms, dads and kids alike rush to read the list. And then everyone walks away, some with smiles on their faces while others with tears in their eyes. I was one of those with tears in my eyes as I looked at the class list. Faith did not get the first grade teacher I was hoping she would get. She did not get into the same classroom as one of her best friends. And she will only know a few little girls in her class. BUMMER! I felt a little better after talking to one of my good friends. Her son had the teacher that Faith will have this fall. She said she believes Faith will do well with her. I had been hoping Fai