This is a picture of Carter, two days old. It was just too cute not to use. But lots of people have been asking questions about Carter and what he has, because I have been so bad at keeping in touch with everyone and keeping people updated. So I thought I would write a little bit about him and what has been going on since he was born.
Carter was born May 6, 2008 in Idaho. We moved back to Mesa, AZ three weeks later. On June 30th Carter stopped breathing while my Mom and I were shopping at Wal-Mart. An employee did CPR until the paramedics arrived. He was admitted to the Pediatric ICU for a week, where he was diagnosed with Gastro Esophical Reflux Disorder, Tracheal Malasia, Laryngal Malasia, and a narrowing in his airway to his right lung. Sounds like a lot of big words. But in short what happens is he reflux when he eats and he has a floppy airway so the food gets into his lungs and closes off. This makes him pass out and stop breathing.
We have all been trained in infant CPR now and are as prepared as possible to help him. Since he has been home we have had several reflux seizure episodes, but we have been able to keep him breathing each time. We are preparing ourselves for the winter season because if he gets RSV or pneumonia it will be very difficult for his airway to stay strong. Anyways, I hope that was a helpful update. We are so grateful for all the help we have had from friends and family. Overall, Carter is doing really well for his condition and we count our blessings everyday!
Grandpa Parkin has started Carter early on cheering for the Rams! He picked out this jersey for Carter last Christmas when I was just five months pregnant! But Brad loves it too, he can't wait to have his little linebacker in Pop Warner Football.
This is a picture of Carter, two days old. It was just too cute not to use. But lots of people have been asking questions about Carter and what he has, because I have been so bad at keeping in touch with everyone and keeping people updated. So I thought I would write a little bit about him and what has been going on since he was born.
Carter has been doing so well lately that we have slowly been trying going out more, like to church on Sunday and little things like that. But this past Sunday after a busy weekend Carter had another horrible reflux seizure like episode that lasted about an hour. The doctor stayed on the phone with us until Carter fell asleep around 10 that night, but it really shook us up again. I know that we have been so blessed that he is doing so well, it is just hard to remember how sick he really is until he has another episode. Brad and I stayed up a lot of the night to watch his breathing. He is doing better this week but we are back to staying in the house 24/7. This gets hard, but our little buddie is worth it!
So I thought I would write a little Jason update for everyone. He has been in serving in Novosibirsk, Russia now for thirteen months! The time has flown by so quickly all ready. He is doing great, and he is currently serving as the Russian traveling secretary. I had no idea what that meant so you probably don't either, but basically he is in charge of getting the travel documents ready for all the missionaries in Russia. Pretty cool if you ask me! We miss him tons and I can't wait for him to come home next year and meet Carter!
Today is the dreaded second series of Carter's shots. You would think after holding him through CAT Scans, EEG, Brain Ultra Sounds, IVs in the Head, and many other horrible things that should never happen to babies, that I would be strong about these dumb shots. But no, we have exactly two hours before we have to leave for the doctor and I just don't want to go. There is just something awful about holding your sweet little baby down so someone else can inflict pain on them. Oh well, hopefully Carter will be stronger than me today!
