Number One Birth Defect: Congenital Heart Defect

That title may sound shocking. The truth is that nearly 1 in 100 babies born each day have a congenital heart defect (CHD). Some go unnoticed. Others become apparently within a few days or month of birth. Then there are those that (thankfully) are noticed before birth and require surgery within days of arriving in the world. This week, February 7th – 14th, we are going to highlight on our social media pages areas of all things CHD, but today want to share with your a bit of our heart journey.

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Camp Odayin Review: Summer Camp for Children with Heart Disease

With summer fast approaching, we started to take a peek at the plans for the summer. College visits? Check. Swim team? Check. Driver’s Ed? Check. Hockey Camp? Check. Band Camp? Check. Just when I thought I was done with our list, Owen yells “DON’T FORGET ABOUT HEART CAMP!!!!”. Needless to say – he is excited to attend Camp Odayin for a third summer.

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My Heart Mom Journey – my son’s CHD History

First, do you know what CHD stands for?  I know I didn’t 10 years ago.  Yet over 40,000 infants are born each year with a Congential Heart Defect and still the awareness isn’t where it should be.  When you are at your twenty week ultrasound you are usually hoping for either a boy or a girl.  I know I was on “team girl” (hey, I had two boys at home already) but deep down every mother is truly hoping for healthy.  At the end of the ultrasound I was 0-2.  While unaware at the time, I was starting my journey as a “heart mom”. Read more

No, He Really COULDN’T Hear Me: Hearing Loss in Grade School

Unexpected Diagnosis: Hearing Loss in 2nd Grade

With a household of three boys, quiet isn’t a phrase that it uttered here often.  It is loud.  All. The. Time.  From the moment they wake up (usually in the 6 o’clock hour even on the weekends) until lights out (10pm if I’m lucky), our house is noisy.  To combat all this noise, I usually have to be louder then the boys.  Even before the three boys I was known for my ability to “project” my voice.  Even with my volume ability it never fails that someone “couldn’t hear me”.  Because of this I didn’t give it much thought when Owen couldn’t hear me.  Selective hearing was my assumption, not hearing loss.  However, after a marathon month of hearing tests, it seemed our little Owen had some pretty crappy hearing.   Read more