Moving Right Along

The BIG day is quickly approaching. I say it over and over, but it is amazing how fast time goes. WOW!! Cannon and Colton have both moved up in their classes. Cannon graduated kindergarten and Colton graduated from the 3's class.

The year definitely flew right past us. It seems just like yesterday we were registering Cannon in the toddler room at Lamb Of God and Colton in the nursery. They are both excited to be moving on to the 1st grade and PreK.


Both boys have really been enjoying the time at the pools this summer with Nana and Grandpa. They are true water lovers. It is in their blood, just like their Papa. Cannon has been swimming so well and Colton is really beginning to get brave. We are trying to let Cannon get as much swimming in before the BIG day arrives, since the remainder of his summer will be in recovery mode.

We talked with Cannon about the surgery last week and he took the news fairly well. I think we prepped him pretty good for the heart cath with the idea that there was a chance the dr's could fix his heart so he would be able to play baseball. Being able to roll that into the surgery conversation made things a little easier. He has been asking questions which we expected from him and thankfully not many that we haven't been able to answer for him. It is also nice letting him lead us with how much we say by the questions he asks. He didn't like the idea of having to drink the "yucky sleepy medicine" or the idea that we would have to leave him with the nurses again. Unfortunately, we only wanted to allow him a couple of weeks for it to gel in his little brain but we have ended up with three. The day after we told him Texas Children's called to reschedule the date due to the surgeon being ill. The original date was scheduled for June 12th which has now been moved to June 20th. We will arrive at TCH on the 19th at 8AM for the pre op day and then return on the 20th at 6 AM for the actual surgery to begin.

As for the blood donations I mentioned in the last post, we have had a hard time determining Cannon's blood type. I still do not have this information to share. However, I am sure you can still direct donate in his name at the Gulf Coast Blood Bank and if it is his type they will use it. If not, I am certain there are other children or even adults that you are compatible with that could use the gift. The date of donation will change to June 16th. The donation must be taken 3 days prior to surgery, no sooner and no later for it to be used for Cannon's transfusion.

We still find ourselves with great peace as we come closer to the actual day. My prayer for the whole family is that we will glorify God through all. That this trial will bring us closer to God as well as those who witness the hand of God in Cannon's life. We have already seen this taking place, as we experienced a "Prayer Party" for Cannon at church. Seeing so many believers come together to pray for Cannon was such a heartwarming event. It really touched our hearts and we are so thankful to be part of such a loving, caring, and compassionate body of Christ. It is so sweet to be a part of such a loving FAMILY.

THE "TALK"

Well, we went for the "talk" as Cannon called it all day. The "talk" was the final consultation with Dr. Fraser. Reality is setting in more and more as Marc and I journey along this walk. Thank goodness we have God to walk with us. I keep repeating to myself how crazy all of this would be without Him guiding us and protecting us from the great fears that this world offers. He appears in the smallest things. For example, Cannon was required to go with us to this visit and we were a little concerned knowing that we haven't mentioned the idea of surgery to him yet. In one of the waiting rooms where we were waiting last for the surgeon to come in, there were pictures of past CHD survivors showing their scars and even a picture of a young infant on a hospital bed with tubes and wires all over the place, and an incision down his chest. Cannon didn't ask the first question and he still hasn't. God is so good to protect him from that curiousity. It is as if God blocked what his eyes were looking at.

The surgeon didn't have any news to add from our discussion we had with him in October. The heart cath didn't prove any differences than the prior echocardiograms or what he expected of Cannon's heart. He is still confident with the idea of Cannon being at the best age for this procedure and feels that Cannon will greatly benefit from it. With that being said, we are still on for surgery  on June 12, 2012. He will have a blood transfusion so if any of our loved ones are interested in donating blood you can do so at any Gulf Coast Blood Bank. The blood donation must be made no later than three days before and no ealrier than 10 days before the surgery date. We have concluded that the blood donations will have to be made on 6/8/12 or 6/9/12 to be available for Cannon's surgery. Unfortunately, I do not have his blood type at this time but I will get it and post it as soon as it is available. For anyone out of town, I am not too sure how that may work out. I know you can make the donations around the Houston area at any Gulf Coast Blood bank but I don't know if they are available outside of the Houston area. The website they can be reached at is http://www.giveblood.org/ and I am sure they can answer any questions you may have.

Again, we thank you all for your prayers and loving support!

Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD," plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

We Did It!!

Yikes, now I have to follow up to Marc's creative writing skills. I am sure you all have distinguished who has the best writing skills in our house. Oh well, hopefully I can just get the updates out clearly.

It has been 10 days since the heart catheterization and Cannon is doing well. Cannon experienced some tenderness at the site but nothing a little Tylenol wouldn't help. As of this weekend, he is back to riding his bike and performing all the activities he loves to do.

There were no surprises during the catheter. That was the best news of all. Cannon was a very brave young man. The waiting was tough for us, but the hourly updates from the nurse on Cannon's status helped break the time up. The procedure took a total of four hours, a little longer than the three we were told initially. They wanted to carefully explore every bit of Cannon's complex heart anatomy and get the best pictures they possibly could for the surgeon to review prior to surgery. Cannon was surprisingly alert when he was brought back to the recovery room. He didn't want anything to do with the oxygen mask they tried to make him wear. His pulse ox stats were in the high 80's. He battled a pretty severe headache during the six hour recovery period. We tried to comfort him as much as possible with a milkshake and fries from McDonalds. The tylenol didn't seem to help much. He tried to sleep but wasn't able to rest due to the pain. Finally, at the end of the six hour recovery time around 7PM, we were told we would be discharged. They removed Cannon's IV, and the pressure patch from the cath site. Cannon was just so happy to be able to go home. When Cannon stood up from the bed, he got sick. :( Just like the tough boy he had been all day, we got him cleaned him up and he kept on trucking. The boy was ready to get home, no matter what it took.

We stopped on the 17th floor where Colton, Nana, and Gupa were waiting. Cannon asked to use the restroom so I took him. While in the restroom we discovered that the clot that had formed at the cath site must have been dislodged when he vomitted. We took him back to the recovery room just to confirm all was well and he would be fine to continue on home. The nurses recommended we see the doctor once more to rule out any active bleeding under the skin. The doctor suggested we wait another 2 hours to watch the bleeding and make sure it would clot again. Thankfully, the additional two hour waiting period ended at 9pm and there had been no more bleeding. Cannon was able to sleep for the last two hours. Once he woke up as he was being disharged for the second time, he seemed to feel much better thanks to the rest. The headache had subsided a little and he was back to himself for the most part.

For the last two hours we were the only ones left in the cath recovery area so we had a lot of fun with the nurses on staff, Rose, Ingrid, and Latoya. They were awesome and sure kept Colton entertained (after he woke up from his nap). What a kind big brother Cannon is to share his bed with Colton.

We continue to praise The Good Lord for His great mercy and faithfulness. Cannon doesn't remember the severe headache he endured during recovery. He doesn't seem to be too fearful when we talk about hospitals now. God is Great and He has a plan! We will forever seek Him for guidance and protection against this world's sadness and pain. We know there will be pain but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26) and we will overcome this trial.

Thank you again for your continued prayers and support.

Love,
The Kings

We're CATHing: Two updates in

Well Howdy!  I'm giving Tori a break from the blogging.  We're sitting on the 17th Floor of TCH in the CVICU waiting room.  Cannon is in the middle of his CATH procedure.  We just got our second update from the surgical nurse and he is doing great.  At the end of the first hour, he'd been under anethesia for a while, they had his artery exposed and where on the way to the heart.  In this last update at 11, they've measured all the pressures and gotten the information they need.  They are about to inject the dye that will allow them to take the pictures of his vessels.

The staff here has been great, they clearly know what they're doing and put Cannon's comfort (and ours) at their highest priority.  We talked to a number of doctors this morning.  One young doctor was tasked with discussing the risks of the procedure with us, certainly an uncomfortable conversation for a young doctor to have with the parents of a sick kid.  She had clearly done her homework and knew how to have the conversation, but near the end she mentioned how nervous she was.  The doctor in charge of the cath was quick to let us know she was in charge of the cath and she WASN'T nervous!  We were never concerned about the young doctor being nervous, but it was fun to take part in her learning an important lesson: project confidence!!

Please excuse my lengthy post, there's two factors effecting this.  One, I can type pretty quick and it's easy to get long-winded.  But mostly, we are doing this blog not just to inform Cannon's loved ones, but also to record our journey... something we can look back on in 10 days (or years) when we've forgotten where we've been and all we've been through.  We know God will be glorified in these trials and tribulations, and the Bible instructs us to think on the things God has done for us.  As my memory is so poor, I have to use things like a journal and blogging to document what we've been through.  Then we can look back and see how God delivered.

The blessing today: we can see God working NOW.  We don't have to look back on it to see it as is often the case.  Tori and I are calm as can be expected, trusting in God fully.  Quite the contrast to some families that seem to melt down a bit in these circumstances.  We have much tougher days ahead of us, we aren't immune to pain.  But I thank God for bringing Tori and I together: we've learned how to lift each other up during the rough times, rather than attack each other.

Please continue praying for Cannon!  The most difficult part of today has been leaving him with strangers to go back to the OR.  He was awake when they wheeled him away, we walked with him as far as we could.  He gave us the "Why are you leaving me with these strangers" look which kills all parents in these situations.  But it was the first time for me, and it hurt.  Well, it's just the beginning.  Thanks for your prayers and for taking part in our family!  Please leave a comment if you stop by.


Cannon just prior to being rolled to the OR for the heart cath



MILESTONES!!

Wow!! Cannon has accomplished a couple of BIG milestones in the past couple of weeks. He learned to ride his bike without his training wheels!!!! YEA!! He LOVES riding his bike now. Even on days when we get home and it is too dark to ride, he wants to just go hug his bike. I think he has his daddy's love of riding bikes. Today he lost his first tooth. He was very excited about finally losing it. Now mommy and daddy have to be sure not to forget to become fairies this evening. :)

Since our last post we have been scheduled and rescheduled for the heart catheter. :) We have already experienced the joys of being moved around on the schedules. We were intially scheduled for 9 am today (4/18/12) but they called on Tuesday and rescheduled it to Friday (4/20/12) morning. Thankfully the appointment is earlier in the morning so the idea of keeping food and drinks from Cannon won't be such a daunting task. We will arrive at TCH at 7am for check in and hope to be discharged in the afternoon.

Marc and I talked to Cannon on Saturday to explain the procedure and what he could expect. He took the news fairly well. His only concern was "but I'm not sick and only sick people have to go to the hospital". We were able to explain a little better letting him know that he wasn't "sick" but that the doctors could make his "special" heart work a lot better. In making the his heart work better, he could possibly be allowed to play sports and not remain so exhausted when running and playing. We told him that the doctors need to run some tests on him so they will be able to decide what they can do to makes his heart work better. He knows that they will give him some "sleeping" medicine and he is okay with that. He got to go to the store to buy some new movies that he will get to take with him to watch after the procedure is completed, while we wait. He is taking it so well that I was a little disappointed to have to tell him yesterday that the big day was rescheduled, but he took that well too. He's such a brave and bright little man!

We know God has great plans for Cannon and his future. It is so awesome to watch so closely God's miracles happen right before our eyes.

Thank you all for your continued prayers! We will keep the blog updated.

Many Blessings,
The Kings

Scheduling.........

So we have been working with the pediatric cardiologist and the cath lab at Texas Children's to get the required heart catheter procedure scheduled. It has been scheduled for this month which seems way too soon. It really puts things into reality for us. Cannon will go in to Texas Children's on April 19,2012 for the cath.

Daddy made a trip to talk with the Child Services department while he was at work down at The Methodist Center. They were very informative. They gave us a book with pictures of the OR room and the recovery room so Cannon could get an idea. They also gave us a doll in a hospital gown with a stitch down the sternum where the scar will be once all this is finished. Cannon LOVES the doll and we will use it to explain more about it to him.

News update AND another blessing for the Kings!

It is amazing how fast time flies. This King household will be blessed with another baby in the middle of August!!! God has His plans for everything and we will continue to be His instruments.

In January Cannon turned 6. He is doing well in Kindergarten at Lamb of God in Humble, Texas. He comes home with books to read every night and reads them without hesitation. He is excited to take the next step into the "big" school of Tarkington next year for first grade. Colton is also still at Lamb of God in the 3's preschool class with Ms. Denise Baker. She was Cannon's teacher at 3 as well. All the kids just LOVE her and she is outstanding with them. We will miss her next year since Colton will be going to the Tarkington Learning Center in Tarkington. It will be nice to have them both closer to home.

 I know the postings to the blog have been very few in the past 6 years since we have stayed so busy. Although things are about to get EXTREMELY busy, my goal is to update more often due to upcoming events. I want to have a common place for family and friends to come so they can gather up to date information and will know how to pray for Cannon during this time. Cannon is scheduled to have his first open heart surgery this summer. We met with the surgeon, Dr. Charles Frazer with Texas Children's in October of 2011 and he informed us at that time that he feels now is the best time for Cannon to have his corrective surgery. He discussed many surgical options with us and placed the ball in our court. We have decided with him that now is a better time than ever for Cannon to undergo this surgery. We have discussed the surgical options and determined the best for Cannon would be the Arterial Switch with the Rastelli Stenning combination. We have talked with the scheduling department of TCH and we are on the appointment book for June 12, 2012. We are both anxious and excited for getting the opportunity better Cannon's quality of life. To remove his constant physical struggles to keep up with others, even his younger brother, and the mental struggles of not being able to play sports like others his age. At this moment we are waiting for the cardiologist to set up a time for the heart catheter to get a better idea of Cannon's anatomy. As soon as we get that date we will post it.

In the meantime, please pray for that God will create the perfect opportunity for us to talk to Cannon regarding this upcoming event. Of course we want to be completely truthful and honest about all that is going to happen. However, we don't want to unnecessarily cause anxiety for him. TCH has a team that will also help administer to this need so that is a blessing and we will surely use it. God is GREAT and has GREAT plans!!! Cannon will be such a strong testimony for HIM and I can't wait to see the other side of this masterpiece.

We love you all!! Thank you for your support through these times. I will keep you posted as we move forward.

Below is a picture that has been floating through church and I felt it was appropriate for this time and what we are facing.




The Kings