Final Countdown!!!! And CHD Awareness Week!

Happy Heart month!!! And happy baby month for us! Not too much has changed except for our delivery plan. It is currently up in the air a little bit (surprise, surprise!). We received 2 postcards for our induction but both are different days and times. So either keep February 11 and have an induction or possibly February 12 for a C-Section. Jacob and I are betting we will most likely be doing a C-section due to the little peanut remaining happily breech and standing straight up. He really enjoys nestling his head into the bottom of my sternum. From what I hear it's probably nicer to have his head in my ribs than his little toes. We discussed undergoing a version procedure to turn him around with our MFM doc last week, but with his positioning decided it's just not worth all of the risks (i.e. drop in fetal heart rate, need of an emergency C-section and then being Life Flighted to Primary's, him turning back breech before the 12th, etc...). Oddly, Jacob and I received an overwhelming feeling of peace to hear the doctor tell us that he would strongly advise against it, even though if we wanted to he would give it a try. It made the decision quite simple. Instead of doing the version we ended up looking at our handsome little guy a bit more -he is still quite camera shy and wouldn't let us see his face but we were able to get some good measurements  of everything and he is still growing like a normal baby with short parents  

February is National Heart month. It is to bring awareness of heart disease in general, which is a growing problem for many people. Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) awareness week is the 7th-14th. I don't think it's just a coincidence that our little peanut will be born in the middle of that week. CHD affects many more than I think most people (including myself) ever realize. Just a few quick facts of CHD:

• CHD is the most common birth defect
• 1 in every 100 babies born will have a form of CHD -that's one born approximately every 15 minutes (Tricuspid Atresia [what our little peanut has] affects about 1 in every 10,000 babies born)
• CHD is the leading cause of birth defect related deaths in the U.S.
• There are some treatments but there is no cure for any CHD -it's a lifelong disease
• Twice as many kids die each year from CHD each year than all forms of childhood cancer combined! (Yet pediatric cancer research funding is 5 times higher!)
• The cause of CHD is unknown most of the time
• 25% of kids born with CHD will require heart surgery and/or other interventions before they are 1 year old in order to survive

We have been incredibly blessed to meet and talk with some families of these heart warrior kiddos. They truly are little warriors and miracles. The support that we have received and continue to receive is overwhelming! It's so awesome to have so many people reach out and offer any kind of help they can think of. We really feel loved and are blessed - we cannot say thank you enough to each of you!!!

In conjunction with CHD awareness week we are asking that all of those that would like to join us to wear purple on Friday the 9th. It is a day that is set aside to raise awareness, and also to honor all of those living with and lost from CHD.

We are so excited to meet our little guy and continue on this journey together as a family. We are getting so close!!! It's crazy to think about! Thank you again for all of your love, thoughts, prayers, and continued support!