Breathe Easy

No worries...Grace is doing ok here at home with us. Her Echo came back fine, everything looks the same and normal for her. She did however test positive for AdenoVirus. They said this would completely explain her fussiness, as well as her fever. They didn't prescribe any antibiotics, but did say we could give her Tylenol to help break her fevers and relieve any minor discomfort. So, for now we are at home, stuck with a grumpy, but very cute little Grace, just hoping that the time will go by quickly and she'll be back to her usual adorable self soon.
Thank you again for all your prayers, concern and support. Sorry if we scared anyone into thinking it was a serious problem we were facing!! We were unsure of the outcome too!! Thanks again for all your prayers and support. I'm sure they are helping Grace feel more comfortable and helping her recover from her virus.
Love you all!
oh and btw...please keep the heart babies in your prayers. Baby Teagan had his Glenn surgery yesterday, and is in recovery. And baby Alex has been moved to the Floor for recovery from his heart Transplant. They could use all the prayers they can get!!
Thanks again
the Andersens

So far...okay

Well..Grace was really good last night...but when 7am rolled around...not so happy. Her thoughts were probably something along the lins of "I ate over an hour ago you guys!!! It's time to eat again!!! What's going on?!!". Now that she hasn't eaten in 5 hours...she is reminding us every 5 seconds by wailing, screaming, kicking and rooting at EVERYTHING, that she is starving, and she will not stop pouting at us, and will definitely NOT smile at us, until she is given some food!! She is definitely not a happy camper. On top of being starving, her IV Line came out, so IV team is here, poking her, trying to get another IV in. I'm pretty sure she is never going to smile at me again. Hopefully after she is sedated and her sedation has worn off...she'll forget how mean we are and like us again. ;)
Other than her extremely upset, angry and hungry disposition, she is doing well. She hasn't really had another fever, so thats good news, and I haven't heard about anymore test results. She is on oxygen again because the elevation here is about 600 ft. higher than at home. It's actually really funny, because she's not used to having a nasal cannula in her nose, she is constantly snorting. It is really funny. She has a slight snort in her breathing, and then when she gets angry she really gets going. She she also is in her own little crib which is much cooler than her previous room-in bed. Its no fun to have her attached to a ton of wires and such again, but hey, if they make her more comfortable, than all the better. :)
Her Echo is sceduled for 11:45...so in about 30 minutes. It'll probably be about an hour or more in length because they're going to try and get it extremely detailed. Hopefully we'll find what is making Grace so uncomfortable and unhappy, and we'll be able to go home much more happy and hopefully healthy. :)
Oh...and for those of you with interest...primarily my family I'm sure...this was my special delivery. Topher bought it for me because he loves me...and I'm spoiled. hehe It's beautiful and I LOVE it. :)

I had to post this picture to show you her new adorable outfit from Grandma and Grandpa Andersen. They bought it from an Asian boutique in the Mall of America. Isn't she so cute?? Maybe she looks like a boy...but a darn cute boy for sure. ;) Thank you for all your prayers and support! We are so grateful for our amazing family and friends that are constantly praying for us and always offering help to us. Thank you thank you!!

New Info

Grace has been acting uncharacteristically fussy and irritable, not to mention not sleeping well but always being exhausted, and also not eating that well. We decided that when she went in for her Dr. appointment today that we would ask them if they thought anything might be wrong.
Since I needed to be home at exactly the same time as her appt. to accept a special delivery, Grace's Grandma Andersen was sweet enough to go to the hospital with Topher to help take care of Grace. Dr. Everitt checked her out and after noticing a fever and also her irritablity, decided to admit her over night. They want to get an echo with her sedated tomorrow, and they already took a bunch of blood samples, an x-ray and they also are doing a urine and stool sample. I guess they think she may have some sort of virus, or possibly a urine infection. I secretly hope that something is wrong, so that we can fix it and she can return to her happy usual self. It would be kind of upsetting to learn that she's just getting permanently grumpy.
;)
We'll be staying over night with her and her echo should be some time tomorrow in the early afternoon. i would post some pictures, but my lap top won't let me. i'll post more later when I have more news.
please pray for Grace that all goes well. and that whatever is bothering or hurting her is something than can be fixed. we love you all and are grateful for all the love and support!!
love the Andersens

Priceless....and...a Tag

This morning...Grace looked so so so adorable. She finally fit into the cutest sleeper that my Cousin Christi (Gick) gave her, (thank you SO SO much by the way, i LOVE it) and so I tried for over half an hour to get a 'priceless' picture...I never got the shots I had specifically wanted because Grace would not cooperate...but these few still turned out pretty adorable. Sometimes, you don't find what you were looking for, instead you find something even better. :)












I fall in love every time those big blue eyes look right at me.
This mid-yawn cracked me up so much I had to post it.
This...I know it's kind of a weird shot...but it shows off her killer long eye lashes!! I'm jealous!


And then...although this is out of the blue...I was 'tagged' by my Aunt Kalani...so...here goes

Five things I was doing ten years ago:
1. Probably being beaten up by my big Sister Daysh...she was so mean!! hehe ;)
2. I think I was in...4th grade? 5th maybe? probably playing 'boys chase girls' or something silly like that
3. Playing piano...I love piano. I think I was better when I was 10 then I am now.
4. Reading a TON. My mom used to come in, find me in my closet reading and make me go to bed!
5. Possibly playing over at the Buckley's. They always had a new batch of kittens in the summer time that I would go play with and then bring over to my house, almost always convincing my mom that we needed one. :)

Five things on my To Do list:
1. Clean the car...inside and out. yuck.
2. Write in my journal.
3. My a scrapbook page of Grace.
4. Put boxes of maternity clothes in storage.
5. Take things to the D.I.

Five of my favorite snacks/foods:
1. Apple Juice
2. Lasagna!
3. Neilsen's Frozen Custard Raspberry Brownie Concrete. mmmmm.
4. Salad, with everything on it!
5. Jalapeno Poppers

Five things I would do if I was a billionaire:
1. Buy Grace a new heart. :) And Donate millions to engineering new hearts for thousands of babies.
2. Buy a house in the Southern Avenues, on this street that Topher and I adore. It has trees that canopy the entire street, and old style lamp posts every two houses down. They're old classic beautiful houses. Ooooh, and then I'd install a hot tub, and a sports court.
3. Buy a mini cooper for myself, a VW soft top 23 window van for Topher, and a yellow mustang for my mom :)
4. Go to Cosmetology School, and another University to get a degree in Child Psychology or Elementary Education.
5. Travel with Topher, Grace, my siblings and parents everywhere: Disney World, a Cruise, Europe, Australia...EVERYWHERE
wow...that question really made me with I was filthy rich!! haha

Five bad habits:
1. Biting my nails
2. Surfing the internet for loooong periods of time
3. Procrastinating
4. Snacking incessantly on Nilla Cakesters. mmmm yum.
5. Leaving a trail of mess everywhere I go.

Five places I have lived:
1.Utah
2.California
3.Germany
4.Missourri
5.Virginia...i think.

Five people I tag:
1. Emily
2. Dacia
3. Jen
4. Karen, and Dad too...if he will
5. Alan
But I also want to tag a bunch of our heart friends...I think it's good to do fun things like 'tags' every once and a while. To get your mind out of the hospital grind!!

Random Thoughts...

Not too much has happened in the past few days, but I had a minute so I thought maybe it'd be a good idea to post in case things get crazy in the near future. :)

We took Grace to the Zoo yesterday with her Grandma Karen and "Auntie" Rachel. I think she enjoyed it SO much that she slept through over 3/4 of the afternoon outing. But hey, that's ok. She was adorable and so much fun to cuddle.

Lately when Topher and I have taken Grace places, we have found ourselves having a mixture of emotions. Glad that we have her and that we're helping her experience as many things as we can while she's here, and sad, because she won't remember them, and because these might be the only few memories she has here on this Earth. It's so hard to look at other families with their little kids who are healthy toddlers, running around and causing havoc. That might sound silly, but I hope and pray so much that Gracey will be able to grow up a little and cause some havoc of her own. It makes my heart sick to think that she might not.

The Zoo yesterday held similar emotions. I want to have her in my arms as a little toddler, pointing out the animals to me and oooing and aaahing.

We had another Dr. appointment today. Her saturations are still holding in the high 70's, which is great. Her Echo looked good and she's growing well. Again we had a bittersweet moment, when we learned that one of Grace's heart friends is getting his transplant this evening. They were sort of 'bunk mates', if you will, being born within 2 days of each other, always being a few rooms away from each other, moving from NICU to PICU to the 3rd Floor all within days of eachother, and with identical heart defects. I was so thrilled and happy to hear that he was receiving his new heart that will save his dear little life, but also I was so deeply saddened because it seemed to me it could have so easily been little Grace's. The news made me immediately break into tears, but at the same time I was so happy to hear the good news.

*sigh*

So many emotions that I don't want to deal with or have, but they're right there in front of us.

Please pray for this little heart friend of Grace's, that he will be strong through his procedure and that all will go perfectly. He and his sweet familiy so dearly deserve the very best that can be given. I pray that all will go well and that this really will be a huge turning point in his life.

We love you all and just wanted to give an update. Grace is doing well. She is beautiful, sweet and spunky, (she proves this to the Nurse's every week that try to draw her blood for labs :) )

Thank you for your prayers and support!! And I apologize if this blog was at all depressing, I'm used to posting for my sisters and immediate family, who are used to listening to me whine!! :) I truly am happy, and do indeed feel blessed. We have witnessed a miracle just in the birth and life of Grace thus far. She is wonderful and strengthens my faith every day.

Thanks again!

love, the Andersen's

Highly Requested Pictures...Just for you Emily!!!

Well, it's been a little while since we last posted and not much has been happening around here. Grace has been doing well since her Catheter procedure, Topher is still working at school and I'm still training for my Triathlon, (which is getting closer and closer!!). Other than that, there's nothing really new to report. Which is a good thing in my opinion, because it means that we've been living as normally as we can. Grace is doing great and that's all we could possibly want. :) We finally got a new camera charger and have since gone crazy taking pictures. And it's a good thing we got it when we did, because Grace has blossomed over the last few weeks. She smiles all the time and they aren't just fleeting little blips across her face- they are big, apple cheeked, squinty eye, open mouth smiles- and they're to die for!!
What baby can be happy in her car seat??? Not normally Grace, that's for sure. But on this occasion, she was all smiles. Flashing smile after smile at her Daddy to melt his already big soft heart.

These are probably my favorite pictures recently. We have about 20, if not more, of her sitting in her swing, holding tight onto her bunny and just grinning from ear to ear. She's SO ADORABLE!!!

For the past 2 nights IN A ROW...Grace has been waking up in the morning with NO TUBE IN HER NOSE!!! What a stinker huh? She thinks that when Mommy and Daddy are sleeping is the perfect time to yank her tube out, because we won't figure it out til' morning. *sigh*. But, this did give us another opportunity to get some pictures of her little face, tube free!! We also took her to church with no tube yesterday. It was crazy!! We felt like we had a totally normal baby! No one would ever guess she was sick!!

Isn't this such a cute outfit?!! It's from Karen. Rachel wore it as well, in fact, she probably still fits in it. ;)

Although it is indeed a very cute outfit, Topher and I don't really think it looks like her personality. Too Polyanna or something. ;)

Look at those big beautiful eyes!!! She seems to have the most innocent little face, you'd never guess there was such a sassy demeanor underneath!!

Grace also loves to take showers with us. Normally, getting her out is the worst part because she gets really angry, but again she surprised us and had lots of smiles for us. It was cute because she kept stretching her arms up into the little head pocket, and pulling the towel over her face, then she'd freak out until we pulled it off again.

For the 4th we went to my Dad's house in Eagle Mountain. We had a "barbecue" inside, on the Foreman...lol. We played games, had pie, went running and biking, and took over 300 pictures of Grace. hehe. These are some of the best ones we got because she wouldn't hold still!! All the ones where she had a big grin on her face were blurry because she'd get excited and bobble her head all over the place!!

Don't you love her outfit?!! I actually bought it for the 4th of July back in May. I have been so excited to put it on her and have shown it to anyone that would look...and, drum roll please, I made her bow. I personally thought it matched perfectly.

Also, because I'm a complete dork, I insisted that Topher and I wear red, white and blue, to match Grace. I really wanted a picture of all of us in our Patriotic clothes, and of course I forgot until AFTER I went biking. Seriously, sometimes I don't think I'm so smart. So, for pictures I was hot and sweaty, and my hair was flat and sticky. But oh well. It's the most recent picture of the 3 of us, and hey, at least she's smiling. And my husband looks dang cute too. :)

So, there you have it. Our recent antics. Life has been good. Grace has been adorable. All is well. Again we feel amazingly blessed. No one knows better how to care for us than our loving Father in Heaven, and he makes this evident time and time again. We are so grateful for our families, friends, and ward members that try their best to make each day a little easier. Thank you thank you thank you!!!

Please continue to pray for little Grace that she will be as healthy as possible, and that she might get a transplant soon, or if not, that she'll be able to have as healthy a heart as she can. I know it's hard to pray for a transplant, I rarely do, because I can't stand the implications of what that means. But, I feel there is nothing wrong with praying that she get a healthy heart, by whatever means Heavenly Father deems right, whether it be surgery or Transplant.

Please also if you could pray for the other heart babies, some of them are going through very hard times. A "heart family" friend just lost their little girl, and I'm sure they could use all the prayers they can get, her name is Eden, and she was and still is a dear sweet angel. Please pray for her family.

We love you all and hope everything is well with all of you!!

Love the Andersen's

All is Well!!

Starting near Midnight yesterday we definitely had a looong day. That is when our alarm went off to stop Grace's feed, and try to get her to take some milk by bottle. Our alarm rang again at 3:45am to try and fill her up on some Pedialyte. And then again at 5:00am to get us up, ready and out the door by 5:30.
Given the circumstances however, Grace was an angel. She didn't wake up every 10 minutes through the night for a binky, in fact she slept through the whole night, except for the 3x we had to actually wake her and try to feed her.
We figured the 'no food rule' after 4:30a.m. would be ok, because she was the first Catheter appt. of the day, bright and early at 6, so she wouldn't be hungry. But, we had forgotten that hospitals are never on time. So, we waited around from one room to another until they finally took her back to Anesthesia and the Cath Lab around 8:00!!
By that point, Grace was definitely hungry and quite fussy. *sigh*
Going to the operating area where parents had to watch their kids walked away by a nurse, or had to pry their little fingers off their legs, then watching the little kids start to cry for their mom's and the parents reassuring them, "I'll see in you just a minute-don't be scared", was probably one of the hardest things for me to see. It made me so grateful that Grace can't yet distinguish quite who is holding her or what is going on. She can't cry to me to please stay with her and I don't have to watch the fear on her face as someone else carries her away. I really hope I never have to do that, that her surgeries will all be done before that recognition has appeared on her face. It was definitely a humbling experience, and one that made me grateful for her falling asleep just before we had to hand her to someone else. She never even knew she was being passed around, she just kept peacefully sleeping. What a blessing!
They told us to expect around 3 hours, gave us a beeper and shut the door to the operating area.
We tried hard to entertain ourselves, we didn't want to wait in the parent waiting area, too many people that are uptight and nervous to hear back of their results, and Topher and I didn't want to feel all those emotions flooding the room.
So, we had breakfast in the cafeteria, it was funny because it felt so normal to be back in the hospital, eating in the cafeteria. It almost felt like we were back in our 2nd home or something. Walking past the PICU just made us remember how long we really were there. It was crazy to think it was only a Month and a half ago, because it felt like we'd had Grace home with us forever.
After eating at the cafeteria, we wandered around aimlessly, eventually found the College of Nursing Gift shop and spent way too much money on books, books and more books for Grace!! We also bought her a mini stuffed animal that is actually a 'White Blood Cell'. LOL!!! We figured it would help protect her against diseases and such, since that is going to be her biggest battle through the rest of her life. ;)
Way too much money later, we got the page saying they were done on Grace. We ran back to the Cath Lab and met Dr. Gray, waiting to tell us how everything went.
He said everything looked great, there weren't any unexpected surprises. They were able to balloon open her Atrial Septum, and it increased her Saturations by about 10%. They also said that because of the placement of her first two stents, that there was a slight gradient, causing less blood to flow through and up to her heart, brain, and arms. He said that if she doesn't get a Transplant soon, the next thing that will have to be done is another Cath Lab to place another stent.
Some good news, was that he looked closely at her heart, watched the blood flow and efficiency of the Tricuspid Valve, and said that even though it is still leaking, its not near as bad as they had feared, and that if she started to get sick, and still hadn't received a Trasnplant, he felt confident in saying he would be optimistic about continuing on with the initial surgeries.
That was nice to hear, because at least we know that we have a back up plan, in case the Transplant is unsuccessful.
We were able to go upstairs and see her about 45 minutes later. She still wasn't quite herself, her cries weren't her usual spunky wails, but instead were high pitched little whimpers. Very heartbreaking to hear!! We fed her some Glucose Water, and then she fell fast asleep against Daddy's chest, mouth open, drooling and everything!
Later she had an Echo to see her heart function and see the improvement the balloon had enabled.
After her lengthy echo, we were headed back upstairs for the Nurses to monitor her for another couple of hours.
They let us feed her some milk, and she tolerated it really well.
Something I forgot to mention, is that I have NEVER heard Grace SO SO gassy!! Not ever!! She was farting up a storm!! Even the Nurses were stunned that she was so gassy! After we fed her, she also had to burp constantly for about 30 minutes!! I don't know how she got so much air in her little tummy!! But she did, and even until late last night she was still really gassy and needing a good 20 minutes to get burps out!! So crazy!! Not to mention stinky, we kept checking her diaper because she stunk so bad, but it was just gas!
Anyway, she's home now, and luckily she was exhausted, because Topher and I sure were and we needed some sleep too. I think I passed out on the bed around 7:30, and didn't wake up again until 11:00pm to get her feed ready. Then Topher and I both crashed around midnight, and it is now 10:00 a.m. and Topher is still asleep...as is Gracey. :)
Thank you for all your prayers. I know they were all heard and answered because yesterday couldn't have gone better. Grace was an angel and so tough and strong. We had energy to get us through everything that was necessary and then we were all able to just sleep.
Thank you again for all your support and prayers in our behalf. We couldn't survive with our sanity in tact without them!!
Love you all,
Buggy, Topher and Grace

Cath Day

So tomorrow we go in for Gracey's Cath Lab appointment.  Starting at midnight tonight, she can't have anymore milk, and after 4a.m. she can't even have water anymore.  Luckily we're the first appointment of the day, bright and early and 6 a.m.  And if all goes well, no complications, she'll only have to be in recovery for 4-6 hours and we can come back home!!

Pray that all goes well!! Please!!!

We don't want her to have to spend a night in the hospital!! Its too wonderful having her home and we are too selfish and have been too blessed to revert back to hospital stays just yet!! :)

Anyway...today Gracey had a GREAT day.  She woke up at 11, smiling and happy.  Then we drove to Liberty Park to meet up with Karen and Rachel, (my Dad's wife and my little half sister).  We had a fun picnic and Grace was more than content being held on Karen's lap for a good hour.  Then she took a nap in my Snugli while we walked around the fun little "7 Canyons Fountain".  The weather wasn't too hot, there was a nice breeze, I took my shoes off and walked all over the fountains while she just snuggled on me and napped.  Topher met up with us as well and we just had a fun afternoon safe in the sun. :)

She's eaten well, slept well.  I couldn't ask for more. 

Also, her Great Aunt Amy got to meet her today and hold her.  We were so glad because Amy has kind of been Gracey's biggest fan ever!! The first to comment on our blogs, even if they were posted at 2 in the morning!! She has been so generous and concerned, not to mention prayerful and supportive in our behalf at all times!! Thanks Amy! Gracey loved you holding her!

Thanks everyone so much for your prayers on our behalf.  We feel so blessed and lucky that Grace is doing so well.  She is so blessed and as healthy as can be (given the circumstances).  We love her and are so so grateful for every day we are blessed with her and her sweet spirit. 

If you remember, please please pray for some of the other little heart babies.  Some of them are trying so hard to get through some big hurdles, and need all the prayers they can get!!

Love you all!! Thanks for your prayers!

Dr. Appt.

Again I feel very blessed and like heavenly Father is always looking out for me. Last night I came down with a fever, and then I had it even worse this morning. I had to take Grace in for her weekly Echo and it took everything I had at the time, (and Topher) to get me out of bed, into the car and at the appt. I then had to go home, without Topher, and was going to be home with Grace for another 5 hours by myself. I cried on the way home from the Hospital because I didn't know how I was going to manage to take care of Grace when I couldn't even lift her without getting light headed. Lo and behold, Heavenly Father was watching my every move, and as soon as we got home at 11:30, Grace went to sleep and did not wake up again until 3:00. At which time she proceeded to give me smile after smile after smile. I didn't have to hold her and risk getting her sick, the entire time we were home, and by the time I had to pick Topher up from school with her, my fever had broken.
This may seem silly, but I felt very blessed to have everything work out for the best under the given circumstances!!
On a different note, at her appt. today it was determined that her Saturation Levels are steadily declining and a Cath Lab to balloon open her Atrial Septum was going to be needed.
So, they've scheduled us for Thursday, and hopefully if all goes well she won't even have to stay the night in the hospital.
Even though the Cath Lab is not an actual surgery, and it is much lower risk than her previous surgery, it is still something that comes with its own risks. Please pray that she'll do well through the procedure and that it will result in her being healthier and more comfortable.
Love you all and hope you're all doing well!
love the Andersens

okay okay...

I realize it's been a while since we last posted, but I have to say that I don't like posting without pictures...and when you lose your camera charger, that makes pictures not very possible.

Sorry. Anywho...on the note of how our little Gracey is doing...she's doing great!! I guess no news is good news!

She has been steadily gaining weight each week. Last Thursday at her appt. she was 9lbs. 14 oz. So almost 10 lbs. She is still in the low 10th percentile, but hey, look at her parents, what were you expecting??

Also at her last appointment they noticed that her sats had declined to mid/low 70s instead of mid/high 80s. So, they told us to keep an extra close watch on her sats because they may need to do another cath lab in the near future to balloon open part of heart. This is being caused by the fact that Grace is growing out of the Pulmonary Artery bands that were placed in her first surgery, thus restricting how much blood gets to her lungs and back into her heart.

Hopefully this procedure won't be necessary, but if it is, we can get through it, and we'll be especially comforted in knowing that its not another heart surgery, its just the Cath Lab, which is not fun, but much less frightening than heart surgery.

So that's all the medical updates I have.

However, some fun personal updates on Grace is that her personality is really starting to come out. She smiles a lot more now and is finally starting to trust us enough that she doesn't scream every time we move her anymore. She still loves to be held and cuddled and once she wakes up at 7am she expects to be put in bed with us before she'll go back to sleep. She sleeps really well, eats really well and we feel EXTREMELY blessed for it.

She is such an angel and we're only more in love with her every single day.

A note on Alysia and Topher, we're doing great. Topher is going to school, just one class for Summer Semester. He's still in the Navy, however that doesn't require much...in fact, in requires nothing but going to school for another 2 -1/2 years. So, he is doing great just being able to focus on school and family.

I am trying to get back in shape after baby, and so I'm currently training to do a Triathlon!! (Note: a SPRINT Triathlon-a little over half the olympic distances) Siblings, you can now laugh, like I know you already are. But! I am excited and am mainly doing it to try and get in shape, and hopefully somewhere in there have fun. Yesterday was my first time trying out my new Training Schedule, running kicks my butt, but something I never thought I'd have a hard time with was the bike!! Topher bought me a new bike, a very nice Triathlon road bike. Holy cow!! Those things are IMPOSSIBLE to ride. I crashed. Bad. And it hurt. I have cuts and bruises all along my left side. :( But I'll get better at it!! I hope. ;)

Anyway...that's us. We're doing well and feeling EXTREMELY blessed that Grace is doing so well. That's not to say it's easy having her, I think we're definitely being stretched to our personal abilities, but let's just say I'm grateful Heavenly Father doesn't find me competent to handle more stress and trials than we already are.

We love you all and are grateful for your continued prayers and support of us.

Please if you could, keep the other little heart babies in your prayers, they all have their own difficulties and trials and could use all the prayers they can get.

Love the Andersens

(p.s. sorry for the bad picture quality...they're off my phone!!)

(oh, oh, and Mommy!!! I MADE that head band!!! aren't you proud?!!)