Christmas Came Early

Christmas came early this year for the Yancey Family. Yesterday Isaac and his sisters met some of Santa's helpers and they presented them with gifts. They didn't find gold, Frankincense and Myrrh, however they found some really Awesome things inside the packages. Isaac was really excited when he opened the Lego's as the first gift, and his excitement continued as he opened each gift. Santa's helpers were very friendly and were very warmly received. Isaac woke up in a good mood this morning, ready to play with all of his wonderful toys. His sisters also woke up ready to play some more with all of their fun & cool gifts.

More on this story can be read on TheYanceyFamilyof5 blog.

H1N1

I took Issac to the pediatrician today about his cough. The Pediatrician decided to check Isaac for H1N1 since he showed symptoms. I had a feeling the test would show a positive result, and it did. The medical assistant came in and had a sad face, telling us it was positive. Then we talked to the pediatrician about using Tamiflu. It has been decided it is too late for Tamiflu, since it has to be taken within the first 48 hours. Isaac received the H1N1 vaccine, but it was only a little over a week ago and it's too late. Isaacs symptoms are mild, compared to what I hear in the news with people who have lost their battle with H1N1, so I am hopeful. Please pray that his body stays strong and fights this virus. I hope that our family can stay strong through this trial. I believe we have all had the virus going around our family for a while, but didn't know it was H1N1.

Cardiologist Visit

Isaac had an Echocardiogram & a visit with Dr. Puchalski. Everything looks stable, he still has a leaky tricuspid valve, and the fenestration in his Fontan has not closed yet. Dr Puchalski says that closing the hole will only increase his oxygen intake by 5%. Therefore he says we can hold off doing a Cardiac Catherization for now and just keep an eye on him. Isaac's saturations were around 87% which is excellent for him. Isaac's sats are occasionally around the low 80's which has made the different pediatricians nervous at times. Currently Isaac is sick with a horrible cough which has came with occasional fevers and croup. Isaac is home today resting as much as possible. Isaac's oldest sister Lauren is sick with a bad head cold today and is staying home also. I hope we can all be strong enough to fight the bugs that come our way this season. It is scary what I hear in the news.

The Flu has arrived

I was really hoping Isaac could avoid the flu, however, Isaac got sick with the stomache flu at school today. This is the first time any of my kids have got so sick at school that they lost their stomache contents all over their clothing. Poor Isaac, I felt so bad when I heard he was so sick at school. I hope he never has to go through that kind of humiliation and pain again. He seems to have a mild case of the flu, but it's not over yet, he said his stomache still hurts tonight. I hope the flu shot makes it as mild as possible. It really scares me when Isaac gets sick like this, because he gets more pale blue than anything I have ever had to experience. I am sure it really scared his teacher when she saw it. I hope none of the kids in Isaacs class get sick with the flu he might have spread.

The Dentist

Isaac went to the dentist for his regular cleaning and exam. Isaac usually doesn't cooperate well with the dentist; he prefers doctors. Today was different, he opened his mouth and let the dentist clean his teeth more than ever before. He was especially happy because he got to watch Disney channel & watch Playhouse Disney and Handy Manny. He only had one tiny cavity, which he will get filled on his next visit.

Can't Seem to Escape From Croup

Isaac Can not seem to escape from getting croup. Last week on Thursday I took him to the doctor for a cough he had had for about a week, his Oxygen saturations were down to 83% which worried me and the doctor a bit. Isaac acted pretty normal but looked pale most of the weekend. Early Monday morning the virus turned into the croup. It was very scary due to the fact that he hadn't had croup for a few months and I had trouble finding tubes to hook up to the Nebulizer, he was in a terrible panic struggling to breathe and I was running out of time quickly. With direction from above I finally found what I needed under a mess in my room. I felt like an emotional wreck. I gave him the Dexamethazone shortly after and finally felt some relief. Isaac and I had a little nap & went to the Pediatrician around noon. Isaacs Pediatrician looked at him and noticed his oxygen saturations made it back up to 86% which helped me breathe a little easier. I was thankful he was doing much better. Isaac received his Flu shot, but has been upset about having to get it. He is still sore today. Isaac finally went back to school after missing five days due to the cough & croup. His friends and teacher were happy to see him & he seemed happy too. I just worry that after having steroids so much, his immune system will have a hard time fighting off the different germs around. I pray that he can be strong and avoid getting sick.

Isaac Is Still Motivated

Motivated to keep on sleeping in his bed. Isaac has been harder to motivate than his sisters or anyone else I have ever met. However, Isaac finally is excited about getting stickers on a chart to go to Chuckie Cheeses. He even pooped in the potty for an additional sticker on his chart. Progress is moving so fast, we will have to go to Chuckie Cheeses next week. I tease Isaac how broke I am going to get letting him grow up.

Big Leap in The Right Direction

Isaac has had difficulty trying so sleep in his own bed since his crib was taken away. We have tried everything we could come up with to get him to sleep in it, other than tying him to it. This week his Dad has had the flu, coughing sneezing and so on, we told him if he slept next to Dad, he might catch it and get sick. He tried sleeping in his bed the first couple of nights, but couldn't stay more than five minutes. Finally last night before bed, we were talking about it and he decided if he could get a sticker on his Chucky Cheeses chart he would do it. He did it and he said he wasn't even scared, and stayed there the whole night. We are all so excited, but nobody is more excited than Daddy. Daddy has struggled with this for a very long time and lost lots of sleep, especially after being kicked and pushed.

Kindergarten Graduate

Isaac graduated from Kindergarten today. I asked him if he is sad, and he said "NO, I'm Happy". I thought he would be sad about missing his teachers, and although he will miss them, he is really happy about the transition to 1st grade. He really had great teachers this year, Isaac progressed more this year than he did in any of the preschool years.

Isaac's Self Portrait

Isaac drew this picture of himself, yesterday in Kindergarten. Isaac told me the picture on his shirt means "No phones allowed" (funny). Also the bump on one of his arms is muscles. It's the best self portrait he has done so far. I Love It, Kindergarten art is the best!

Finally away from the Croup Group again

Last week Isaac woke up with croup on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday; he went to the doctor on Wednesday and she took a look at him. She said it was possibly Para-influenza, however I believe it was just allergies. He finally got over the terrible cough from it. Today he finally went back to school, he said he enjoyed P.E. class. Isaac said they played "Steal the Flag" (I think it was a version of flag football). ANyway, I am out of time, I have to go pick up kids from school.

May Update

Isaac has been staying fairly healthy since my last post. He went to the Cardiologist a few weeks ago and had his scheduled Echocardiogram. Dr. Puchalski met with us after and said his tricuspid valve still leaks the same, and his fenestration in his "Fontan" had not closed like we previously thought. Isaac's SAT's were in the low 80's when he was checked that day, and the doctor said they were a little lower than what he was comfortable with, but he said he would leave it alone for now. However, if his SAT's don't improve he will have Isaac go in for a Heart Catherization and have the hole closed. Isaac's insurance isn't really very good right now, so I hope we can wait for better Insurance after Mike changes jobs.

Currently Isaac spends a lot of his spare time playing video games and watching his favorite shows. He is finally enjoying Kindergarten a lot more, although he still enjoys staying home more than anything. I am nervous about him going to first grade all day soon, but I'll get over it. It's hard watching my baby grow up and leave the nest all-day.

The Flu Finally Flew

Sunday night Isaac started out having severe ear pain. Nothing I did would relieve the pain. Around 10:30PM I headed for the E.R. at PCMC. On the way there Isaac got really sick and vomitted al over himself. I figured he must have the flu and took him home to clean him up. All night and the following day Isaac was throwing up, and had fevers until yesterday afternoon. Last night he finally ate a little bit and kept it down. This morning he was doing much better and is doing pretty well. In the first 24 hours we got pretty scared, Isaac's skin color was pale and a bit dusky at times. Often his lips were very dark. We were really worried. Mike was so worried at school he could not do his school work. We hope that this kind of sickness is gone for a long time.

Congenital Heart Awareness Week 2009

According to the American Heart Association, at least eight out of every 1,000 infants born each year have a heart defect. There are about 1 million Americans with cardiovascular defects that are alive today. Though research is ongoing, at least 35 defects have now been identified. Isaac "The Laughing Warrior" is amoung those statistics. In honor of CHD week, please say a prayer for these kids and families struggling with heart issues. If you have the funds and would like to donate to local non-profit support for families struggling with childrens heart health issues, please visit http://www.intermountainhealinghearts.org/ to make your donation, all donations are tax-deductible.

Isaac Enjoyed his Birthday

Isaac woke up on his Birthday in a good mood knowing it was his Birthday. I was shocked he didn't bother me about opening presents until I mentioned it late in the afternoon. He was more concerned I make his Birthday cake that he had no intention of eating. He just wanted to blow out the candles on the cake. When it came time to blow the candles out he couldn't blow them out, he really tried a couple of times and gave up and cried. He said he didn't have enough breath. He really enjoyed his presents, especially the Littlest Pet Shop electronic game, he played it for hours and hours and has wanted to take it everywhere with him. Isaac went to bed that night saying he had a fun birthday.

6 Amazing Years

Isaac will be SIX years old tomorrow. I can hardly believe it. He is growing up so fast. Isaac is really excited. He said he wants Pizza for dinner and a Cheesecake for a Birthday Cake. We still need to go shopping and buy him a present today.
He is finally starting to feel a little better everyday, we hope he is completely free of this winter virus soon. He went to school today for the first time in almost a month.

Still fighting the Croup Battle

After over eight weeks of fighting the winter virus, Isaac is still fighting it. Today he woke up with a severe case of croup, it was harder than usual to help him breathe normal again. This past week I had the worst respiraratory virus I had had since Pneumonia back in 2003. I am finally getting my voice back, but I am still hoarse. I am really worried that Isaac might get as sick as I was, because he doesn't know how to get rid of phlegm. I hope and pray his immune system will be strong and resist the virus. Isaac's sixth birthday is next week and I really want him to have a good and healthy birthday.