Friday, October 30, 2009

Celebrating 23 months With Our Hero Mason!


Mason is truly our (super) hero)!
What a great accomplishment for a little guy who's been
through so much! Happy 23 Months Miracle Mason!!!


Since the kids dressed up for school today, Halloween falling
on Saturday (tomorrow), Mason needed to be dressed special too.
I thought a cape with his Superman t-shirt would be very
appropriate on his 23 month b-day. For after all, he certainly
is quite the Superman....as he keeps on fighting to be strong,
even with half a heart!! And you can really tell he's almost 2,
because he will not sit still for a picture.




Mason LOVES the outdoors! Too bad it is already getting
so cold here in Utah. I love this picture of my little Miracle Superhero.
He is just as happy as could be to sit and watch what's going on
outside. The funny thing is, all the kids were at school
but there were guys out mowing the neighbor's yard, which
was just enough to keep him content and hold his attention.





Oh how Mason loves bath or shower time!
Here are two sweet boys, Mason and Ammon.




He scooted down the stairs and now he's trying to
figure out how to come back up.

Always so happy!



This is at one of Preston's football games. We love when
things are outside so Mason can join in on the fun. We still
stay away from indoor crowds, Mason can't handle the germs. (And I
really only have 5 kids, Kaitlin's friend Chesney had joined us that day.)


And after a long hard day Mason will at least sleep a few hours!
I love pictures of my sleeping babies.



Mason seems to be doing so well. Beside the occasional pukes (at least once a day) from his heart failure, he acts like he feels pretty good and his energy level is better than even just a couple of months ago. His newest tricks are : getting up on one knee and then trying to pull himself up to a stand at furniture (still can't do it completely by himself, but at least he tries),
and he loves dancing to Kaitlin's music. He will scoot on his bum, spinning himself in a circle and wave his arms up and down to the music...... and the whole time watching with a smile to make sure we are all looking at him. He's quite the "show off"!



When our busy day comes to an end and I've tucked all the other kiddos into bed, I rock my little Mason into the late hours of the night. I've always cherished this time with Mason, but even more so now. My emotions are usually high and my tears begin to flow, as I think of the uncertainty we face in our journey here on earth with Mason. I plead with our Father in Heaven to make him healthy enough to stay here with us. But at the same time, inquire with faith in Him to know what is best for sweet Mason and our family. Honestly, my strongest desire and hope is to have him healthy, strong, and O2 free..... to run and play outside with the other kids! I pray for comfort each day to get through these emotional times, and I hold all my kids a little more and a little closer, for we never know what tomorrow brings.



"Dear Sweet Mason,
Thank you for bringing so much happiness into our home! You have been such a blessing to our family! We pray that Heavenly Father will allow us to celebrate many more months and years with you.
Love, Mommy"

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful, happy, amazing little man you have! How lucky are you to be his mommy :) You must be pretty special yourself.

cici said...

Happy Happy 23 months to one of the sweetest little boys on Earth.
May God bring him many miracles of healing and improvement everyday. With you is where he belongs.
Hugging him in Prayer.
{{{{{{{ Big Hugs}}}}}}}}

Allison said...

I love the picture of mason sitting on the porch wearing his cape. So perfect for this little hero. I hope his health continues to hold steady for many more miracles in store!

Heather said...

Love the pictures! You have a beautiful family.

Moffitt Fam said...

Hi My name is Jamie and I live in Saratoga Springs. My little boy Tyler was born in march with hlhs. I have been following your blog since Paul Cardall had posted about little Mason. You have mentioned that he has trouble sleeping. Tyler has trouble sleeping and has been getting worse. Do you know if this is related to having a heart condition?? I hope Mason continues on a healthy path. I will keep him in my prayers!!

Reiko said...

I don't mean to be a blog stalker but I was reading the meanest mom's blog and caught her last blog about your son.
I have a daughter who was born with the Hypoplastic left heart double right outlet, almost the same as your son. She wasn't diagnosed until she was almost 4. Why she was able to do so well for so long is a miracle.
I know the emotional struggles your family is going through and how you cherish everyday. My daughter is 14 now and doing pretty well.
Keep your chin up and know that the Lord knows Mason and will be there to comfort you in times of need.

Mindi said...

Such precious pics. I'm convinved those late night rocking sessions are good medicine.

Thinking of you and praying for all that you need.

Mindi

Anonymous said...

oh i am crying right now such an occomplishment he is my hero

Catherine said...

I found your blog through meanest mom and was touched by your sweet little guy. We just spent three months in the hospital with our baby (on a totally unrelated issue) but I do understand the stress of everything (health issues, hospital living, dealing with your other children, etc etc etc). My heart is with you. What a beautiful little boy. Good luck and may God bless you and your family.

Mandy said...

It seems like you've had a great viewing from The Meanest Mom. I am another who found you from there. I have a 10 month old girl who has HLHS. I am also a member of the Church, living in Virginia, with 5 children. I don't come across very many LDS heart familes living with HLHS, so I thought I'd introduce myself to you. I am so saddened by the circumstances that you are facing. I will add your family to our prayers and I pray that you and your family can feel the love of the Lord and the many other heart families who are cheering you on.

Mandy Roberts
Mom to Camille, HLHS, carepages:Tiptoe

Becca said...

Hey, my name is Becca. I have a heart baby named Ellie and we are in a waiting game to see if she will need a transplant in the next couple of months. These blogs are a good way for us heart moms to connect and get other ideas and see that we are not alone in our journeys. I have heard about some research that is going on and was wondering if you have heard any in your quest to look at other options? Becca Cason

Casey M. said...

I found your blog through the Meanest Mom...what a precious little boy! I'm adding you guys to my prayer list. :)

Casey M. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mirinda said...

I found your site through Meanest Mom as well and am so touched by Mason's story. Know that one more person is praying :)

Lisa said...

Hi!! I found your sight through another blog and I just wanted to let you know that I said a prayer for your sweet sweet boy. May god protect him, you and your family. Good Bless.

Anonymous said...

Hi, I too found you through Meanest Mom. My nephew has HRHS, and has had 2 of his 3 surgeries already. My heart goes out to your little guy! For you (or anyone else with heart babies) who would like another opinion, Dr. Richard Jonas at Children's National Medical Center in Wash. D.C. is an incredible, well-respected doctor who originally was at Boston Children's. The hospital has a dedicated peds heart wing where parents can stay with their children, trained heart ped nurses, and overall wonderful staff. Dr. Jonas was the 1st dr. my sister saw who didn't bat an EYE when he heard about her son's many issues. He does 800 ped heart surgeries a year. I highly recommend checking him out.

Chey said...

Hi, I found your blog through the meanest mom as well. The trials we are asked to bear sometimes overwhelm us. 3 years ago I lost my bro and sis in a car accident, then two weeks ago, my dad. My heart is broken, especially for my mom. As I read about your little boy I started to cry. There are so many things we don't understand here on earth, I can't wait until we know. Good luck and may the Lord be with you.

Kendall said...

I also found your blog through meanest mom and just wanted to add our families prayers and support. Our daughter, Elle, was born Sept. 1, 2002 with HLHS. At the time PCMC didn't have even a heart transplant program so we moved our family to Denver for her to awaited her transplant. Sadly, we lost Elle at 2 1/2mths while awaiting her transplant in Denver. Our situation was quite different (she was our first) but, I know that our Heavenly Father will guide you to the very best place for Mason and your family. Finally, worked with Dr. Shaddy at PCMC before Elle transferred and he was wonderful. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and yours.

Kendall
peterson411.blogspot.com

The Simmons Family said...

Oh MASON.. we adore you!!! I can't wait until your next month post.. cause you'll be celebrating your 2nd Birthday!!!

We love you buddy. Keep staying strong!

Andrea

EB said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Michelle said...

Hi, My name is Michelle Hiles. My daughter was just listed for a heart transplant on October 15. (Looks like both of us had a rough month last month..) We too see Dr. Everitt. Maybe we will see you at an appointment. I need to thank you for your postings. You are an amazing mom and a perfect mom for Mason. You have given me strength and courage. I can do this now because of you! I have fallen in love with Mason. He is absolutely adorable.
Hang in there. (hopefully we will meet soon.) Michelle

Anonymous said...

Summer, Jeff Reeves. I count getting to know the blogs of sweet little boys like Mason and Owen one of the great blessings of our "heart" experience. Thanks for the post. Humbling. Makes me want to be a better Dad. In fact, I might run back to hospital and kiss Abigail one more time!

AlsoMean said...

Visiting from the Meanest Mom. I'm a mom with heart disease, committed each day to living.
I do hope that all the help Mason needs arrives at the right time, and that you are never afraid to ask for help one more time.
I know that God goes with us and all of our caregivers, never leaves us alone, as we walk this path.
Blessings to you

Unknown said...

some kids amaze me! Your Mason is infact a miracle. I would love if you added him as a buddy... let me know if you wouldn't mind I do the same...? I think that we mothers are so blessed by such beautiful spirits of our Heavenly Father. This life is but a short time~ compared to an eternity. An eternity doesn't even seem like long enough with our families! Ha. I long for it now... more so than ever. Although, what a blessing it is to have them NOW. Enjoy little Mason. Thanks for the comment btw.

amy said...

Summer- Thank you for being a great mom. You are an inspiration and little Mason is one lucky boy. We are up to 5 now also, I hope to be able to see you soon. We were going to come to the dinner, but we'll have to wait. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Love, Amy

amy said...

By the way, this is Amy Openshaw.

Jennifer said...

Thank you for this post.

♥ Michele ♥ said...

Oh cute little Mason.....we continue to pray for you EVERY night!! What a precious boy. Thinking of you always....