Corey's latest echo...
Today we packed up the boys and took Corey to Johns Hopkins for his latest echo plus consult with Dr. Brenner. Before I go into details, let me just say that Corey's heart looks very good, and the appointment went as well as we could have hoped.
Now let me describe the day. On the drive to Hopkins, Corey asked, "Are we going for my echo now?" We assured him that we were. He also took note of interesting sights through his window. For example, he noticed a street sign that was not straight. He said, "Mommy! Daddy! That sign is leaning over! Why is that sign leaning over? Maybe a car hit it." Ha ha!Damian dropped Corey and me off at the front door of the Outpatient Center at 9:15 AM, where Corey was immediately interested in the turnstyle and insisted on going in it. "Are we gonna go in zare, Mommy?" In fact we did. Once we were inside, I let him down to walk through the halls, and he pointed out all the lights to me as well as any other passerby who might listen. As we were walking, he said, "Are we gonna take the black elevators, Mommy?" I told him that I wasn't sure what color the elevators would be, but we would certainly take a really big elevator. When we reached the elevators, I was surprised and amazed to see that they were, in fact, black, as we haven't been to Hopkins in 6 months. Corey said, "See Mommy! The black elevators!" What a memory that kid has.
After we checked in, the four of us headed back to an exam room. Corey was weighed at 30.6 lbs., his blood pressure was taken (normal), his O2 sats were taken (90 at rest, which is excellent), and he had an EKG. He was terrific for all of it, saying, "What's next?" a few times. After this prep work, we put him in a gown, talked to Dr. Brenner for a few minutes, and then Damian ran up and down the hallway with Corey. There was a purpose to this, other than wild glee (what kid doesn't want to run up and down the halls?). Dr. Brenner wanted to measure his O2 sats after exercise, especially considering my complaints about Corey becoming more and more winded with activity. Corey's sats plummeted to 70 after exercise. This is another sign that he will need the Fontan.
At this point Corey started to ask when his echo would be happening. You see, we'd promised him any of three lovely lollipops as a treat, as well as a viewing of "Shrek", during his echo. We even had a practice session yesterday, in front of the TV, complete with a lollipop and fake probe on his chest. He was looking forward to that lollipop! And so he eagerly climbed onto the exam bed, got comfy, chose his green lollipop, and informed the echo tech, "Last time I said plah!" Which in fact he did. During his last echo, he stuck his finger in the probe jelly, put it in his mouth, and said, "Plah!" I don't think he remembers this, but I was concerned that Corey would object more to the probe jelly than anything else, as he doesn't like anything gooey or sticky on any part of his body. In fact, if he gets a little jelly on his finger, he yells, "Wipe it off!" And so, I'd told him the story of his last echo, including how he said, "plah", and explained that he would have a little jelly on his chest, though it wouldn't hurt.
Corey does much better with any situation if he's been prepared for it, and I think we must have done a decent job preparing him, because he could not have been any sweeter while the tech was performing the echo. He chatted with us, sucked on his lollipop, watched "Shrek", and did what the tech asked of him. He even put up with leaning his chin way back so she could look at the arteries in his neck. We were so proud of him for being such a good boy.
After the echo was finished, the doctors reviewed the pictures, and Dr. Brenner delivered the good news: everything is as it should be. The next step will be some prep work prior to the Fontan, such as a CT scan. The timing for the Fontan is yet to be determined, however. Dr. Brenner plans to discuss it with Dr. Cameron and Dr. Vricella, and then he will call us with a firmer timeline so that we can create a plan of action. (deep breath) I'll update the blog as soon as I know more.
We took several pictures during the process, so hopefully we'll have a chance to post those soon as well.
In other events, Corey had his birthday party this weekend, and I think the pictures tell the story very well. Corey had a terrific time - he loved seeing all his favorite people, and he loved opening presents and eating unlimited candy and cake. The cake, by the way, was made by his Nanny, with lots of love, and it was gorgeous. It even featured a picture of Corey in the window of the front car, conducting.
Last night we learned that, sometime during Corey's party, he learned a new phrase. He was playing on the floor with Damian, tossing balloons up in the air and catching them, when suddenly he announced, "Daddy! When I catch lotta balloons, then I'm money!" Damian and I looked at each other and grinned, then Damian said, "Did your Uncle Shawn teach you that?" Now if you ask him, "Corey, what happens when you catch a lot of balloons?", he'll happily tell you, "I'm money!" Thank you Uncle Shawn. :-)
And thank you to everyone else for making Corey's party a success!