22 Months Old Today

Here it is…August 1…the start of another new month!  Even when one tries to take life one day at a time and stop to savor the moments that make up each day, the days add up so quickly and then “poof” another month flies by.  The milestone of each month for Rudy is a milestone of hope and gratitude and I can’t help but look back at the start of this journey at the time of Rudy’s diagnosis (2 years ago this week!), at the first internet searches we made for “Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome” to try to figure out what in the world our little boy had and what we were facing and at the first blog sites we found of little ones well into their fight with HLHS at 18 – 24 months wondering if Rudy would make it that far and…he has.  With all it’s twists and turns, ups and downs and lingering unknowns, we stand before God today profoundly grateful for the past 22 months.  Rudy truly has captured our family’s heart beyond what I allowed myself to dream…I’m still easily overcome by fear but, oh, so thankful.

The past week was full with my sweet family’s return from Alabama, two visits with old friends from out of town and a garage sale the kids and I have been planning for the past month!  Needless to say, Rudy was thrilled with his Dad and big sib’s return home, was pretty smitten by our guests and thought conducting a garage sale is a GREAT way to spend the day!  The common thread for Rudy in all of the above was ATTENTION, ATTENTION, ATTENTION!  My, how he loves to be a part of the action!  🙂  We have just 3 weeks left of our summer vacation and then Rudy is back to long, quiet days with just Mom.  Ha

This week will bring another trip down to UCLA for Rudy’s bronchoscopy.  Rudy and I will head down early Tuesday morning and he will likely be held overnight for observation…if all goes well, we should return home on Wednesday.  This procedure allows Rudy’s ENT, Dr. Shapiro, to take a detailed look at the inside of Rudy’s airways.  She will look for scar tissue and whether or not the cartilage supporting his trachea is strong – crucial to his success weaning off the trach.  We anticipate a good report and pray he doesn’t pick up a nasty bug while in the hospital (his last bout with c-diff was NOT fun!).  So, we’ll certainly have more details to share on Tuesday.

I want to thank everyone for the thoughtful blog comments, emails and cards that we’ve received since my Dad’s passing!  It’s hard to respond to everyone individually but I just want everyone to know how much I appreciate the encouraging words and prayers.  I’m still processing all that I experienced during my visit back to Kansas (some amazing highs and bitter lows) and seeking God for wisdom and understanding as I move forward in grief and in life…your prayers are uplifting and I thank you.