all i want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth

Okay so you got one tooth. It arrived on the 23rd just in time for Christmas. Sorry I'm posting late, but it's been crazy. You developed croup on the 21st and then there was Christmas on the 25 and Disneyland on the 27. Luckily you got better in less than a week. The holidays were amazing. You had a super fun time at Hannukah and Christmas. You really seem to enjoy being involved in the goings on. You are so close to walking. I want to see you walk already, but I should be careful what I wish for. You have so much energy. You are on go from the moment you wake up. It's great, but sometimes you are a handful. You are such a boy. It's gross. changing you is a challenge and you love to eat ground stuff. It drives me nuts, but everyone assures me you are just strengthening your immune system. Ew, it's still grody. As for Disneyland you loved it. You were so alert and excited on the rides. You handled it better than Sissy. She cried on alot of rides. I hope she enjoys herself next time like you. Well the New Year is coming this weekend. I cant wait to start it with you. Our birthday is also coming. Its funny that my b day is now ours. Im happy to share it with you. I love you little buddy more than life.

happy 10 months

Im so excited. My big boy is 10 months old. You are so amazing. You had your checkup and are doing great. You are 18 lbs 7 oz, 27 3/4 inches long and you have a little 17 inch peanut head. You pull yourself up on everything and seem ready take a cruise step or two. You are fiesty, but oh so cute. You just wanna get your little Aha hands on everything. You and sissy Ella get along pretty good when she isnt takin your stuff. You love to watch her and follow her. She loves you so much. I cant wait to watch you grow up together. I cant believe how lucky we are to have you. You are my hero.

Happy Hannukah Tinki Boi

Happy Hannukah. I look forward to spending many more with you. Your not sure what is going on, but you like when i light the candles and when you get to play with the paper from unwrapping your gifts. You are all over the place, standing up on everything you can get a hand on. It's funny. When you want to be picked up you crawl to me or daddy, stand, and reach up. I love it. I ant wait to scoop you up so i can slobber on that adorable face. You are getting so fiesty. We cant do anything to you that you dont want especially wiping or cleaning your face/nose area. You swipe us away. You really have a strong personality, which is good. You have been doing so well since the surgery. I am so amazed and greatful. I never could have imagined things this way. You and your sisters are my inspiration. We love you Aha.

Happy 9 months

I cant believe you have been here for 9 months. It's gone so fast. You are so Big boi now. I love it when you crawl over to me and use me to stand up. You're aleady trying to stand up in your crib. You are so nosey you have to be in the mix all the time. Sometimes I hear you laughing by yourself. I know God is tickling you. You are so happy. You are the best little brother. Ella just loves you. You love her too. You have a little temper on you and you have some serious fits when we take stuff away from you. You are deffinately some great entertainment. I bet the ride will get better and better. We love you Tinki.

Happy Halloween

Your first Halloween was super fun. You played and played. You went trick or treating with your big sister Ella Mae and yoou helped Mommy give out candy at Tante Min's house. You dressed up as the cutest little pumpkin and then changed to a monkee. Everyone just loves you. I can't wait to enjoy all of our future Halloweens together. We love you Tinki Boi.

Monkee Boi

Hi my little Monkee Boi. You are doing so well. You can sit up all by yourself. You army crawl everywhere. The only time your not moving is when you sleep and even then you move every now and again. You have so much energy. You are absolutely hilarious. You wake up, and you sit straight up smiling and laughing. You are so happy to start your day. If someone laughs, you laugh like you are in on the joke. When you get a hold of something we have to pry it out of your hands and if we are not careful you get to it with the other hand or those Monkee feet. You love to do bumbumbum on your lips. Its too cute. You love to be nakee especially no diapee. You give your big sister a run for her money, even though she always tries to take your stuff. We are just so happy and amazed how well you are doing. We all know about your funky little heart, but i dont think you got a cc. on the memo. I hope you always keep your fighter spirit. You are my idol. I can only hope for a fraction of your courage and strength. I hope that I do you proud as your Mommy. I Love you more than life, my little Monkee Boi.

Happy 8 months

Wow it's gone by so fast. It has really been a joy. You are so lovable and kissable. You wake up with this cute little look on your face as if you are happy to see the world. I must say the world is happy to have you. You are so special amazing beyond words. You are tough and you find a way to get what you want. We love you so much. You amaze us daily. It is an honor and a priveledge to have you. We thank God for each day we get to watch you grow.

I believe in Miracles

I am so grateful. Aha you are so strong. You are truly a miracle. You are home smiling and laughing just as you were before the surgery. You were quite the little superstar on the unit. So many people love you and are inspired by your courage. I know you will grow up to be a wonderful man. I am truly blessed to have you in my life each day is a gift. You bring so much goodness to all of us. My journey through life is going to be even better with you. Thank you Aharon for your fighter spirit. I love you more than life.

Glenn

This Morning was hard, but as always you give me strength. You happily went with the nurses giving Mommy and Daddy the dont worry look. The surgery went well it lasted about 3 hours and now you are in recovery. You are so strong. Im amazed. God is so good and he loves you so much. Your life is a testament of Gods miracles. I love you so much Tinki Boi with every heartbeat and breath that I take. Thank you God. Thank you Aharon.

Today was your pre op. You are a whopping 16.5 lbs and 26 inches. Youve been eating so well. Everyone is so impressed with how strong you are and how smart. You are truly amazing. Monday is your surgery. We pray with all our hearts that God will protect you and keep you safe. You are loved by so many. Stay strong my little Man. I need you.

watching you sleep

Im sitting here watching you sleep
Amazed and grateful
Each breath is a gift
So peaceful
I hope to spend my forever with you
Watching you grow
Witnessing each and every change
So blessed

Happy 7 months

Wow 7 months. You are 16 lbs and 26 inches. You are a big boy. You are almost crawling. You try to sit up. You grab everything. You are a good boy, but sometimes you give us a hard time with eating. You are so amazing we love you so much.

L' shana tova

Happy New Year Aharon. It's your first Rosh Hashana. We are so blessed to have you in our lives. We pray each day that God will continue to show his countenance and grace to you. You are truly an amazing little boy. You bring light wherever you go. I look forward to each new year together. We love you Aha.

Pediatric Cardiology at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles

Every Heart has a Story. This is Aharon's story.

I found out I was pregnant on Father's day. I was super excited to be having another child. At my 12 week ultrasound appointment the doctor saw that there was something wrong with my babies heart. He was not sure what it was and was not offering much positive information in the beginning. We were totally lost. We needed answers. I was referred to a leading fetal cardiologist at Childrens Hospital. He was able to diagnosis my son in utero. He offered us so much hope and guidance. I looked forward to seeing him and so did my baby boy.
The pregnancy was mostly uneventful, a heart defect is enough. I was followed closely and was scheduled for induction on Feb 15. Aharon had a mind of his own. On February 13th 2010, the morning of my 34th birthday, I went into labor. I was so blessed to have the best doctors by my side. I delivered Aharon that evening. He was 18 inches long and 6lbs and 6.4 oz. He was perfectly pink and he let out the healthiest cry when he arrived. Sadly he was wisked away from me after a quick glance. He stayed in the NICU for a couple of hours while he was awaiting transfer next door to childrens hospital. My wonderful husband followed him every step of the way. He was doing so well and had absolutely no signs of his complex heart defects except for a heart murmur. His oxygen saturations, respirations, heart rate, and blood pressure were perfect for a healthy boy, but for a child with DILV, small right ventricle, congenitally corrected TGA, PS, dextrocardia, his perfect saturations were a bad thing. He was in the NICU for 9 days when the medical team felt it was best to do a BT shunt and pulmonary artery banding, to preserve his lungs and prevent overcirculation and CHF. It was truly heartbreaking to hand over the son we convinced ourselves was so healthy and accept the truth about his special little heart. Thankfully the surgery went well and Aharon was home 5 days later.
He has had the most amazing 6+ months. He healed beautifully from the surgery. He is developing normally. His growth is on the low end of the charts, but thankfully the little booger is on them. He is truly amazing and when I look at him I feel so much joy in my heart and I am truly thankful for God's blessing. Thank you to God for giving us these gifts and thank you to God for blessing the doctors with the skills they have to save lives. I know that God is holding Aharon in his arms and hugging him every step of the way.
Aharon is scheduled to have his Glenn Surgery September 27th. We are scared, but we know that God is with us. Aharon may not have a perfect heart, but he has the heart of a lion. He is stronger than we ever imagined. I can see him in my future. I can see a normal boy with the same hopes and dreams as everyone else. I am so grateful that God felt I was a good enough mother that he gave me such a precious gift. I can only hope that Aharon grows up knowing how special he really is.

Happy 6 months

Aha is growing so fast. He is 1/2 year old. It's been so great having him. He is a little ray of sunshine. I love to look at his handsome face, so gentle, and kind. He is so calm and peaceful. I never expected things to be so normal. He is on target developmentally. He rolls, grabs everything, pushes up, grabs his cute little toes, coos and laughs. He eats a little cereal and veggies, and loves his paci. He occasionally has a fuss here or there but not too often. I just can't wait to watch him continue to grow and change. Aharon, I love you more than life.

Blessings

I know to be grateful. Aha is doing so well. He is growing so fast. Just yesterday he was so small and fragile and today he is such a big boy. He is so funny. He rolls all over the place. He gets mad when he's on his tummy, but he keeps rolling there. He has a serious kung fu grip. He's so amazing and strong. He just feels so perfect. I see so much light ahead of him. I have so much hope for his future. God please continue to bless him.

Rolling over

Amazing things are happening. Aharon is such a big strong boy. He's a loud little talker. He loves to laugh and smile all the time. He has been playing with his feet for the past 3 weeks and amazingly he rolled over on his tummy earlier tonight. He accomplished this with only 3 weeks of being flat on his back. We were propping him up due to reflux, but he does really well on his back. He's so amazing. He doesn't let anything hold him back. He also loves to stand on those chunky little legs. I know this boy will be an early walker like his big sister Nayla. It's so funny the way he plays with Ella, I can already see that they will be close friends. I can't wait to see them grow up together. What a blessing.

cardiac cath

Yesterday was Aha's CATH procedure. All things considered it went very well. The doctors took a look at his special heart from the inside. Aha has been blessed again and his heart is doing well. Pressures are good and everything looks like it should. My baby boy may not have a normal heart but he surely has a strong one. Thankfully he recovered quickly. Today he is smiling and playing like his usual self.
Just some quick stats. Aha is 23.5 inches and 14 lbs. He's on the low end of the growth charts but by golly he's on them. I am grateful everyday for his progress and I pray that God will continue to bless and protect him along with his big sisters. Ella and Nayla.

Taking it all in

Aharon is doing well. He will see his Cardiologist next Thursday. They plan to schedule his cath so they can prepare for his second surgery the Glenn. He has gained weight and is eating and sleeping well. The only time it dawns on me that he has a CHD is when we give him his medicine. I am tring to prepare myself mentally for the next surgery, but it is so hard. I keep telling myself maybe he doesnt need it, searching for alternatives, but at the end of the day I know that it has to be done. I pray with all my heart that they will find a cure for CHDs and a way to prevent them. I am so blessed everyday that I have my little man. He is truly amazing. I cant wait to watch him grow up.

Life

Aharon is at home and doing well. He had his first surgery at 9 days old (a pulmonary artery band and BT shunt). He is now 8 weeks old. He has gained more than 3 pounds since he has been home. He's a great eater even though he gets tired. He seems so normal. It doesnt feel like he has a CHD. I am truly amazed at how God has protected him and strenghthened him. He makes me stronger. He is such a joy. I see him watching and smiling and so at peace. I hope he always has his happy disposition. We are planning his bris for next Sunday. He will also officially meet his extended family. I'm so excited to show our precious little prince to the world. I cant believe how amazing he is. I know that as long as we keep only positive energy around us we will always be alright. I see Aharon in the future and he is happy and healthy and I am so grateful to God for every minute of everyday that I have with my family.