A Birth Day That's Easy To Remember......

.....September 11th.....yes, my ob changed Baby Chase's birth day from the 9th to the 11th. He says the closer to 39 weeks the better for the development of his lungs, even if it's only another couple of days. It's not the date that I would have chosen, but hey, there's a lot about this that is not what I would have chosen! : ) Several weeks ago I told Hunter that I would refuse September 11, but I am not. My ob feels it will be best for baby and I am doing what's best for baby! : )

The sono was fine....nothing new, nothing different. I keep daydreaming about typing a blog entry that says that I had a sono and Chase's heart issues were gone....or one of the issues was gone. What a miracle that would be!!!! : ) But for now, I can't say that.

He's 5 lbs 12 oz. He will likely be well over 6 lbs when he is born. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers. We feel them daily!

Another Dr Visit

We are headed to the Dr today for our last visit with the perinatologist before Baby Chase's birth. My OB just wants him to have one more look at Chase to make sure nothing has changed....of course we are always praying for a positive change!! ; )

I will also see my OB again today. After today, I'll only have one more visit with him before the birth. I can't believe how close we are to meeting this sweet boy.

Praying for a good dr visit......

Family Pictures

When we were in Arkansas in July, our cousin, Dalaina, took some family pictures for us. She is such a great, blooming photographer! I love these pictures!!!!

I LOVE, LOVE this one!!!!

Quick Dr Update

I had a Dr appt today - Baby Chase is growing, growing, growing! He is now 5 lbs 4 oz. He is running out of room and his head is VERY low so we didn't get any great 4D pictures. We have a date...........September 9! I am so happy to have a date! It may change if it looks like I may go into labor, but unless that happens, September 9 is the day....Sweet Baby Chase's birth day!

Thanks again to everyone that is praying for us! Please keep praying! : )

Catching Up

We have been so busy and I have been taking lots of pictures, but haven't had time to blog for a few days. Finally, Eli is asleep early and I have time to catch up! : )

Blessings Shower for Baby Chase - My sweet friend, Caryn, hosted a blessings shower for Baby Chase this past Saturday. It was such a sweet time with friends and family. Everyone shared beautiful words of support, blessings, and prayers. As everyone was sharing, they made a beautiful beaded necklace for me to wear while at the hospital. It is beautiful!!!

Caryn made lots of yummy food!!

Imitating Mommy - Eli loves to pretend he is me. Here he is with my rings, my calendar, and my purse. When I ask him where he's going, he simply says, "Wal-Mart". : )


Hunter's Surgery - Hunter had back surgery this past Friday. I was a little (OK a LOT) stressed about the situation, but it has gone SO much better than I thought it would!!! Thankfully, Hunter has not had a lot of pain and he is able to get around pretty well. He cannot sit for very long, but he can stand and lay down. He has actually been able to work (from home) this week. He just stands in the kitchen with his computer. We are so thankful for how smoothly this has gone.

Hunter has to wear some compression tights on his legs - as you can imagine, he's not a big fan of this picture! : )
Eli spends time with Hunter on the floor next to him. Eli likes to lay on a swimming pool float that he used in the pool a couple of years ago.
We have been spending lots of time watching the Olympics!!


Playing with Mommy - Eli is a little obsessed with Chapstick....or as Eli calls it, Chapits. He was putting some on me last night and rather than rubbing it on my lips, he grabbed my lips and put it on. I felt like I was getting a lip injection rather than a little Chapits! ; )

We love to take pictures like this! So Silly!!!

Dr Appointment

I had a Dr appointment on Friday. It went very well. Chase has grown 10 ounces in one week! Yeah!!!!!!! He is up to 4 pounds 12 ounces. My ob thinks he will be about 6 pounds at birth which they are very pleased with. I'm happy about that, but praying that he his even bigger than predicted! : ) Still no firm c-section date yet, he wants to wait until the time is closer. The sonogram looked great....growing, moving, plenty of fluid around Chase, no fluid around the heart....all very good news. The right ventricle still appears to be growing and is getting blood flow. We are about 3 weeks away from meeting this little guy. I am getting anxious!! Keep praying.

Jay-Jay & The Flight Museum

Recently, we visited the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Love Field Airport. Eli enjoyed looking at the airplanes, playing in the kid's play area and seeing Jay-Jay The Jet Plane.

Funny Boy!

I have really had a hard time finding comfortable clothes to sleep in. Last night I tried a nursing night gown. This morning Eli looked at me and said, "Mommys jammies.....funny"

I looked in the mirror and I do look pretty funny....and HUGE!!!! This gown makes me look like I'm giving birth to twins...tomorrow!

Concerned Big Brother

Eli and I were looking at a sono picture of Baby Chase and Eli said....

Baby Chase.....heart.....all better

Crazy Times!

So....Baby Chase arrives in 4 weeks. BUT, on Friday, Hunter is having back surgery. YIKES!! We found out today that the back problems that Hunter has been having will require surgery. The recovery time is three weeks. Recovery means three weeks of rest...only allowed to get up 15 minutes each hour....otherwise, he must be lying down. So, the big recovery time will end just three days before Baby Chase arrives. Please pray that the surgery goes well and that the recovery is quick and easy! : )

Never a dull moment in the Henley home.......

2 1/2 Year Pics

Here are a few of Eli's 2 1/2 year pictures. Our friend Jennifer had a picture party...basically, she had a photographer at her house. We went to her house and had great pictures taken. It was so easy and convenient!! If your interested, you can view this photographer's info at http://gigglengrin.blogspot.com/ Her prices are SUPER reasonable and she takes great pictures!

OB Visit

I had another Dr appointment today. It went very well. I thought it was going to be a quick visit, but I was there for almost 2 hours! I was going to bring Eli with me and am so glad that I decided against that....2 hours would have been a struggle for him (and me!!) : ) I was on a monitor for a while to see how Baby Chase's heart responds when he moves. He was VERY active and his heartbeat was great throughout. Then I had a sonogram. Baby Chase is continuing to grow. He is now 4 lbs 2 oz. He has grown almost a full pound in 2 weeks. The Dr is very happy with his growth and development. I got to see 4D pics again and he still looks just like Eli! He opened his mouth and it was so super cute!! I have pics....as soon as we get them scanned, I'll post. His heart looks the same. The Dr wanted to see if he thought the left ventricle was getting blood and he says it is. Praise God!!!!! This is a VERY good thing!!!! We need his ventricle to GROW and blood flow will help that. The Dr was also checking for fluid around the heart. He did not see any nor did he see any signs that it may develop, but will continue to monitor it closely. I will have a sonogram once a week until delivery.

We are still on track for delivery on September 8 or 9....that is in 4 1/2 weeks. YIKES!!! I can't believe it is so soon! I am ready, but am getting VERY anxious.

Please continue to pray for Baby Chase, specifically for his right ventricle to GROW, GROW, GROW! : ) Also, pray that no fluid develops around his heart. This is a sign of heart failure and if any develops, we would deliver immediately.

I can't thank you enough for your prayers! We feel them all the time, but need them now more than ever! I have been feeling very anxious and a little sad about everything lately. I know that God is in control, but this is a hard, scary thing!! I REALLY appreciate your prayers! : )

Milestone

We hit a huge milestone in our family this weekend....Eli learned to peddle his tricycle!!!! He needs a little help getting started and he can't really steer yet, but he can peddle. Peddling backwards is easier than forward, but he can do both. Once it is actually cool enough to go outside, he should be a pro!

Elmo & Eli

When I take a shower, Eli usually sits on the couch and watches TV. Today when I got out of the shower, this is what I found......

The Pumpkin Hat

Despite the 100 plus degree temperature, Eli insisted on wearing his pumpkin hat in the car today. He loves his pumpkin hat!!! : )

Encouragement

I read this and just cried and cried!! It is so wonderful to know that God is in control and that He can change things. I'm praying for something like this for my sweet Baby Chase....

Kaylee was diagnosed at 24 weeks gestation with an Atrioventricular Canal Defect. We were followed by Dr. Jane Kao throughout the remainder of the pregnancy and around 32 weeks we got the news that it appeared that Kaylee's left ventricle was about half the size of the right and would therefore not be able to function in the capacity needed for a 4 chambered heart. This was the story until delivery on April 13th, 2004.

But GOD had other plans for Kaylee. She was born vaginally at 3:56 p.m. on Tuesday, April 13th. She was pink and screaming and weighed in at 7 pounds, 1 1/2 ounces, exceeding our expectations of 5, maybe 6 pounds! Her first echo in the NICU revealed that her left ventricle was full sized and would be able to function to capacity after all. We went home on Thursday April 15th, medication free and stayed that way until surgery. Kaylee had her OHS at 6 months of age in September of 2004. Dr. Mendeloff repaired her AV canal on a Wednesday morning and we were home and med. free by Saturday. Today, Kaylee is 3 1/2 years old. She is a happy, healthy kid who loves life. She does have some residual mitral valve leakage which will require another surgery in the future, but we thank God everyday for the miracles He has performed in her life

Eli & Chase

I've been meaning to post this for a while. When Hunter and I saw the 4D image of Baby Chase, we were shocked at how much we thought he looked like Eli. What do you think???? The first picture is of Eli when he was about 4 or 5 days old....compare to the 4Ds of Chase. The noses and lips are so similar!!!