Back to Church!

Today was the first day Logan was able to go back to church and be in an childcare setting since finding out he needed surgery in December. Today was such a great day for so many reasons. For the last 3 months Rowdy and I would go to Church Sunday mornings when we had someone who could watch Logan in the morning, which was only about 3 times total. This morning was a little rushed since we are not used to getting up and leaving. After I dropped him off at his classroom I ran into two friends I work with on Tuesdays at the church and the three of us had a little celebration for this day. It makes me feel so good to that Rowdy and I are surrounded by so many people that rejoice with us in moments like this. To some being able to come back to church might seem like not a big deal but this day is so much more than just being able to go back to church and worship. Today means that Logan's surgery is completely behind us. No more picking him us under his tushy or having to isolate him so he doesn't get sick. Today really shows how amazing God is and how he has healed Logan so quickly. All the praise and glory goes to him! I read somewhere that the healing is complete when you don't think about the surgery on a daily basis. I think I can say we are healed. I know look at Logan's scar as his battle wound and don't just start crying. My brother's have told Logan that when he gets older they will teach him how to use his scar to get the ladies...oh my.

Allergies...Go Away

Well it is that time of the year again, Allergy season, and it has hit the Isbill household with a bang. Both Logan and I have runny noses that nothing seems to help. It stinks because I can not take much and besides when I am pregnant I do not really like to take anything. But this morning I broke down and pulled out the approved medications while pregnant sheet and took an approved Claritin (which helped about as much as a sugar pill). This too will pass. Logan on the other had has a runny nose but that doesn't seem to stop him he is still on the go all the time.

The other day I watched a friend's daughter who is about 8 months older than Logan. Liv is such a sweetheart. While Logan was going through his heart surgery and we were preparing for it her mother said she wanted to pray for Logan all the time. Logan loved playing with her. This is a picture of the two of them taking turns pushing each other on a Thomas the Train Logan got for his birthday.

Fun in the Snow and Cardiologist Follow-up

I apologize it has been so long since I have updated our blog. I know you are probably wondering how our little heart baby is doing and what else is happening in the Isbill house. First of all let me say, Logan is doing great!! His wonderful personality is still making us smile everyday and his heart is doing great!! It is a true testimate to how amazing God truly is.

We had a follow up appointment a few weeks ago, after all the snow. His cardiologist said the patch is holding great and looks good. There are, however a few places they will continue to watch throughout his life. She said this sort of just "comes with" the defect. They will continue to watch his Mitral Valve to make sure the 2 holes (instead of 1 like in a normal heart) do not get too tight; if they do they will have to go back in and snip between the holes to loosen it a bit. There are 3 places in his arterial vein that are goose necked, if those get too tight they will have to put a stint in to open them up. Good news if that happens, they can do this procedure noninvasively and go through a vein in this leg and the stint will grow with Logan over time. Lastly, there is a place where the blood is flowing a little faster than they like, but not too much faster. In a normal heart the fastest they like to see the blood flowing is at a 2, Logan's is flowing at a 2.3 She said they will just watch it to make sure it does not get any faster. We go back in 3 months for another check up. The cardiologist is not anticipating any of these 3 problems to happen but is being caution nonetheless.

As everyone else has experienced or knows about, we has some crazy snow a few weeks ago. I think we got something like 14 inches. It was beautiful and actually kind of nice to be trapped in by the fire for a few days. Rowdy was able to be home with us the entire time, so Logan got to play in the snow with his daddy for the first time!! He didn't really know what to think about it. Rowdy brought in a big snowball and let him feel it. After he felt of it he went face first into the ball and took a big bite out of it. It was pretty funny. We got him all bundled up and let him go outside to play. He didn't really move much, partly because he had his cousin's boots on that were a little big on him. Then he saw his daddy jump into the snow and of course he had to try it, so he just fell in!! Then my sister and brother-in-law came over with their 2 boys, Jack and Taylor, and we went sledding. We had so much fun and I think I have to say Logan enjoyed his first big snow storm!! Enjoy the pictures!!

Lastly, several weeks ago Rowdy and I found out that we are expecting our second child. We are so thrilled and can't wait to meet him or her. My due date is September 9. I have been feeling alright. A little more sick than I was with Logan, which actually makes it a little harder because I have to chase a toddler around too. But I feel so blessed that our family is growing and that God has given us another blessing to care for.

Logan's Surgery

I do apologize for not updating sooner. Any time I had free in the hospital I would try to close my eyes for a little bit or I was laying with Logan.

The surgery went very very well. The surgeons were able to repair Logan's hole without any problems. Once in the heart they looked at his mitral valve (the smaller hole) to see what, if anything, they needed to do to repair it. In a normal heart your mitral valve is one large hole, in Logan's heart his mitral valve has 2 holes. That is called a double orifice mitral valve. They pumped his heart with saline to see how the valve worked and said it worked great!! So they did not have to do anything with it. Also, they looked at his pulmonary valve to see if they needed to shave some of his muscle around the valve so it would not be narrowed. They found that the valve was actually not as narrowed as they originally thought so they left it alone as well.

After his surgery he went to the PICU for about 3 days where little by little his tubes began to come out. The first to go was his breathing tube about an hour after surgery. Then his catheter and an arterial line in his wrist. On the third day they removed his drainage tube and a Central line that was in his neck. Not more than 24 hours after his surgery was he sitting up in his bed playing with some new toys his Aunt Sissy brought him. By the 3rd day he was walking all around his room and ready to go!! The surgeons cleared us to come home three days after surgery but Rowdy and I asked if we could stay one more night because they just took his drainage tube out that day. It is truly amazing to me how quickly he recovered. If you were to see him right now and had no idea what happened just a few days ago you would never know he just had open heart surgery.

We have been home for about a day and a half and the weather has been so wonderful. It's as if the Lord wanted Logan to enjoy a little bit of time outside in his swing or riding in his wagon and so he gave him 2 beautiful days to play! He is back to his regular schedule and still eating everything he can get his hands on. Oh man do I love that little boy!!

I give so much praise and glory to God for getting Logan through his surgery without any complications. I know he heard each and every prayer that was prayed for Logan and Rowdy and I felt each and every pray. We truly feel that is the reason he and I had such and enormous peace. Thank you so much to everyone for our thoughts and prayers over the last 6 weeks, you will never know how much they mean to us. God is Good!!!

'Twas the Night Before....

I was honestly having a hard time writing this post tonight. I have 101 thoughts running through my mind, everything from the details of tomorrow to the dirt on my kitchen floor. I put the computer away and got in the shower and I really felt the Lord telling me to talk about how I have been getting through this tough time.

"Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say Rejoice. Let your reasonableness be made known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not worry or be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request me made known to Christ".

Philippians 4:4-6

This sums it all up. Two weeks before we learned of Logan's heart condition our Bible study did a study on this verse. The story that was told was sad and I thought that is a good verse to live by but little did I know God was preparing me for something. That study taught me that the Lord is in control of every situation and no matter what there is always a reason to rejoice and celebrate his name. The last month and a half we have rejoiced that the doctors found his mummer when they did, before there was any serious damage. We have rejoiced in how this horrible situation has brought Rowdy and I closer as a couple and the three of us closer as a family. Lastly, we have rejoiced that our relationship with the Lord has grown.

We know Logan is gift from the Lord sent to us to watch over and care for him, he is not our child. We have made our request known because we know that we can ask him for what we want. However, in the end we know Logan is in God's hands and he will take care of our little man.

Thank you to everyone for all the prayers. It is so amazing to me all the love and support that has been poured out, even by people we do not know. Please know that each prayer and thought has been felt by Rowdy, Logan and I and you will never know what it means to us.

Boys Will Be Boys

The other day I was out running some errands. I came home and couldn't find Rowdy and Logan. Then I hear some rustling in our bedroom, walk in there and I find both boys playing in a blanket fort. I have to say it was one of the cutest things I have ever seen. Logan was having so much fun. When I walked in the room he just poked his little head out to say hi. Sometimes I wish I could be a fly on the wall when I am gone and it is just the 2 of them. Every time I think about the blanket fort it just makes me smile and feel so blessed to have a wonderful son with an amazing father.

Blood Donation Credits for Logan

As we get closer to Logan's surgery I am starting to getting a little anxious. I find that I can't sit still much because if I do then I start thinking about it and then my mind continues to wonder. So I have been trying to stay busy with anything I can find. Today I set up all the stuff I needed too for blood donations for Logan. I turned in and have got the ball rolling on my approved donors and have also set up an account for blood donation credits for Logan.

What does this mean?

Anyone that would like to help or contribute but is not able to do much can go to a local Oklahoma Blood Institute (OBI) and donate a unit of blood and have then credit Logan's account. This will help Rowdy and I financially with the costs of using the services of OBI for his blood and plasma needs. The blood you donate will be used in their bank but the benefits will be helpful to us. If you would like to donate for Logan you will need to let them know the time of the donation that you would like to have your donation credited to Logan Isbill's account. You can visit www.OBI.org to find a location. You will never know what your donation means to Rowdy and I. So I want to thank you in advance.

If you are in the Dallas area you can still donate. You will need to go to the Carter Blood Care. We have also set up an account with them that will benefit and help us the same way as if you were to donate at and OBI. You will tell them the same thing, you would like to make a donation to be credited to Logan Isbill. You can visit the Carter Blood Care website to find a location. I am sorry I do not have that website handy.

This verse has been on my heart so much this week. As the days fall off the calendar and we get closer to the surgery I have found some warmth and comfort in it and I wanted to share it with you.

Cast all you anxiety on him because he loves you - 1 Peter 5:7

Birthday Party-Take 2

We finally had Logan's 1st birthday party. No more pink eye, YEA!!! He had a blast playing with his friends and his cousins. He LOVED his chocolate cake and opening his presents. Rowdy and I feel so blessed to have so many family and friends to celebrate Logan's 1st birthday.

Happy Birthday Logan

We love you so much buddy!! You have brought so much joy to our lives this past year and we can not wait to watch you grow. Happy 1st Birthday!!

The Birthday Boy enjoying a chocolate chip pancake for breakfast. He LOVED it by the way!!

Birthday Party - Take 1

Logan's birthday party was planned for Saturday, Jan 8. Grandma and Grandpa (My dad and step mom) were flying in from Dallas. Nana and Papa (My mom and step dad) and Mimi and Popa W (Rowdy's mom and step dad) were planning on coming in from Oklahoma City. Decorations were bought and we were ready to go. Logan on the other hand had a different plan. After we went to meet with the surgeon we had to take Logan to his normal pediatrician because when he woke up Friday morning his poor little eye was matted shut and really watery. Low and behold he has pink eye. We didn't think it would be such a good idea to have Logan's friends around him when he had pink eye, we didn't want anyone else to get it. So we moved the party to the next weekend. His birthday party is now Saturday, Jan 15 from 11-2.

However, we did have a mini party for him since Grandma and Grandpa flew in from Texas. He had a great time and ate tons of cake and got a fun new baseball bat and baseball with a tee. Now we just need the weather to get nicer and a little warmer and we can go outside and play with it.

Logan's Surgery

We met with the surgeons today and scheduled Logan's surgery. The date of the surgery will be Tuesday, Jan 25. His surgery will be first thing in the morning at about 7:15. The surgery will take approx 4 hours. The surgeons think he will only be in the hospital 5-8 days, as long as everything goes well, which they are anticipating it will. They also said that when he comes home he will be acting just like a normal little boy. That just amazes me that he could bounce back so quickly.

I feel better knowing we have a date because it's not still unknown. But having a date puts it into reality that it is really going to happen. Rowdy and I both feel a lot more confident since talking to the surgeons. We found out that one of the surgeons Dr. Nikaidoh, is 76 and still runs 3 miles every morning. He knows what he is doing, he has over 40 years experience and even has a pediatric cardiac procedure named after him. The other surgeon, Dr. Barth, has over 25 years experience. Dr. Nikaidoh, Dr. Barth and their PA who runs the heart/lung machine have been working together for over 25 years.

A good friend took some picture of Logan's chest pre-surgery/pre-scar. She is an amazing photographer and I am so happy with our pictures.

O Lord, you alone are my hope. I've trusted you, O Lord, from childhood. Yes, You have been with me from birth; from my mother's womb you have cared for me. No wonder I am always praising you! My life is an example to many because you have been my strength and protection, that is why I can never stop praising You. I declare your glory all day long.
Psalm 71:5-7

Christmas, A New Year and Everything Inbetween

Sorry for the break in blogs the holidays are always a crazy time for everyone. Logan had a wonderful 1st Christmas. He got so many wonderful new toys. Right now they are just collecting dust because he is more interested in playing with mommy's cooking stuff or opening and shutting bedroom doors. He wasn't too sure at first about opening gifts then he realized that tearing the paper was fun and there was something exciting in there for him to play with!! He really enjoyed playing with the bows. He kept putting them on his head trying to make them stick.

Our first Christmas as a Family of three!!

He was just not having anything to do with mommy wanting to take his picture in front of the tree.

Logan with his cousins, Jack and Taylor, all in their Christmas PJs.

Some of the fun stuff Santa brought him.

Opening a few gifts Christmas morning. Rowdy and I got him a new hat to wear outside and he liked wearing while he opened his gifts.

On a different note, Today is the day Rowdy and I meet with the surgeons. I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand I am ready for it to be scheduled and lets get it over with so we don't have to have it hanging over our heads and life can move along, on the other hand, I am scared because this means that it is real. Before we didn't really have to think about it much, it was something that needed to be taken care of but was off in the distance. Now that the holidays are over this is the next major thing in our life. We are still putting all of our Faith and trust in the Lord. I am looking to him for my strength and also in the eyes of my vibrant, happy-go-lucky little boy. We will keep you posted as to when the surgery will be. Please keep the prayers coming and Thank You from the bottom of my heart for all the prayers we have already received. We can truly feel all the people praying for us.