Happy Holidays

 Hello All,
It has been way too long. Benjamin is doing good. He is now going to Mary Free Bed for additional therapy to the Early On therapy. We are seeing a real difference in the use of Ben's left arm and leg. We also had the pleasure of seeing Ben pull himself up next to the couch. He is a very determined and stubborn little guy. His daycare and I are discussing moving him up to the toddler room. He is already sleeping on a cot verses crib and it would help with his vocabulary. Plus it will be better for him to use the gait trainer in that room, since he will be using it at the center to move around on his own. We will be seeing the cardiologist in the beginning of Jan to get his heart checked again, and we are hoping things are doing well. It seems to be from our standpoint. Right now he has a ear infection, but is happy guy for the most part. Allison is also doing good. In November she decided to cut her own hair, but it is growing back slowly. She promises not to do it because she wants long hair again. She is looking forward to starting Kindergarden in September.  She keeps asking when she is going to Coopersville.
Here are few photos. Please enjoy and have a very Happy New Year.

Great Eco!

Hello Friends! I just wanted to report that Ben's Eco came out great. His heart function is unobstructed. His atrium and pulmonary are doing good and his has no significant leaking problems. He hated the IV and fussed until his medication took effect, then fussed again when he woke up until the nurse took the IV out. He is resting right now and should be back to himself later this afternoon. The surgery will be when Ben is between 3-4. Allison ran into the tailgate of Dan's truck on Sunday and has a black eye. :( She is recovering well. That is my update for now. I feel blessed! Here are some pictures to enjoy. 

 

Strength in Benjamin!

Benjamin is so strong! He makes more stronger every day that passes. He is doing pretty good and is very happy boy and knows what he wants. On October 1st we are going to have his sedated Eco to see how his heart is doing. It always makes me nervous to have these tests, because I just want to have good results. He continues to do therapy two days a week. His cerebral palsy is frustrating to him at times, and boy does he have a tempter. He is starting to sit for periods with no support and is getting better fine motor skills. His left hand/arm is his weakest point and we work on it daily. The therapist's want us to talk with the neurologist on Nov 5th about the possibility of a wheel chair or device to help Ben. Something that is bus accessible. He will be going to therapy outside the home when he is about 3, and this will be helpful to him. I plan to write more after I know the results of the Eco, so please stay tuned. Thanks for all your support!

Hello All,
As you may or may not know Allison and Ben had a cardiologist appointment on July 16th. Allison's was for a heart murmur that has been concerning since she was 16 months old. They thought that she could have a hole between her two upper chambers that may close on it own or could present problems later in life. Benjamin's was in for his HLHS as usual. I have not said a ton about Allison's issue we have been monitoring, because I was so hopeful that it was nothing in fear that I would have to kids with heart problems. At their appointment our fears were put to rest! Dr Lacina did both of there ekgs and listened to their hearts. Allison's murmur had changed, and he said this sounded good to him. He wanted to a eco immediately so that we could know for sure and it came out good. Allison will only be visiting Floor 10 as a visitor from now on. It looks like Benjamin is still on track. We have no changes to our plan. He is going to have a Sedated Eco September/October. They estimate his Fontan Surgery to be Summer/Fall 2013. Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers!

Hello Friends and Family!
Benjamin is doing well. I have a few things to report. My cousin sent me her gait trainer her daughter cannot use anymore. (Thanks to my Uncle Tim) It is a walker to help children learn to walk. Benjamin did not like at first and we just put him in it for a little while each day. We have it in the basement because it is tiled down there and is easier to move for Ben. He took a few steps in it the other day. :) He is starting to like it.
His favorite word is Ah-Oh as he tosses food on the floor, much to my dismay. He is talking so much more right now and repeating adults. Sometimes you can really understand him and sometimes you don't. He has a cardiologist appointment on July 16th and hopefully things are going well. They seem to be anyways. He is still working on sitting. We are also working on his left leg and arm with the therapists and his caregivers. We are keeping in from the heat because he does not do well when it is really hot. He is a hot body to begin with, because he is not able to dissipate the heat like we do.

Allison is adored by Ben. He follows her everywhere. He can even say Ally. They are both looking forward to celebrating their birthdays. Allison's is July 3rd and Ben's is August 13th. It is amazing the Ben is already almost 2. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.

Interesting article about new surgeon! Although I still want Ben to go to Ann Arbor because they are one of the best.

http://www.mlive.com/business/west-michigan/index.ssf/2012/05/devos_childrens_hospital_recru.html

Quick Update... Benjamin was diagnosed with infantile cerebral palsy, diplegic with left hemifocus. Although the neurologist said we are doing good with our therapy and should continue with Early On twice a week. There are some photos of various family events and our dog "Smokey" who is almost 10 years old. We love Smokey's happy loving nature.

Hello All,
Sorry it has been way to long. Isn't that always the case when your a busy mom. Benjamin is doing just wonderful. He is starting to wave bye bye. He is doing therapy two times a week which is paying off, because we are seeing improvement. He also is doing speech therapy. He crawls all over, and laughs a lot. We would like him to start sitting, but the most he does it is a few seconds. On Thursday this week he goes to see a neurologist, to make sure we are doing all we can to help him. He got a haircut last weekend which he hated, but he looks so cute. I will post some pictures from the past few months soon.

Grandpa and Grandma McCarthy got back safe from AZ. They are watching Ben and Ally two days a week. The kids go to Walker Day Care two days a week, which they both love. Other than that I have been busy with work and so has Dan. Allison had a urinary tract infection that she has almost recovered from. We took her to the ER April 23rd and found this out after some bad fevers and stomach pain. She is doing very good now. Overall the McCarthy's are doing well and Ben is staying pretty healthy! I promise to post some new pics soon.

March Madness!

Hello All,

The McCarthy family is doing well. Dan got hired at Johnson Controls at the end of Feb. Benjamin is doing therapy 2 times a week and may start speech therapy soon. In May Ben is scheduled to see a pediatric neurologist because he is so far behind and we want to make sure that we all doing all we can do to help him. He is crawling all over, but still is not sitting by himself or pulling himself up. Although he is improving and getting stronger.  Ben is doing swim lessons at the Kroc Center. He is starting to enjoy it a little bit. Below is a bath time photo!

Hello Friends and Family!

It has been awhile. Things are going pretty well. Ben had an ear infection last week and Allison has pink eye this week. Today I stayed home with work with her. I was going to take a half day anyway for my physical. Ben has not heart news. He is scheduled to go to the cardiologist at the end of March to get a check up. Here are two pictures. Have a good week.

 

School

Hello,
Just wanted to post that the kids are doing good at the daycare/preschool.

Allison enjoys it there. She gets worried when it gets dark, but I am sure she will get used to the fact that someone is always going to pick her up. She really enjoys the other kids and activities they do. I always look forward to her telling me about her day.

Ben loves his teacher Ann and is doing very well. I think being with all the kids encourages him to move more.

Happy New Year! Enjoy these photos and a video!