Cheers!

We've been celebrating for a full week now. Our Hendog is one amazing boy. Henry has been his happy and active self since we got home from the hospital last Thursday. Thank the Lord for blessing us with a successful surgery, a short hospital stay, amazing doctors and nurses who took care of all three of us...and of course for blessing our family with healthy baby Henry! We still have a few post-op appointments in the coming weeks, but Henry's heart is sweet and strong again!

Henry celebrating with a little "Daddy's Juice" (Don't worry, he is just gnawing on the bottle.)

Henry is eating us out of house and home again.

More good news...The Brennans are back in Charlotte! Michael arrived in town yesterday, and Brooke and Evan will be here this weekend. And they will be living a block away from us. Words can't explain how excited we are! Henry can't wait to meet his future BFF, Evan, who was born four days after he was.

We Love GG!

We are so blessed that GG was able to fly up to Charlotte for 10 days to help before, during and after Henry's surgery. Cohen has had a blast with her! Thank God Cohen handled David and me being away from him for a couple of days while we were in the hospital. Cohen was such a good boy, and would say things that melt my heart like, "Enwy, hart, huwrt" (Henry heart hurt). Cohen is the best big brother in the world.

Here are a few pictures from last weekend. The weather was beautiful and Cohen was able to run around in the sprinkler ("worrms" - the sprinkler is a green circle of worms that shoot water).

Cohen loves playing with GG's assortment of reading glasses.

GG attempted to potty train Cohen while we were at the hospital, despite my warning that he isn't ready yet. Nevertheless, Cohen had fun practicing going on the potty, and he now has to wear his big boy briefs over his diapers.

GG has spoiled Cohen, but I guess that's what grandparents do. He has gone to Monkey Joe's, Chik-fil-A and "Taaget" to buy "Elow Amone" (yellow Ramone - from Cars) and "Wed Thomas" (red Thomas the Train character). Cohen also visited Aunt Laura at work, and GG has promised to take Cohen back to Monkey Joe's or Discovery Place tomorrow. Being the great teacher she is, GG has also played alphabet games on the computer with Cohen, taught him fun songs to sing and how to spell different words. I hope he realizes what a lucky boy he is! Cohen sure does have a great life!

48 Hours

Forty-eight hours after heart surgery Tuesday morning, Henry's doctor gave him the "okay" to be discharged from the hospital. I knew our boy was tough, but I had no idea how tough (and he has the scar to prove it). Those two days weren't easy by any means, but Henry handled every poke and stick really well...way better than I did. David and I were there by his side almost the entire time, and we spent both nights in the hospital with him. Henry stayed in the PICU for one day and was moved to a progressive care room for one more day. It blows my mind that he was playing around, doing tummy time in the bed and smiling a day after heart surgery. I am so proud of him. The past couple of weeks have been a nightmare. Thank God our Henry is healthy and happy. It seems that the more life throws at you, the stronger you become. Henry won't remember this surgery when he's older. Heck, it's probably a distant memory to him by now. But we were there every step of the way. And I will remember. This whole process has made me a stronger person and a better mom.

Here is Henry in the PICU room. Poor buddy was hooked up to so many machines, had four IV lines and a drainage tube.

Here is Henry "relaxing" with David after a strong dose of morphine - right before the drainage tube was taken out.

Henry was back to his old ways of smiling and flirting with everyone in no time. All of the nurses loved our boy. Everyone had to stop in to see this "big patient," who "did not look like a heart patient."

After we moved out of PICU, Henry loved sitting in his bouncy chair. We watched Yo Gabba Gabba on repeat and played in bed.

Here's our room.

Henry sitting up and playing in bed

Henry taking a wagon ride around the floor

"Taste it coarctation of the aorta."

Shaken

Our world was shaken last week when we discovered that our sweet Henry has to undergo heart surgery. Words can't describe what my mind and body felt when the pediatric cardiologist looked at me and said, "Well, there are a couple problems. Do you want to call anyone for back-up?" From that point on, my days and nights have been a blur, my mind won't settle and my body literally shakes. Thank God we discovered this at an early age. Henry's heart condition is usually undetected and not discovered until teenage years. We are thankful for the wonderful doctors we have seen and the surgeon we met with yesterday. David and I have found some comfort in knowing that Henry is in good hands, and we have to have faith that he is going to come out of this a healthier and stronger baby. He has to. Our family just doesn't work without Henry. Monday morning, Henry will have another echocardiogram under anesthesia and pre-op blood work, and his surgery is scheduled early Tuesday morning. Please continue to pray for our baby.

Henry has the cutest smile in the world. The camera doesn't always capture it because he's usually distracted by the clicking. Here is a blurred shot of that sweet, scrunched-up smile he gives us all day long. It is the best.

Of course our big boy loves food. He eats SO MUCH. He is almost 21 pounds now.

Henry is so laid-back.

These brothers absolutely love each other. The first thing Cohen says when I get him out of bed in the morning is, "Enwy, up!" (He wants to make sure Henry is up too). When Henry and I go in to get Cohen up from his nap, Henry kicks and squeals as we walk into Cohen's room. They are the best of buddies.

Six-Month-Old Henry

Our Henry turned six-months-old on the fourth. SIX-MONTHS?!?! We had his check-up with Dr. Ball this afternoon, and Henry now weighs 19 lbs 11 oz (85th percentile) - exactly 11 pounds more than his birth weight. Our boy continues to get taller and taller. He is now 28 1/4" (95th percentile). Dr. Ball walked into the room and immediately said, "Wow, he looks like a nine-month-old!" Henry is sitting-up on his own, but he still needs some assistance now and then. He has become quite the little rolly-polly. He can go from his tummy to back and back to tummy. He can scoot/turn around in a full circle on his tummy, but he isn't taking off quite yet. Henry has FIVE teeth - two are all the way in and three have popped through the gums. He started eating homemade baby food this weekend. So far, he likes sweet potatoes and avocado! Our little guy is so sweet and still loves to be held all the time. One thing Dr. Ball did discover is that Henry has a little heart murmur. We have to schedule an appointment with a cardiologist soon. She said it's pretty common in babies and should resolve itself, but she's always overcautious, which as a mom, I appreciate. So, please say a prayer that Henry's sweet heart is okay! I'll update once we see the doctor.

Here are some bath pictures from tonight. We decided to put Henry in the Bumbo so he could take a bath with Cohen. He had a blast playing with all the toys!

Then we took him out of the Bumbo. These two had fun for a minute until...

Cohen wanted to touch (or pinch) Henry. Bath time over.

Happy Six-Months Hendog!

This Morning

This morning, both boys woke up much earlier than usual. First, it was Henry waking me up at 6 am! He usually sleeps well past 7. Poor buddy is getting his other front tooth. He is going to be eating steak before we know it. Then, Cohen woke up at 7:20 - he always sleeps until at least 8. I downed two cups of coffee pretty quickly, and we had a full morning of play before heading off to Cohen's school. We usually are rushing out the door on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but this morning, we took our time getting dressed, eating breakfast, reading books and playing.

On a separate note, Cohen now shares my obsession with Target ("Taaaget"). It is totally my fault. Because it's so hard for me to say no to him, he now associates going there with getting another Cars character. He also remembers tagging along on my spring clothing shopping spree for the boys. I pulled out his green plaid shirt this morning, and he immediately said, "Taaget." A day doesn't pass without him begging to go there. I'm in trouble.

Uncle Gardner

Uncle Gardner stopped through Charlotte for a quick visit on Thursday and Friday. Cohen had so much fun with his uncle! They played, played and played. Gardner has gotten really good at the ukulele. Cohen called it a "violin," and had the best time strumming along with Gardner.

We have had a relaxing and rainy weekend in Charlotte. Cohen got new red "tennies" (tennis shoes) at the mall yesterday. He had so much fun running up and down the mall and "racing" in the stroller. Henry turned six-months-old on Friday. He is doing so well, and cut two new teeth over the weekend. He goes for his six-month check-up on Tuesday, so we'll give you an update then!

Also, a big happy birthday to Nana today!