One year ago Tomorrow

Damon had his first surgery one year ago tomorrow. He was so tiny. I still can't fathom how Dr Gandhi was able to work on his little heart. Your heart is about the size of your fist, so for his first surgery his heart was about the size of a golf ball, maybe smaller. I remember everything about that day. We got there early to be with him and pray and we read some scripture to him. The walk down the hall to the or was so long. I remember for the last few feet I couldn't even see because I was crying so much.
His surgery went well and they told us we could see him after they got him all settled back in his PICU room. We were told it would be probably an hour before he was back there so I thought I would go in before he got there and use the pump. When I got back there he was already there and I was so surprised that I didn't even have a chance to really react to it. But I remember how small he looked on that big bed and all the wires and tubes hooked up to him, it was so overwhelming. I left in a hurry because the nurses were still working on getting him settled. We stayed most of the day in his room. His nurse was in there practically all day adjusting his meds and taking blood pressure and blood gas measurements. Dr Gandhi came in and out frequently too. They had told us that the first 12-24 hours were the most critical so we stayed close.

We slept in the parents lounge that night. I woke up at around 2am and went in to use the pump and then I just sat with him for a while. I looked over at one point and he was awake, the first time he had woken up after surgery. His eyes were open very wide and he was looking all around. I went over and got real close to his head and was talking to him and a single tear rolled down the side of his face. It still breaks my heart to think about that. It was all he could do to express his pain and fear. I wanted so badly to take all that away from him.

I still want so badly to take it all away, or be in his place. It kills me to think he still has one more to face. But God brought him through the first two and He will be with him for the that one as well. We took pictures of Damon after he came out of surgery. I don't like to look at them, but when I do they remind me of where we've been and how far he's come. My God is a miracle worker. Talk to you later.

Sarah

Need some MK?

My grandma Barbara is a Mary Kay Sales Director and she is having her Holiday sale today and tomorrow. If you place an order and you pick it up from her you get 20% off. If she delivers it, you still get 15% off. She has lots of good gift ideas and sets for women and men so give her a call. Also a great time to stock up if you are a Mary Kay user.
Her phone number is (417) 782-9410. She will also mail it to you if you're outside the Joplin area.

Sarah

Birthday

Happy 1st Birthday precious boy! You have come so far in just one year. Most of us will not experience in our whole lives what you have in one year. You are so brave, and strong. You're funny and always so happy. You have changed all our lives for the better and everyone who meets you is better because of it. Your life is a testimony of God's power and faithfulness. We celebrate your life and thank God for all He's done for you. We're so proud of you Damon and we love you with all our hearts.

Daddy, Mama, and Myles


Damon has been crawling around all over the house and just yesterday he started "cruising" around the coffee table and he went from the table to the love seat to the chest. He will be walking so soon; not quite sure if I'm ready for that yet. Damon's party is tomorrow from 2-4pm at our church. It's called Southside Apostolic Faith and it's located on S Main St in Joplin. Go South on Main St thru the 32nd St intersection. You will go thru two more lights, then turn right on 43rd St (there is a bright pink herb shop right on the corner). Immediately turn left onto the outer road that runs parallel to Main and follow it around the corner (the church is on the right) and the parking lot is behind the church. If you have a chance, stop by and see us and have some cake. Talk to you later.

Sarah

Milestone

Damon started crawling last night. He's moving slowly and kind of scooting more than anything but he's up on all fours and is moving in a forward direction so in my book that's crawling. He's been practicing all day so we'll show off his new skill at the party next weekend. Hope you all can make it. Talk to you later.

Sarah

I can't believe it!

I've been working for the past three days on Damon's 1st birthday party invitations. That's right, I said it, his first birthday! This year has gone so fast, and yet at times has seemed to stand still. We have sent out invitations to our family and closest friends, but everyone who wants to come is invited. Consider this your invitation. His party will be November 17th at 2pm. It will be held at our church, which is 4430 S Main St in Joplin, MO. If you want to come and need directions please leave a comment and we'll get them to you. We hope to have a big turn out with lots of people there to celebrate this incredible first year.

Damon is getting so big and so independant. He isn't quite "crawling" yet or walking but he is moving around where he wants to go and is almost pulling up all the way on things. When he is sitting down he can turn in circles on his bottom and he can go from his bottom to his knees to his stomach, back to his bottom. I compared the way he moves from one place to another to watching a clock tick away the minutes. If you watch him continuously he doesn't seem to go anywhere, just turn in circles or go from his bottom to his knees over and over. But if you look away and then look back he has moved a foot over from where you left him.

He's pretty funny too. We have this game we play where I take his bonkie and put it in my mouth and he takes it out and then I pretend to cry and he thinks that's hilarious. He has started to give it back to me now and we will play this several times. He also makes this really funny face sometimes when I feed him. He will smile great big and squint his eyes and blink a few times. It's so cute. And what's so funny is that Myles made a face very similar to that when he was around the same age. If I can get a picture of it, I'll try to put it on here.

The boys had fun trick-or-treating. Myles was a red Power Ranger and Damon was an Indian. They both looked very cute. Myles had big muscles! We are all getting excited for all the fun events that are coming up in the next two months, birthday party, Thanksgiving, Hayden's
b-day, Christmas, New Year's. It's such a great time of year. I hope you all are doing great and send us a comment to let us know how you are. We miss hearing from you. Talk to you later.

Sarah