Our Big Hearted Three-Year-Old

Since I haven't posted since 2012, I thought I might offer a few important updates on our sweet little Sam.  Much has happened--some very bad but some very good.

First, I just wanted to put these two pictures together to celebrate how far Sam has come these past three years:

This is Sam around 10 weeks of age; he was suffering a stroke and a terrifying case of endocarditis. He was about to undergo a very risky and early Glenn surgery.

This is Sam at school just a few weeks ago.  He loves running around outside with his "new friends," as he calls him, and he's a big fan of the slide.

There's so much to update that I'll make a few lists to keep it concise (and then I'll throw on a bunch of pictures).  Let's start with the bad news and then work our way up to the good news....

The bad news:
1. In November, Sam's O2 sats suddenly dropped into the 50s, and we had to call 911 in the  middle of the night.  Luckily, he only had to spend a few nights in the hospital; it turns out he had a cocktail of nasty viruses brewing in his little body.  Some rest and fluids were enough to get him (and Elmo) better.

2. In December, about a week and a half after I had returned to work, there was a shooting at my school, Arapahoe High School (this is Kristin typing).  A girl was shot and killed, and the shooter--a student at the school--killed himself in our library.  Our school is still suffering terribly.

The okay news:
1. Sam was supposed to have a heart catheterization today. This is to help prepare him for the big Fontan surgery this summer.  However, Sam's doctors decided after examining him this morning that his cold would make the cath too risky, and it would be best to wait.  So we went out to breakfast instead and had chocolate chip pancakes.  The cath, by the way, is now rescheduled for June 4--a little less than a week before his scheduled Fontan.

Students--if you are reading this right now, rest assured that it means I will be back at school Thursday and Friday.

The great news:
1. Sam is now a big brother, and he is one great big brother.  His little brother is named Henry, and he is now six months old.

Henry is a mini-Jason and might actually be the happiest person in America.

Henry is obsessed with Sam; if Sam is in the room, Henry has eyes for no one else.  And of course, Sam finds it hard to resist a little human who adores him so completely (as long as Henry doesn't grab any of Sam's toys, which pretty much sends Sam over the edge).

Fascinated by each other

Luckily, the doctors agree with Sam's assessment that Henry's heart is very healthy!

It took four hours to get this picture.

2. Despite all the setbacks, Sam is completely age appropriate in all areas of development--gross motor, fine motor, and speech.  He loves the alphabet, books, and puzzles, and his current favorite movie is Finding Nemo.

It took a good week of practice to hold up these three fingers!

Rolling around in his favorite Buckeye hat

Reading at school

Sam and his buddy, Max!

He's definitely known for his goofiness at school.

P.S. Sam is particularly interested in Nemo's "lucky fin," which, despite the fact that it never grew quite big enough, turned out to be a source of strength for Nemo.