Surgery has been moved up!!

Travis' surgery has been rescheduled for May 3rd.....that is 11 days away. We are freaking out!!!!! I have been in tears all day. I am thankful they are moving it up but so scared now that it is right around the corner.

BLOOD DONATION UPDATE: If you are O+ or O- and interested in donating blood you must call 1-877-659-2001 and schedule your appointment for any day BEFORE this TUESDAY (4/27)!!!!! Please let me know when you've scheduled your appointment. You'll need Travis' name and birthday, Travis DiCarlo 10/23/09

Blood Donation and Update

For those of you interested in donating blood for Travis' Glenn Surgery.....

If you are O+ or O-: You can donate whole blood anytime after May 5th. You will need to make an appointment at your local bank by calling 1-877-659-2001. You will need to have Travis' name and birthday: Travis DiCarlo, 10/23/09. Please do it as close to the 5th as you can as the surgery MAY get moved up!!!! Please let me know once you've set up an appointment so I know if he has enough people.

If you are any other blood type: Travis needs plasma BUT he will get all he needs from one person and Roger will be donating this to him. So, sorry but we can not use your blood for this surgery. BUT...there are other kids that could......go donate anyway!!!!!!

Thanks everyone!

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Now a quick update:

Roger and I have been worrying a little bit about how far out Travis' surgery is. Initially we were told that the Glenn surgery would take place when they are 5-6 months old. Travis isn't scheduled for his until he is 7 months old. The scary thing is that the shunt that they put in during the first surgery begins to "wear out" as he gets older/larger. We knew there would come a time when his oxygen saturations would begin to drop a bit and his weight would level out...we just weren't sure it would start happening a month out from surgery. To us...that is scary!

Over the last few days some concerning things have been happening: Travis' appetite has dropped, his oxygen saturation levels are lower than normal, he is sleeping more, and his resting heart rate has been dropping and setting of his heart monitor alarm. We decided to bring up these concerns with his doctors. We took him to his pediatrician and he did an EKG and took an XRay. Both of those looked good. The physical exam of Travis also went well. So, we were sent home somewhat reassured...but we were anxious to see what his cardiologist said. Dr. Levy (his cardiologist) ordered a 24 hour test that will record his heart rhythm to make sure he is not having any abnormalities. That will take place tomorrow through Friday. It is basically a different monitor that he will have to wear for 24 hours. Not really a big deal at all. Dr. Levy also contact Dr. Lamberti's office (the surgeon) to see about moving up the surgery. I am happy about that as I told him that my fear is that we wait to long and it turns into an emergency surgery. So, we should have some news soon on both the rhythm test and the surgery date.....

As you can imagine all this is really stressing us out. It is so scary not knowing what is going on with our little guy. The signs of trouble they want us to watch for, loss of appetite and sleep issues, are all things that happen with "normal" babies too. It is also very difficult for us to determine what is normal for a baby his age because he is our first child. I think our anxiety level will continue to rise until we get through this next surgery and over this huge hurtle.

Please pray for Travis' heart/body to remain strong until his surgery!!! Thank you.

Directed Blood Donation

I received the paperwork for blood donation from Children's Hospital. Here is the scoop.......Travis is O+ which means he can receive the following:

*Packed Red Blood Cells from O+ or O- donors (can only donate once prior to surgery)

*Platelet/Plasma from O+, O-, A+, A-, B+, B- (can donate every 48 hours/4 weeks respectively)

O+ donors would be the best possible match but he can still receive from those listed above. If you are healthy and interested in donating blood for Travis' surgery please let me know ASAP.

I am trying to arrange for a donation spot in SD as well as Murrieta.

THANK YOU!!!!!!

Six Things Saturday

We didn't get around to posting Five things Friday so instead we are posting Six things this Saturday.

1. We went to the cardiologist this past Wednesday and we brought up a concern that Travis did not seem to be gaining weight as quickly as he had been. The cardiologist mentioned that is to be expected as we get closer to his next surgery. His heart is working harder and therefore burning more of the calories he is eating. He mentioned that we might want to try solids a few weeks early to see if that might help. Travis loves eating his cereal....we will try vegetables over the next week or so. Before yesterday's bath we were happy to see that Travis has gained enough to cross over the 13lb mark! Grow baby, grow!!

2. Travis had a couple of bad nights of sleep this week. He is a bit stuffy in his nose and we think it is keeping him up. We have been taking lots of naps to catch up on our sleep and Roger caught Travis snuggled up with my arm in this picture. Too cute! He must be a side sleeper like daddy!

3. There are two depressed boys and one happy girl in my household now that March Madness is over.

4. Travis' hair is getting quite long and OOC (out of control). We tried to give him a little trim in the bangs and around his ears but he got quite cranky and we couldn't finish. We do the best we can trying to make him presentable. Daddy tried this 'do on him tonight for church. HAHAHA!!

Kind of looks like Bob from Bob's Big Boy!

5. We took advantage of the Stuff-a-bag sale at Babies R Us today and we scored some awesome outfits for Travis. Everything was 24-50% off plus an additional 25% with the coupon. We bought Travis a bunch of clothes in sizes 9-12months so we are ready for his growth spurts! Check out our loot!

6. Tomorrow is Roger's last day of Spring Break. We have had such a great week+ off with him!!! It is so nice to just spend quality time together with no agendas and no rushing around. Now, it is the home stretch until Summer Break!

What's up Wednesday.

Travis first attempt at food.

All ready to eat....so excited

Yum Yum. This stuff is good.

Daddy and Mommy let me try.

Travis was so proud of himself.

Travis is ready for some baseball.

Travis is the Prince of San Diego.

Travis got to meet his Great Aunt Gloria.

Travis and Daddy enjoying a beautiful San Diego day.

Whoa!!!!

Some more photos for fun.

http://cid-d843a26bcc8dd2a4.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/April%20Pics%204-7?ct=photos&sa=137223160

Travis found his jaw video and new pics

Travis learning how to talk.

Travis learning how to walk.

Travis loves watching T.V.
Mommy and Travis enjoying a moment.
Our Little Stinker.
Mommy put gel in Travis' hair.

More Pictures of Travis

http://cid-d843a26bcc8dd2a4.skydrive.live.com/browse.aspx/Travis%20March%2028?ct=photos&sa=71625711

Five Things Friday

1. Easter is right around the corner and in the spirit of the holiday we made Travis try on some bunny ears.

He really wasn't to happy about it, but we had fun. I can't wait to have Travis "hunt" for eggs. I

remember taking Peyton (my cousin's child) to an egg hunt when she was really small and it

was a lot of fun. Since Travis can just hold things we will just scatter eggs around him and let him try to pick them up. We bought him a football Easter basket.

2. Roger and I have been a little concerned about Travis' weight this past week. Since the

Double-Double post he has not gained any weight. He still weighs 12lbs 6oz on our scale here at home. I took him to the nurses clinic today to have him weighed and he weighs 12lbs 10oz. So, that is good. She mentioned that sometimes their weight gain stalls while they get a little longer. Hopefully, that is all that is happening here.

3. Travis is finally

fitting into his 6

months onesies. We received a whole bunch of CUTE

6 month onesies and I am glad he is fitting into them. He is still wearing size 0-3 in most clothes

and 3 month pajamas. I think he will be moving onto 6 month pajamas soon enough though because he is getting long! It is so fun to dress him up in cute clothes. Although, boys clothes aren't nearly as cute as girl clothes. Here are a couple of his cutie 6 month outfits!

4. Last weekend my aunt Michelle came down to meet Travis. We decided to take him out

to the Wild Animal Park. It was a lot of fun. He mostly stayed in his stroller and checked things out. We did have to take him out to ride the tram. I wiped the whole seat and handles with Clorex wipes....just in case ;) Here are some pictures from our trip.

Nana bought Travis a little Zebra toy. He loved it! It was a really fun day. Can't wait until Travis is a little older and can REALLY enjoy the WAP. :)

5. Travis is now sleeping in his own room. He took to it pretty quickly but he still wakes up three times a night for his paci and once to eat. Unfortunately, his room is all the way down the hallway so we have to sprint down there to get his paci. I want to start trying to break him from this habit...maybe during Roger's spring break. We have two different infant monitors....one video monitor that is set to show us the numbers on his heart machine and one digital sound monitor that we keep next to Travis. So, I feel a pretty comfortable with him over there. He is such a big boy! :)