It's a boy!

Karlee and I had some very wonderful news last week, when we found out that we are going to have a little boy in early June. We are both extremely excited and Perrie is warming up to the idea of fighting for attention with a new little brother.

At the same ultrasound we also faced some very difficult news. Our new son was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect known as Transposition of the Great Arteries (or Vessels). Very simply, the main arteries of the heart are switched causing the blood circulating to the body to not be oxygenated. To fix this problem, our son will likely need a small catheter procedure directly after birth that allows for oxygenated blood to mix temporarily. This procedure will allow him to grow stronger so that he can have open heart surgery at around 7 days old in which they switch the main arteries of his heart. Though it is incredibly difficult to think about having to watch a child go through this, the outcomes of this procedure are generally good we are told. If people are interested, I have attached some links to a series of videos that describe both the defect, its treatment and longer term prognosis.

Karlee will have a series of tests over the next few weeks to give us a better picture of what we are dealing with. The reason for this is that there is now an increased risk of additional defects (how increased I am not sure). We are keeping our fingers crossed that nothing additional shows up. We are very lucky we live in Seattle where the proper medical care is available.

Karlee and I are feeling less scared and more optimistic everyday. We cannot wait to meet our son/brother. We are blessed to have a wonderful family and group of friends to lean on in times like this. As we get further information we will try to let everyone know.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ddxXHQzWF8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVDvrUL7LgQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D58eufx-_4Q&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ka9OJAGgJo&feature=list_related&playnext=1&list=SPA3B7F57A659B4D31

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqfMNwEagWw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-2xZPY0wN8&feature=list_related&playnext=1&list\=