Battle with Right-Sided Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH)


Daisypath Anniversary tickers

Daisypath - Personal pictureDaisypath Anniversary tickers

Monday, July 25, 2011

July 21st, 2011 is

Whitney's 1st Birthday! I really cannot believe my baby a one year old!  It has been an amazing year!  I had a baby and was able to take her home. I feel so blessed to have Whitney in my life.  I always wanted to be a mother.  She is amazing and I can't wait to have more...in a couple years!  Whitney has accomplished so much in her life so far...more than others can even dream of.  She had a severe and rare birth defect called Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia.  I had never heard about this before now.  Generally they say these babies have a 50% chance to live, Before Whitney was born, Dr.'s didn't think she'd make it, when she was born she was given an estimated 20% chance to live.  Chance is a weird word to me. It is defined: the absence of any cause of events that can be predicted, understood, or controlled.  But I believe in the power of prayer and God's plan for his children.  Whitney is meant to be here, today.  I held my baby girl when she was 15 days old. We took her home when she was 56 days old.  It has truly be a roller coaster ride since we knew we were pregnant.  But I wouldn't trade it for the world.  I love my baby dearly.

Whitney has made so much progress this year with the help of many, many doctors and support from loving family and friends.  Including, Dr. G (perinatologist), Neonatologists, Dr. P (cardiologist), Dr. G (pediatric surgeon), Dr. K (pediatrician), Gastroenterologist, Pulmonologist, nutrionist, phyiscal therapist, feeding/speech therapist, and all the many helpful nurses.  Of course I couldn't do it without my husband, my family and my husbands family being right there with us. 

Here are some picture of her actual birth date!  My planned small family party grew to an extended family party because most of them could not make to the Saturday Luau.  We got pizza and cake and presents!  We had a lot of fun!  I tried to hold Whitney and love her as much as I could...or as much as she would let me!



Loves to read books!






Big Grin







Whitney walking!






The Funfetti cake I made her






















Birthday Girl anxious to open presents!






Present from Hawaii! 







Two phones?! She got two of the same present and loves them both haha!  And Thomas is taking a picture of me with a fake princess camera!?








Happy 1st Birthday








Surprised by the song singing















Mommy cutting the cake








very nervous about this...






decided to touch it!







wanted to mash it!







had fun and tasted it twice!








but would rather feed it to the dog (the dog was not allowed to eat cake though)






My princess

Grandma's Funeral

My Step-Grandmother, Pamela Hatch Patterson Passed away on July 9, 2011. She was married to my Grandpa E. Arthur Patterson (my dad's dad).  Here are a few pictures of us at her Funeral held July 15, 2011. Obituary:


Patterson, Pamela C. (Hatch)60, of Phoenix, passed away Saturday, July 9, 2011, with family by her side. She was born August 15, 1950 in Pocatello, Idaho. She was the daughter of Dr. Bill P. Hatch and the late Dolores E. (Hogan) Hatch. In her early years, she was active in 4-H and the AQHA. She was in the class of '68 at Cortez High School and graduated from ASU with a degree in Anthropology. She was blessed with many talents and was always involved in various activities. She is survived by her husband, of 24 years, Dr. E. Arthur Patterson, DDS, daughter Cara Thomas, son Bill Patterson, Step-children Suzanne Cook, David Patterson, DDS., Wendy Billingsley, Lynette Brogdon, Victoria Maher, Siblings, Mark, Laird, Lorin and Lori Hatch, 24 grandchildren, and 16 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her infant brother, Craig Hatch. Visitation will be held on Thursday evening, July 14th, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, (Sunnyslope building), 8710 N. 3rd Ave. Funeral services will be held Friday, July 15th at 10 am with a viewing one hour prior at the church. Burial will follow at Resthaven Park Cemetery, 6450 W. Northern Ave. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her name to Barrow Neurological Foundation. 350 W. Thomas Rd. Phoenix, Az. 85013. Please visit www.hansenmortuary.com to send online condolences.
























Tuesday, July 19, 2011

OK!

So I know that I just posted a ton of stuff about our trip to Utah and Idaho but I really wanted to document it. Plus it's mostly just pictures and not a lot of words.  So it should be fairly quick to read and look at all the adorable pictures of Whitney and my family!  I love my family!  It was really fun for me to get out of the norm of daily life and have a vacation!  To bad it didn't last forever!  Ha ha.  Now the only thing I have to look forward to is Whitney's birthday, and after that, life will be the same.  Sometimes boring, sometimes busy, sometimes exciting!   Any way, I just really needed to get all those post done with before Whitney's big day...the big ONE!  I have been so busy getting every thing ready for her Luau.  It hope it turns out okay!  In other news Whitney has taken her first steps! She's not 'walking' every where but definitely getting closer!  Thomas has taken the Dental Admission's Test (DAT) for the second time and got a much better score that he is happy with.  Last time was a 19, this one was a 21.  He has applied to about 11 different schools and we should hopefully hear from them in a few months.  Then it's time for interviews! As for me, I'm keeping busy with this girl of mine!  Doing to usual daily tasks and weekly chores.  Studying up on feeding aversions.  Taking her to all sorts of different Dr.'s. And finding time to just sit and play with her! 




The other day my friend threw Whitney a little party (because she can't come to the Luau). She is so thoughtful and so nice! We always have fun hanging out with them!







Singing to Whitney...she felt safer in the car!






A Birthday cake for me!?







Having way to much fun playing in it!









My friend's mother in law got Whitney a huge Pooh Bear!  So thoughtful!  And Whitney loves it!















Also...Whitney got her bangs trimmed again!  They sure grow out fast! Pictures of her hair and hair cut. Here are some before, during, and after pictures! Enjoy!







Playing 20 Questions












Watching The Price is Right




It doesn't take long to trim her bangs but Whitney thinks it takes forever!  I think mostly she just doesn't like the apron :)










So pretty!





















Monday, July 18, 2011

Day 12 The End of Vacation

Our super fun trip has come to an end.  I hope you enjoyed leaving reality for a while.  I sure did!  It was another 11 hour drive back home.  And when we got out of the car were almost died in the Heat....not really though, but seriously a huge difference.  The funny thing is that Utahan's or Utahn's (apparently that's debatable)  think it's hot in Utah. We stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam and went into the Carl Hayden Visitor Center.  They had lots of Dinosaur stuff and even a book that I had been wanting to get Whitney for a while. Called That's Not My Dinosaur. So of course I bought it for her to have something new entertaining her car ride. All in all it went really well.

Whitney helping me pack.





We stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam









I wanna see!








All of us looking at the Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam








World's Greatest Grandparents!








And a fish!