Our Growing Family

2017 continued.....

GWEN

We have had a lot of challenges with Gwen since my last post (we'll get to that later), but we've had a few enjoyable moments as well.  Miss Cassie, Gwen and I tried out some charcoal facemasks (which did nothing).  Maren loves to interrupt Gwen's speech therapy especially when Gwen should be working on her iPad. Gwen loves to swing, dress-up (this was national cupcake day), chill with her cousin Kenzie, and chew on bacon (it's just a baby chewy)!

QUINTEN

Quinten is doing very well in school.  His favorite subject is recess, he is learning to read (but he prefers being read to), his mind races a mile a minute and he enjoys staying busy...but through it all he remains our sweet sensitive boy!

MAREN

Maren is still a diva, a daddy's girl, a tease, a jokester, and most recent a nurturer.  She loves to play "mommy" feeding her babies, rocking her babies, and walking her babies (high heels and pantless of course)! 

LOGEN

September 12th at 6:24am, Logen James McDonald was born via c-section weighing 6lb, 15oz., 19 inches long, and a GIANT "L" on his forehead! Let it be known, we had picked out the name Logen no matter the gender....this just solidified it!

OCTOBER

Having four children keeps us very busy and I don't want Quinten and Gwen to feel lost in the mix, so Miss Cassie and I took them to the Arizona Science Center for a fun afternoon.  Halloween snuck up on me and my imagination failed miserably and the kids just got store bought costumes this year. Wah wah wahhhhhhhh :(

NOVEMBER

We planned a very spontaneous weekend trip to Houston, Texas to visit Jesse's brother Jon, his wife Chandra and new niece Lilly!  The flights to and from were horrible thanks to a screaming toddler with an ear infection, but our time on land was very fun!

Jesse's company sponsored "THE BIG DIG", a family event for families in construction to see and do all things construction!  Hey Gwen, don't get squished by the giant tire!

We enjoyed our beautiful Arizona weather and drove south to Rooster Coburn's Ostrich Ranch with our family and Uncle Kevin's family.  It's so nice for us to do things that Gwen can also enjoy, like feeding birds, goats, ostriches, and riding in a really big accessible MONSTER TRUCK!!  We learned everything there is to know about ostriches and the kids had a blast!

DECEMBER

Quinten was so proud to share his first handwritten Christmas list with Santa!

Santa also made a special visit to our house ;)

   

JANUARY

Besides the birth of Logen, 2017 was a very difficult year for our family.  Gwen had major back surgery in February and Grandma Linda passed away in March.  From May thru December Gwen kept us up screaming all hours of the night.  We initially thought her discomfort stemmed from the wound opening on her back, but after that surgery (June)...nothing improved.  I kept a running log of her medications, her moods, and her sleep for months.  After countless visits to doctors, specialists, and numerous rounds of antibiotics, our pediatrician concluded Gwen was suffering from recurrent sinus infections.  On December 1st (via CT scan), we learned that Gwen's right maxillary sinus was completely occluded.  There was no option for us other than surgery (January 2nd) to clean out and drain the area.  Unfortunately, along with this surgery came weeks of bloody noses. 

About two weeks post sinus surgery, Gwen seemed to be feeling much better so we celebrated Papa and Gwen's (9th) birthdays together.  The local siblings and spouses took Papa to an Escape Room and we played a live action game where we all dressed up as characters in the game trying to figure out "Who Shot the Sheriff". Then we came back and enjoyed cake with everyone!

 

(Of course) Nothing ever goes smooth with Gwen and her irritability sparked back up again.  This time I felt a "bump" on Gwen's left lower back.  One the brackets holding the screw to her pelvis had slowly sloughed off over the past year and was nearly piercing through her skin!  

On the day of surgery (January 18th) we finally got some smiles as Gwen's always happy to see her favorite Great Uncle Dave!

    

LEFT PICTURE: The left side x-ray (April 2017) shows the lower left bracket centered in the screw and the right side x-ray (January 2018) shows that same bracket fallen off the screw.  

RIGHT PICTURE: Her post surgery incision. 

 

Fast forward four days (January 22nd) and we were admitted back to the hospital for three days for fever, not having a bowel movement for 8 days due to the narcotics and surgery, another sinus infection, and a respiratory virus she had contracted from Lord knows where!  

So far 2018 has been miserable!!!  We are hopeful to have happy Gwen back and healthy soon!

Many Blessings

8 weeks ago Jesse and I held eachother's hands, took a deep breath, and walked back through the very same doors where our lives were forever changed three and a half years ago. To avoid any complications with this birth, my doctor monitored this baby diligently with ultrasounds and stress tests weekly for 8 weeks prior to my delivery.  Though the baby and I had passed each test with flying colors, part of me still anticipated the worst.  Thank goodness Jesse was there to ease my mind with his cheesy poses in his "exterminator scrubs"!

             

Around 10:30 AM I was wheeled into surgery while Jesse waited outside the door.  As the anesthesiologist was prepping my back for the spinal block, the nurses were talking about the latest entertainment gossip, the doctors chattered about their poorly played golf games, and I was about to have a Panic Attack!  As the needle entered my spine, a rush of emotion flooded over me and I began to have flashback's of Gwen's delivery.  I started sobbing profusely and I could barely catch my breath.  I yelled out for someone to hold my hands and two nurses came to the rescue, one for each hand.  Jesse entered the room, sat by my side, and pretty soon we were about to meet our new baby!

   

After only two days of recovery, my doctor asked if we were ready to go home, and without hesitation we said YES!

If you read back a few blogs, Gwen had a trial stay at Ryan House.  We knew this would be our best option for Gwen's care, so we signed her up for 6 days at "camp".  I didn't want her to feel alone or abandoned so I made sure she had plenty of visitors!  The staff had such a good time with Gwen, they gave Gwen her very first manicure and pedicure....and she loved all of the attention!

Have you ever met SUPERMAN? I know him pretty well ;)  His name is Jesse McDonald and I'd be happy to introduce you anytime! While Gwen was back at preschool and I was at home healing and learning how to breastfeed, Jesse was renovating our new home!  That's right, I said NEW HOME (well, new to us)!  Not only did we have a baby August 6th, we also closed on our new house the same day!  With only three weeks to move out our rental and lack of sleep from having a newborn,  Jesse spent most of his two weeks off of work at the new house ripping up old carpet, tearing out overgrown landscaping, and moving all of our furniture!

Thank you to all of our visitors, to those that helped with Gwen, to everyone who helped with the move, and for all of the scrumptious meals!

Quinten has been a wonderful blessing to our family and this experience has been very healing.  He is now 8 weeks old, 12 pounds, an avid eater, and a good sleeper.  Quite frankly we couldn't ask for a better baby!

Brosis Revealed!

Quinten Thomas McDonald

August 06, 2012 

11:10 A.M.

8 lbs., 4 oz.

21 inches

What's It Going To Be?

7 More Days Until Brosis Reveals Himself/Herself!

38 Weeks Pregnant with Gwen

38 Weeks Pregnant with Brosis

Gwen's Arrival

I am sorry if you have already seen this post.  The formatting got all screwy, so I had to delete and re-post again.

WARNING:  Grab a cup of coffee (and maybe some kleenex)...this is going to be a long one!
May 18, 2008 ~ Jesse and I found out we were having a baby!

            

Over the next 40 weeks, I went from this.....to THIS!! 

January 17, 2009 ~ Little did we know our world was about to change forever.

Jesse and I woke up knowing today was the day we were going to meet our little girl!  Like any first time parents we were excited, nervous, terrified, you name it, we were feeling every emotion! We arrived at the hospital at 11:00 am.  I was taken into my own private room and hooked up to all the monitors to monitor both the baby and I.  After a few minutes, the nurse had a look of concern on her face and informed us that the baby's heart rate was dropping with every contraction.  Honestly, Jesse and I didn't think much of it until my doctor came out of nowhere.  Panic washed through the room and at 11:30 am  I was admitted for an emergency cesarean. 

Gwen Marie McDonald was born at 1:01 pm.  She weighed 7 pounds, 5 ounces and measured 19.5 inches.  Most parents anticipate their baby's first cry......we had silence.  A breathing tube was inserted immediately and Gwen and Jesse were whisked away to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). To this day, I remember both my doctor and the assisting doctor coming into my recovery room, heads hung low, "I'm so sorry....I'm so sorry".  Soon we would learn exactly what had happened.

I had experienced a healthy, uneventful, full term pregnancy, but it was the last few hours that changed everything.  I had suffered a "silent" placenta abruption (when the placental lining has separated from the uterus of the mother),  causing Gwen to lose blood.  Also, due to a prolapsed cord (when the umbilical cord precedes the fetus' exit from the uterus), oxygen was being cut off to Gwen every time I had a contraction.  I felt at this point, that my body had failed.  Things were so "perfect",  how could this have happened?

That evening Gwen fought the fight of her life. The doctors decided it would be best to place Gwen into an induced coma to minimize any pain.  She had a blood transfusion, but her blood would not clot, so they gave her platelets.   Her blood pressure was skyrocketing from the meconium (stool) she had swallowed causing chemical pneumonia.  She was placed on an oscillator pumping 400 breaths per minute into her lungs and given nitric oxide to adhere and help the oxygen molecules travel throughout her body.  Due to the trauma experienced during birth, Gwen's entire body swelled doubling in size.  As if this was not enough, Gwen started seizing.


The following morning, Jesse left to go to mass to get some relief.  The head NICU nurse came to my recovery room and told me that if we wanted to have an emergency baptism, now was the time.  I called Jesse and told him to return immediately.  I couldn't believe this was happening.....the baby books do not prepare you for something like this.

We headed up to the NICU and the neurologist was in the process of monitoring Gwen's brain activity via an EEG.  The EEG showed that in 45 minutes Gwen had 4 seizures. The neurologist  loaded Gwen with anti-seizure medicines in hopes to minimize any further brain damage.

Surrounded by my parents, Jesse's parents, Gwen's godfather Uncle Jon, and our parish priest we baptized Gwen.

Gwen's will to live amazed everyone, including those pessimistic doctors.

One long week passed and we were finally able to hold our baby!  The breathing tube was eventually removed and Gwen was placed on nasal prong oxygen.  The doctors started feeding Gwen through a nasal feeding tube and she even nibbled on a pacifier a few times. Gwen opened her eyes for the first time and she moved up to a "Big Girl Bed"! Oh and can't forget to mention, the Arizona Cardinals went to the Super Bowl....too bad they lost.

Gwen grew stronger and stronger every day and eventually began breathing room air!  Things were starting to look on the up and up and then Gwen contracted MRSA (a contagious form of staph infection) in her eye and we were moved to a quarantined unit.  This poor little girl.  In 3 weeks she had experienced more than some people experience in an entire lifetime.

We tried nursing and feeding Gwen on multiple occasions, but Gwen's suck swallow pattern wasn't coordinated and she was aspirating the milk into her lungs.  To avoid getting pneumonia, the doctors convinced Jesse and I to go with a G-Tube (a feeding tube that goes directly into the stomach).  Being this was our first child, and of course doctors "know what's best", we listened to them and went ahead with the surgery.  If we knew then what we knew now, we wouldn't have given into the surgery and we would have given Gwen the opportunity to work on her suck swallow coordination.  However, maybe this surgery was inevitable and she needed it regardless.

After multiple CT Scans and MRI's, the damage to Gwen's brain was significant.  Doctors told us a majority of the injuries sustained will affect her future motor skills.  Each individual with Cerebral Palsy - CP - (an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement) is different. Will Gwen crawl? Will Gwen sit?  Will Gwen walk? Will Gwen talk?  Unfortunately no one can tell us.  Time, and above all else, Love will be the determining factors. 

Though our 5 week stay in the NICU was short compared to some families, it was nice to finally bring Gwen home and move on with our lives.

Here we are almost 3 years later and we are still so grateful for all the love and support that got us through one of the darkest times of our lives.  For everyone who visited from near and far, for the precious gifts, for everyone who brought us meals, for those who so graciously and unnecessarily gave to help us cover medical expenses....we are blessed to know you and we thank you.