Happy 1st Birthday!!!

It is hard to imagine that this journey began a year ago. Some days it seems like we just began and others it feels like forever. I am assured that God has been guiding us each step of the way! Our hearts are overjoyed at the progress Conner has made this year. What a blessing to see our sweet baby boy go from this:

To this:


Happy Birthday Sweet Baby Boy! We are so blessed to have you in our lives. So thankful God chose us to be your family. I pray that the plan He has for you won't be hindered by the humanity of your parents but enriched by the sheer miracle that you are! I am so proud to be your momma!

Quick Pic

Often I am overwhelmed at the amazing mercy God has shown to Conner and our family. Everything, every step, every problem and solution came directly from the will of our Father. I look at Conner's face now and I don't see his hemangioma, I only see a miracle. In just one short month Conner will be a year old and I don't want to forget to praise the Lord for all the goodness He has placed in our lives this past year. So many times, HE has stepped in and been the solution to the problem even before I had time to sort it out. Hope you are all well. Sending all our love!

Pictures!

This is Conner with Jackie right before leaving for Charleston!
The morning of the surgery...lil man was tuckered out!
Hamming it up for all the great nurses in the OR!
After surgery and still as cuddly as ever!
Leaving the OR for possibly the last time!!!

AMAZED!!!!

Can I just say that my heart is overflowing with joy? For those of you who haven't already heard....Conner is done with surgery for awhile. At his last surgery on July 8th, Dr. Hochman came in during pre-op and said that everything was looking so good that we could cancel the appointments for August, September, and just come in for an office visit in October! Praise God that is such an answer to our prayers. Conner is looking so good and the hemangioma has shrunk and is no longer a threat to his eye or his airway! Thank you Lord for all of your answered prayers!!!! Speaking of answered prayers I would like to repost a part of the very first post on this blog. It was our prayer list and I just wanted to show you how many of these have already been answered!


***There are several ways you can help us pray. Please pray specifically that:
A. Conner will be convicted and come to trust in Jesus at a young age. (Still praying for this one!)
B. God will use Conner's journey to bring others to HIM! (Family members that weren't even in church before this journey began have come to know our Saviour and His saving power!)
C. Conner will always wake up after his surgery. General anesthesia is a scary thing for mommy and daddy to understand! (Praise God after every surgery we anxiously waited for them to tell us Conner was awake and there was never even a scare...he always woke up with no side effects from the anesthesia!)
D. The doctors will guide us in making the right desicions for Conner regarding his medical care. (God led us to exactly the right place at the right time to help us make the correct desicions!)
E. Conner's ulcerations will heal and there will be no infection. The rate at which an infection would spread through his little body is alarming at best. (There was not any spread of infection! Conner is completely healthy! Glory to HIS name!!!!)
F. No matter the outcome, that our family and Conner will continue to know that God has and will continue to keep us SAFE THUS FAR!
(Our God IS able to do exceeding and abundantly above anything I could ever ask or imagine! Thank you Father for all of your guidance through this incredible journey!) **

:)

This is Conner about three hours after his surgery...Isn't he just adorable? We will be headed to Charleston on Wednesday with my bestie...Jackie! YAY! So thrilled to have the opportunity to spend time with her and let her hang with Conner! We spoke with Dr. Hochman's office this week and were able to schedule his surgeries from now until September. Conner's face is looking wonderful. It is just amazing to see how God is working in his life. I am convinced that God has a huge plan for Conner's life and is going to use him in a mighty way. As we celebrated Independence Day I was reminded that God has been our strength throughout this whole journey. He has protected us and blessed us. Just as He protects and blesses this great nation!

Still Blessed

We are battling some summer colds but I wanted to let everyone know Conner's last surgery went wonderfully! He had minimal swelling and we were able to come home quickly! I am so thankful for all of God's blessings in our lives. I will post pictures soon! :)

Growing Daily

So I have typed this post three different times and each time I have lost it to the internet at large. Apparently I am having a technically challenged week. LOL!

Conner is doing wonderful. His last surgery, although dramatic in appearance was a huge success and we are just thrilled with the progress. We went to Charleston late Wednesday night. Arrived at the hospital and the girls were ecstatic about seeing the hospital. Although they have been to Charleston with us this was the first time they actually got to go with us to the hospital. They were very well behaved and I was so proud!


Conner was taking back to preop and the nurses were just wonderful as always. I don't know how God saw fit to bless us with such a wonderful team. But I am so grateful for them all. And ofcourse Dr. Hochman came in to check on us...and to be honest there are just no words to share my feelings for the love and compassion of this man!



In recovery I noticed that Conner's face looked more tender than normal. But I was not prepared for what happened next. His face started swelling. ALOT! Within an hour his eye was almost completely swollen shut and within two hours he had a huge bulge underneath that eye. With a little reassurance from Dr. Hochmans' nurse Brooke (we love you Brooke!) and alot of reassurance from the VBF family advocate and my friend Corrine (thank you for all your support Corrine!) we opted to stay in Charleston for an extra night just to observe him. The hotel we were staying at was so sweet. They sent us to the SC aquarium for free and checked on us a ton. IF you are ever in the Charleston area please stay at the Hampton Inn. You won't get better service anywhere I promise!




Once we got home Conner spiked a fever. Thankfully it was unrelated to the surgery and was simply another ear infection. Poor baby! All in all despite alot of stress on me and Billy it was a wonderful trip and we are excited to see such a change in Conner's face.

Our daily prayer is of thanksgiving. We cannot thank God enough for sparing our son more damage to his eyes...not allowing the hemangioma to block his airway...and for sending us to the correct care provider at the right time. Please remember us as you pray. That our attitude will be right, and that we will remember to be thankful! Thanks again for all your love and prayers!