A Bear-Sized Heart

The Bear went for her annual physical a couple weeks ago, and because she is so active, the doc suggested she get an EKG. The EKG showed a slight abnormality, so the recommended an echo cardiograph to get a better look.

We got the echo back on Thursday night, and it turns out Bear has a "hole" in her heart. The medical term for this "hole" is an atrial septum defect. Apparently it's not that uncommon, about 25% of people are born with it, but for most folks it closes by the time they are 3. Also, supposedly, it's not something that will affect her as a youth. Unfortunately, as she gets older, it is something that could affect her health. Complications can be things such as high blood pressure, heart failure and stroke.

Depending on the size of the hole, and we believe it's tiny, she will need a surgery. The hope is that it is surgery where they insert something through a catheter, as opposed to open heart surgery. We need to meet with a specialist to determine our next step. Hopefully she will give us good news.

We've been so blessed with all of our children's health over the years, I am thankful for that. The thought of Bear having to go through some sort of surgery on her heart is just terrifying for me. Sure, it's "simple" surgery, but it's still surgery on her heart. I'm not sure how well I'd hold up in the hospital while it was going on.

I'm praying that the specialist says it's so small there is no need for surgery, and that it won't affect her down the road. If not, I'm praying that it can be fixed without complications. She has such a big, wonderful heart, that is so full of love, like I said the day I created this blog. She is full of heart in so many ways. The way she loves the people in her family. The way she watches over her little brother - sure she bugs him and he bugs her, but she's always there for him. The way she stands up for her friends, even when they are difficult to love sometimes. The way she plays sports, never giving up, never backing down no matter the challenge. Heart - it's Bear's best quality, and I'm praying, that the strength of her heart gets her through this bump in the road.

Braces!

After about 8 months of wearing a retainer, O went in for her braces on Wednesday. She was so excited when the process started. but after a couple months of wearing the retainer, the enthusiasm wore off. I told her that the braces are actually easier to wear, at least I thought so when I had them.

She went back with the orthodontist, spent about an hour back there, and came back looking like this - she looks beautiful with them!!

It looks like we've got 18 months to two years wearing them, says the orthodontist. Hopefully if all goes well she'll have them off by the time she hits high school. She's adapted well in these first few days, chopping things up real small, not chewing any gum or candy. As usual, she's doing a good job with the task assigned.

It's kind of strange to look at her and see them, but I guess after two years of wearing them it will be strange to see her without them. It will be interesting to see the smile when they do come off though!

Another step forward in life, woo hoo!!

Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day to me!! My beautiful family and I went to the beach this morning, had a little lunch and came home. We are about to sit down to dinner (ribs from the grill!), and we will probably read a little before bed. It's been a nice relaxing day, and spending time with my family is my favorite thing in life.

I want to say thanks to my Dad. I think about all the things I did with my Dad over the years as a kid, and think about what a wonderful time I had with him. Ballgames, coaching me, playing catch, going to the beach, running, trips all over the country, walks in the snow in Buffalo, playing golf, you name it. As a grown up we've done many of those things too, and I've enjoyed them just as much.

He has been such a great role model for me, I hope I can be the same to my kids. Today O asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, if I wasn't going to be a major league baseball player. It was a question that requires a very fatherly answer. I didn't really know how to answer, eventually settling on saying that I really didn't know what I wanted to be until I was already through college. I kinda of fumbled around, saying if I was 18 years old again I may have done this or that differently, but that changing things at this point would require too much upheaval for the rest of the family.

Then I remembered what it was I really wanted to be when I grew up. A Dad. From the time I was in college, I wanted a family, probably even before then. I wanted to have kids of my own, to help guide, to tutor, to love. I can only think that's because I had such a wonderful Dad, and I wanted to replicate that experience. I told O that being a Dad was what I wanted to be, and I couldn't be any happier than I am, blessed with the family and kids that I have.

(and if you are reading this Mom, you sure are a big part of why I wanted to be a parent :) love ya!!

Things I Wouldn't Understand

The Tornado is one smart dude. He's only going into kindergarten, and he can read on his own pretty well, he can do double digit addition and subtraction in his head, and he has a sense for other things too, instinctual things.

For example, we are walking down the sidewalk the other day, and he says "you know what would happen if you didn't have any toes...you wouldn't have any balance." He starts curling his toes and stumbling around. How does a 5 year old figure that out? What makes him think about something like that? Maybe I'm just amazed because he's my son, and that's not that unusual, but that's a curious mind at work. Powerful and awesome to watch and listen to.

However, sometimes it can be pretty darn frustrating. We are standing on the green the other day, before the start of golf camp, and I'm trying to show him how to putt. He tries "my way", and misses, and gives me a "see?". Then he putts a ball "his way", knocks it in, and starts off on a rant about how I'm trying to get him to fail!! Really? That's what I'm here to do - set you up to fail?

After golf camp I was asking him how it went, what they did, the normal debriefing questions. He tells me they learned about golf, some of the rules, and things like that. I asked what kinds of rules or things and he responds,"things you wouldn't understand". I assured him that I was pretty knowledgeable about golf related matters, so he "tested" me with some questions. To his shock and amazement, I got all his questions right. He gave me a wry smile, like the one in this picture, and we walked over to the creek next to the parking lot.

We took a couple pieces of bread over, sat down on the edge and fed the fish, turtles, minnows, ducks and ibis. The Tornado was tossing the bread, and watching intently as the various animals stalked the sinking morsels. He was asking me questions about the different wildlife, once again curious as to why things are the way the are. That made me feel good, as I guess there are some things I understand :)

Summer Has Started

I've been looking forward to the summer for about a month. It was an emotional year in school, everyone was involved in lots of stuff, and I was looking for getting a little break from all the activities.

It's kind of fun to let the kids stay up a little later, we watched the first halves of the Finals together this year, before they crashed each night. The CEO watched a movie with them all last night, well past bedtime, which was nice for all of them.

Amazingly, they still get up at 7am each day, and are ready to roll, but that's fine too. I just like having them around.

The Tornado is in golf camp this week, his first summer camp, and he's having a ton of fun. They are "hitting bombs" with their 7 irons, riding around the whole course in the golf cart, and learning about golf. Today he told me that he learned some things that "I wouldn't understand". I told him I'm pretty knowledgeable about golf, try me, so he quizzed me about bunkers and divots and the like. I also asked him if the teachers help him much, and he said no, they only help the kids who don't know what they are doing! Love the confidence.

We've had a nice start to the summer, and I'm looking forward to enjoying it with the gang.

End of the Year

I picked up the kids after the last day of school yesterday, and everyone seemed a little sad that the year had ended. O got in her seat, sighed, and said "Well, what a great school year". I laughed, she asked why I was laughing, and I explained that it seemed like she had a couple rough days along the way. She agreed that she struggled in spots, but as she said "not every day can be perfect, but overall it was great".

I learned a lot this year from the kids. They are so good at being able to adjust, adapt and deal with things being thrown at them. Learning how to handle disputes with friends, accepting responsibility, managing expectations...all of these things can be difficult. They all had to do these things throughout the year, as most people do, and I couldn't be more proud of how they came through.

Both the girls got straight A's all year long. They both won an art contest with beautiful pieces of work. They served their communities in various ways, including their church. They played basketball and were both leaders for their teams. They are loyal friends, and wonderful young ladies and it's a pleasure to be their Dad!

As for the Tornado, we've covered some of his rough patches this year. But he adapted too, and did it with a smile. He made some great friends, learned some excellent math skills, and now knows how to read. He's prepared himself well for kindergarten, and he is excited to take on the challenge. I'm proud of how he went out into the world this year, took his lumps and came out on top!

As I've been struggling with some of the changes in my life, part of getting older, I am reminded to look at the kids and how they handle the changes in their life. Sure, some of it stinks, but don't dwell on that stuff. Enjoy all the good stuff that is present every day. That's what my kids do, and I'll try to follow their example.

Now on to summer!!