Grace

Grace was not diagnosed in-utero, but within 24 hours of her birth she was life-flighted to Phoenix Children's Hospital. It was there that we learned of her CHD: Tetralogy of Fallot with Pulmonary Atresia and Ventricular Septal Defect.

Because Grace was a preemie (born at 31 weeks), we would have a very tenuous up-hill battle in front of us. At one month of age, Grace underwent the B-T shunt procedure. We spent 2 more months in the hospital post-surgery, and went home on oxygen, a pulse oximeter, an apnea monitor, and a request from her cardiologist for daily weights/oxygen saturations.

Because of Grace's long hospital stay, Grace has an oral aversion—at this point she will take nothing via bottle or nipple, and is fed solely through a G Tube. Two weeks post G-Tube surgery, Grace was seemingly under the weather. I immediately feared infection and brought her into the hospital. There, we were admitted, transferred to the PICU and waited 5 days to undergo a complete repair. The surgery took 10 hours, complete with multiple complications. In the end, a 12mm conduit was placed and the VSD closed using a patch with a small hole to allow for equal pressures.

Grace is our adopted daughter and is our tiny miracle! She's only 7 months now, but she's full of life, energy, and spirit and has overcome every obstacle placed in front of her. We are blessed to be a "Heart Mom and Dad", and have found that Grace teaches us more than we could ever dream of teaching her.