Happy 16th Birthday Catherine Therese!!

Although you'll never read this my sweet Catherine, I love you. 16 years ago you changed our life forever. All of your siblings have done this in their own way but you have done so in a very special way. You have made me more empathetic, compassionate, and much more prayerful. Your smile lights up the world around you and we are all blessed by it.  It's not easy living with a saint. You remind me of my weakness and limited time on this earth. You challenge me to go deeper within myself and find what the Lord is trying to teach me...usually patience. You are made in His image and likeness but He uses you so that I can see my own beauty, goodness, and shortcomings.  You struggle mightily against me with every bath, diaper change, and wardrobe change. I struggle mightily with Him against all the changes He wills in my life. You depend on me and your mom for even the simplest of things. You teach me to depend on Him for everything and not rely on my on strength. You teach me that I

Some Good News

Yesterday, Thursday April 10th, we visited Nationwide Children's Hospital and met with a nurse who showed us where Catherine would be, where the surgery would take place etc. After this meeting we went for an echo cardiogram for Catherine. All of the findings were normal. Good, strong, normal heartbeat. Technology is simply amazing. Nicole and I watched in silence as the nurse did her thing and examined her heart from every possible angle.

To me, this was amazing to watch. Like watching a video or computer screen I sat in awe of my little girl's heart just beating away. We laughed when she had the hick-ups and kept squirming all over the place. Her heart looked just like I imagined it would with all of it valves and chambers but I was blown away when the doctor told us that her heart is the size of a grape! Yes! We are fearfully and wonderfully made.

More good news...she was still, and has been head down. Let's pray she stays that way!

Thanks for the prayers and please keep them up!

P.S. Please pray for Nicole as she is on retreat this weekend. Hey, wait, pray for me too here with four wild boys!!!

Comments

Sarah Reinhard said…
Praying and praying.

What a beautiful post. We had a 4-D ultrasound with Baby2, and it gives me shivers to think of it. We thought we had some complications, and though it turned out to be nothing, I will always remember that amazing mind-boggling looking-inside-my-womb feeling of the 4-D ultrasound. It was all I could do not to cry.

I can't wait to meet Catherine in person. (And even as I type that, I realize how silly it is - *I* feel that way, I can just imagine how YOU must feel about the cascades of pink that are about to come your way...)

Hugs to y'all, and some complimentary baby drool,
Sarah