Cardiology

If you "like" me on Facebook, you know that Roo has a big month of appointments this December. Today we kicked it off with a trip to the cardiologist.

And again, if you follow me on Facebook, you know that this morning did not get off to a good start. In fact, my morning began with Lamb crying that she didn't want to go to school because of two separate "playground dramas" that came up yesterday. (And I have to say, nothing makes my head want to explode like 7-year-old drama.) And then Mr. Fantastic and I had a bit of a fight, the kind that couldhave easily been resolved by an intelligent discussion, but I was too busy being stubborn and defensive to actually talk about it. And Roo wouldn't eat anything for breakfast and I was trying to get everyone to school on time and we have a really busy evening and I was trying to figure out a plan for dinner and determine what errands still needed to be run before tonight and... sigh. It was stressful.

Finally, I had the big kids on the bus, Roo in the van, and I was running out the door in any attempt to do some of my errands before the (9:30) appointment, when Mr. Fantastic called... to remind me that all of the carpets in the house were getting cleaned this morning! I honestly thought I was going to throw up! So I grabbed Roo, put him in his crib, and RAN through the house, picking up the toys and other small items on the floor and THROWING them onto beds, couches, whatever to get them out of the way. It was a mad dash, and I am thankful that no one has that on tape.

I tell you all that just to say... My heart & mind weren't really where I wanted them to be in preparing for this doctor's visit when I left my house this morning. Fortunately, I got about 20 minutes of Quality Jesus Time in during the drive to the hospital, and that was extremely helpful. We didn't get to run any early errands, but we DID get to the appointment on time, and I was much calmer when we got there.

As for the visit itself, it went very well. In fact, we were out of there in less than 30 minutes! (Our cardiology appointments are normally about 2 hours.) We have seen a lot of doctors with Roo, and I have to say, I LOVE our cardiologist. We only see him annually, so I know that he doesn't remember us from appointment to appointment, but he is always professional but kind, talks to Roo, he's PREPARED and AWARE of Roo's chart/history before he comes in, he asks pertinent and intelligent questions, and explains things thoroughly without being condescending. And he's very considerate of our time and sanity levels. Does it get any better than that?

ANYWAY, after he went over Roo's history with me a bit (he has an Atrial Septal Defect, and Ventricular Septal Defect, and a cleft mitral valve), he listened to his heart for quite a while with the stethoscope. And because his defects are minor, and because he needs to be a little bit older (about 5 years old) before they can do any repairs anyway... AND because getting him to lay on a table for an echocardiogram would likely be a disaster... he recommended that we wait until next year for another echo. I was THRILLED. Mr. Fantastic and I were just talking this morning about whether or not the echo was even necessary, and it was great to hear it confirmed from the doctor without my having to ask.

So I don't feel like I have any major updates, but all in all it was a good appointment. Roo's heart issues are still present but minor, and we'll head back to cardiology in a year. Now we can just enjoy our ultra-busy weekend, and prepare for our first "transition planning" meeting with the school district on Monday morning.

Have a great weekend!