We had an absolutely wonderful day yesterday. Both Kyle and I took the day off because Cascade Regional Blood Services hosted a luncheon for the Federal Way Chamber of Commerce, and we were invited! CRBS was given some time to talk about how blood donations impact our community, and how it really saves lives. Blake wouldn’t be here today without the lifesaving open heart surgery that he had when he was 4 days old, and the blood that he received that made all of that possible. We are very grateful to Cascade for supplying our community with blood…you don’t really think about how important it is until you need it. The ironic thing about all of this is that you need to have a specific blood type to give for babies surgeries (ECMO BLOOD) You need to be O-NEG and on top of that, you also need to be CMV-NEG. Only 2 percent of the population has this blood type, and guess what… both Kyle and I are O-NEG/CMV-NEG. We now regularly donate at CRBS with their ECMO program. We are saving babies every 56 days, just like someone saved ours. We will always be grateful for them, and do whatever we can to support them, and help gain awareness for this amazing cause.
Here he is... 2 years later!
After the luncheon, we went down to Redondo… We absolutely LOVE it down there… I am going to live there someday when I win the lottery! Anyways, Blake did such a great job of behaving (thanks to Cari for bringing the Kindle Fire) that we promised him that he could go throw rocks at the beach. We didn’t have much room because the tide was in, but we made it all work J
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| CRBS Donor Event 2012 |
After the luncheon, we went down to Redondo… We absolutely LOVE it down there… I am going to live there someday when I win the lottery! Anyways, Blake did such a great job of behaving (thanks to Cari for bringing the Kindle Fire) that we promised him that he could go throw rocks at the beach. We didn’t have much room because the tide was in, but we made it all work J
VERY cool about the blood thing. My husband donates regularly at the Bellevue clinic. It's funny though, he has their number listed as "bloodsuckers" as a joke :) He is happy to do it though. I have tried to in the past, but have been anemic so they haven't let me. Then, after I got married I've either been pregnant or nursing the whole time so I haven't been able to! I'd like to try again someday, if I can make it work.
ReplyDeleteSo, quick question, did you know about Blake's condition before he was born or did you only find out at his birth? I can't imagine going through something like that, but obviously God really blessed you guys and now you have a big, handsome boy making your lives so wonderful! God is good! I'm sure He has big plans for Blake :)
Kayleen - We had no idea about Blake’s heart defect before he was born, and I almost think that it was better that way because I really enjoyed my pregnancy with him, and I never thought to worry about such things as a heart defect. Our world was turned upside down when he was born, they took him from me, transported him to Mary Bridge, I was left at St Francis, Kyle went with Blake and my parents stayed with me. Kyle even saw Blake Flat-line... it was so emotional and SO overwhelming, but today he is happy, healthy and doesn’t have any restrictions, you would never know that anything was ever wrong with him unless you saw his scar. I know more about the human heart then I ever thought possible, and we have such a great appreciation for his life. We took for granted that we were going to go to the hospital and come home with a healthy baby. You can do everything right, and still have something like this happen, and I think one of the hardest things was in the beginning I blamed myself, I thought that I must have done something wrong. Heart defects randomly effect 1 out of every 100 babies born for no reason...WAY more than I ever thought... We truly believe that God gave him a second chance to be part of something great, and every day we thank God for his life. He is truly a gift, and its true what they say... the harder it is, the stronger you become. I didn’t think that I could ever get through something like that, but I learned quickly that as a parent, you just figure it out, and you do whatever it is that you need to do in order to protect your child. Sorry, I have started rambling… Yay for your hubby donating Blood! It really makes a difference! Also, Baby boy #2 has been checked, and is completely heart healthy… we were over tested with this one, and all looks great!!
DeleteGreat post Jesica!!! Blake is such a handsome little man, and what a blessing..and to be honest whenever I see a Blood donating bus I think of him/you and Kyle, and how important it is to donate! :) Glad for Facebook and blogs to connect..unfortunatly I never would have thought of how important it was before. Thanks Blake for that adorable little face to remind me :)
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