Easter/Spring Pictures

Below are some pictures we took for Easter/Spring down in my hometown of Rocky Gap, VA at my moms place.  :)  We love it down there and there's no place like home!



Help us fight the #1 birth defect!

Team Jacob is once again participating in the American Heart Association Start! Heart Walk.

Jacob R. and Jacob B.

These two boys were both born with a severe congenital heart defect. Jacob R. (Left) is missing the right side of his heart. Jacob B. (Right) is missing his left side of his heart. Together they are making a difference!

THE FACTS:

• Congenital Heart Defects are the #1 birth defect. Source: March of Dimes

• Congenital Heart Defects are the #1 cause of birth defect related deaths. Source: March of Dimes

• About 1 out of every 100 babies are born each year with some type of Congenital Heart Defect. (approx. 40,000/year) Source: Children’s Heart Foundation

• Nearly twice as many children die from Congenital Heart Defects in the United States each year as all forms of childhood cancers combined, yet funding for pediatric cancer research is five times higher than funding for CHD. Source: Children’s Heart Foundation

• This year approximately 4,000 babies will not live to see their first birthday because of Congenital Heart Defects. Source: Children’s Heart Foundation

• The cost for inpatient surgery to repair Congenital Heart Defects exceeds $2.2 billion a year. Source: Children’s Heart Foundation

• Of every dollar the government spends on medical funding only a fraction of a penny is directed toward Congenital Heart Defect research. Source: Children’s Heart Foundation

• Though research is ongoing, at least 35 defects have now been identified.

• 4-8% born with CHD have Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
• 4-10% born with CHD have Atrioventricular Septal Defects
• 8-11% born with CHD have Coarctation of the Aorta
• 9-14% born with CHD have Tetralogy of Fallot
• 10-11% born with CHD have Transposition of the Great Arteries
• 14-16% born with CHD have Ventricular Septal Defects

• Although some babies will be diagnosed during gestation or at birth, sometimes the diagnosis is not made until days, weeks, months, or even years after. In some cases, CHD is not detected until adolescence or adulthood. Source: March of Dimes

• It is a proven fact that the earlier CHD is detected and treated, it is more likely the affected child will survive and have less long term health complications. Source: March of Dimes



WHAT CAN YOU DO?


JOIN TEAM JACOB

Please help us make a difference. If you are local and you would like to walk with team Jacob you can do so by clicking here. When asked, select that you want to join a team and type in Team Jacob.

Event Info:
Where: WV State Capitol Grounds, Charleston
When: September 17th, 2011, 8am



DONATE

Our Goal this year is to raise $3000. Last year we raised $2,000 and we are starting much earlier this year. Please help us reach that goal.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Funding= Research. Research saves lives.

Please help us create a brighter future for both Jacobs and thousands of other children fighting heart disease.

Thank you!

So we have the all clear for visitors as long as they are NOT sick. Jacobs O2 level was 95, which is great considering it was 78-80 before the Fontan. His INR test came back normal, this test is to check to see how the coumadin is working.

On our way out of the office Jacob started doing his super hero pose in front of all the doctors and nurses! They were laughing so hard, they loved it!

Jacob still has to get blood-work every two weeks until the coumadin gets leveled out. After that it will be once a month. No rough housing for another two weeks, but normal boy play doest exclude rough housing. He just can't have anyone sitting on his chest.....duh or take any direct hard blows to the chest. Other than that he is good to go! Guess I need to start posting post-op at home updates now.

Thanks again to everyone for praying for our little super hero!

4-4-11 UPDATE FOR JACOB

Jacob has had a fantastic recovery, and even though it's been almost 6 weeks he still has a long way to go to be completely recovered.  We  have to make sure he doesn't have a direct blow to his chest and also make sure that he is not around anyone that is sick.  Yesterday we ventured outside again since it was so warm (I had a hoodie on him of course) and played some baseball, threw some frisbee and jumped on the trampoline believe it or not.  Below is a short video of the "triumphant jump".

We spent about 3 hours outside playing and he loved it!  We will be going back to Cincinnati on Wednesday (April 6th) for a post-op check up.  Hopefully we will get the all clear and he can go back and visit his buddies and the babysitters.  He really misses them.  Please continue to pray for Jacob as he still has a very long road ahead of him even though the surgeries are finished.  He will fight a life long battle with infection, weight gain, and if something goes wrong possibly another heart surgery which could be a heart transplant.  Right now though he has more energy than he knows what to do with!  Thank you all for the prayers and thoughts for Jacob and our family.

The Roths