Recent Photos

Snow Day

Happy New Year!

A Happy Thanksgiving

Here are a few Fall pictures and Jackson enjoying his turkey and dressing.

Jackson's First Birthday Party

Jackson enjoyed his first birthday party with family on Saturday September 15.

Happy Birthday Jackson!

Happy Birthday to You. We can't believe it has already been a year. Soon after waking up this morning, Jackson enjoyed his first cupcake and got his first taste of home maintenance with his own John Deere lawn mower. But tonight, he will leave all that work behind and wind down with a relaxing evening at Chuck E. Cheese.

Jackson's First Beach Trip

We took Jackson on his first beach trip last week. We traveled with Juliette's family to Cape San Blas, Florida. Jackson loved playing on the beach, sitting as the waves rolled over him, and eating the delicious Florida sand.

Some New Photos

While he's been rolling from stomach to back for a while, Jackson recently learned to roll the other way. Thus, he's starting to burn a lot of calories flinging himself all over the place! Here are some recent pictures of him.

Christmas 2006

Jackson's first Christmas. Lots of time with family and plenty of gifts.

First Thanksgiving

This was Jackson's first Thanksgiving. He seemed to enjoy the sweet potatoes the most. With both sides of the family there, he definitely had his fill of excitement and was worn out by the end of the day. Here are some of those pictures:

The Weigh-In

Jackson had a pediatrician visit today to get his monthly synagis shot which should protect him from RSV. He handled the shots very well. Also, he weighed in at 14 pounds 1 ounce. He's gaining weight pretty quickly but didn't seem to mind it much himself. Also, he slept a full night last night so we're hoping that keeps up.

Halloween Pictures

A few pictures of Jackson's first Halloween.

Cardiologist Appointment

Jackson met with his cardiologist again today. The news was good for the most part. During his last appointment, the doctor discovered that there was leakage between the two sides of his heart where a hole had been patched up (he was born with a Ventricular Septal Defect, a hole in his heart which was repaired). Though it's still leaking, it is leaking less than before. This is good news.

Unfortunately, there is another problem. Scar tissue formed around the area where they stitched his pulmonary artery to his heart. This scar tissue has tightened, causing that portion of his pulmonary artery to become smaller than the rest of the artery. For this reason, there is difference in the pressure on both sides of this spot, causing his heart to have small heart murmurs. This is actually a somewhat common consequence of the arterial switch surgery, though ideally it would not have happened. In its current state, it's not a major problem, but they'll have to continue watching it over the months and years to make sure the problem doesn't get worse. If it does, he will require surgery again, though not nearly as major as the first.

Overall, however, he is doing well. The infection in his incision seems to be improving, or at least not getting worse. And as evidence of his healthy appetite, he weighed in at 12 pounds 7 ounces today!! Their scales could be off but probably not by too much. I guess we'll have to stop giving him chocolate cake...

Another Hospital Visit

Jackson had to go to the hospital again today but was fortunately sent home. His incision began looking a little "angry" last night. It developed a red area full of pus. Dr. Bichell (his surgeon) looked it at and thinks it may be one of the sutures (holds the incision together after surgery) may be dissolving and creating the pus. We'll keep watching it, cleaning it, and hoping it clears up.

He'll have his next cardiologist appointment on Monday during which they'll check to see if one of the valves is still leaking.

Pictures!

Jackson's still doing pretty well. We've got another cardiologist appointment on Monday during which they'll check again to see if one of his valves is still leaking. However, he's acting like a healthy little boy so we're optimistic about his progress. I've put some pictures up to share. Click the image below to see them all. Hope you enjoy...

Jackson's Photo Album

Pediatric Appointment

We had our second pediatric checkup this morning. Jackson now weighs 10 pounds: he is in the 75th percentile for weight and 80th percentile for height. He appears to be growing at a normal baby's rate now. The doctor is very satisfied with Jackson's health and his post-surgery progress.

Checkup with Surgeon

We met with Jackson's pediatric cardiac surgeon today, Dr. David Bichell. He performed the arterial switch on September 18th. We received a great report. He said that Jackson's heart sounds good and that his incision is healing very well. In fact, he said that, from the improvement in his incision, it appears as though the surgery was months ago. This was great news since there were originally concerns about infections in the incision. That is the last time we'll ever have to meet with Dr. Bichell unless Jackson were to require surgery again in the future.

Good Echo Results

Jackson had his first checkup today with his cardiologist, Dr. Casilda Hermo-Weiler. She is the doctor who diagnosed Jackson quickly after delivery and has watched him throughout the past three weeks. Today, she performed an echocardiogram and was very satisfied with the results. There was a little leakage out of one of his arteries but that's typical after this surgery and she wasn't concerned. His lungs looked clear and there was no fluid buildup around either the lungs or the heart. Tomorrow morning we are meeting with Jackson's surgeon, Dr. David Bichell, who performed the arterial switch. Dr. Bichell will check Jackson to make sure that he's recovering well at this point.

First Pediatrician Visit

Jackson had his first visit to the pediatrician's office this morning. It's actually the same office (Green Hills Pediatric Clinic) where Juliette works as a nurse and where I went growing up. This was just an initial visit to weigh him and check out his basic vital signs. We received some great news: Jackon's weight is up to 9 pounds 10 ounces (2 ounces more than his birth weight) and he's grown another 1/2 inch to 23 inches. For cardiac babies, returning to birth weight is a big step. We were thrilled to see that he's eating well and that his body is recovering.

He's Home!

Jackson was discharged from Vanderbilt Hospital yesterday at 12:30 PM. He and Juliette arrived safely at home and he's now resting in his new room (when he's not crying relentlessly). It's a great feeling to have him home, although it was quickly obvious that life here will never be the same again. :)

Here's a picture of the new family coming into the house for the first time:



And a few of the little guy himself:

Preparing for Home

Jackson's incision is looking clear now, so the antibiotics have been doing their job. Thus, the doctors are beginning to talk about sending him home sometime soon. Juliette and I are going through different types of training (Infant CPR, wound cleaning, etc) so that, when the time comes, we're all ready to leave. Juliette is able to spend the days with him at the hospital and is glad to see that Jackson is feeding very well. He's eating almost three times what they want him to eat during each feeding period. That will greatly help his recovery and keep him getting stronger each day.

Juliette Recovering Well

Well, I must confess that it was difficult for me to even write or talk about Juliette's delivery for a while. However, now that she is recovering well, it's a little easier so I wanted to give you all an update on her too and let you know what she has gone through.

Juliette had an emergent C-Section. I was in the room with her and have never witnessed anything so brutal. Everything was going fine until they laid her down on the operating table. We believe that, at that moment, his head must have pressed against the umbilical chord. Whatever the cause, Jackson's heart rate dropped suddenly. That set everything on fire. Suddely people were screaming, metal instruments were hitting the ground, chairs were falling over. Jackson was stuck in multiple places and three doctors were hitting and pulling to force him out. Her body was tossed up, down, and sideways as I held onto her. She had to grip the table edges to keep her body on the operation table. We later discovered that, after the delivery was over, the doctors left the room and wept together it was so overwhelming for them.

Thanks goodness, Juliette is recovering well now. She's shown great strength through this and is already walking around all on her own (no wheelchair now). She even gets to hold Jackson and feed him at the hospital. It's wonderful to see the two of them, healthy, together again.

Jackson Update 15

Jackson's oxygen tube came out last night and he is now breathing on his own and maintaining healthy oxygen levels in his blood. This means that the surgery was successful and achieved exactly what we were wanting: that his heart can oxygenate his blood by routing it to the lungs and back to the body.

The infection seems to be getting better which is also a very good sign. The doctors plan to keep him on antibiotics for maybe another week. If that completely clears up the infection, they may start to talk about discharging him from the hospital. It will be a great day when he gets home.

Jackson Update 14

Jackson's incision appears to be clearing up, though slowly. Part of it is infected, but we're hoping that continued antibiotics will clean that up. Otherwise, he's doing well at this point. He is reguarly feeding out of a bottle and is gaining weight. After birth, his weight dropped as with many babies, but he also had to go a few days without food which increased his weight loss. Fortunately, he had some weight to lose and he's now back to 9 pounds 4 ounces. At this rate, they anticipate him to weight 50 pounds by October 13. (kidding)

Juliette is recovering well. She is walking around now with ease. By next Friday, she will be able to drive on her own which will make hospital visits easier. We have both spent the night at the hospital the past two nights (Friday and Saturday).

Jackson Update 13

Good news: Jackson was discharged from the Critical Care Unit late in the night and taken to a normal recovery room. The doctors are encouraged by his recovery and he even ate from a bottle. We'll begin spending the nights with him to help with feeding as enough tubes have been removed for us to hold him now.

His incision is still red and swollen. Fortunately, the area around his incision has somewhat cleared, but the doctors are still wanting to see the redness leave his incision. He still doesn't have a fever which is a good sign. If his incision does clear up, he should be in good shape to come home in a couple of weeks.

Jackson Update 12

Although Jackson is still in stable condition, we're a little disappointed with the news tonight. His incision is still red and swollen. They're concerned about it still being like this three days after surgery. Therefore, he'll end up staying in the hospital longer than originally planned. We don't know yet when he'll get out. This was the first setback (and disappointing news) after surgery: we're praying that his incision will clear up and that no infection will spread to his body. He doesn't have a fever, which is a good sign, and they're performing more tests to see if he might be getting sick.

They also tried to insert a new line today which was unsuccessful. They wanted to get a new catheter to his heart to help give him more antibiotics. They worked on him for about 5 hours total, so he's fairly bruised from all of the attempts. For now, they'll leave his old lines in to apply the antibiotics. But he is still doing well overall, which is a blessing. His heart is beating fine, his lungs are breathing well, and his other internal organs seem to be returning to normal.

Because he is stable, however, they are moving him out of the ICU. He'll be with other cardiac patients at Vanderbilt. Because he's not on 24/7 watch in his new room, Juliette and I will need to begin spending the nights in his room to help with feeding. Thus ends our nights of rest :) However, the most important thing is that he stays healthy and that no infections spread through his body.

Jackson Update 11: September 21

Jackson is still recovering well. They have removed a few more of his tubes and have discussed possibly moving him out of the ICU tomorrow. However, they are concerned that the chest area around his decision is quite red and hasn't responded well to any antibiotics yet. They'll continue to monitor that closely and have requested the surgeon come inspect it this afternoon. However, that is currently the only concern which is certainly better than what it could be. The doctors are optimistic by his recovery and how quickly he has come off of medicines (from 8 IV medicines yesterday to 3 today). As long as his incision clears up, he should continue recovering very well.

Jackson Update 10: September 20

Jackson is now improving very well. Today, they took him off of his ventilator and stopped giving him blood pressure medicine. Both of those changes are signs that his body is recovering well and getting back to its normal processes. They are slowly removing the various tubes and lines in his chest, arms, neck, and legs. Today, they removed one of the two large tubes coming out of his chest and a few of the other small lines. Incredibly, the doctors think the could be in a regular hospital room (not intensive care) sometime tomorrow.

A Week After Birth

It's been a week now since Jackson was born. This has been the most difficult week of both my life and Juliette's. In the midst of the fear and chaos, however, we've been absolutely amazed at the outpouring of support and love from people all around this country. As we begin to settle down for the recovery (still a long road ahead), we can start taking the time to thank all of you. I can not express how much your friendships have meant. We could not have made it through this past week without all of you around us.

To continue the good news, Jackson was taken off of the pacemaker this afternoon. Also, his kidneys are starting to function again (they shut themselves off during major surgery, thinking that the body has sustained a major injury). If he continues to progress at this rate, they may be able to take him off of the ventilator tomorrow.

Also, I'm able to share some pictures with you now. These were taken during the days between his two surgeries when he was most "tube and wire free."

Jackson Update 9: September 19

Well, praise the Lord, Jackson is doing well at the moment. He is responding just as the doctors expected at this stage after surgery. His heart has been running via an external pacemaker until his heart rhythm "re-synchs" itself. It appears that his heart is already doing this, so they may turn off the pacemaker today. His blood pressure is also a little low, but that typically happens about 12 hours after surgery so it was expected. Also, they were able to close his chest after surgery which is what we were hoping for.

He is actually looking pretty good too: better than I had expected. Although there are countless tubes and wires coming out of him, not to mention a very large scar running down his chest, his skin color is still normal and his eyes/face are not too swollen. He started to open his eyes a little bit today, but they'll make sure to keep him asleep so that he won't feel the pain from his surgery. Hopefully, today will be a relatively quiet day and he'll continue to recover.

Jackson Update 8: September 18

He's out of surgery! Jackson's surgery finished up after 6 hours and he is stable and recovering. The surgeons feel that the surgery went very well. They are watching a few of his coronary arteries in case they're too weak: that's a typical problem with these surgeries. They'll monitor Jackson closely for the next 12 hours as that's when most complications occur. However, he is certainly over the biggest hurdle and we're incredible relieved after this long day. The strong hand of God guided this day and we're so thankful for all the support we've received. We want to thank all of you for helping us through this time and praying for this boy. We'll keep you up to date over the next several days as Jackson recovers. Assuming everything goes well, he'll hopefully get to come home in 2 weeks. It will be a great day.

Jackson Update 7: September 18

Jackson has 30 minutes left on the bypass machine which runs his heart and lungs (as they stop his heart during this surgery). He is still in good condition. After this portion has completed, they will determine whether to seal his chest or leave it open while swelling and fluids around the heart subside (could be open a few days).

Jackson Update 6: September 18

As of 5:00 PM, the doctors had begun the bypass and were ready to begin the arterial switch. Jackson is doing fine.

Jackson Update 5: September 18

The doctors told us this afternoon that Jackson appears to be clear of any virus/infection. That is wonderful news as it keeps him in good condition for surgery. His fever has dropped and they believe it may have been high because he has begun to cry a lot (apparently, his old man was the same way as a baby).

Because they believe he's in good condition, the doctors decided to perform surgery on Jackson this afternoon. We just received a call that they made the incision 15 minutes ago (4:01 PM). The surgery takes around 5 hours so it will be a long time before he's out. Fortunately, the nurses call us each 1.5 hours with updates. Thus far, he's doing fine which is wonderful. We're so thankful that he was healthy going into this surgery. Thank you all for your support and prayers. I will provide updates on this page as the surgery/recovery progresses.

Jackson Update 4: September 18

Jackson's temperature is down this morning. He had reached 100.7 at 8:00 last night which had been the highest up until that point, implying he might be getting sicker. However, at 9:00 this morning he measured at 98.9. This is hopefully a sign that his fever is gone and there was real infection. We are still awaiting results on his cultures to determine whether or not he does have a virus/infection.

The doctors will not decide whether to perform surgery until this afternoon. Once they have gathered, they'll discuss Jackson's progress over the past few days, look at his latest cultures, and decide whether to continue or postpone the surgery. While we hope he is able to have surgery today, the most important thing is that he's in the best shape possible whenever he does undergo this surgery.

Jackson Update 3: September 17

While he is still in stable condition, Jackson has been running a fever for the past 24 hours. They are currently running lab tests to determine the source of this fever. If it turns out that Jackson has an infection, this would prevent him from having surgery tomorrow. Though this would be terribly disappointing news, it is extremely important that Jackson is in top condition when he goes into surgery. Surgery with pre-existing infection could be fatal.

If Jackson does have an infection, it will be difficult to know what the source was. While it's possible it came from someone, that has mostly been ruled out because his RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) test came back negative. That would have been the most likely candidate for a human-induced virus. It's very possible that Jackson may have contracted an infection from all of the tubes, needles, and plastic lines that he's had in his body this past week. That puts a lot of stress on the human body, particuarly for a baby. Once we receive the results from his blood culture, we'll know whether he has an infection and, consequently, whether he will have surgery tomorrow.

Also, I will have some pictures of him soon. I've hesitated to share any thus far because the site of a baby with tubes and IVs can easily scare people (I was fortunate to have visited the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit a few years ago where Juliette worked). However, he's had his tubes out for a few days so I'll get some pictures out in the next day or two.

Jackson Update 2: September 16

First of all, on behalf of Juliette and myself, I want to thank all of you for the overwhelming response of care and generosity you have made. We have truly been amazed at the outpouring of compassion from all of you. As I am constantly traveling back and forth between hospitals and doctors, I haven't yet had time to respond to your e-mails, but please know that they are greatly appreciated.

Juliette is doing better. It's been difficult on her because she hasn't been able to see Jackson since he left Centennial Hospital a few hours after birth. However, she left Centennial just this afternoon and has gotten to see Jackson for the first time, which is a blessing. She's still in a bit of pain, and moves around in a wheelchair, but she should be recovering well by this weekend.

Jackson is stable and is off of life support. He will undergo an arterial switch operation on Monday afternoon. During this type of open-heart surgery, the surgeons will switch his aorta and pulmonary artery that are currently in the wrong places. They will also rearrange his coronary arteries and patch two holes that he has inside his heart chambers.

Because he needs to be in the best physical condition for this surgery, he underwent another surgery last night. His heart was not getting oxygen into his blood on its own. Thus, they were giving him medicine that helped to do this, but the medicine was also causing fluid to collect in his lungs which could negatively impact his arterial switch. Therefore, the doctors perform a surgery known as a balloon septostomy (information here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balloon_septostomy). Using a catheter inserted into his leg, they popped a hole in the upper chamber of his heart which helps his heart to mix oxygen into the blood his body needs. As any surgery, particularly those affecting the heart, carries fatal risks, it was a scary time. However, we are thankful to say that the procedure was successful and he is doing great. He is now off of life-support, doesn't have to take any medicines to help him (and which had the negative side effects), and is breathing on his own. This was a temporary solution which will get him in better shape for his more critical surgery on Monday.

This weekend will be a time of rest for us as Jackson prepares physically for Monday, and Juliette and I prepare emotionally. However, it is a wonderful relief to have everyone stable and in the same hospital. Though the doctors might even decide to move Jackson out of intensive care (since he's doing better on his own), we still have to keep him somewhat quarantined before the surgery and for about 6 weeks afterwards (but some of that will be at home). I believe that some of you have asked about visitation. While we want to see each of you and thank you for your kindness, we've been informed by Jackson's surgeons that we must minimize interactions until the surgery. Even a small case of the common cold or allergies in us could be catastrophic to Jackson's system. However, we would love to have visitors after the surgery, so hopefully starting next Tuesday (if his surgery is performed on Monday as planned) we can visit with you, although Jackson must remain in isolation.

Thank you all again for your caring response, your thoughts, and your prayers. Though he has a long road ahead of him, Jackson has already survived some extremely difficult circumstances and should be in the best shape possible for his surgery next week. We appreciate all you've done and hope to send good news early next week.

This weekend will be a time of rest for us as Jackson prepares physically for Monday, and Juliette and I prepare emotionally. However, it is a wonderful relief to have everyone stable and in the same hospital. Though the doctors might even decide to move Jackson out of intensive care (since he's doing better on his own), we still have to keep him somewhat quarantined before the surgery and for about 6 weeks afterwards (but some of that will be at home). I believe that some of you have asked about visitation. While we want to see each of you and thank you for your kindness, we've been informed by Jackson's surgeons that we must minimize interactions until the surgery. Even a small case of the common cold or allergies in us could be catastrophic to Jackson's system. However, we would love to have visitors after the surgery, so hopefully starting next Tuesday (if his surgery is performed on Monday as planned) we can visit with you, although Jackson must remain in isolation.

Thank you all again for your caring response, your thoughts, and your prayers. Though he has a long road ahead of him, Jackson has already survived some extremely difficult circumstances and should be in the best shape possible for his surgery next week. We appreciate all you've done and hope to send good news early next week.

J.R.

Jackson Update 1: His First Day

Hello Friends and Family,

I wanted to let you all know that Jackson Fisher Allen was born on September 12 at 7:05 PM. He weighed 9.5 pounds and measured at 22.5 inches: quite a big fellow. Juliette was a real trooper and, after three hours of trying to push that big baby out, she decided to have a C-Section instead. She is now recovering from the operation and should released from Centenial Hospital late this week.

Jackson, however, is not doing well. He suffers from a congenital heart defect known as Transposition of the Great Arteries: a situation in which the aorta and pulmonary artery in his heart are reversed (there's more information at this website if you're interested - http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=11074). He also has a hole in his heart between the left and right ventricles. Transposition of the Great Arteries is typically not discovered in ultrasounds so we didn't know there would be problems until he quickly feel into bad shape during the emergent C-Section and had serious problems right after delivery. After being diagnosed, Jackson was transported to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital where he is now in stable condition and will remain for at least a few weeks.

If these are the only problems he has, Jackson will undergo arterial switch operation, sometime within the next week, in which surgeons will switch the pulmonary artery and the aorta. However, the doctors are waiting to perform another echocardiogram because there is the possibility that he has a weak pulmonary artery, in which case they don't yet have a solution. Please keep this little boy in your prayers as he has a very difficult few weeks ahead of him. Fortunately, he is a big strong baby and can pull through this. We will keep you all updated as the doctors learn more.

It's a Little Man!!

The ultrasound on Tuesday, April 25, revealed a healthy boy. And he's grown quite a bit since the last time we saw him! While I'm sure he wouldn't want us to post any of the "proof of gender" pictures, he did show off his biceps a little bit, which made for some good photos.

Amazingly, we were able to see everything about him: his arms, legs, bones, fingers, toes, heart, eyes, everything. And they all looked just great. God is good, the little man appears perfectly healthy, and now we begin the name game...