Another good week in the books.
Saturday our family went to a conference for
kids with IED’s (Gage’s pacemaker and defibrillator). We went to this same conference last year
and really enjoyed it. Last year we
thought that would be the last one we
would be invited to, boy were we wrong.
If Gage is still waiting next year, we will do it again. Anyway, it is
tailored for kids with activities, support group, a key note speaker, and even
a climbing wall. The first class was on
CPR. The kids had the option of going to
another fun virtual reality class but Gage wanted to stay with Mom and Dad and
learn CPR. So, with Gage sitting on our
lap, Stacy and I tearfully watched a video of how to do CPR on a child. I have never gotten emotional over learning
CPR. But this time it was focused on
Gage and his heart issues. If he went
into one of his irregular heart rhythms and his defibrillator/pacemaker didn’t
shock him back, we would have to do CPR.
We practiced on a manikin pushing down 2 inches at a rate of
100-120/minute, until we were comfortable with it. The thought of having to do that on Gage was
over whelming. Then to see Gage with all
the energy he could muster practice CPR on the same child manikin trying to
push the chest down… Anyway it was just
a real humbling experience for Stacy and I.
The rest of the day was much more fun. We went to the
Stanford athletic center (across the street) and climbed on the rock wall. Dr. Rosenthal (our doctor from the beginning)
was there and even took pictures of Gage working the rock wall. Stacy, Gage, Dr Rosenthal, and I made a pinky
promise to not tell Jenna (Gage’s HeartWare NP), it was a fun moment. Good to
see the lighter side of a doctor we have a ton of respect for.
The key note speaker was the mother of Isiah Austin. Isiah Austin was an elite 7 foot college
basketball player that only had one eye and a rare heart disease. Even with that he was set for the NBA draft,
but with last minute events, he was not able enter the NBA. It was a very inspiring story. The theme was, “we can make it our excuse, or we can make it our story”. It’s a great theme for all our kids.
Hunter had a good YMCA basketball game. I was glad to be there for that. At the very same time, Megan was playing her
game back home. So I was watching the
app ‘GameChanger’ to watch Megan’s game while watching Hunter.
Sierra is feeling the love of being a junior. She has plenty of homework, and college prep
activities. We didn’t realize how much
is involved in that kind of stuff.
That is it for now. Excited to see Megan and see how her life is going.
Pictures of everyone at the conference yesterday.
And the hair continues to grow.
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3 comments:
love the pictures of the boys by the water. I can almost see Hunter's temptation...
Always humbled when I read your blog. When I have a tough week or am frustrated, your blogs lifts me. 'What would the Bingham family do?' That's it: they do; they just keep doing, with hope, with love, with patience, with laughter, with reflection, with learning, they just keep doing.
Thank you for continuing to inspire us all! Im sure that it is beyond difficult to have a marriage hundreds of miles away from one another. But Im praying for you guys, and it is clear that God is the only way it works! I'm sure that being in "survival mode" is a constant because in one way or another, u guys have been waiting on "the call" multiple times over several years! I hope that the two of you (Jason & Stacy) get to have a date night once in awhile. Will continue to pray for Gage to get his new heart soon! Hugs to you all!
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