Still no answers

We still don't have any answers or diagnosis. Carter underwent a cardiac cath on Wednesday. The cath showed that his Mitral Valve is allowing blood to backflow into his left atrium. This is causing increased pressure in his atrium and poor oxygenization of his lower extremities. From all they could see, his heart looked normal and they could not find any cause for the leakage in the valve. So, yesterday he had a transesopageal echo. This was a procedure to take a closer look at his mitral valve to see what was causing the valve to leak. The good news is that his valve is structurally sound they saw no defects. What they did see was that the valve is not shutting or sealing off properly. What they didn't see was any cause for that. They were able to rule out a lot of possible causes but have yet to find anything that could cause it. As our neonatologist has said, his condition is rare and has everyone really looking at everything inside and outside the norm that could cause his problems. Although he does not have a lot of the classic symptoms associated with myocarditis, they decided that the treatment was benign and so last night he was started on IVIG and steroids. On Monday, they will repeat another Echo to see if the drugs have helped at all. We are praying with all our might that is helping. Unfortunately, after the cath he has remained on the ventilator. Not becuase he is unable to come off and breathe on his own, but they want to give his heart a rest and not stress it out as much. This has been difficult for Matt and I. We want what is best for him, but it is very hard to see your little precious one on a breathing machine and with all the IVs. So for now it is a waiting game. Our doctors are doing there best to try to figure out the problem. Matt and I are just taking it day by day.
Matt, myself and our families are very thankful for all the prayers that you all are offering up for our sweet boy! We are hopeful that they will find out what is wrong with Carter and we will all be home as a family soon.
My friend Meredith sent me a quote that we found inspiring and so I thought I would share it. "Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God"

The first meeting

Proud big Sister in her big sister outfit
Giving Carter kisses
So happy to see baby brother for the first time
Sharing the baby with mommy
Holding Carter


Before Carter was transferred to the NICU, Ella Catherine was allowed to come visit and meet her new baby brother. As expected, she loved him! She wanted to kiss him and hold him. She calls him "my baby". The meeting went very well and I am so glad that she got to see him. She asks if we are going to see Carter when we leave the house for the hospital. She has gotten a little upset at times that she can't go with us (they only allow siblings 4 and older), but she always kisses his picture and asks God to fix him so he can come home. We are all praying for that. I thought I'd post a few pictures of the event.

James Carter Lynch

Proud parents!
The Nurses and doctors that helped bring James Carter into the world

Big Boy! 9lbs 1oz and 21 1/4 inches long.

Carter has arrived, he made his entrance into the world on May 20, 2009 at 1:16pm. He weighted 9.1 lbs and 21 1/4 inches. Mother is doing well and looks amazing, she has made a great recovery from giving birth just 72 hours ago. Carter is battling a little condition right now with his heart and lungs, without getting too techinical a flap that all babies are born with did not close properly after birth. The condition is causing lower amounts of oxygen to travel to his lower half of his body and adding more pressure to his heart. The doctors are trying to treat him the best they can but progress is slow at this point.

We will continue to post as we know more information.

Mother's Day

Family picture before church
Ella Catherine waiting patiently to be able to pick a flower
Beth, Ella Catherine and myself. A quick picture before Beth had to leave to head back to Wake Forest.
Playing with "My Bef"

We had to say good bye to Beth, AKA"My Bef", this past Sunday. She was in Nashville completing her last clinical rotation for PA school. She graduates this upcoming Monday, May 18th and we are very proud of her. She stayed with us for 4 weeks and Ella Catherine became quite attached to her and enjoyed having an extra adult to play with. We were sad to see her go, but are hopeful she will find a job in Nashville and be back soon.

We had a great family day on Mother's day and enjoyed the pretty day, it was the first day that it hadn't rained in what seemed like forever! My mother, Nana, came into town to help us get ready for baby lynch #2 and to be here to watch Ella Catherine in case I go into labor in the middle of the night.

Update for Baby #2, I went to the doctor this morning and things are progressing slowly, but progressing. We have set an eviction date for May 22. So, if the baby does not come before the 22nd, we will be admitted and I will be induced next Friday May 22nd. Stay tuned for updates on that situation.

Happy Birthday Matt

Yesterday was Matt's Birthday. I think his day started off very well, it began with Ella Catherine singing him happy birthday. Then, we had a great breakfast of his favorite breakfast casserole. Unfortunately, we both had to work and so that was where the fun ended for the day. Luckily Beth is still here doing her last PA rotation and she offered to watch Ella Catherine and let us have an adult birthday celebration last night. It was very nice to be able to take him out for his birthday. Especially since we both had long days at work! We celebrated a bit as a family first. We sang happy birthday and Matt got to see his special B-day cake I made for him the night before. He has wanting a guitar for some time now and this was the best I could do this year. I figured with all his other hobbies and the new baby he wouldn't have time for the lessons right now. All in all I think he had a great birthday and appreciated hearing from all our friends and family.

Matt's guitar b-day cake
The birthday boy and me after a long day at work, excited about our evening out


A quick Potty update!

Ella Catherine earned 2 more stickers at school today and another one tonight at home. YAY!!!

Jelly Beans and Stickers update!

Well, We are excited to let everyone know that Ella Catherine had a sticker on her sticker chart yesterday!!!! YAY!!! We are so proud of our little girl.

Jelly Beans and Stickers

We have been trying to introduce the idea of pottying on the potty for some time now. We started by putting her on the potty every night before her bath. It was basically coincidence if she actually pottied but we clapped and jumped up and down anyway. Well, after Matt saw how much she loved jelly beans at Easter, he went for a new tactic. He told her she could get 2 jelly beans for pee pee and 4 jelly beans if she pooped on the potty. In theory, it was a really good idea and she really went for it at first. However, when you asked her if she wanted to potty and reminded her about the jelly beans she would say no, no jelly beans.
She has several of her friends at school that are being potty trained. The school has a whole different prize system. They have sticker charts. Ella Catherine wants a sticker chart soooo bad! Well, I think it has pushed her over the edge, peer pressure is not always a bad thing! For the past two nights, she has told Matt or I that she has to potty and has pee peed on the potty. YAY!!! She is now the proud recipient of a total of 2 stickers and 4 jelly beans. This morning she told us twice she needed to potty. I spoke with her school teacher Miss Kristin this morning and she is going to get the covetted sticker chart today. Let's hope it isn't empty at the end of the day. Either way, Matt and I are very proud of her!

Slumber party, 26.2 and fun with friends

Chillin out in the front yard
The kids wearing Matt out running up and down the lawn at the finish line.
Ella Catherine sharing some hugs with Campbell
Sweet Victory, the finish line
Roger grinding it out at the end
Bath time and bubbles are so much more fun with a friend
A little dancing before bed
And there off! Pajama motorcycle races!!!
Airey, Campbell and Ella Catherine on a wagon ride
Night out at LIME
Matt, myself, Beth, Sarah Ella and Roger ready for an adult night out to celebrate Roger's great accomplishment.

Last weekend the Cole Family traveled to Nashvegas for the Music City Marathon. Roger was registered to run the 26.2 miles on Saturday morning. They arrived in town early afternoon Friday. We had beautiful weather last week so we decided to grill out and let the kids play outside. Airey and Ella Catherine picked up as if they had never been separated! They played extremely well together all weekend, sharing toys and food very well. They took a bath together and it was the first time EVER that Ella Catherine has asked to have her hair washed. Gotta love the positive influence wanting to be like their friends can bring about. After the bath they played and danced around in their Elmo pajamas. It was Ella Catherine's first sleep over and she loved it! Campbell was already asleep when the festivites began but he has to be the happiest baby I have ever met. That little guy is just one big smile and is such a joy to be around.

Saturday late morning we packed the kids up and headed to the marathon to cheer Roger on. We decided to wait at the finish line so we wouldn't miss him. Beth, myself and the kids found a shady spot under some trees while Matt and Sarah Ella staked out spots for photo opportunities. Again the kids did very well. They chased each other and played without any fussing at all. They even shared snacks and drinks and helped us feed Campbell. I mentioned earlier that we had some beautiful weather in Nashville last week. Well, last weekend was the hottest it has been in Nashville so far this Spring. When the marathon started at 7am it was already 67 degrees and by the time most of the runners were finishing it was well over 82 degrees. We were all so proud of Roger for finishing the race with such a good time. Not only is the course ridden with hills, it was extremely hotter than any of those runners were expecting or had trained for. It was truly inspiring to see him and all the other runners complete the race.

Saturday afternoon we just chilled out at the house, let Roger relax after his busy morning, and let the kids take naps and play. Saturday night we had arranged for a sitter to watch the kids while we enjoyed an adult night out. The adults had a very nice dinner at Lime restaurant in Nashville. It was so good to hang out with friends and enjoy an evening of adult conversation.
We were sad to see the Coles leave on Sunday and Ella Catherine continues to talk about Airey and Campbell and will probably for weeks to come. We hope they will come visit again soon!


A quick Baby update! As of today, I am 37 weeks and 5days. My last doctor's visit was Monday 4/27 and everything is still looking good. I am 2cm dilated so no change from the prior week. The baby has not yet engaged. So we are just waiting for him/her to decide it is time and make his/her debut. Stay tuned for updates!