Baby Landon

The week before our planned trip home to Huntsville I was awakened by an early morning message from my Dad. Matthew and Katie were at the hospital - Katie's water had broken. She was only 24 weeks along in her pregnancy. Tears and prayers immediately began to flow. She was admitted to the hospital and the plan was to keep her on antibiotics with hopes to keep her pregnant for another 3-4 weeks. Landon was strong and holding his own.

One week later, late on a Saturday night, Katie began to experience strong pain. She might be in labor. (John and I had arrived the day before on a previously planned week long visit.) The family was called and we all waited nervously to see what the tests would say. The doctors believed she was experiencing gastrointestinal issues, but not labor. We relaxed a little and returned home. In less than an hour after returning home we received a desperate phone call from Matt - Katie had delivered Baby Landon in her antepartum room and they didn't know if he would survive. And so Landon's sweet story begins in the wee hours of Sunday, September 1st, 2013.

Landon was quickly stabilized and had a strong heart beat. He weighed just shy of two pounds at 1.14 ounces and measured a tiny thirteen inches long. Immediate family members were allowed access to him. "He. Is. Perfect." That was all this proud aunt could say - that and "Thank you Jesus". Everything was a blur during the next 72 hours. Baby Landon was critical, but holding his own. A heart murmur was detected, but it was found that his Patent Ductus Arteriosus vessel was still open. This vessel typically closes prior to birth or in the days just following birth. This condition is usually manageable with medication. So the medicine was started, but Landon's watchful and knowledgeable nurses and doctors realized quickly that something was very wrong with Landon's heart. An echocardiogram later identified severe aortic stenosis and the medication aimed to close the PDA was stopped. These actions absolutely saved Landon's life that day. The open PDA is what was providing blood flow to the left ventricle of Landon's heart. A closed PDA would have, more than likely, been fatal. The doctors in Huntsville knew that Landon could no longer be provided the care that he needed there so Landon was transferred by ground to UAB. Time stood still on Friday, September 6th. We all tearfully prayed and worried. After arriving at UAB it was clear that precious Landon was in the best place possible for the care he needed.

UAB gave us hope that once Landon was stabilized his little heart could be fixed (in time). The plan now was to keep Landon infection free and for him to grow - slowly, so that his heart would not endure any unnecessary stress.

As of Monday, September 9th, Landon continues to do well at UAB. Further echocardiograms performed yesterday show that the left ventricle, while small, is not as damaged as previously thought. Also, the doctors all believe that based on several factors such as skin thickness, lung function, etc that Landon appears to be developmentally ahead of his 25 week gestation at birth. Praise the Lord!

You can follow Landon's story on his own blog, here. I can't wait to be blown away by all that God has in store for him and our family.

Please pray for my sweet nephew, his parents, and his medical care providers. As my sister-in-law, said, "God is still writing Landon's story" and I know without a doubt that Landon's life will bring about some very special Kingdom work. Praise be to Him for the miracles we have seen!