Happy 1st Birthday Kingston!

Kingston Zachary Griffin turns 1 on March 18, 2009. We had his party for him on St. Patricks Day because I will be out of town to see my baby sis. Kingston has such a loving personality. He is always smiling or sucking his two fingers. Nana so kindly gave him the nickname of "kinkle" and Uncle Aaron has recently given him the nickname "Wilbie" or "Wilbur" because Kingston has an ear piercing scream that he will let out when he is mad, wants something or is crying. You seriously have never heard anything like this before.

He is such a lover and is always wanting his Mama. I have been blessed with such a sweet boy and I am sad to think he is already a year old. Where does the time go? Happy Birthday to my sweet, handsome baby boy!

My Boys!

My boys are so much fun to be around. Zeke has been a holy terror lately but, I love it and hate it at the same time. Kingston is definitely my little lover boy! He is always wanting to be held and snuggled. Although his ear piercing scream can be interesting. I love my boys and they are my Valentines this year.

February!

February every year means a lot to me. February is Red Dress Month which is a foundation to help prevent and support women with Heart Disease. I was born with Pulmonary Stenosis. Pulmonary Stenosis is when oxygen-depleted blood is pumped through the pulmonary valve to the lungs to pick up oxygen. Normally the pulmonary valve has three leaflets. If these leaflets are malformed, the valve may become narrowed (stenotic) or leaky (insufficient) and can enlarge your heart. Depending on how severe it is you can have a hard time exercising or breathing. If you have a stenotic or insufficient pulmonary valve, you'll need to take antibiotics to prevent endocarditis which can cause an infection that will go to your heart and kill you. During pregnancy you'll likely handle it well if you have mild or moderate stenosis or regurgitation. If your lesion is severe, pregnancy may be higher risk, particularly if you have an artificial valve. Your cardiologist should be involved in your care during pregnancy and delivery.
My first Open Heart Surgery took place when I was 3. During that procedure they made two incisions in the valve to widen it. I had my second Open Heart Surgery when I was 26. My entire Pulmonary Valve was replaced with a Porcine Valve (aka Pig valve). At 26 I completely understood how serious and dangerous this surgery could be. They put you on a heart and lung machine which will continue to keep your heart pumping while they repair or replace your valve. This requires them to stop your heart, repair or replace and then restart your heart. There is always a chance that it will not restart. When I was three they had to use the defibrillators to restart my heart. During my surgery at 26 my heart started again when they took it off the machine. After I was "out of the woods" my surgeon told my mom that I was fine and recovering in ICU. Being a Mom, she asked if everything went okay and my surgeon very bluntly stated, "She did fine, yesterday I had a patient that is the same age as your daughter and had the same procedure done and we couldn't get her heart restarted and she passed away."
My cardiologist and I work closely to do check ups and make sure that the pig valve is functioning properly. I do have some leakage of the valve but it is not serious enough to replace at this time. Porcine valves don't have an expiration date on them and Doctors are unable to determine how long they hold up before needing to be replaced.
I share this with you all because many women, including me, support Breast Cancer Awareness. Yet few women realize that Heart Disease is the #1 killer in women. So take a few minutes this month to wear something red to show support for those women who are struggling with heart disease. Please take care of each other and take care of yourselves to prevent heart disease. Awareness and steps to prevention are your best bet that you won't have to deal with this terrible killer.

Shoes Shoes Shoes!

So Zach and Kelly have sent me into a shoe fetish. I love shoes and used to buy them all the time. Then I had kids and that stopped. However, with my new relationship status and the first pair purchased for me, I now have three new pairs of shoes to love.
Saturday, Audrey and I went out for a GNO! We went to the Bohemian and I really enjoyed it. I liked the food and the ambiance was great too. Audrey ordered the Salmon Salad and I had the Steak Salad. YUM!
After dinner we went to see My Bloody Valentine 3D. I didn't like it, the dialogue was silly, even for a horror movie. But it was nice to go out and spend some time with Audie.

Now that's HOT!

So, amongst all the holiday mayhem and Adri and Brett having our sweet little baby Jacob. I turned 31 on Dec. 29th and we celebrated on New Years Eve. Mom and Dad took me to dinner and I didn't even have to eat at Pei Wei! They also bought me a $20 gift card to Starbucks (which I didn't use all in one day mom). My Aunt Linda sent me $20 which bought me the Lady Gaga CD I have been wanting & a coffee at Starbucks! My sweet little brother gave me $10 which bought me two more coffees at Starbucks. My darling kids bought me a pair of pants. Adri & Brett gave me baby Jake (not literally). And Lulu and Audrey were there to celebrate the occasion and wish me Happy B-Day which was awesome. Zach and Kelly surprised me with a trip to the mall. I stood there in shock when Zach asked me where I shop for clothes for myself. Me shop...for clothes...for myself??? I can't remember the last time I purchased clothes for myself...oh wait yes I can...when I was pregnant with Zeke and that was at the maternity store....super fun. So after I asked Zach several times if he was serious, I struggled to come up with an answer. Finally he suggested Express. Trying to be a good sport I went along with this thinking silently to myself "I won't fit into the clothes at Express, he is nuts."

So off we went and I went in with doubt and walked out with a pair of pants (the skinny fit by the way) but I won't tell the size, and an awesome short sleeved sweater. Then Zach took me over to Bakers Shoes and yes ladies, HE picked out a pair of 5 inch high heels he thought would "make my outfit pop!" Only 11 days out from toe surgery and still wearing that awesome shoe they give you after surgery, I shoved my sore toe into a size 5 1/2 high heel.

New Years Eve night I wore my new outfit. The high heels didn't stay on very long due to the toe issue, for a while I hobbled along in one shoe because they are so cute. So to sum up an incredible birthday given to me by the people whom I love whole hearted, it was wonderful. Thank you everybody for everything you did for me and continue to do for me on a daily basis. I love each and every one of you. Now here is a picture of my new shoes!