Periacetabular Osteotomy "Hip" Surgery

Ok, should we just rename our blog the McMillan Pediatrics Medical Journal? Everyone has issues. Our family is congenital medical disorders. Tylers heart, Carls brain and Dannys Hips. Danny had hip discomfort growing up, visited the doc at 17 and was dismissed with "bad hips." He learned to make the best of his hips by monitoring his activity, walking slowly, making me wear hiking packs and taking breaks. After experiencing back pain this year he went to a doctor who took one look at his x-ray and sent him to orthopedics who sent him to a surgeon. We are blessed with a great friend who is amazing hip surgeon and chief of orthopedics AKA John Kronick who guided us in our decision. Our family is always taken care of in miraculous ways.

Here are his hips: The Problem: acetabular (hip) dysplasia is a congenital disorder usually formed by age 3. His acetabular is more dish shaped instead of cup shaped. A normal hip would surround the head of his femur. His X-ray shows signs of arthritis which would only get worse with time.

The Solution: Periacetabular Osteotomy (PAO) cuts and realigns the acetabulum and possibly femur. This will preserve his own hip joint rather than replacing it with an artificial hip.

When: July 1st at Kaiser Oakland. The surgery should take 5 hours and he should be in the hospital 3 days if all goes well. He will be out of work for a while recovering.

How can you help? Pray for a successful surgery, send dark chocolate and come and visit if you want to see Danny on drugs. We'll keep you posted.

USCF Memorial Event

So sad I forgot my camera to show you the beautiful job UCSF did to honor their angels. They had a wonderful memorial event to celebrate the lives of all the children who have passed. Danny and I were humbled to have the opportunity to be the parent speakers at the event. This is what we shared in english and spanish. I love having the opportunity to be involved with UCSF. It is such a humbling and rewarding thing to meet so many amazing people that are striving to bless the lives of children and their families.

We are honored to celebrate the life of our son Carl Lavar as well as the lives of your precious sons and daughters. As a couple, I am sure like you, we had countless hopes and dreams of oneday becoming parents and blessing our children. It didn't take long before realizing that parenthood, just like life, is filled with unexpected ups and downs.

We were first blessed with a healthy son, Scott. 2 years later, we were heartbroken to find out that Tyler, our second son would be born with an incurable heart condition. A year later, we were pregnant with our 3rd son and once again devastated to find out that he had health problems. Testing showed a large cyst on his brain.

It appeared that our lifelong dreams and hopes for our childrens future and health were continually slipping away. In a moment of sadness and fear, we turned to God and realized He was awaiting us.

This doesn't make us immune to heartache and pain. Part of this life is experiencing pain as well as joy. There is perhaps no harder trial or pain than loosing a child. There are day that we will miss our children immensley. In some ways this is a marvelous blessing and gift. It helps us remember their beauty, the blessing of being their mother or father and the countless lives they touched and will continue to bless through their example of courage, strength and hope.

The true miracle occurs when we are able to find peace amidst heartache. This allows us to celebrate our children, the miracles they are and the marvelous lessons they have come to teach us. As parents we came to realize that as certain dreams and hopes for our children slipped away, new and marvelous ones appeared.

Our three children are each marvelous blessings that have and continue to bless our lives in unique ways. I believe that all children come into their families with something wonderful to share and teach. Our healthy son brings us love and joy each day. Our chronically ill child teaches us to make the most of each moment and each day as a treasured gift,

Most sacred and perhaps most touching Carl, our angel child, teaches us to be a little kinder, more compassionate and more loving. He inspires us to live our life so that we can someday be reunited with him. He teaches us that although we appear to be separated, we share a closeness that can't be described. His short life brings our family more hope that we could have ever fathomed. He blessed and left our life on Christmas morning which was the ultimate testament to our family and friends of the miracle of his mission as a child of hope.

Whatever your background or belief, I pray that the memory of your child will shine brightly in your heart and will continue to touch countless lives. I pray that you will feel your childs presence, be upflifted by their memory and find peace in understanding their wonderful blessing and mission that they so beautifully fulfilled. We pray that family, friends and loved ones will comfort and uplift you in time of need.

Happy Fathers Day!!

I feel soo blessed on Fathers Day. My boys couldn't possibly have a better father and that makes me fell like the luckiest person in the world. Scott, Tyler and I know Carl look at their father with the utmost love, respect and admiration. He is a man who teaches them to have fun, learn, fix things and fill your heart with love towards others and the Lord. He is an example in all his actions and words. I have never once heard him yell. He is always so calm, so loving and such a loving dad.

My dad. Anyone who knows my dad knows that he is saint. He has always placed his family first and truly lives a life of selflessness. I don't just say this because he is my dad. Anyone who knows him would agree this. My boys love their Pop. He adores them, takes care of them and makes it possible for me to coach. They couldn't be in better or more spoiled hands when we are working. Thanks dad, I love you!

Grampy, Danny's dad, is another amazing father figure in our lives. Danny is very similar to his dad with having a love and skill of fixing things. I have a feeling Danny and his dad were fixing teeth and cars together before coming to this life. He worked so hard for his family. We just returned from Disneyland with all the grandkids which I am sure was quite exhausting. Just one reason for super Grampy award. We love you Glen!

Visiting the Plewe's

My best friend from High School, Laurel and her husband Ryan live in Los Angeles and it was so fun to visit. They have the cutest place in UCLA grad housing. Ryan is going to orthodontic school and doing an awesome job!! Oh fun times. Here are the ladies cooking.

Flashback from the past...Scott as a little man having fun on the lovesack.

He was too tired to do anything this year. How sad!

Tyler hanging out with Ryan.

Thanks for having us over guys. It was so fun. See you soon.

Having a Heart Baby

I have done a lot of thinking about life with an HLHS baby. Every once in a while we get to talk to parents who are deciding what plan to follow with their baby. This decision is so personal and one that takes much pondering, prayer and reflection. Danny and I always knew that we were going to do everything in our power to give Tyler a chance at life and that ultimately the Lords will would come to pass. I think the Lord knew that I wouldn't be able to do anything different. With that said, I feel overwhelmingly blessed to have the opportunity to be his mother and for the amazing things that he has taught and continues to teach me. I am grateful that we live our life each day treasuring the day. I think the miracle is found when you realize the blessing of motherhood and your children. I am grateful the Lord has blessed me with this perspective and attitude. Tyler's heart condition for us in some ways is a non-issue. It is what it is and we will have hard times in the future, but no matter what, I recognize the absolute blessing of each day and our knowledge of an eternal family. Each day I tell Tyler and Scott how how blessed I feel to be their mother. It is a blessing I can't possibly put into words and one that Tylers experiences heart helped teach me.

San Diego Sea World & Beach

We had the opportunity to go to So Cal for 10 days and had such a fun time!! Our first stop was visiting Bec and Seth, Danny's best friend from Dental School. They have an adorable boy, Cameron, who is a mini-Seth. He is 6 months and bigger than Tyler. Highlights included 2 days Sea World, the Beach, and the USS Pearl Harbor, the boat where Seth is stationed as a dentist. It was so fun to catch up and be with the Williams.

Sea World...had an awesome playground that was so fun to play at with the kids! We went during the day with the kids and went back on Saturday night with the Williams.

Hanging out at the beach...

Mount Diablo Camping

Danny had thursday off, so we went camping on Wednesday night after work. Mt. Diablo is a beautiful place to camp that is right in our backyard. We were the only ones in the whole campground...besides an annoying raccoon and cayotes. Here we are climbing around in Rock City...very fun and Tyler and Scott wanted to be very daring and independent.

Enjoying a donut by the campfire.

A proud eagle scout.
yummy foil dinner made by me!Scott loved roasting marshmellows.We were actually comfortable even though it doesn't appear so in this picture. The boys fell asleep in no time after a busy day.

Tyler's Heart Update

Had a cardiology appointment today and it went well. Yeah! We had a lung scan a month ago which looked good. They monitor his PA stenosis where the shunt from the Norwood was removed. As his heart grows the area where the shunt was has some scar tissue so they want to make sure there is adequate blood flow until the Fontan. This means no heart cath to dialate it for now. His heart looked good but he is still quite a little man. Blame it on his parents genes and a crazy heart. We will continue to monitor his heart every 6 months unless we notice change in his behavior/heart failure signs. Right after his EKG and before his Echo he threw up everywhere. It was so sad and smelled horrible. The poor little man has the flu or something. He threw up one more time when we were home and is now resting. This is the first time either of my kids has been sick to their stomach. I guess we'll look at that as a blessing. Throwing up is much easier to handle than heart failure. Alright, happy Monday everyone! Thanks for constant prayers! They are working.