Baby Number Three!

Most, if not all of you know already that we are expecting our third child around November 6th. We went to the ultrasound to find out the sex, and we got to enjoy the fact that it was a boy for about an hour before the doctor came and told us that he couldn't see all 4 chambers of the heart. I didn't let it worry me, thinking it could just very well be the positioning of the baby. The next week we went to the pediatric cardiologist and had a fetal echocardiogram. That took an hour, and the tech told me that she couldn't quite see one of the things she needed to see, but that at least she had a diagnosis for us. That kind of made my heart sink. The doctor sat me down and told me that the baby had a serious heart defect, then told me all about how the heart works before and after birth. Then he turned to the next page that said "Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome," and I burst into tears. Having had worked in a NICU for a year, I have seen 2 babies with this condition, and I knew how serious it was. The doctor was amazing and spent about an hour explaining to me in detail about the three stage reconstruction that could be done to "fix" his heart called the Norwood procedure.
Since that day we have been doing a lot of praying and research, and we have come to the conclusion that we are going to exersize our faith in the Lord that we will be able to bring our son home. We have talked to various doctors and nurses, and here is what we know to expect so far:
This pregnancy is in absolutely no danger, and as long as my low-lying placenta gets out of the way (which it did with my other two pregnancies just fine), I will be allowed to go into spontaneous labor. Since we only live about 1/2 hour from the University of Utah Hospital, where I will be delivering, and since my labors have not been quick by anybody's standards, they see no need to schedule an induction. As far as C-Section, it would not be of any benefit for the baby (who we have named Christopher, by the way), and since it would only make recovery much worse for me they see no need to do that either. Anyway, I will deliver in a room at University Hospital that is connected to their NICU with a window, so that immediately after delivery he will be passed to the NICU team. I may or may not get to see him right away. They will start his IV and put him on Prostaglandin, which will keep the ductus arteriosis open (the "hole" in the heart that all babies are born with) so that he can continue to get some oxygenated blood. As soon as he is stabilized and ready to go, he will be transported over the sky bridge to the pediatric cardiac ICU of Primary Childrens Hospital. As soon as I am recovered and up to it, I will be able to go see him. They say about 20% of the babies that are put on Prostaglandin have apneic episodes, thus necessitating intubation. If that is the case, we will not be able to hold him, but we will still be able to touch him. Of course we are praying that he won't have to be intubated so that we can hold him, but we'll take whatever comes. He will have the first stage of the Norwood Procedure (google it if you are curious, as it is quite involved) within about a week of birth, and they say to expect about 3 weeks for recovery. He will only recieve IV nutrition before surgery, and will be fed post-surgery via an NJ tube. This is a tube introduced into the intestines, bypassing the stomach because it is better tolerated. He will then graduate to an NG tube, where the food will go into the stomach, and then to regular feeding. Most babies go home with at least the NG tube still in place. The nurse told me that they just don't seem to get the whole feeding thing yet. I laughed and told her that since he's an Emerson I am pretty confident he will figure it out! He will have the second surgury between 4 and 6 months, then the last between 2 and 4 years of age. There are many patients who have had this procedure done who are in their late 20s, but that is as old as the surgery is, so they don't know the long-term prognosis. I would imagine he will need a heart transplant at some point in his life, but we're just going to be thankful for whatever time we have and take each day at a time. He has every chance of having a normal life--serving a mission, getting married and having children, etc.
We talked to a genetic counselor and there is absolutely no know reason for this condition. It isn't hereditary, so no worries, and the odds of it happening are only about 2 in 10,000. I think that is all of the information I have for now, but I will be sure to keep you all updated! Thanks for reading.