Katie will turn five later this month and is preparing for kindergarten in the fall. I am in disbelief. I can't fathom her getting onto the bus and leaving me to goto school. I am very excited for her. I sure hope her teachers are ready for the fashionista. Do they allow tiaras at school? I'm not sure she'll be able to part with hers.
Without Children's Hospital we would not have Princess Katie, and for that we are eternally grateful. Katie was born with a small left ventricle and very small mitral valve. We were prepared for the Norwood operation but Dr. Tweddell determined it would not be needed. Instead he created a restricted Artial Septal Defect (ASD), banded her pulmonary artery, and repaired her coarctation of the aorta. Since she did not have the Norwood she technically is not considered to have hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). However, she has since had the Glenn and Damus Kaye Stansel as well as the Fontan surgeries - therefore, she is not quite a Shone's Complex. She is a hybrid. That said - I usually refer to her as a HLHS because more people are familiar with it.
I can't even begin to tell you about the fabulous care they give Katie, and she loves every minute of it. She adores Dr. Frommelt, Lisa, and Dr. Peter too. I think their names come up on a daily basis in our house. They treat us well too - always asking how John, the boys, and I are doing; and making sure our needs are met. They truly love their job.
Thank you to everyone who has continued to support us through the years with Katie and our misson to raise money for the Herma Heart Center and Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Children's Hospital. We can't thank you enough. We also would like to thank Coach Buzz Williams of Marquette University's Men's Basketball. He is dedicated to helping children with special needs and is very involved with Children's Hospital. This year he is personally donating money to Katie's team (as well as two other teams). At the kick off luncheon he encouraged us to raise funds like never before and as a jump start will give Katie Mac's Tour de Coeur $1000. Thank you so much coach! Go Marquette!
We have formed a team, Katie Mac's Tour de Coeur, for Briggs & Al's Run on October 9, 2010. John and I will run (I'm sure he'll beat me yet again even though I run all year and he dusts off his running shoes for this event), while the kids will walk. We would love it if you could join us. You can visit www.alsrun.com
Once you are on that site, click register for a team, then type in Katie Mac's Tour de Coeur. You will be asked for a password - type in katiemac
We can't thank you enough for all of your generosity and support through the years. We could not have done all of this without you!
Love,
Katie, Michelle, John, Ryan, Jack, and Matthew
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