28 May Golf, Swimming, Concerts, & More!
Ok, I shouldn’t overload you with this much information at a time, and I apologize for the delays in posts. Things have been quite busy here but always entertaining, to say the least. And for those of you who just can’t wait to read this entry before seeing new pictures, please click away! I know my writing is enthralling, but pictures are always a bigger hit. There is certainly no shortage of new pictures there for you to see how big Keegan is. There’s also a little video if you have time to watch it.
Keegan is doing pretty well. His hernia incision is completely healed and looks great. He still has some stitches from the other surgery, but those will take up to one more whole week to come out. Other than that, we are still battling his prograf levels, nothing new there. We’ve had two more blood draws over the last two weeks. Hopefully, we’ll be able to wait it out until our next clinic visit June 18 for more tests. Keegan is eating pretty well and getting bigger (or so we think) every day. Some new fave foods include lima beans, waffles, yogurt, cottage cheese (only sometimes), and the nasty mixed-up “chicken veggie dinner” baby food. For the most part, I make his food, but he wouldn’t eat my fresh chicken. I can’t imagine anything nastier than pureed meat, but it’s a hit with Keegan. He is talking up a storm, which keeps Gray and I rolling in laughter. His favorite word when he’s chilling out seems to be “goi, goi, goi, goi”, especially if he has a pacifier in his mouth. That makes it even funnier because you can see the little smirk he has on his face behind the paci.
On Thursday, the Dallas County Defense Lawyers’ Association held their annual Jim Oateman Golf Tournament to raise money for Keegan. At first, it looked like it would be a rainy day, but the sun (and wind) came out, and it ended up being lovely. 91 golfers played, many came out to “drive the drink carts”, and even more donated entry fees even though they couldn’t play. I was able to spend some time on the course before having to drive home to pick Keegan up. I will post pictures and a total as soon as I can.
Saturday was the annual Children’s Heart Transplant Picnic. It was really hot and humid, but we really enjoyed it. It was so reassuring to see other kids 10-plus years post-transplant and doing amazingly well. It will definitely help buffer those moments where we wonder what’s ahead. We got to catch up with some old friends, Dr. Tia, some nurses from the NICU, Andrew Madden (100th transplant, 17 days after Keegan), and several others we met during our many clinic visits. I can’t wait until next year when Keegan is running around, playing with the other kids and stuffing his face with cake!
On Monday, we went to the Arboretum to see a kids’ concert by Sara Hickman. You may remember that she is the folk artist who stopped her concert in Wimberly the weekend before Keegan’s transplant and asked the audience to pray for Keegan while she sang a beautiful lullaby a cappella. She was so excited to finally meet Keegan and see how well he looks. I sing one of her songs to Keegan constantly, especially during procedures. Everyone always wants to know about her because the song is so perfect for him. Again, it was hot and humid, but Keegan was a real trooper, dancing and laughing to the music.
Overall it has been a good but busy last few weeks. There’s not much else coming up until our next clinic visit, but we’ll do our best to keep everybody updated. We’re gearing up for our big fishing tournament this fall, so stay tuned!!! Thank you so much, as always, for your continued support and prayers. Please keep Keegan’s friend, Tucker, in your prayers this week. He has a follow-up at Children’s tomorrow. He had open-heart surgery and still is facing an unsure road ahead. I know how powerful your prayers can be, and I know he could use them now. Thanks again, and God bless.