2022 - Back to Normal and a Little Fun, Too

It was a fairly quiet year for Jovie. Had a few check-ups for new shoes and to check on her heart murmur, but a very kid-normal, and fun, year.

In January, she began ballet at Balance Dance with Mrs. Laura and she LOVED it!

It snowed in Atlanta!

August meant back to school (in new cool red shoes), ballet, and gymnastics!

Beginning around June or July, Jovie began having headaches when she woke up. In July, I emailed her pediatrician, Dr. Michelle, and she stated that she wasn't overly concerned, but that Jovie was on the young side to complain of headaches. At the beginning of August, I emailed her again when the headaches continued and she recommended Dr. Berenson at PANDA. On August 9, 2022, Jovie saw a doctor at PANDA Neurology and Headache Specialists. He wasn't the doctor that our pediatrician recommended, but he had more available appointments and could be seen sooner. He did not have the best bedside manners, but he didn't see anything too concerning, but to begin tracking her diet. Once we did that, we started to notice that she would have headaches after a day of being active and not drinking a lot or eating cheesy pizza. On October 3, 2022, we finally got in to see Dr. Berenson, and he great! He also said he did not see anything significant during her exam. We will see him again in February 2023 for a follow-up.

On November 2, 2022, during her check-up with Dr. Flanagan, we found out that she would need another surgery prior to her first leg lengthening. They took x-rays and found that her left socket needed to be corrected in order to stabilize the hip prior to the leg lengthening procedure. She will have that surgery in January 2023.

On December 2, 2022, we went for her cardiologist checkup with Dr. McKane. Dr. McKane could still hear her PDA so we know it's still there. The sound being caused by the PDA was very loud, which means the PDA itself is very small. Her last echocardiogram demonstrated a continued trivial to small PDA that is restrictive and fenestrated ASD, both of which had not significantly changed compared to her previous. The last time that she had an ultrasound, Dr. McKane marked it as a level 3. There continued to be no evidence of left or right-sided chamber enlargement, evidence of pulmonary hypertension, or other structural heart disease. She has had stable growth on her curve. Since Dr. McKane could still hear the PDA, and her course of action wouldn't change, she did not recommend any repeat imaging. She will revisit in one year where she will have an ultrasound and discuss next steps. Will we continue to just watch it or do the surgery and plug it (cardiac catheterization).

• Cardiac catheterization: During cardiac catheterization, experts insert a thin, flexible tube (catheter) into the groin and thread it up through a blood vessel to the heart. They insert a plug or coil into the heart through the catheter to close the PDA and stop patent ductus arteriosus blood flow. Providers typically don’t perform cardiac catheterization on premature babies, though older babies and children can have this procedure.

She also has a fenestrated Atrial Septal Defect (ASD).

Christmas Break 2022 was so much fun! We visited with cousins, played with friends, went ice skating, rode an alpine roller coaster (she's a thrill seeker), made our own cotton candy, went bowling, jumped around at a trampoline park, visited the mountains, went to Dry Falls waterfall after it rained, drove around looking at Christmas lights, visited a couple of indoor parks, and most importantly, Santa came and left lots of presents!

We ended the year in North Carolina with friends.