Merry Christmas!

Friends & Family,

You may be checking out our blog because you recently got a Christmas card from us with our blog address on it. Feel free to read on but here are the top things for us in 2007:

1. We are having a baby boy! His due date is February 12, 2008. Some blogs refer to him as "Eric Edward" but this is a joke that some of our loving friends started a few posts back. His name is a secret till he gets here.

2. Continuing on with our baby boy story... he has a heart problem and a limb problem. You'll read multiple posts about our doctor updates. We know that he will only have eight fingers total (5 on right & 3 on left). He will probably have a surgery after birth to correct his heart problem.

3. John started a new job on November 27th at Zumbro Valley Mental Health Center in Rochester. He is their Chief Financial Officer. He no longer works every weekend at Christ Community Church.

4. Sarah started a new job in September as a 5th Grade Teacher at Bamber Valley Elementary School in Rochester. After five years in the district, she finally has her own classroom!

5. Our vacation to Cancun in August was cancelled the day we were leaving because of a hurricane. We found a last minute flight instead to Phoenix and found a timeshare resort for $25/night in Scottsdale. It was hot but a great time away anyway.

6. Our vacation to Phoenix in October was cancelled the day we were leaving because of flight delays. It worked out for the best because John got to interview with the Board at Zumbro Valley on the Friday that he would have been in Arizona so who knows if he would have gotten the job if we had gone.

7. John's sister Julie had a baby girl in August. Her name is Nevaeh Marie Carlson so we got to see her during our August Arizona trip.

We look forward to seeing you in 2008.

John & Sarah Carlson

Today's Mayo Appointments

Sarah's pregnancy is now at 32 weeks -- only 8 more to go (if he comes exactly on time)! We met with a neonatologist today who answered procedural questions about how our baby's birth will go at Methodist Hospital and the transition to Saint Mary's Hospital by ambulance. We also met with our pediatric cardiologist to take another look at his heart. Today's report is more of the same -- the right ventricle is enlarged and the left ventricle is a bit small. The aorta is a little small which is suggestive of coarcation of the aorta. If this is indeed the diagnosis, the prognosis may not be too bad. A surgery can help correct this about two to three days after birth by entering just underneath the armpit. This surgery would also not require a bypass machine meaning there would be less risks during surgery. A total hospital stay might only be upwards of 11 days if things went well. However, if this is not the correct diagnosis, there may be more serious problems that might not come with good results.

Next Monday (Christmas Eve day), we will have an eighth ultrasound to take a look at the rest of the baby's development and to tour the birthing center at Methodist Hospital. Our friend Lori Neu is a labor and delivery nurse there so we are hoping that we will run into her on her shift.

Blazer our Cat

We are now officially crazy lonely cat people. Our cat is getting a couple of pictures on our blog because we think he is so cute! Next year we'll be adding our child's pictures so this is the last chance to show off our animal...