Hooray, we made it to 1 years old!! What a struggle and a challenge. We have shared so many joys, triumphs, tears, and pain. But to see our boy reach a year old after all that he has been through only proves what a strong little man he really is. We are ever so grateful for the gift of life his donor family gave to us. What a tremendous joy Mason is in our life. We thank our Heavenly Father for giving us this opportunity to take care of such a special spirit.
Although we are home from the Ronald Mcdonald apartments we are still unable to return to our humble abode. For our home is under renovation to remove the mold from exterior walls, add a furnace, and make our home a safe place for our young baby to grow and learn.
We have had wonderful friends who have stepped in and headed up this project and we will be eternally grateful for their efforts in our behalf. We are also grateful to sister Smith for letting us stay in her basement which is like our own apartment. And yes Jineal we also enjoyed staying with you but felt we were imposing way too much on your wonderful family. Besides sister Smith really needs the extra company. We love you all and a forever indebted to you for your friendship and kind deeds that are done on a regular basis.
Today we came to Salt Lake City, Utah to do a biopsy on Masons heart. It is scheduled for tomorrow morning and is a routine procedure. We hope and pray all will go well. Thank you all for your prayers in our behalf.

Never go to sleep without trying to count your many blessings. I always start with 2 and go from there.

Yesterday we had the fundraiser luau for fixing up our house. I am very grateful for all those who attended and helped with this activity. Thank you to all who have participated in every way. It was a great success. We feel very blessed to have inspiring friends willing to help. Mason was unable to attend but was watched by brother and sister Perry from our ward. I hope that we are able to pay it forward down the road. We are so thankful for everyone.

Mason is doing so good. He is growing strong. He is also a happy little boy. We are thankful to have such a blessing in our lives. Thanks to his donor family for giving us these wonderful memories.

Wow its been a while Mom and Dad have been stressed, trying to get mason to eat better has been lots of work. He now has a feeding tube (tube we place threw his nose down his throat in to his stomach). we started out bolus feeding him ( gravity feed done through a large syringe) but he threw more up this way than we could keep down. So now we are feeding him what he will throughout the day then doing a continuous feed ( we use the same tube but have pump that feeds him slowly through the night) for some extra calories. Mason is pulling himself up to his feet trying to crawl and is growing so fast. We have been out for walks in the sunshine. Mason has a new car that we push around with him in. I think he likes it. He always has a smile on his face. Dad went home for a few days this last week to get some spring cleaning done. He tried really hard to get everything done. But he was most impressed to come back and see how much his little man had grown.

We learned today through Face book that another Mason received a new heart during the Easter weekend and now his body is rejecting his heart. As soon as we found out we were praying for him. We pray that all goes well and that he will heal quickly. We were very fortunate to be blessed with such a quick recovery with our son. We feel so badly for this other family. We can only imagine what stress they are under. We will continue to pray for this little Mason until we hear otherwise in his behalf. We know and understand prayers work and do not hesitate when someone asks in their behalf. We had so many people praying for us. We could spend a year on our knees and never compensate for the prayers in our behalf.

We have some friends putting together a fundraiser in our behalf to help fix our house so that it is healthy for Masons return home. We are so grateful to all those involved. We will do everything in our ability to help repay the debt to all those that are extending their assets and abilities in our behalf. We feel a great debt to those who are so willing to help us. All that we can say is THANK YOU!!! We hope to extend a hand to others in need.

Here is a poem I love written by another heart mom.................


WHEN I BECAME A HEART MOTHER

ONE DAY MY WORLD CAME CRASHING DOWN,
I'LL NEVER BE THE SAME.
THEY TOLD ME THAT MY CHILD WAS SICK.
I THOUGHT, "AM I TO BLAME"?
I DON'T THINK I CAN HANDLE THIS.
I AM REALLY NOT THAT STRONG.
IT SEEMED MY HEART WAS BREAKING.
I HAVE LOVED HIM FOR SO LONG.
I WILL NOT GIVE UP ON THIS CHILD.
I WILL LISTEN TO YOUR ADVICE.
I WILL GIVE MY CHILD ANY CHANCE.
NO MATTER WHAT THE PRICE.
I WILL LEARN ALL THAT I NEED TO HELP MY CHILD THRIVE.
I'LL EVEN USE THAT FEEDING TUBE.
MY CHILD MUST SURVIVE!
WILL HE NEED A LOT OF THERAPY?
WILL HE GAIN THE NEEDED WEIGHT?
PLEASE GOD, HELP ME DO THIS.
I WILL ACCEPT OUR FATE.
WHEN THE MONITORS BEEP AT NIGHT,
IT SERVES AS MY REMINDER.
HOW MANY PARENTS WOULD LOVE THAT SOUND.
TOMORROW I WILL BE KINDER.
AS ANOTHER ANGEL EARNS HIS WINGS,
I RUN TO MY CHILD'S BED.
I WATCH HIM SLEEP FOR QUITE A WHILE.
I BEND DOWN AND KISS HIS HEAD.
I CRY FOR THE PARENTS WHOSE HEARTS HAVE BEEN BROKEN.
I LOOK TO YOU WONDERING WHY?
OH LORD, I JUST CAN'T KNOW YOUR WAYS....
NO MATTER HOW I TRY.
AND YET, I TRUST YOU HOLD HIS LIFE,
AND GUIDE US THROUGH EACH DAY.
MY MIND SAYS SAVOR EACH MOMENT HE'S HERE,
BUT MY HEART BEGS, "PLEASE LET HIM STAY"!
FROM PACING THE SURGICAL WAITING ROOM,
TO SITTING BY HIS BED.
FROM WISHING FOR A GOOD NIGHTS SLEEP,
TO LEARNING EVERY MED.
FROM WONDERING, "WILL HE BE ALRIGHT?",
TO WATCHING HIM REACH OUT HIS HANDS.
WITH EVERY SMILE MY HEART JUST MELTS,
DESPITE LIFE'S HARSH DEMANDS.
FOR ALL WHO SEE THAT FADED LINE.
I LOOK TO THEM AND SMILE.
YOU SEE MY CHILD IS LOVED SO MUCH.
I WOULD FACE ANY TRIAL.
THAT SCAR I TRACE WITH MY FINGER
(IT'S THE DOOR TO HIS BEAUTIFUL HEART).
GOD MUST HAVE KNOWN HOW MUCH I'D LOVE HIM
(JUST AS HE LOVED HIM FROM THE START).
A HEART MOM IS ALWAYS A HEART MOM.
NOW WISE BEYOND HER YEARS.
FOR THOSE WHO HAVE ANGELS IN HEAVEN,
OUR HEARTS SHARE IN ALL OF YOUR TEARS.
EVERY DAY I WILL TRY AND REMEMBER,
I WAS CHOSEN FOR HIM (AND NO OTHER).
I WILL ALWAYS EMBRACE THAT BEAUTIFUL DAY.......
WHEN I BECAME A "HEART MOTHER"

Nevada

I want to get mommys tounge!!!

We have a problem. Sitting in this little apartment going nuts is not doing any of us any good. Trying to get out and do something in a big city with no one around is impossible. Janita wanted to see something new. I wanted to see something used. Mason wanted to see something. So we drove to the Bonneville Salt Flats. Oh, and since Wendover was just ten minutes away, we kinda snuck over the boarder. Although we didn't go in anywhere we were just able to sight see a little. Helped us ease our craziness from just sitting all the time. So here are some pics from our little trip.

Here is a video of Mason Enjoying his bouncer. I hope he doesn't grow wings and fly away!!!

What's In A Name

Mason, your name was chosen with careful consideration and openness between your mother, father, and your Heavenly Father. We had talked many hours about what we should name you should you be a boy. The only name that sounded right for you was Mason Daniel Bartholomew. At the time of your birth we only new what your name would be, not what it would represent. Now I know why your name is what it is.

Mason means skilled laborer or sculptor of stone. From the time that you were born you were sculpting peoples testimonies. Teaching people to know and understand the foundation for which their faith rests upon. You were able to teach the principles of fasting and prayer to not only you parents but for many people whom your spirit had touched. You have been teaching your parents the importance of relying on your Father in Heaven. Asking for Blessings, and putting all faith in the Lords hands in your behalf. We pray that as you continue your journey in this life, that we as a family and as friends can put the tools in your soul to sculpt yours and the lives of people around from firm foundations of faith to everlasting temples of righteousness.

Daniel was chosen for your middle name, not just for you, but also for your father. This name is to help your father know and understand that you are following him in this life. It is ultimately your choice to follow Gods plan. But it is your fathers obligation to teach you what your heavenly father wants you to know.

Bartholomew is the final part of your name. This name has been handed down many generations, and will continue to be so till the end of time. You as well as I have and obligation to our forefathers to uphold this name in righteousness. To carry it on into the millennium with honor. I pray that you will take this name and cherish it as much as we cherish you.

We have had a fun couple of days. It is very nice to make memories as a family like a long extended vacation. Yesterday we snuck up to preston, all of us, to see the house and visit with family. I also filled a WIC check while I was there. We got back to SLC around 2:30 AM. It was a lot of fun to see the excitement on families faces to see little Mason. Mom was happy to finally see her house again.

Today we went to Walmart and bought a loaf of bread and some sandwiches and went to Liberty Park to feed the ducks. We were able to get the ducks to come just a couple of feet from us. Mason was so cute, when the ducks quacked Mason would do his grunt. It was so funny. We even got the seagulls to come and eat bread. The seagulls would try to catch the bread before it hit the ground. Some were pretty good at it. My dogs won't even try to catch anything with their mouth. When Mom was throwing bread Mason reached out and grabbed the slice of bread from her and pulled it apart putting some in his mouth. I wonder if this means he is ready for real food. A sign is a sign.