Where it all started

This writing is a writing from my mom's notebook back in 1985, I repeat this is not my writing it is told in my mom's opinion.

April Lynn Turner
Born: July 14, 1985
Where: LSUHSC Shreveport LA
Weigh: 5lbs 13oz (However within 3wks she droped down to 3lbs)

The first week of April's life was in NICU for Yellow Jondus, and also because she was a premature baby, my due date was Sept, 5 and April was born on July 14. After about a weeks time we were able to carry April home from the hospital, within 4-5 days April was rushed back up to the Hospital because she stoped breathing. When April was at the hospital we were told that she had 3 Congenital Heart Defects at that time we didnt know it was called CHD we were told she had 3 heart Murmurs. Aprils CHD's are ASD, VSD, and PDA. April was put into PICU and we played the back in forth game for a while; where April would be on the Peds floor for a while then back down to PICU it was a hard time for us. April took her first plane ride when she was 3 weeks old, she went to New Orleans in a private jet. April was so small that Cabbage patch clothes were to big for her to wear. We finally go to bring her bac home but we still played the home for awhile then back at the hospital for awhile, it got to be where April was a regulair patient and went everywhere with nurses and doctors, it truly was our home away from home.
April sat up at 6 1/2mths
April creeped around at 8mths
April Stood up alone at 13 1/2mths
Climbed at 16mths
Taken off bottle at 1 1/2 years old
Drink from cup at 7mths
Given juice at 4mths
Solid food at 6mths
potty trained at 1 1/2 years old

We were always told that April was going to die but I didnt wanna hear that I never gave up on April and therefore April kept fighting, she is truly my fighter even to this day. I didnt treat April any different then my oldest child Nicki we let April play in dirt and did whatever she wanted when she was at home. I never took pictures of April while she was on all those machines and tubes because at that time I didnt know if that would be the last time I seen her alive and I didnt want to remember my child that way.
So back to April's story at 2 years old April weighed 21 pounds, doctors started saying that the Murmurs were showing signs of closing on their own, however they also kept saying April would have to have heart surgery. The murmurs never closed on their own. April use to call her big sister Ick instead of Nicki because she had speech promblems, April went to speech twice a week, she was starting to talk a little more and went to church and learned the song Deep & Wide and drove everyone around her crazy with that song. At 4 years old April weighed 25 pounds she started school and loved. At 6 years old APril had her 4th Heart Cath the hospital called and told us that April would have surgery on Sept. 16 1991

Monday Sept 16, 1991: its 6:30am they took April to surgery I did not get to see April until 3:30pm it took them a little over 9 hours to repair her little heart, the doctor said they repaired the ASD, and the VSD, they told us that the heart had been out of April body for so long they could not repair the PDA if it caused promblems they would go back in there and repair it, April did very well during the surgery she got to come home that following Saturday she no longer had tyo take meds.

This is April only 6 months after her Open Heart Surgery:

There was no holding April down from the moment they took her off all the machines in the hospital she was ready to run and jump it was has if she never had surgery. She went home and wasn not able to go back to school for a long time she was home bound, we would have to tell April dont run, April dont jump, APril your not suppose to be doing that we tried our best to follow doctors orders but you couldnt tie April down she did whatever she wanted to do and there was no stoping her.

Years past and she went to high school and dances and graduated when everyone said she wouldnt she proved them wrong, She even graduated College I couldnt be more proud of her then what I am now. She has had many hard times in and out of hospitals her entire life she had many colds, flu, heart Failure, She has come back time after time again she is truly my mircle baby.

-April's Mom