Heart of Beckett

UPDATE (9/4/14)

Greetings! Let’s dive right in:

First off….we’ve been busy. A good kind of busy though. I do apologize for not posting in a while, but truly, we’ve just been enjoying our summer as a family….and it’s been great!

In early July we went on a family vacation (with my side of the family). It was kind of a big deal because it was the longest we’ve ever been away from home with Beckett. It was genuinely shocking just how many things we had to pack for Beckett to be gone for a measly 3 nights. However, we seemed prepared for everything. We had enough meds, enough milk, supplies, emergency supplies/equipment, etc. It all went very smoothly, and Beckett seemed to thoroughly enjoy his time with his family (and definitely ALL his cousins)!  We got to enjoy so many firsts including: a boat ride, playing in the sand, and swimming in the lake.

Also, we’ve started dropping Beckett off in the nursery (….that’s a big step for us, AND for Beckett). Some Sundays it has gone well, and other Sundays it was not so good. Beckett tends to have a little bit of separation anxiety, but that’s expected, and he truly does well on some days. Anyway, it’s a semi big deal…and we’re glad we’re at this stage.

Here’s a little update on Beckett and his precious little heart. As some of you know (or remember), Beckett has HLHS, which requires 3 stages of surgery. Well, Beckett has only (technically) had 2 of those 3 surgeries. With that being said, it is common to do the final stage surgery when you  are about 2 years old. Beckett will be 2 years old this December, but we were being told that we might not do it until next Spring (of 2015). However, we had a Cardiology appointment this Summer in which we received very interesting and surprising news. The current story we are being told by our Cardiologist is that we might not actually do Beckett’s final surgery until he’s 3 or 4 years old!!! Wow! That news literally made my jaw drop. I wasn’t quite sure how to respond. It’s kind of good news and “bad” news. It’s great news because it’s a good thing our Cardiologist doesn’t feel like we need to be rushing into that last surgery. It’s difficult news because it delays the inevitable, and even gives Beckett a better chance of remembering it (and for me, I think it’ll be way more difficult to hand over my “fully-aware” 4 year old to a surgeon, than a 2 year old. Both are difficult, but I hope you understand what I’m trying to say. Soooooo….anyway, there’s that. Kind of interesting, huh?!

Last weekend was really neat. There was a “fund raiser” for Beckett at a local Harley Dealership that was ran by a few very loving and generous people. They call it the “Jackie Dudding Poker Run,” and it’s a fund raiser in memory of this couple’s daughter (Jackie) who past away (way too early) at the age of 30. This past weekend was the 5th year they’ve done this, and they basically choose a family who lives in Grant County and preferably has a heart condition. Well….we fit the bill. So, they “interviewed” us last spring and decided that Beckett is who they’d like to do this for. It was really really neat, and quite the honor to be chosen for something like this. Thanks again Margorie and Myron! You guys are great!!

Then that weekend ended with Upland’s annual Labor Day parade. We were able to kind of take Beckett last year (as the parade goes right by our house), but this year we actually went back to my in-laws “spot” and enjoyed the bucket-fulls of candy being thrown out….even though Beckett can’t technically eat any. 😉

Which kind of reminds me. The Labor Day parade is really one of the “first things” we did with Beckett last year when we got home. This may really surprise some of you, but Beckett has now officially been home from the hospital for a year (as of August 26th). I’m still reading through last year’s blog entries each day, and it was really neat to read last years entry on August 26, 2013 (and many others). He’s still home, he’s now 20 months old, and…………..he’s just now (finally) beginning to walk!! It is sooo exciting!!! He’s got weak ankles, so we had to fit him for ankle braces (which he’ll be getting in the next few weeks), but it is really neat to see him progress to that level. I think we have our hands full now with him scooting around everywhere….I’m sure I haven’t seen anything yet until he’s actually walking around EVERYWHERE! Oh boy….lots of broken toys of daddy’s, but oh well. It’s just stuff, right?! 😉 Anyway…that’s just some really exciting news too!

I’m actually typing this update in the living room of my parents home in Archbold where we are getting ready to take Beckett to his very first demolition derby at my hometown fair! This will be quite the experience for him….and, I love it! I love watching him react to new things. He’ll just sit there and stare. Sooo, if we bump into you at the fair, don’t feel bad if he just stares at you….he’s just checking you out. He’s a very curious little boy, which I love….but it’s always neat to watch his little mind process something new. He soaks it in like a sponge.

I think that’s it for now. Please don’t hesitate to reach out….but I apologize for the infrequent posts. However, please know that we read every comment….and some of the things you guys say are so incredibly encouraging, I can’t even begin to tell you how much we’ve appreciated all your support! If you’ve made it this far in this fairly lengthy update, you are probably one of the ones who have stuck by our side since day one. Please know just how grateful we are for you and your support/prays. The encouragement is humbling, and something we will never be able to properly share our gratitude for. But I can at least say (or type), “thank you.” Our support system is amazing and off the charts. We only hope to run into you “soon” and share with you the beautiful gift we’ve been given named Beckett Jude Rupp.

Signing off for now (and maybe for a little while), but we’ll certainly try to post a pic or video here-n-there just to keep you all “in-the-loop.” Thanks again and God bless!

#GoBeckett
#ODAAT

A year ago today we brought Beckett home (for the second time, but this time…) for good! What an amazing year it has been!
(an actual “update” is coming soon…I promise)