AHA Survivor Soiree and Heart Walk Kick Off

On Tuesday, August 28, the American Heart Association hosted their first ever Survivor Soiree at the Nashville Zoo.  This was also an event to kick off the 2012 Heart Walk.  There was a photographer there taking pictures of the survivors and their families, face painters, and great food.  We really enjoyed visiting with survivors of all ages!  Catherine Clinkscales (Cain's Mom) and I were asked to tell our boys' heart stories during the event.  I am not a great public speaker, but hopefully I was able to give a good summary of Colby's past 4 years. I also hope that we were able to encourage some other survivors to get involved in this year's Heart Walk.  Heart Survivors depend on research funded by the AHA, so our goal is to get as many people involved as possible!!

The boys loved the face painters!!!

Our team, Little Heart Heroes, will be participating again in this year's walk on October 6 at Vanderbilt Campus.  If you would like to make a donation to the AHA in honor of Colby, please visit his personal page. http://nashvilleheartwalk.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1011336&lis=1&kntae1011336=EACB72E7164542EB9D45E60163612A83&supId=302956283

We would also love to have as many friends and family members as possible to come out and walk with us on October 6.  Please post a comment, send me an email to jbbhitchcock@gmail.com, or call me if you would like to walk with us in support of Colby.  Jason and I are having "Little Heart Heroes" shirts made for everyone, and we want to be sure we have enough made.  We really hope to see you all there!!

Brody's first full day of Kindergarten

With Brody's birthday being so late in August, we did make the decision to have him repeat Kindergarten in our zoned public school this year.  Brody is actually very excited about this, because he is looking forward to being one of the oldest kids in his class instead of the very youngest.

Sumner County had a delay in the school year starting due to some budget problems, but the county finally started on August 16, which meant Brody got to go for his Kindergarten Phase in Day on Monday, August 20.  He had a really fun day meeting all of the Kindergarten teachers and learning all about the school.

On Wednesday the 22nd, Mrs. Cook called to tell us that she would be Brody's Kindergarten teacher this year.  We are so excited for Brody to be in Mrs. Cook's class!!  I think he is going to have a great year with her!

Brody's first full day of school was on Thursday, August 23.  I walked him over to school and got to stay in his classroom for a few minutes before saying goodbye.  As I walked out of that school, I completely fell apart!  I knew he was excited and would be well taken care of, but it just hit me that he is in big school now!  Last year's Kindergarten was only 8:30-12:45, but this year, he will go from 8:45-3:45!!!  He is officially a big kid, and I am going to miss him like crazy!!

Brody turns 6!

Brody turned 6 on August 22!  Since Kindergarten has a phase in week, he was out of school for his big day and so was his best buddy, Greyson.  After we dropped Colby off at school, we picked up Greyson and headed for the Family Fun Center.  These boys had so much fun!!!  They did the huge trampoline bungee jump, bumper cars, laser tag, and played lots of games!  We finished up the afternoon with lunch from McDonalds.  Brody had a great 6th birthday, and I am so happy that I was able to spend it with him!

Happy Birthday Brody!  You are an amazing little man, and I feel so blessed to have you as my son!

Colby's 4 year Well Visit

Colby's 4 year check up went really well!!  It is always a blessing to hear that he is healthy, growing, and right on track developmentally!!  He weighed in at 28 lbs, which finally placed him back on the growth chart!!  It is only 1%, but hey, he's on it!  This is a 5 lb gain over the last year, which is huge!  He also had a big growth in height over the last year...3 inches!!  He is now almost 3 ft tall at 35 1/2 inches!  

Another Triathlon!!

I think Brody is hooked on triathlons!!  As soon as the first one was over, he asked to do another!  Fortunately, Team Magic and BEAT (Brentwood Endurance Athletic Team) hosted a Kids Triathlon at the Maryland Farms YMCA on Saturday, August 18.  This triathlon consisted of a 50 m swim, 2k bike, and a 1k run.  Brody did awesome!!  He finished in 19:34, placing him 5th out of 15 other 6 year olds!  We are all very proud of his top 5 finish!  

Colby got so excited when he saw Champ there cheering on all the kids!  Champ is the Vanderbilt Children's Hospital mascot.  I think it is awesome that after all Colby has been through at the Hospital, he still loves everything about it! 

Happy Birthday Boys!

On Friday, August 10, we celebrated the boys' birthdays with family.  Brody and Colby requested a fishing party, so that is what we did!  We all went over to the pond and let the kids fish for over an hour.  I think everyone had a great time, and they actually caught quite a few fish!!  Happy Birthday Brody and Colby!