Aiden was born in April  2002. After 38 hours of labor all I wanted to do was hold our son, take him home and start the life we planned for him. My OB noticed that Aiden looked jaundiced so they ran a little blood work. Aiden was diagnosed with ABO incompatibility. This was the expected source of Aiden's jaundice. His bilirubin was 19. I remember the feeling when the GI doctor came in to speak to us. My husband and I couldn't understand why a GI doctor was getting involved.

After phototherapy, Aiden's indirect bili dropped, but his direct remained high. The doctors grew concerned. The first six weeks was filled with worry, tears, a lot of blood draws, two HIDA scans, and a biopsy. When the results of the biopsy came back I couldn't believe it. Aiden's Kasai was performed at All Children's Hospital, in St. Petersburg, Fl., when he was 6 weeks and 3 days old. Post-op, Aiden was so hard to look at. He had tubes everywhere. He was swollen and had lost his voice from the NG tube. It suddenly hit my husband and I that we had a very difficult road to travel ahead of us. Just 3 days after we went home after the Kasai, Aiden came back to the hospital with ascending cholangitis. Initially, his bili dropped and we were so happy. It went from a 9.8 to a 5.1 in a week. Unfortunately, today his bili is climbing again.

As of now we aren't sure what that means for our future. We just pray for him everyday and give thanks for this blessing. Aiden is truly my dream come true. He smiles, coos, and brings tears of joy to my eyes. A nurse who lost a son to another tragic experience once told me that I needed to mourn the loss of my "perfect baby." The baby I had imagined with no health problems. She told me then to love and cherish the wonderful gift I have been given. I have done this and it has helped. I appreciate the angel the Lord sent us and thank Him for every precious day. My husband Joey, Aiden, and I want to thank C.L.A.S.S. and all of the families here. We are praying for you.

June 2003 Update

Aiden received his gift of life a few days before Christmas 2002. Aiden's liver transplant lasted 10 hours. Right after his transplant the doctors did not seem perfectly pleased. They spent hours without letting us see him. They kept coming back with an ultrasound machine. We soon found out why -- Aiden's portal vein had thrombosed, or clotted off. Aiden went back into surgery to see how much damage was done. The team was able save Aiden's new liver by giving him a second gift, not another liver, but his time it was a cadaveric portal vein.

Since Aiden's transplant we have had a rocky road. Things went up and down with several rejections, CMV, hepatitis, and continued high enzyme levels. Lately Aiden has been sky rocketing. He is growing and doing so well. He recently celebrated his first birthday and is almost walking! It is so amazing to see our miracle do so well. We are indebted to the family that donated Aiden's new liver. We think about his angel all the time. We also want to thank our friends here at CLASS, you have helped us so much through the hard times. The good times lie ahead and Aiden will only soar some more.

February 2004 Update

Aiden has been flourishing over the past few months. Last year was difficult, but a ride I would ride over and over again just to have this end result. Aiden is healthy. We spent 200 days in the hospital last year, most of it out of state. We thought he was going to be re-listed, but he had a miraculous turn around. Aiden is just like every other kid now. He plays runs, climbs, talks and is a wonderful joy to be around.

We still, and always will, remember the donor who gave us this gift and will keep our precious friends here at CLASS in our prayers.