CHD Awareness Week!

Feb. 7-Feb. 14 is Congenital Heart Defect awareness week. Before we had Owen, I had never even though about heart defects. I knew of cancer, diabetes, obesity and many other issues that children have to face thanks to the media and public awareness. I never knew any of the following facts... I never thought to donate blood... I never even thought about organ donation!

Did you know???

** CHD's are the number one birth defect and the number one cause of infant death related to defects-- 1 in 100 babies born will have a CHD

** 1 in 10 of those babies will have a fatal defect

**In the U.S., nearly twice as many children die due to CHDs than that of all forms of childhood cancers combined. Yet there is 5 times more research for pediatric cancer than for CHDs

**Causes for CHDs are still being studied. While there is no known definitive cause, it is said that both genetics and environmental factors can play a role.

**About 40,000 units of blood are used every day yet only about 5% of the adults, the only ones who are eligible to donate blood, do so. Someone needs blood every three seconds in the United States; that someone is often one of our heart children.

**Only about 30% of the children who need a heart transplant receive one in time.

What can you do??

RAISE AWARENESS -- DONATE BLOOD -- REGISTER TO BECOME AN ORGAN DONOR!

Owen was born with one of the most severe CHDs. Fortunatly, he has made it to his first birthday and continues to do okay. We pray that Owen will get a perfect heart when the time is right and that it will last him a while. The average heart only lasts an average of 10 years! We have lost many of our heart friends and have prayed for many more! Join us this week in not only celebrating Valentine's Day.. but raising awareness for our little ones!