When Jessica and Jarrod Hogue left Norton Hospital without their newborn, they had no idea what to make of the following days, let alone years. On March 12, 2021, the Hogues welcomed their baby, Hudson, into the world nine weeks early due to a very complex congenital heart defect. As a chronic planner, Jessica had…
As Audrey Sims talks on the phone, her 7-year-old twin boys can be heard enthusiastically enjoying the video game they are playing upstairs. “We picked up video games when the pandemic hit,” Audrey said. “It is something they could do while quarantined and inside. They also like Legos. Luckily, neither of them is ever alone,…
For Lauren Fitzmaurice of Owensboro, Kentucky, after 30 weeks of pregnancy, her due date was starting to seem like it was within reach. Pregnant with her second son, Miles, she was diagnosed with gestational diabetes, prompting another ultrasound — all pretty normal stuff. But Lauren’s local OB/GYN noticed something not normal, an anomaly that needed…
Four-year-old Allen Norton is a ball of energy. He loves dancing, singing, eating ice cream and being active outside. Most of all, he loves the University of Louisville Cardinals. Just ask him and he’ll throw an “L” up and say, “Go Cards!” Allen has an extra chromosome that caused Down syndrome. He also has a…
Two-year-old Gift Mbwali and her mother traveled more than 7,600 miles from their home in Uganda to Norton Children’s Heart Institute where surgeons repaired a heart defect she has lived with since birth. Her family was well aware of the high stakes. Her older brother, Patrick, made the same journey in 2017 to have a…
Our journey to parenthood started with joy, excitement, a bit of surprise and a whole bundle of nerves. Is anyone ever really ready to be a parent — to see those eight letters, “pregnant” — on a pregnancy test stick? I made my first appointment with Norton OB/GYN Associates, and it felt like time crept…
The Miller family of Bowling Green, Kentucky, has a reason to celebrate Heart Month every day. Their daughter, Abigail, recently celebrated her first birthday — her “heartiversary” — with family and friends. A year ago, her parents, Amanda and Tim, learned Abigail needed lifesaving surgery to fix defects in her heart — ventricular septal defect…