On November 27th, 2013, our lives were forever changed when we welcomed our second son, Remington Daniel Maloof, into the world. As with our firstborn, our expectation was that our second baby was going to be born completely healthy. However, shortly after his birth, doctors discovered that Remington was only getting 40% oxygen to his brain and his skin was blue in color as a result. It was in that moment that we knew something was terribly wrong with our baby boy. Unable to diagnose him where he was born, our doctors informed us that they would need to transport Remington to a nearby hospital equipped with a neonatal intensive-care unit (NICU) in order to give him a fighting chance. The doctors told us to prepare for the worst as they were unsure if he would make it through the ride.

Through the grace of God, Remington survived the ambulance ride and doctors in the NICU at Queen of the Valley Hospital were able to diagnose him with a congenital heart defect known as transposition of the great arteries (TGA). This meant the main arteries in his heart – the pulmonary and aorta – are switched, preventing sufficient amounts of oxygen-rich blood cells to be circulated throughout his body. We quickly learned that although TGA is a life threatening heart defect, it can be repaired through open-heart surgery. This diagnosis required Remington to be airlifted to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) to receive the best care possible. Although our hearts were broken and we feared the unknown, we felt extremely blessed that our son had a chance at life. After one balloon catheterization procedure, one open-heart surgery, and one month in the hospital, our baby’s perfectly imperfect heart was repaired and we brought him home just in time for Christmas.