May 8, 3:45 AM

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. James 1:17, KJV

“Oh! Gosh, I think my water broke! Honey, my water broke!”

This is my wife Amy waking me up early that morning. I had plans to wake up 4:00 am and study for final exam I had at 8:30 AM. I was up but for different, more important reason. I got out of bed and grabbed the ready hospital bag that was on the side of bed and headed to the car. Meanwhile Amy was calling the hospital to check if it was safe to drive to the hospital in San Diego when she was scheduled to deliver because of the condition of the pregnancy. We were given the go-ahead and we were walking through the hospital doors 45 minutes later. After she settled down I whipped out my phone and began to study. 

We found out that we are having another child August of 2018. The timing was almost perfect as I was to graduate University May of 2019. We felt it is great timing to expand our family. Our first born, Henry Gray would be almost three and a half by the time the new baby is here. 

December came and it was time for the 20 week pregnancy check. We arrived at the Doctor office and got an ultra-sound done. The doctor came and spoke with us and notified us that there looks to be an anomaly in the baby’s heart so we needed to be sent to a specialist for confirmation. A week later it was confirmed, our baby has a condition called Tetralogy of Fallot, with Pulmonary Atresia. When developing, his heart did not develop a pulmonary artery.

Back in the hospital, I whipped out my phone and began to study (technology. 

Two hours later I was on the road heading to school to take that final, which took about an hour.

That afternoon at 14:38 I watched my wife give birth to a baby boy, and I had the great pleasure of calling the sex (there is a video to prove it). We named him John Lee, John Lee Kufa. She held the baby for a little bit, but they had to take him away to make sure he was breath okay.

Since he was born we have been at the hospital. I have since taken three other finals, one last Saturday night and two today (between May 8 and 14). It’s been a challenge! 

On the night of May 14 we decided to go home to see Henry and bring him down to San Diego with us. I was relaxing and Amy came and told me that John was paralyzed. I told her I had to go to the hospital—I had to see my little dude (I hadn’t seen him since the morning).

I got to the hospital and they told me that they chemically paralyzed him because they had to put a breathing tube in him. This is a way to calm him down because he has been breathing too fast and burning too much calories.

Since he has been to the Cath Lab and they obtained good images of his heart. As of May 15 they are talking with the cardiac team Stanford University. He may be moved there for surgical procedures.

May 16: He is stable and we are still waiting to hear about surgical options.

So this is where we are…this is what has been going on. He is a Rady’s Children’s Hospital in San Diego.