The time has finally come for Baby Karson's surgery to correct his craniosynostosis. The family will have to travel to Dallas, TX for this major surgery and we need your help to raise money for the family. The out of network medical expenses, travel and lodging and return visits for follow ups will be VERY expensive. Please help in any way that you can! Here is Karson's story as told by his mom Jera:

"One can never really understand the terror of finding out that there is something wrong with your child until it actually happens. Karson Ray Legarreta was born on January 12, 2013 and we were relieved to hear that we had a "healthy" baby boy. However, 6 days later at his well baby check up his pediatrician noticed that his head was oddly shaped. I too had noticed this but thought that it was due to not turning his head enough. Dr. Rich then asked "have you heard of Craniosynostosis?' I said no and he began to explain- two of the bones in Karson's skull that are supposed to be "free floating" were fused together (Sagittal Craniosynostosis). He would have to have corrective surgery otherwise Karson would experience a life full of severe headaches and seizures due to increased intracranial pressure, not to mention social isolation. My immediate thoughts were "how could this happen?" I mean after all i had "done everything right." It was then explained that this defect was likely caused by abnormal pressure on Karson's head while in the womb (breach position, small pelvis, etc). We met with a few different surgeons and on November 12th Karson will have a Posterior Cranial Vault Reconstruction procedure to separate the bones in his skull and reshape his head. He will have a large incision across his head from ear to ear and will experience quite a bit of swelling and bruising. The positive side is that his head will be a normal shape immediately after surgery-no helmet. He will be in surgery for about 5 1/2 hours at Childrens Medical City Dallas and then in Pediatric ICU for a couple of days.  We are lucky enough to have the best surgeon there is but of course he is not contracted with our insurance so there is a high out of pocket cost. I have to say this has been one of the hardest times of our lives as parents-either one of us would take his place in a heartbeat. But at the same time, this experience has given us a new appreciation for life and we can handle anything as long as our children are here with us. Life is truly a blessing so hug your babies!"

To learn more about craniosynostosis please visit:

http://craniokids.org

http://www.craniosynostosis.info

http://craniocarebears.org

Please help to spread awareness of this condition and show support for the family as they head towards this next chapter in their lives. After you make your contribution please help us in our cause by sharing through Facebook, Twitter, email and google. Thank you so much for your support and remember every donation will help no matter the size!