It's been such a long time since I updated that I hardly know where to begin! Today is Owen's first birthday. Twelve months ago today, he came into the world, we got a short glimpse of him, and he was quickly taken away. About two hours later, we got to see him and hold him for a bit. And then not again for several days. We got to hold him the day before his first surgery, and that morning before they took him away. And then not again for several days. He went back to the NICU and remained there until he was 2.5 months old. We saw him as much as we could, while also preparing for a move and with me trying to finish school. One year later, I don't really understand how we made it through all this, except by the grace of God.
So what is Owen like today? The little boy who could easily not have survived his heart condition, who easily could have been so affected by his chromosome abnormality that he would be completely unresponsive to us, is thriving! What's new with Owen? Well...
1) He can sit on his own, unsupported, for short bursts of time while he plays with toys. He loves to stand. He needs help with balance, but he supports himself and tries to take steps (yikes!) He is not very close to crawling, but is getting there. We will insist with him that he learn to crawl before walking, since crawling is tied to good language and speech skills later on. We are in PT and OT to accomplish these goals.
2) Owen has two teeth, and a couple more on the way!
3) At this point, he is completely G-tube fed for his formula. He started refusing the bottle around Christmas, when his first tooth came in. We are in speech therapy to work on this, and the therapist is optimistic that we'll get the bottle back. Aside from formula, he hates baby food, but loves to try what's on our plates!
4) Owen definitely recognizes strangers now, and has become a bit of a mama's boy. He loves to cuddle.
5) His favorite games are to see his daddy hop around like a bunny, see his mommy take slow steps toward him and tickle him, and see his soft toys get thrown around. He laughs up a storm anytime we do these things.
6) His favorite toy right now is his red bird that chirps when you squeeze its tummy. It can bring him straight out of a shrieking fit into smiles and coos.
7) Finally, and best of all, his heart function has remained great! It couldn't be any better given his funky anatomy. In fact, we last saw cardiology in February, and they released us until the end of AUGUST!!! Much, much praise to God for this blessing! The truth is, we *never* worry about his heart. Isn't that amazing?!
We know his next surgery is coming, either this fall or next fall. But we are at peace. Our baby boy is a joy to us, and whatever time we have with him is the time we're meant to have. We are thankful for it all.
The next several days will be big for us. Baby Frossard #2 is coming by scheduled induction next Friday/Saturday, April 10/11. We go in that Friday evening at around 5 for me to get checked, and if no dilation has occurred (as was the case with Owen,) they will give me some medicine, and we'll go from there. The reason I think we could still have the baby Friday is because Owen's induction began at 6pm and he was almost born that same night!
In the meantime, we are trying to get our house straightened and cleaned. The boys' rooms are almost completely finished. Owen has moved into his new, bigger-boy bedroom, and the nursery is put together for Bean. I feel the nesting instinct, but I am too tired to act on it! We let our house go so much that it's all we can do just to complete a decent cleaning.
I plan to start updating regularly again, especially now that Owen is getting a new baby brother to interact with! I have lots of pictures to post, once I get them downloaded. Owen was pretty cute with his birthday cupcake last night, though he didn't actually eat any of it. He definitely didn't inherit too much of my sweet tooth!
Showing posts with label feeding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label feeding. Show all posts
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Teething, Eating, Gaining, and a New Baby _____
So our little guy finally actually has a tooth coming through. He was super fussy all evening on Sunday, and when I looked in his mouth I saw the little bump on his bottom gum! He's been pretty comfortable since then with Tylenol. It's pretty cute though; he keeps running his tongue over the spot like, "Hey, what's this?"
And... Owen is EATING! Not a ton, and nowhere near enough calories to get rid of the G-tube, but he eats! He's been eating the Gerber Graduates puffs, and doing a little bit better with baby food lately. It's also fairly common for him to take about 4 ounces of formula for us at a time. So, frustrating as it is that we still have the tube, I really do think we'll be without it someday.
It's actually a good thing we still have the tube, because Owen has been upped to 36 ounces a day. Which doesn't sound like a lot, until you think about how many calories that is. His formula is mixed at 30 calories per ounce, so that's over 1000 calories per day! Formula mixed the normal way (and breast milk) is about 20 calories per ounce. All this may actually be having an effect, because when I weighed him this morning he was closing in on 15 pounds! It would be great if that's real, but I'm slightly concerned that he may be retaining fluid. After all, last week he only weighed 14 pounds. So I'll be keeping an eye on his weight to see if this is just a random jump (he tends to have those) or if it's something to be concerned about.
So our little guy has definitely been reaching some milestones and doing better all the time. And soon we'll have to be more specific than saying "our little guy." That's right - Owen's having a baby brother! I'm at 22 weeks and feeling good. We're thinking about names but haven't settled on anything for sure yet (and we probably won't until Bean's born.) He's been pretty active lately - it's both exciting and nauseating to feel him moving around in there!
We're getting ready for our first Christmas in our new house. Owen loves the lights, of course, and is enthralled by the train we have around the Christmas tree. A few days ago he "helped" Mark look at the ads in the paper. Okay, so he mainly grabbed the papers and waved them around a lot. So I think he'll have fun with the wrapping paper. Speaking of which, I need to get to it! I wish presents wrapped themselves sometimes. =)
And... Owen is EATING! Not a ton, and nowhere near enough calories to get rid of the G-tube, but he eats! He's been eating the Gerber Graduates puffs, and doing a little bit better with baby food lately. It's also fairly common for him to take about 4 ounces of formula for us at a time. So, frustrating as it is that we still have the tube, I really do think we'll be without it someday.
It's actually a good thing we still have the tube, because Owen has been upped to 36 ounces a day. Which doesn't sound like a lot, until you think about how many calories that is. His formula is mixed at 30 calories per ounce, so that's over 1000 calories per day! Formula mixed the normal way (and breast milk) is about 20 calories per ounce. All this may actually be having an effect, because when I weighed him this morning he was closing in on 15 pounds! It would be great if that's real, but I'm slightly concerned that he may be retaining fluid. After all, last week he only weighed 14 pounds. So I'll be keeping an eye on his weight to see if this is just a random jump (he tends to have those) or if it's something to be concerned about.
So our little guy has definitely been reaching some milestones and doing better all the time. And soon we'll have to be more specific than saying "our little guy." That's right - Owen's having a baby brother! I'm at 22 weeks and feeling good. We're thinking about names but haven't settled on anything for sure yet (and we probably won't until Bean's born.) He's been pretty active lately - it's both exciting and nauseating to feel him moving around in there!
We're getting ready for our first Christmas in our new house. Owen loves the lights, of course, and is enthralled by the train we have around the Christmas tree. A few days ago he "helped" Mark look at the ads in the paper. Okay, so he mainly grabbed the papers and waved them around a lot. So I think he'll have fun with the wrapping paper. Speaking of which, I need to get to it! I wish presents wrapped themselves sometimes. =)
Friday, November 21, 2008
We're Back...
...from our blog hiatus! We've been busy adjusting to life at home after surgery, which has been great. Owen's first follow-up with cardiology after surgery went very well, and his next one will be December 3rd. At that one, we expect to be able to drop one or two of his meds. That's also the day of our big U/S to take a good look at Baby Bean. We are praying that Bean is healthy; I already want them to look at the heart first! We are also looking forward to finding out whether Bean is a boy or a girl.Owen has been a little more cranky lately. We think he's cutting teeth, although we can't see anything coming in yet. He is *terrified* of doctors/nurses; he screamed through his entire cardiology appointment and tried to hide behind my shirt. We've been working more on feeding, but we're not getting too far. So far, he hates sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, pears, peaches, and applesauce. The two foods we've found that he will willingly put in his mouth and gnaw on? Tootsie rolls and Oreos. Fabulous. He hasn't gained anything at all since before his surgery, even though we're feeding him more than before. He gets about 130 kcal/kg/day, which should be plenty for him to gain well, but he just isn't. There's only so much you can concentrate his formula, and so much you can put in his tummy in a day. I don't know what we're going to do next. His length and head circumference are still following the curve, but his weight has dropped off dramatically.
I'm including some pictures from his surgery and after; he's really looking older lately!
I'm including some pictures from his surgery and after; he's really looking older lately!
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Leaps and Bounds
Our sweet little boy continues to amaze us. I posted some pictures from a few weeks ago, where he is sitting in a Bumbo seat. He used to slump over to the right all the time because he wasn't strong enough to hold himself up. But now he does! He'll actually sit up in his seat and play with a toy. After a few minutes he starts to get tired and lean to one side, but he's made so much progress.
He also appears to be tolerating tummy time much better. The other day I helped him roll over, then laid on my tummy next to him. He just looked over at me and smiled before he got to work. His favorite thing to do on his tummy is draw his knees up underneath him, and then try to pick up his head. Gravity is not on his side in that position, but recently he was able to pick up his head that way. If we pull his legs out and get his hips flat on the ground, he can lift his head and keep it up for quite a while now. It's a little disheartening that he'll have surgery in a few weeks and not be able to be on his tummy for a while after that, so we'll probably lose some of this progress. But it's such an encouraging sign that he's made it this far. He'll get back here again.
His absolute favorite thing lately is to "be big." What do I mean by this? He loves to be upright! I pick him up to cradle him in my arms, and immediately he's doing a crunch, trying to sit up. He now likes to be held up at our shoulders, but he still prefers for us to sit him up in our arms so he can see us and the world. We've started propping up his Boppy pillow so he can sit almost upright in it. You should see the smiles we get when we put him there and tell him he's a big boy! He's obviously proud of himself and happy to be part of the upright world.
His weight gain has also taken a sudden leap. When I weighed him earlier this week he was closing in on 13 pounds already! He's developed little fat rolls on his thighs. He is now firmly in the 3-6 month clothing range, just in time for him to turn 6 months next week. On Thursday I was home with him for the day, and I took the opportunity to organize his clothes. It was so fun to get out all of the new outfits he'll soon fit into, but it was sad to pack away the ones he's grown out of. He'll never be my tiny newborn again. And that makes me doubly sad because I feel like I missed it when it was happening. I know I'm still grieving that loss, and maybe I always will. I hope his continued good health will help me heal.
His health does continue to seem good. He had some increased stuffiness for a while, but that seems to have dissipated. His 6 month checkup is this week, so we'll see what the pediatrician has to say. This is the doctor's office that consistently measures him big. It'll be interesting to see what they come up with this time.
Owen still isn't eating well from the bottle. He pretty consistently will take at least some, but only if he's truly hungry. If only we all could eat only when we're hungry! Maybe he has the right idea! We're starting in with rice cereal again, and Mark actually had a little bit of success today. We'll probably just have to offer it consistently so Owen will know it's a part of the routine. He doesn't seem to be averse to the food, but he does seem to be scared of the spoon. We plan to let him play with it and hopefully he'll get used to the way it feels in his mouth. We don't know how long he'll need the G-tube, but I plan to really start pushing the feeding issue after he's recovered from his next surgery. I imagine he'll have it at least through the winter, so that we can continue feeding him even if he gets sick or starts teething and won't eat. It's so important for him to get those calories.
And sadly, October 21st is rapidly approaching. I'm excited for him to get through this next stage, because it's one more step down and he should be stronger afterward. However, we are also terrified. It was difficult to hand him over for the first surgery, but we didn't know what it was like not to have him in the hospital yet, and we were still exhausted from him being born five days before. It was actually harder to hand him over for the recent catheterization, even though that was a far less serious procedure. He is now such a part of our everyday lives. Not having him here at the house is going to seem so wrong, whereas the first time around we didn't know yet what it was like to have a baby at home. We knew it wasn't normal that he was still in the hospital, but it was OUR normal.
Please pray for peace for us in the coming weeks as we prepare for Owen's next surgery. I can't speak for Mark, but I can feel myself becoming more tense as the time approaches. I have two doctor appointments this week; one of them is my first trimester screening appointment. Hopefully I will be able to post again soon with good news!
He also appears to be tolerating tummy time much better. The other day I helped him roll over, then laid on my tummy next to him. He just looked over at me and smiled before he got to work. His favorite thing to do on his tummy is draw his knees up underneath him, and then try to pick up his head. Gravity is not on his side in that position, but recently he was able to pick up his head that way. If we pull his legs out and get his hips flat on the ground, he can lift his head and keep it up for quite a while now. It's a little disheartening that he'll have surgery in a few weeks and not be able to be on his tummy for a while after that, so we'll probably lose some of this progress. But it's such an encouraging sign that he's made it this far. He'll get back here again.
His absolute favorite thing lately is to "be big." What do I mean by this? He loves to be upright! I pick him up to cradle him in my arms, and immediately he's doing a crunch, trying to sit up. He now likes to be held up at our shoulders, but he still prefers for us to sit him up in our arms so he can see us and the world. We've started propping up his Boppy pillow so he can sit almost upright in it. You should see the smiles we get when we put him there and tell him he's a big boy! He's obviously proud of himself and happy to be part of the upright world.
His weight gain has also taken a sudden leap. When I weighed him earlier this week he was closing in on 13 pounds already! He's developed little fat rolls on his thighs. He is now firmly in the 3-6 month clothing range, just in time for him to turn 6 months next week. On Thursday I was home with him for the day, and I took the opportunity to organize his clothes. It was so fun to get out all of the new outfits he'll soon fit into, but it was sad to pack away the ones he's grown out of. He'll never be my tiny newborn again. And that makes me doubly sad because I feel like I missed it when it was happening. I know I'm still grieving that loss, and maybe I always will. I hope his continued good health will help me heal.
His health does continue to seem good. He had some increased stuffiness for a while, but that seems to have dissipated. His 6 month checkup is this week, so we'll see what the pediatrician has to say. This is the doctor's office that consistently measures him big. It'll be interesting to see what they come up with this time.
Owen still isn't eating well from the bottle. He pretty consistently will take at least some, but only if he's truly hungry. If only we all could eat only when we're hungry! Maybe he has the right idea! We're starting in with rice cereal again, and Mark actually had a little bit of success today. We'll probably just have to offer it consistently so Owen will know it's a part of the routine. He doesn't seem to be averse to the food, but he does seem to be scared of the spoon. We plan to let him play with it and hopefully he'll get used to the way it feels in his mouth. We don't know how long he'll need the G-tube, but I plan to really start pushing the feeding issue after he's recovered from his next surgery. I imagine he'll have it at least through the winter, so that we can continue feeding him even if he gets sick or starts teething and won't eat. It's so important for him to get those calories.
And sadly, October 21st is rapidly approaching. I'm excited for him to get through this next stage, because it's one more step down and he should be stronger afterward. However, we are also terrified. It was difficult to hand him over for the first surgery, but we didn't know what it was like not to have him in the hospital yet, and we were still exhausted from him being born five days before. It was actually harder to hand him over for the recent catheterization, even though that was a far less serious procedure. He is now such a part of our everyday lives. Not having him here at the house is going to seem so wrong, whereas the first time around we didn't know yet what it was like to have a baby at home. We knew it wasn't normal that he was still in the hospital, but it was OUR normal.
Please pray for peace for us in the coming weeks as we prepare for Owen's next surgery. I can't speak for Mark, but I can feel myself becoming more tense as the time approaches. I have two doctor appointments this week; one of them is my first trimester screening appointment. Hopefully I will be able to post again soon with good news!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Oh boy...
Well. I guess things weren't hectic enough, because the week after next has suddenly become a lot more complicated. Why? Our house actually sold! So we are currently looking at this schedule:
Aug. 27th: Owen's heart cath, Mark's off but I work that night
Aug. 28th: 8:30am close on current house, 10am close on new house, sometime that day Owen will get discharged, Mark's off but I work that night
Aug. 29th: get everything out of the current house, probably in some kind of kamikaze blitz whirlwind, Mark's working in the morning but I'm going to try to be off so I can keep Owen with me and give him another day to recover before going back to daycare
Aug. 30th: the new owners take possession of our current house, we move stuff from storage and actually try to arrange furniture in new house
The ONLY downside to my new job is I obviously don't have any PTO yet, and I have to be there 6 months before I can use it anyway. They are great there, and I know they will work with me to get me any unpaid leave I need to take for Owen. What we're trying to do is tag team when we're working that week, so we can save time off if a true emergency ever arises with Owen. I know it looks stressful (and it probably will be) but I'm actually looking forward to the challenge. I must be nuts. =)
Owen drank three whole bottles on his own today. I broke away from the schedule a little bit and let him eat when he wanted, and he did pretty well. Tomorrow Owen's G-tube gets switched out; hopefully it will be quick and painless for both of us!
Aug. 27th: Owen's heart cath, Mark's off but I work that night
Aug. 28th: 8:30am close on current house, 10am close on new house, sometime that day Owen will get discharged, Mark's off but I work that night
Aug. 29th: get everything out of the current house, probably in some kind of kamikaze blitz whirlwind, Mark's working in the morning but I'm going to try to be off so I can keep Owen with me and give him another day to recover before going back to daycare
Aug. 30th: the new owners take possession of our current house, we move stuff from storage and actually try to arrange furniture in new house
The ONLY downside to my new job is I obviously don't have any PTO yet, and I have to be there 6 months before I can use it anyway. They are great there, and I know they will work with me to get me any unpaid leave I need to take for Owen. What we're trying to do is tag team when we're working that week, so we can save time off if a true emergency ever arises with Owen. I know it looks stressful (and it probably will be) but I'm actually looking forward to the challenge. I must be nuts. =)
Owen drank three whole bottles on his own today. I broke away from the schedule a little bit and let him eat when he wanted, and he did pretty well. Tomorrow Owen's G-tube gets switched out; hopefully it will be quick and painless for both of us!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Growing up!
I walked in to Owen's room this morning to check on him, and this is what I saw. He looks so grown up to me here! He was resting so peacefully. The "field goal" positioning of his arms is something he does all the time when he's on his back. But that's rare; he's usually curled up on his side.
Owen sees the pediatrician tomorrow and the GI surgeon to follow up on his G-tube Thursday. His G-tube is going to get changed out for the first time at that appointment, and they're going to show me how to do it. I don't know why, but something about the G-tube just creeps me out. I was able to look at Owen while his chest was still open without batting an eye, but dealing with the G-tube sometimes makes me gag. I hope we're able to get rid of it soon after the Glenn, but I'm not holding my breath. Owen is eating well enough for us to be happy, but he's still only doing about 60%.
I'm starting to do a little light packing for the move. The trouble is, our storage area is pretty much full, so any boxes I pack have nowhere to go. And we're still having showings of our current house in the meantime, so we have to keep boxes to a minimum. We close on our current house Aug. 27th, and we'll have "a few days" to move out after that, according to our realtor. Since we close on the new house the next day, I think it'll work out great. It'll just make for a busy few days!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Mr. Personality
Just thought I'd share some about our little guy's personality!
1) If you wake him up out of a deep sleep, he flails around and growls at you, just like his daddy. But once he's fully awake, he's all smiles, just like his mommy.
2) He is definitely in control when he eats. Now that we have started letting him taste solid foods, I always show him the bottle or the spoon before putting either to his lips, so he can start telling the difference. About half the time he takes an active role by grabbing either and pulling it to his mouth. Other times he holds the bottle as I give it to him. And other times, if he doesn't want it, he bats it away and glares at me. I just tell him I have more attitude than he does, and it's going in one way or the other!
3) He has ZERO tolerance for a dirty diaper, and lets you know it.
4) He loves to lie on his side. Lately he has started grabbing things (his sheet, toy gym, etc) and pulling while he lies there. He's going to pull himself onto his tummy any day.
5) He is happiest when he has something soft in his hands that he can grab, like his lambie or a cloth diaper.
7) He has started exploring things by bringing them up to his mouth.
8) He doesn't like peas (yet.) This works to my advantage because, given the option between peas and the bottle, he'll take the bottle. Sometimes if he won't take the bottle, I'll give him some solid food so then he'll pick the lesser of two evils and eat!
9) He has started paying attention to the TV, or at least the lights and sound of it. Sometimes we have to turn it off so he'll focus on eating or playing instead.
10) He is SUPER interested in his surroundings, especially in other people. If he senses movement or noise, he'll crane his neck to see what's going on. If it's more interesting than you are (and pretty much everything else has started being more interesting than mommy and daddy,) forget trying to get his attention back. Looks like someone takes after his Aunt Beth that way!
1) If you wake him up out of a deep sleep, he flails around and growls at you, just like his daddy. But once he's fully awake, he's all smiles, just like his mommy.
2) He is definitely in control when he eats. Now that we have started letting him taste solid foods, I always show him the bottle or the spoon before putting either to his lips, so he can start telling the difference. About half the time he takes an active role by grabbing either and pulling it to his mouth. Other times he holds the bottle as I give it to him. And other times, if he doesn't want it, he bats it away and glares at me. I just tell him I have more attitude than he does, and it's going in one way or the other!
3) He has ZERO tolerance for a dirty diaper, and lets you know it.
4) He loves to lie on his side. Lately he has started grabbing things (his sheet, toy gym, etc) and pulling while he lies there. He's going to pull himself onto his tummy any day.
5) He is happiest when he has something soft in his hands that he can grab, like his lambie or a cloth diaper.
7) He has started exploring things by bringing them up to his mouth.
8) He doesn't like peas (yet.) This works to my advantage because, given the option between peas and the bottle, he'll take the bottle. Sometimes if he won't take the bottle, I'll give him some solid food so then he'll pick the lesser of two evils and eat!
9) He has started paying attention to the TV, or at least the lights and sound of it. Sometimes we have to turn it off so he'll focus on eating or playing instead.
10) He is SUPER interested in his surroundings, especially in other people. If he senses movement or noise, he'll crane his neck to see what's going on. If it's more interesting than you are (and pretty much everything else has started being more interesting than mommy and daddy,) forget trying to get his attention back. Looks like someone takes after his Aunt Beth that way!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Welcome!
Hello, and welcome to our new site for updates on Baby Owen! I decided to switch to Blogspot so our family and friends would have slightly easier access (eg no sign in required.) Not sure if I can archive the updates from our CarePage on here, but I may try at some point. And now for today's update!
The big news I mentioned last time has not been finalized yet, so we're all still waiting on that. Sorry. But we do have other big news. Owen had a cardiology appointment today, and his catheterization is scheduled for August 27th. The cath will be done to check out his heart prior to his next surgery, the Glenn. Dr. Parikh, one of our four cardiologists, said Owen's heart sounds very stable and good today, and we have no reason to believe we will end up needing the Glenn before October. In fact, if Owen's heart function remains this good, we may wait through the winter before having the Glenn. What we want to avoid is having the Glenn during the winter, since that is the high season for infection. This surgery is usually done between 6 and 9 months of age (6 is October, 9 is January) but can be postponed longer if heart function is good enough. I want to do what's best for Owen, but I definitely prefer October. I'd hate to get in a situation where we have to have the Glenn emergently in the winter.
Aside from scheduling the cath, Dr. Parikh was happy with how Owen is doing. We also saw Dr. Escobar (developmental pediatrician) today, and he is downright thrilled with Owen's progress. According to their info, Owen's height and weight, while extremely low, are tracking along the curve. This means his growth rate is normal, even if he's very small for his age. His weight is 3rd percentile, and his height is not even on the curve. Dr. Escobar also looked at Owen's current motor skills, and was pleased with those as well.
Speaking of motor skills, Owen has been showing off lately. Yesterday he started reaching out and grabbing the toys on his gym. He also reaches out and grabs toys while lying on his side. He has one toy that is a cube, and when you push each side it plays a song. He is able to push the sides and turn it on, although I don't think he realizes he's the one doing it! He just sees it light up and wants to get at it. It's handy that he can turn it on by himself, though!
Dr. Escobar also suggested we start Owen on solid foods. So today we experimented with rice cereal, with mixed results. He doesn't seem to care for it too much (I think I mixed it too thick) but he doesn't push it out of his mouth, either. He sort of moves it around until he accidentally swallows it, or I give him the bottle to wash it down. I think if I mix it a little thinner, he'll have an easier time swallowing it. I forgot to say it, but you've probably already guessed he's eating again. I don't know what his issue was over the weekend when he was refusing the bottle. I took him to the regular pediatrician on Monday (he needed vaccinations anyway) and she could find nothing wrong with him. That day he just up and started eating again. He's not back up to eating quite as much from the bottle as he was before, but we're at about 50/50. I'll definitely take it!
We have PT, a visit with Mark's family, and the Feast of St. Alphonsus (our church's patron saint) tomorrow. So it will be a busy day! On Saturday I graduate from Purdue's Doctor of Pharmacy program. This has been a long time coming (I've been in college 10 years!) and it feels like such a huge accomplishment. Especially given what we have gone through in the past year. God has been so good to us through it all. One more example of just how good: we found daycare for Owen. Not only did we find what seems like a great, loving in-home situation, but he will be cared for by a woman who was formerly a NICU nurse for 27 years. We found this person through a post I put out on a website. We got ONE response, and it was her. How amazing is that? We just keep getting taken care of so completely. See what prayer can do??!
The big news I mentioned last time has not been finalized yet, so we're all still waiting on that. Sorry. But we do have other big news. Owen had a cardiology appointment today, and his catheterization is scheduled for August 27th. The cath will be done to check out his heart prior to his next surgery, the Glenn. Dr. Parikh, one of our four cardiologists, said Owen's heart sounds very stable and good today, and we have no reason to believe we will end up needing the Glenn before October. In fact, if Owen's heart function remains this good, we may wait through the winter before having the Glenn. What we want to avoid is having the Glenn during the winter, since that is the high season for infection. This surgery is usually done between 6 and 9 months of age (6 is October, 9 is January) but can be postponed longer if heart function is good enough. I want to do what's best for Owen, but I definitely prefer October. I'd hate to get in a situation where we have to have the Glenn emergently in the winter.
Aside from scheduling the cath, Dr. Parikh was happy with how Owen is doing. We also saw Dr. Escobar (developmental pediatrician) today, and he is downright thrilled with Owen's progress. According to their info, Owen's height and weight, while extremely low, are tracking along the curve. This means his growth rate is normal, even if he's very small for his age. His weight is 3rd percentile, and his height is not even on the curve. Dr. Escobar also looked at Owen's current motor skills, and was pleased with those as well.
Speaking of motor skills, Owen has been showing off lately. Yesterday he started reaching out and grabbing the toys on his gym. He also reaches out and grabs toys while lying on his side. He has one toy that is a cube, and when you push each side it plays a song. He is able to push the sides and turn it on, although I don't think he realizes he's the one doing it! He just sees it light up and wants to get at it. It's handy that he can turn it on by himself, though!
Dr. Escobar also suggested we start Owen on solid foods. So today we experimented with rice cereal, with mixed results. He doesn't seem to care for it too much (I think I mixed it too thick) but he doesn't push it out of his mouth, either. He sort of moves it around until he accidentally swallows it, or I give him the bottle to wash it down. I think if I mix it a little thinner, he'll have an easier time swallowing it. I forgot to say it, but you've probably already guessed he's eating again. I don't know what his issue was over the weekend when he was refusing the bottle. I took him to the regular pediatrician on Monday (he needed vaccinations anyway) and she could find nothing wrong with him. That day he just up and started eating again. He's not back up to eating quite as much from the bottle as he was before, but we're at about 50/50. I'll definitely take it!
We have PT, a visit with Mark's family, and the Feast of St. Alphonsus (our church's patron saint) tomorrow. So it will be a busy day! On Saturday I graduate from Purdue's Doctor of Pharmacy program. This has been a long time coming (I've been in college 10 years!) and it feels like such a huge accomplishment. Especially given what we have gone through in the past year. God has been so good to us through it all. One more example of just how good: we found daycare for Owen. Not only did we find what seems like a great, loving in-home situation, but he will be cared for by a woman who was formerly a NICU nurse for 27 years. We found this person through a post I put out on a website. We got ONE response, and it was her. How amazing is that? We just keep getting taken care of so completely. See what prayer can do??!
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