A serious case of wait and see

We took Little Buddy to the ENT today and, ironically, the doctor had lost his voice.  He was kind and after asking lots of questions and listening to LB he suggested putting a scope down LB's nose down to his vocal chords.  Sure.  We figured they'd do that--just not that they'd do it today.  So, a syringe of numbing stuff down one nostril and we were off (crying).

In the room across the hall they prepped him and Ryan held LB on his lap while the nurse held his head.  I held one of his feet while the doctor put the scope down.  As you can imagine, LB started to scream.  And then the doc had to do it again.  Anyway.  He showed us on the tape and then had a picture for comparison.

It's called laryngomalacia.  It's a big fancy word for his airway is not totally open... and he makes a lot of noise and... he should grow out of it.  Surgery is a possibility, but usually only in cases where the child has a "failure to thrive."  Our child is like Clifford the Big Red Dog, so clearly that's not the issue.

So, meds for reflux for a month to see if that helps.  Back to the doc in a month.  Wait and see.

Thankful that surgery isn't something they're suggesting and strangely glad that it probably wasn't due to the breathing tube. Just a this is our quirky baby thing.

I love Winnie the Pooh and this has to be the cutest version ever.  His voice is just darling.

Part 2:

Part 3:

Little Buddy is Six Months!

10/20/11

 

18 lb 13 oz. (86th %ile)

29 in. (97th %ile)

Even his doctor told him to "act his age"!  He's huge, but he's right on track for his development.  Even I sometimes expect more of him since he looks like he's twice his age.

He is the most delightful child.  He smiles and laughs and giggles.  He loves to "read" books and loves it when I sing the "Hush Little Baby" version that I found (all about nature and love and snuggling).

He continues to take his heart medicine and will have a new doctor next time because the doctor who saved his life got a job at another university.

He cut two teeth about a week ago.  The bottom front two.  He was massively drooly, but then, he's been like that for months now.  It didn't seem to hurt him much.  I don't even think that I can hope to have this be how it goes with him.

He has been having trouble falling asleep at night, which has all of us unhappy.  We got lots of advice and we'll see how things go.  Hopefully he'll go back to sleeping through the night.

He's also on his first round of antibiotics due to an ear infection.  He has to take it for another week, but he's already feeling better.

Six months ago was the best and worst day of my life.  I am so lucky to have this sweet little boy in my life.  He just needs to SLOW DOWN.

5 Months

September 20, 2011

Four Months

8/20/11:

At his 4-month appt. he got another round of shots (so much sadness as I held him and his little face turned red with pain and anger) and the following measurements:

Height: 26.75" (91st %ile)
Weight: 15 lb 14 oz. (58th %ile)
Head: 17" (64th %ile)

He's very, very tall.  Now we're looking for new car seats because he's going to outgrow his soon and Babies R Us is doing a trade-in now.  We're trying to put off the giant, expensive convertible seat as long as possible.

Going Back

I went back to work on Monday and it was really, really hard.  Ryan and I did tons of research, visited a few places and found one that fit our needs (and our budget--yikes!).  The center we chose is bright and clean and loving.  We both dropped Little Buddy off on Monday.  And we both cried.

I still cry a little each day.  I'll make it a while and then I want to see him.  It's like I was used to him napping and then he'd wake up and play with me.  I'm still looking into having him in the corner while I teach...

Just kidding, of course.  He needs to be around other kids for all kinds of reasons from gaining immunity (getting sick) to learning how to share and not being the center of attention and...  I just want to snuggle him.

I suppose considering how much trouble we had at the beginning and how bonding was difficult, this is a good sign.

Little Buddy, of course, seems to be taking to daycare.  He's been crabby the past two days, but I think that's his ongoing gas/constipation issues.  I know that you wanted to know. Anyway, poor monkey.

Cardiology Report

7/27:  We went to the children's hospital to meet with Little Buddy's cardiologist.  We had a hard time with the echocardiogram.  Basically, it's a specialized ultrasound of the heart.  Even though they warm the gel, you can imagine, this is not the most favorite activity of any baby, even one who's had more than his fair share.  About halfway through, LB lost his... composure.  They kept telling me they couldn't continue if he was crying (duh).  I tried the Wubbanub with no success.  Finally, she and the trainee tech quit asking me what was wrong and left so I could calm him.  I sang and snuggled and cuddled and finally he fell asleep in my arms.  The tech came back and said I could hold him and they would do it that way.  Next time I'll ask if we can start with that.  All in all, it wasn't a terrible experience.

After that he had an ECG/EKG (the one with about 15 million sensors attached to his chest).  He did better with this one, but did just what he did in the hospital--fidget and twist and bat at them to remove them.

After that we met with the doctor.  He just has a hard time seeing anything significant that's still wrong with Little Buddy's heart.  He's going to back in 6 months and they're probably going to do a Holter monitor and then it will be every few years after that.  I still cry thinking about that.  Our healthy boy.

Speaking of healthy boys, at that appointment they measured him and he was:


25.5 inches
13.9 pounds

Three Months

7/20: Little Buddy is getting taller and although he's still a round little baby he's not quite the chublin he was before. He can hold up his head for longer periods of time and still hates tummy time.  He still usually just flips himself onto his back.  He's still working on flipping from his back to his tummy and usually it's all he does when you put him on his back--even in bed.  He will sometimes spin around almost 360° at night.

Look at those long legs:

 

Propped up and smiling a little

I heart Sephora

I love, love, love Sephora.  I love that you can try everything and they're not crazy pushy like at department stores.

I had two gift cards and I finally went in and spent them...

Lips...

I wanted to get away from all of the shimmery pinks that I've been wearing like it's still the mid sixties.  I thought about brown, but was steered away from it by one of the salespeople.  You can't wear brown lip color with navy?  Anyway, I love plum and while it's still in the pink family, it's darker, but still wearable during the day (I think)


Fresh Sugar Plum Lip Treatment SPF 15


Eyes...
Makeup Forever Aqua Eyes eyeliner/eyeshadow pencil (black purple)



Makeup Forever Aqua Smoky Lash (Waterproof Extra Black) Mascara

Clinique Bottom lash mascara

Sephora Duo Eyeshadow in gorgeous pink (shimmering mauve pink/shimmering smoky plum)




Yes, there's a purple theme.  I like it.  It's different than all of my brown eyeshadows and it tends to bring out the little bit of green that I have in my (brown) eyes.

Fragrance:
Stella McCartney Stella (roll-on, which reminds me of putting on perfume when I was a kid)

I also got a small bottle of philosophy vanilla birthday cake shampoo, shower gel, and bubble bath because it was just my birthday and I'm a member of their loyalty program.  And yes, it smells so good I want to eat it!

So, fun, fun, fun!!!