"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11
We hope that you all have a wonderful holiday. Merry Christmas!!!
Much Love,
Jennifer, Joe, Madison and Kyle
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Monday, December 17, 2007
December 17, 2007
Aunt Katie, Kyle and Madison
Papa Joe, Grandma Angela and Katie with Madison & Kyle
Kyle with Joanna"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Luke 2:14
Kyle is feeling much better and recovered from his bout with Bronchitis pretty quickly. Last week he received another RSV shot, and will continue to receive one monthly until RSV season ends in April. His weight is up to 14 pounds, still on the small side, even for his adjusted age, but he is getting there slowly but surely.
Kyle is learning to sit by himself now and each day he is able to sit unassisted for longer periods of time. Last week we received the results from yet another formal evaluation from one of Kyle's Developmental Specialists, this time his Physical Therapist. I am happy to report that this report confirmed the others, Kyle is right on target and doing everything that he should be for his adjusted age. Something a little different about this evaluation, the therapist looked as much at how Kyle's body reacted to certain tasks, rather than if he could just accomplish something. For example, when Kyle stands, is it flat footed or does he put an unusual amount of weight on his toes. Kyle stood flat footed which was a very good sign. Something else they looked for was how easily Kyle could get his foot in his mouth, which given the chance, he loves to have his feet in his mouth! Not something you typically see on a developmental checklist, but these are all areas that could possibly indicate Cerebral Palsy. Thankfully, once again, Kyle did not show any signs Cerebral Palsy.
This past week we had some very special visitors staying with us. Joe's Dad, his step mom Angela and little sister Katie were in town from Las Vegas. Aunt Katie is 6 years old so her and Madison have a blast paling around together. Kyle loved everyone, but definitely had a soft spot for Papa Joe. Any time Papa Joe would even just look at Kyle, Kyle would light up and smile! While they were in town we went to a couple family gatherings where Kyle was introduced to Joe's cousin Stacy's baby girl Joanna. Sounds confusing, huh? Stacy and I were pregnant together, with my due date being June 7th and Stacy's due date being June 9th. We had assumed that we would have our babies around the same time, but, you all know how that turned out! Anyways, it was interesting for me to see a baby born almost exactly when Kyle should have been born. Although Joanna is a little bigger (2 pounds to be exact), developmentally they seemed about the same, which was comforting to me. Anyways, we had a wonderful week seeing everyone and were very sad when it came to an end.
Christmas is almost here and it is definitely my favorite time of year! With all the hustle and bustle of the holiday season though, we are trying to keep our focus on the real reason for the season...and that being the birth of our Lord and Savior...Jesus! He is the greatest gift of all! "And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth." Luke 1:14
God Bless You and Yours,
Jennifer, Joe, Madison and Kyle
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
December 5, 2007
Kyle during his Swallow Study - not happy they madehim wear a purple hospital gown! :)
Poor little Kyle has been under the weather. He came down with a slight cold last week and by Saturday it had turned into Bronchitis. When we put Kyle to bed on Friday, he was a little stuffed up, but when he woke up Saturday morning he was wheezing and his chest was retracting as if he was struggling a little with breathing. Infants airways are small to begin with but Kyle's is further complicated by his chronic lung disease, so any type of swelling in his airway makes it difficult for him to breathe. When we took him to the doctors they immediately began administering Albuterol (steroids) through a nebulizer. The pediatrician warned us that this type of treatment typically is not effective until at least 6 months of age, and with Kyle turning 6 months (adjusted) on Friday, she was unsure if it would help. If treatment did not work, they were going to admit Kyle to the hospital for oxygen support. I am so pleased to report that the treatments worked and began helping his breathing right away! So, the doctor sent us home with prescriptions for Albuterol and Pulmicort Respules and nebulizer, which is an electric machine that that turns liquid medicine into a mist that Kyle can breath into his lungs through a face mask. Kyle is doing so much better now! With his complicated stay in the NICU (pneumonia 3 times, CMV, infections, etc.) we really are so blessed that this is the first time Kyle has been sick since he was discharged from the hospital five months ago. God is great!
Kyle had another swallow study done on Thursday. If you remember, Kyle had two of these done in June, one while he was still in the hospital and another the week after he was discharged. We were hopeful that his swallowing may have matured to the point that Kyle could come off of having his formula thickened, but unfortunately, this was not the case. For the swallow test, Kyle is hooked up to an XRAY machine and fed a bottle containing barium. We are able to watch the liquid travel through Kyle. The first suck they gave him was of a bottle that was not thickened at all, which went into Kyle's airway right away. The second bottle was thickened to the consistency that Kyle is currently receiving, which is called a nectar consistency. We were stunned that this to went in Kyle's airway as well! They then moved onto an even thicker consistency (honey), and Kyle did fine with all of the bottle going into Kyle's stomach as it should. So, Kyle now receives his bottles thickened to the consistency of honey. Since this occurred on Thursday, we have noticed a decrease in Kyle's eating, but we're not sure yet how much of this is due to him having a cold and how much is because of the increased difficulty of eating. Poor thing, think how hard it would be to suck honey out of a baby bottle compared to milk! They are not going to repeat the test again for 6 months, so for the time being we'll just have to manage.
"Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." Matthew 1:23 (KJV)
Poor little Kyle has been under the weather. He came down with a slight cold last week and by Saturday it had turned into Bronchitis. When we put Kyle to bed on Friday, he was a little stuffed up, but when he woke up Saturday morning he was wheezing and his chest was retracting as if he was struggling a little with breathing. Infants airways are small to begin with but Kyle's is further complicated by his chronic lung disease, so any type of swelling in his airway makes it difficult for him to breathe. When we took him to the doctors they immediately began administering Albuterol (steroids) through a nebulizer. The pediatrician warned us that this type of treatment typically is not effective until at least 6 months of age, and with Kyle turning 6 months (adjusted) on Friday, she was unsure if it would help. If treatment did not work, they were going to admit Kyle to the hospital for oxygen support. I am so pleased to report that the treatments worked and began helping his breathing right away! So, the doctor sent us home with prescriptions for Albuterol and Pulmicort Respules and nebulizer, which is an electric machine that that turns liquid medicine into a mist that Kyle can breath into his lungs through a face mask. Kyle is doing so much better now! With his complicated stay in the NICU (pneumonia 3 times, CMV, infections, etc.) we really are so blessed that this is the first time Kyle has been sick since he was discharged from the hospital five months ago. God is great!
Kyle had another swallow study done on Thursday. If you remember, Kyle had two of these done in June, one while he was still in the hospital and another the week after he was discharged. We were hopeful that his swallowing may have matured to the point that Kyle could come off of having his formula thickened, but unfortunately, this was not the case. For the swallow test, Kyle is hooked up to an XRAY machine and fed a bottle containing barium. We are able to watch the liquid travel through Kyle. The first suck they gave him was of a bottle that was not thickened at all, which went into Kyle's airway right away. The second bottle was thickened to the consistency that Kyle is currently receiving, which is called a nectar consistency. We were stunned that this to went in Kyle's airway as well! They then moved onto an even thicker consistency (honey), and Kyle did fine with all of the bottle going into Kyle's stomach as it should. So, Kyle now receives his bottles thickened to the consistency of honey. Since this occurred on Thursday, we have noticed a decrease in Kyle's eating, but we're not sure yet how much of this is due to him having a cold and how much is because of the increased difficulty of eating. Poor thing, think how hard it would be to suck honey out of a baby bottle compared to milk! They are not going to repeat the test again for 6 months, so for the time being we'll just have to manage.
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We also met with an eating specialist and I am happy to report that Kyle is handling his "solid" foods just fine. In fact, during his swallow study they tested him eating Stage 2 baby foods and he did great. I was a little worried because Kyle still does not have much interest in food, but I am relieved that he can physically do everything correctly, we just have to wait for him to develop the desire to want to eat his baby food. Although, the way that mashed fruits and vegetables look, I can't say I blame him much!
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Where ever you are, thanks as always for your support.
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God Bless,
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Jennifer, Joe, Madison and Kyle
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