We left Connor with Brian and Teresa on Saturday so that we could sneak away and watch the Auburn - Tennessee game with the San Antonio AU alumni club. Little did we know when we arrived that the club was looking for some fresh meat...oh, excuse me, I mean "new officers" to get involved.
It happened so quickly that I don't even think Ross knew what hit him. At half time the "elections" began and with a unanimous vote Ross became the club's new President. HA!
So now Ross has been tasked with bringing some life back into this old club (one member actually graduated in the class of '44). If I had to guess, I’d say the median age of the group is 60+. To be honest, I think this is a great challenge for Ross. It's the perfect way for him to get involved and give back to his alma mater. I also think he’ll do an awesome job of attracting the younger crowd and connecting with the almost 300 Auburn grads living in SA.
Oh – I almost forgot to mention, I’m the new web administrator. Ugh – who’s the sucka now?
Special thanks to Brian and Teresa for watching Connor. You guys did an great job and returned him with all 10 fingers and toes. Way to go!
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Ears to feeling better
Two weeks ago we took Connor to the Pedi ENT. At 6 months old, he's already had three ear infections so we wanted to get things checked out. Dr. Bonilla examined our little man and told us that he has fluid in his ears. He also said Connor would be a good candidate for tubes. Not only that, but he thought that Connor's poor consumption was possibly linked to the fluid/infections. If it's painful for him to suck on the bottle, then he'll quickly learn that a bottle = pain and avoid it at all costs.
The doctor asked us to come back in a month (sooner if Connor had another infection) and we would schedule the surgery. Within a few days of the appointment, Connor quickly began tugging on his ears, eating less and becoming fussy. All signs of an ear infection. So on Tuesday we took him back to Dr. Bonilla and scheduled the procedure.
Thursday morning (bright and early) we were back at the hospital praying that this would be the thing that would take away Connor's pain. The procedure was quick - he was in and out in 10 min. and we were back at home within the hour. Almost immediately, we saw a huge difference in Connor's mood. Not only that, but he was able to suck on a bottle without crying from the pain (incredible!). Since the surgery, he's been sleeping better, eating better, and will now respond to noises on both his left and right side.
Ross and I are very encouraged. We have Connor's 6 month doctor appointment on Wednesday and the follow up visit with our GI next week. My hope is that Connor will have improved so much that our pediatrician is satisfied and the GI will release us from his care.
Here are some interesting facts about ear infections/fluid - New studies show that children who are treated for re-occurring ear infections become more susceptible to antibiotic resistant strains of infection. Also, temporary hearing loss is a common symptom of fluid in the ears. Children who experience this will hear everything as if they were under water. If not addressed early, many children with fluid in their ears will need speech therapy to correct impairments.
The doctor asked us to come back in a month (sooner if Connor had another infection) and we would schedule the surgery. Within a few days of the appointment, Connor quickly began tugging on his ears, eating less and becoming fussy. All signs of an ear infection. So on Tuesday we took him back to Dr. Bonilla and scheduled the procedure.
Thursday morning (bright and early) we were back at the hospital praying that this would be the thing that would take away Connor's pain. The procedure was quick - he was in and out in 10 min. and we were back at home within the hour. Almost immediately, we saw a huge difference in Connor's mood. Not only that, but he was able to suck on a bottle without crying from the pain (incredible!). Since the surgery, he's been sleeping better, eating better, and will now respond to noises on both his left and right side.
Ross and I are very encouraged. We have Connor's 6 month doctor appointment on Wednesday and the follow up visit with our GI next week. My hope is that Connor will have improved so much that our pediatrician is satisfied and the GI will release us from his care.
Here are some interesting facts about ear infections/fluid - New studies show that children who are treated for re-occurring ear infections become more susceptible to antibiotic resistant strains of infection. Also, temporary hearing loss is a common symptom of fluid in the ears. Children who experience this will hear everything as if they were under water. If not addressed early, many children with fluid in their ears will need speech therapy to correct impairments.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
It's time to celebrate!!
We just got home from Connor's follow up appointment at the GI specialist. The great news is that he's gaining weight!! The doctor was so impressed with his improvement that he's extended our follow up visits to every three weeks instead of every week.
Way to go Connor - keep up the good work!
Way to go Connor - keep up the good work!
Friday, September 12, 2008
He has a weak what???
My son apparently has a weak sucking reflex and an uncoordinated tongue. Say what?
We had our first follow up visit with the GI this week since leaving the hospital. The great news is that ALL of Connor’s test results have come back normal. This poor child has had to endure an upper GI, endoscopy and colonoscopy, swallow study, biopsies, blood work, urine and fecal studies. There is almost no portion of this kid that hasn’t been poked, prodded and analyzed. Like a champ he’s endured it all with a smile on his face and a squeal for the doctors. He’s my little hero!
The GI (completely perplexed) actually told us that he has no idea how Connor has as much energy as he does based on the amount of calories he takes in. This kid just doesn’t eat! For all practical purposes he should be limp and lethargic, but instead he’s a playing, wiggling and cooing machine. So now instead of admitting defeat the doctor’s newest theory is that Connor has a weak “sucker” and will only eat enough to satisfy his hunger, but not enough to gain weight.
The second theory (and this comes more from my mother-in-law the nurse/baby extraordinaire) is that Connor suffers from a constant state of ear infections that make it painful for him to suck on a bottle. It’s entirely possible since at only 5 months of age, he’s already been diagnosed with two ear infections and is currently finishing his second dose of amoxicillin. We have an appointment at the ENT today to explore this possibility further.
In the mean time, Ross’s mom is staying with us and is fully focused on getting her grandson to eat…and let me tell you, she’s not taking NO for an answer! After working with him all day yesterday she was able to get 28 ounces of formula in him. That’s his highest intake ever!! Way to go Beth and Connor!!
Against our doctor’s request, we’ve also started introducing foods. Here are a few pictures of Connor as he tries to master the art of fine cuisine.
We had our first follow up visit with the GI this week since leaving the hospital. The great news is that ALL of Connor’s test results have come back normal. This poor child has had to endure an upper GI, endoscopy and colonoscopy, swallow study, biopsies, blood work, urine and fecal studies. There is almost no portion of this kid that hasn’t been poked, prodded and analyzed. Like a champ he’s endured it all with a smile on his face and a squeal for the doctors. He’s my little hero!
The GI (completely perplexed) actually told us that he has no idea how Connor has as much energy as he does based on the amount of calories he takes in. This kid just doesn’t eat! For all practical purposes he should be limp and lethargic, but instead he’s a playing, wiggling and cooing machine. So now instead of admitting defeat the doctor’s newest theory is that Connor has a weak “sucker” and will only eat enough to satisfy his hunger, but not enough to gain weight.
The second theory (and this comes more from my mother-in-law the nurse/baby extraordinaire) is that Connor suffers from a constant state of ear infections that make it painful for him to suck on a bottle. It’s entirely possible since at only 5 months of age, he’s already been diagnosed with two ear infections and is currently finishing his second dose of amoxicillin. We have an appointment at the ENT today to explore this possibility further.
In the mean time, Ross’s mom is staying with us and is fully focused on getting her grandson to eat…and let me tell you, she’s not taking NO for an answer! After working with him all day yesterday she was able to get 28 ounces of formula in him. That’s his highest intake ever!! Way to go Beth and Connor!!
Against our doctor’s request, we’ve also started introducing foods. Here are a few pictures of Connor as he tries to master the art of fine cuisine.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
My little angel
I don't have much time to write tonight, but I wanted to let everyone know that Connor came home from the hospital today. He spent 5 days on a feeding tube a Methodist Children's. We still haven't figured out why he's not gaining weight, but I feel that the doctors might be getting closer to a diagnosis. While he was at the hospital they performed an endoscopy and colonoscopy and ran a million different tests. They were able to determine through a biopsy that he has an absorption issue, but we're still not sure what's causing it.
I can't even begin to describe what we've all been through, but to give you some idea - once the doctor determined that Connor is suffering from malabsorption, we asked his professional option on the cause. He looked at us straight in the eyes and said that the most common cause of malabsorption was Cystic Fibrosis. Our hearts sank. Since we were there over a holiday weekend, there was no-one onsite who could perform the CF test until Tuesday and our genetics test results hadn't come back. So we sat - and waited. Fearing the worst.
Ironically Tuesday was both Ross's and my mom's birthday. The lab technican arrived at our room at 9:00am this morning and performed a sweat/chloride test on Connor. I was praying all day that he'd fail this test. Finally, around 3:00 in the afternoon, the nurse gave us the good news. Not only did Connor's Cystic Fibrosis test came back negative, we were also being released!!!
Connor had to come home with the feeding tube, but he's only on night feeds. Hopefully, the doctor will get to the bottom of why his body's not absorbing the food he's being given and the tube will become a thing of the past. Either way, we remain hopeful and have realized through this whole experience how special our little man is. He touched every person that he came into contact with at the hospital. From the nurses, to the speech therapist to the lab technican - I don't think they'll ever forget Connor and we'll never forget how helpful and kind everyone was to us during one of the toughest experiences of our life.
My special thanks to everyone who kept us in their thoughts and prayers. Without the support of our friends and families we would not have had the strenght to make it through. THANK YOU!!
I can't even begin to describe what we've all been through, but to give you some idea - once the doctor determined that Connor is suffering from malabsorption, we asked his professional option on the cause. He looked at us straight in the eyes and said that the most common cause of malabsorption was Cystic Fibrosis. Our hearts sank. Since we were there over a holiday weekend, there was no-one onsite who could perform the CF test until Tuesday and our genetics test results hadn't come back. So we sat - and waited. Fearing the worst.
Ironically Tuesday was both Ross's and my mom's birthday. The lab technican arrived at our room at 9:00am this morning and performed a sweat/chloride test on Connor. I was praying all day that he'd fail this test. Finally, around 3:00 in the afternoon, the nurse gave us the good news. Not only did Connor's Cystic Fibrosis test came back negative, we were also being released!!!
Connor had to come home with the feeding tube, but he's only on night feeds. Hopefully, the doctor will get to the bottom of why his body's not absorbing the food he's being given and the tube will become a thing of the past. Either way, we remain hopeful and have realized through this whole experience how special our little man is. He touched every person that he came into contact with at the hospital. From the nurses, to the speech therapist to the lab technican - I don't think they'll ever forget Connor and we'll never forget how helpful and kind everyone was to us during one of the toughest experiences of our life.
My special thanks to everyone who kept us in their thoughts and prayers. Without the support of our friends and families we would not have had the strenght to make it through. THANK YOU!!
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