Another busy week gone by...

Check out these apple dumplings!

Time flies when you're having fun!

Time really has been going by so quickly. Oliver is almost 10 weeks old already! He just had his 2 month check-up today. He got a clean bill of health, except for some suspected reflux. So he has to start taking zantax. He is up to 11 lb. 14 oz. already, and that is without casts. The doctor said that all things considered, he looks great. I would have liked the "he looks great" without the caveat, but I'll take what I can get :) He also only had to get one shot today. I've been seriously debating whether or not to vax him on a delayed schedule -- there has been a lot of attention to the possible side effects of vaccinations, including autism. It is scary to think about what you are injecting into little babies. However, living where we do, I think it would be unwise to leave him unprotected against a variety of preventable illnesses. So I've really been debating. Breaking up the vaccines seems to be the wisest choice, since it allows him to be vaccinated without injecting too much at once. Even in his 1 shot today, he got five separate vaccines. I actually didn't realize it was going to be that many when he got it. I can't imagine what is left for next week. Poor little guy -- imagine if he'd gotten all of them at once!

In addition to his check up, Oliver also saw the orthopedist and the urologist this week. On Wednesday he had a VCUG, which is a series of x-rays done on his bladder to make sure that it is working properly. Which it is! So we don't have to have another check for 4 months.

He also went for his weekly casting, but this time, some discoloration developed on his foot between the time we got there and the time the doctor went to put the cast on his foot. I was afraid it was an allergic reaction to the elastic in his sock. I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned that babies with spina bifida are prone to latex allergies. These allergies can be pretty severe. It was originally thought that the latex allergy developed due to repeated exposure to latex in medical settings. However, there is some thought that says spina bifida babies might be genetically prone to it. Since all medical facilities dealing with babies with spina bifida are latex free, it isn't such an issue anymore. But in case you've never though about it -- latex is in everything! Including the elastic in clothing. So I was afraid he had a reaction to his sock. The doctor didn't think so, but also didn't want to recast his leg. So Oliver's legs are uncovered for the first time since he was 1 week old. We go back next Wednesday for a recast (as long as the discoloration is gone) -- but it's nice to see his legs.

Other than that, we've been busy with playdates and pumpkin picking. Not to mention that Tim had to travel this week and I've gone back to work. We seriously need about 2 or 3 more hours in every day. It took me three days just to get the time to go out and buy dish detergent and diapers and I still have a huge late fee pending at the library (which is eating away at me). I've never been much of a planner -- I always thought that it led to too much stress. But I'm seriously reconsidering my stand on that. Right now, not planning is leading to serious stress. Maybe it's not planning I need, but organization. As dumb as it sounds, I now want to be the person who has everything laid out the night before. Anyone who knows me even a little bit would probably acknowledge that is so not like me and would probably be next to impossible to achieve. But seriously, something has to give, and I don't want it to be my sanity.

Spina Bifida Clinic Day 1

Here, Oliver demonstrates a wide range of emotions, from happy to sad. What a talented little guy!

So we had our first day of spina bifida clinic last week. What a loooong day! Spina bifida clinic is a department at CHOP designed to allow us to see several doctors in one visit. We get to see a pediatrician, general nurse who specializes in spina bifida, a physical therapist, and a social worker. We also try to schedule other appointments that day, so we also will often have appointments with orthopedics and neurosurgery. Last Wednesday it started out with ortho, which is always an adventure. I waited there so long that they told me to just go to my clinic appointment and come back later. So I went and checked in with clinic and sat there for about 40 minutes. Finally they called me in, took Oliver's height and weight, and put me in an exam room to wait. Hmmm. About 20 minutes later the pediatrician came in. She gave him a quick look and announced him in good health. Something I always like to hear. Then she left, promising that another doctor would be in soon. I just waited.

I was just about to call neurosurgery to tell them I would be late, when one of the SB nurses stopped in and told me to just go up there and come back and finish clinic later. Okay -- so now I left ortho to go to clinic and left clinic to go to neurosurgery. All this and I had only seen one doctor so far. So I went up to neurosurgery, and you can guess what happened there -- I waited.

The waiting room at neuro was a little different. It was packed and loud. I think that the nature of the injuries/conditions that brings many people to neurosurgery are a bit more obvious than other places in the hospital -- a fact that lent itself to a more frantic and agitated vibe. I was feeling sorry for myself because it was 1:30, I was starving, alone (Tim had to work) and tired of waiting, when I saw a woman with three kids struggling at the check-out counter. She had a twin in a stroller, a twin in a sling on her chest, and then a 3 or 4 year old whose condition seemed to affect his balance, so that we couldn't really walk without some help. I looked at my quiet, sleeping, single baby and realized that my day wasn't really that bad.

I was most excited about the neurosurgery appointment because that is the part of Oliver's condition that I am most concerned about. I lose the most sleep wondering whether or not his soft spot is still soft (if it becomes firm or swollen that is a sign of hydrocephalus and he needs to go to the ER right away). If he needs a shunt and we don't catch it in time, that can lead to developmental delays and cognitive issues. So I was definitely anxious for a professional to weigh in on how he is doing. We met with the nurse practitioner, and she said that Oliver looks really good right now. She said that he will probably still need a shunt, but that she is basing that on statistics, not necessarily Oliver himself. If he gets a shunt, it will not make him any more or less predisposed to any cognitive disabilities -- however, it is nice not to have to have the surgery to insert it or any of the possible complications (infections, malfunction) that go along with it. So for now, he is in the clear.

After neuro, I went back down to clinic. Finally, he got to see some doctors. First we saw the physical therapist. She confirmed that Oliver has feeling in the same places that he has motion. Which means that he has feeling on the front of his legs down to his knees, but not below and nowhere on the back of his legs. She also told me that he will develop like any other baby, learning to roll over and somehow pull to a stand. Once he does that, they will fit him for braces and work with him to learn to walk. He will probably need bracing up to his hips and a walker in order to do so. She said that it is the philosophy of the clinic at CHOP that all kids should get to a standing position and learn the skill of walking, even though it is likely that a wheelchair will be much easier for day to day mobility. But at least this way that have the skill if they want to employ it. Personally, I think whatever gives them the most autonomy is the way to go -- it seems to me that a wheelchair will be a much better choice. But I'm all for giving him choices for later in life.

The rest of the visits were pretty uneventful. Didn't learn much from the nurse or the social worker. But I did get a list of items that contain latex. While I knew that all SB babies are prone to develop latex allergies, I had no idea how many items latex can be found in. As usual, a little information with me is a dangerous thing. So now I'm freaking out -- latex is in diapers, adhesive bandages, matresses, toys, and clothing. How the heck am I supposed to know what is safe and what isn't. There are also referred food allergies that go along with it, including bananas, avocado, and tomato. I always felt bad for parents of kids with food allergies; now I know how they feel.

Whew. So this post is almost as long as my day at clinic. Altogether I was there for 8 hours. But at the end of the day, I couldn't even be aggravated. Everyone there is so nice and helpful. I felt so lucky and blessed to get a clean bill of health for the little man. He was no worse for the wear -- he slept most of the day. And I came home to find out that Mac did not cry when her grandma dropped her off at school. Hooray -- she is finally adjusting. Now I can stop crying after I drop her off, too :)

Speaking of Mac -- she has re-caught the cold that she gave to Oliver in the first place. I think that I just have to burn all of the bed clothes and start over. We are a house of germs. Yuck. Even I'm getting sick.

Other miscellaneous updates:

Sniper is still bad.

Mac is still cute, but increasingly loud.

I'm still breastfeeding -- 7 weeks now. Yay.

The Jets still suck.

I had my first real beer in almost a year -- Beer is still good. Really good.

Are ya kidding me?

So I took Mac to the pedi for her check up yesterday, and just asked them to listen to Oliver since he's been a little sniffly and Tim mentioned he thought he heard a wheeze or two. Turns out Oliver has a cold. The quick listen to his chest turned into a full-blown appointment. Now he has to be on a nebulizer for medication 3x a day and go back for a recheck on Friday. So much for our "light" week on dr. visits -- by Friday, we will total 3 visits for Oliver and a check-up for Mac (if nothing else happens today, that is). Are you kidding?

Luckily, Mac's check-up went great. She is in the 75 percentile for height, 95th for weight, and 99th for head circumference. But her head growth has leveled off, so that is a good thing. The doctor gave her a clean bill of health, and seemed to be a bit taken with her, as well. Who wouldn't be?

Just in case you were wondering what it is like when we go to our orthopedic appointments, here are some pictures. I've mentioned before that we wait and wait and wait -- here is how we pass the time.

Look at this guy!

Just look at him. Adorable, no?

That's it -- nothing else to say. I'm officially procrastinating -- Mac is at school, so I should be cleaning, updating my C.V., something. But I'm just fooling around with photosharing softwear. Okay -- I'm off to be a productive member of society.

L'Chaim!

Oliver had quite a week this week. Casting on Monday... circumcision on Wednesday. Poor guy. I know circumcision isn't a bad thing, but I sure felt bad about having it done. In what is becoming the norm, we waited forever at the hospital on Wednesday. The whole process took five hours. Honestly, if I had held a bris instead of having it done at the hospital, we could have had the circumcision, a really good food spread, and a couple of drinks in the time it took for the hospital to handle this 20-minute procedure. Oy.



Casting on Monday also took quite a while, and we found out that he will probably need surgery to start to correct his feet. The doctor had us schedule surgery for November pre-emptively; he may not need it, but it was better to get on the schedule. This would be a "release" surgery, where they cut the tendons in his feet to get them to turn the way that they are supposed to go. If his feet loosen up and start to turn on their own in the meantime, then we can cancel for November. It would be really great to avoid surgery.



And because 2 doctor appointments in one week are never enough, I had to take Mr. Man to the pediatrician yesterday because I thought he had a fever. Of course when we got there he was measuring a perfect 98.0, which means no fever. Of course that is a good thing, but I felt like stupid mom. Part of the problem is that I refuse to take any one's temperature rectally. I just can't do it -- I feel like it's an invasion of personal space (do babies have personal space?) But I feel especially bad for poor Oliver, because his little bum is so red. So I took it under his armpit, which may have given me an "off" reading. But the doctor was really nice and assured me that even a suspected temp in Oliver is a big deal, because it could mean a kidney infection. I brought Mac to the doctor with us, which was a big mistake. She just yelled "NO" the whole time until the doctor had to get one of the nurses to take her out to the nurses' station for stickers. I have no idea what she was protesting, but she was very adamant about her "NO." The doctor assured me that this is normal sibling rivalry, which seems to be a recurring theme in our household lately. She did mention it would pass, but unfortunately she couldn't be specific about when. But in the end, I was able to leave that visit with my baby, toddler, and most of my dignity in tact.

To Life!