Here is the long and over-due post:
There is no excuse for not keep everyone updated except that time has escaped me! I got behind because I have been busy attempting to catch Alexander up on his milestones, keep myself healthy and sanity, as well as expose Alexander to what is around in his environment! I've come to realize that having a boy with half a heart, I must take one day at a time and cherish each day because we don't know what will happen tomorrow.
Now, on to the GREAT news. Alexander is 1!! I can't believe it has been a year since the emotional roller coaster began! A year ago, I was finishing up my school assignment, then went to go for my blood work for the following days scheduled c-section, made dinner reservations at a very nice and expensive dinner (as it was our last night as just a couple) when that night, our lives changed forever! It was the start of our heart journey with our Superman! This past year has been an emotional roller coaster no parent can ever prepare themselves for, but we got through it and our little one stayed a strong fighter! Stronger than his mom at times!
2014 didn't start out all that great as I got sick with the flu and pneumonia. Luckily, Wes and Alexander's grandmas took over. I'm so grateful for them! I did everything I could in order for Alexander to not get sick, including leaving him with my mom for a few days. He managed to still get sick, but luckily it was only a cough. A cough that lasted for 2 weeks and was horrible for him! He couldn't clear his throat when he coughed so he struggled with eating and breathing. Luckily, breathing treatments and some antibiotics helped clear it all up.
The end of 2013 went well for Alexander. He got to see Santa (luckily enough we went early and no one was there but us!) and we took him to the Santa Barbara zoo. He didn't seem interested but did notice the lion roaring and walking toward us. He has learned to reach for his toys while sitting up and if he still can't reach them, he leans even further to an almost crawling position to get them. Is he crawling you ask? Nope. But we are getting closer every day. Closer to scooting and closer to learning to sit up from a lying down position too!
He is still receiving Early Intervention Therapy (EI), Physical therapy (PT), and Occupational Therapy (OT). EI is working on his cognitive skills (which are great) and his speech (not so great). Alexander isn't babbling which makes this mom worry. I just keep working with him, in hopes to hear other sounds than "mmmm". His PT continues to work on using his gross motor muscles (e.g. learning to crawl), and his OT is working on eating. When we first started OT, Alexander had an aversion to having his face touched or having the spoon in his mouth. He would gag almost all of the time. He is now on stage 2 of solid foods (thick purees) and only gags if the food is to thick or crunchy. Overall, there has been a lot of progress that has been made. I have a video of some of his newly acquired skills that I will try to post later.
Alexander currently weighs 16 pounds, 10 ounces. He seems to have slowed down on gaining weight but this is due to him being more active and not eating as much. However, over the past week, his intake of ounces has gotten better, so we hope to see some good weight gain at this next Pediatrician appointment (2/19). Alexander has 3 teeth on the bottom now and 4 teeth cutting through on the top! Fun times with teething here!!
Since i'm on the topic of eating, I have to mention that Alexander PASSED his swallow study in December!! No more thickening the breast milk!
However, because we had been doing this for 6 months, he doesn't like the feeling of it thin AND the OT that assessed him said we still must be careful with feeding him. She states this because during the study, she observed 30 swallows, with 3 of them showing an attempt to go the wrong way but didn't. So, we are still using rice cereal to thicken but not as much. Before we had to use 1 1/2 teaspoon to 2 ounces, now we are using 1 teaspoon to 2 ounces and will slowly fade from that. I am still exclusively pumping and looking forward to the day that we can introduce cows milk! :)
We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and that 2014 has started out great for you! Thank you for following us on our journey, can't believe it has been a year! Alexander has several doctors appointments next month (cardiology, pacemaker visit, orthopedic, and optometrist) and we hope all goes well with each appointment.
We greatly appreciate the prayers and positive thoughts and we hope 2014 consists of less hospital stays and a lot more memories of our growing Superman!
Happy birthday Alexander!
His 1 year check up and birthday party all went well. Alexander weighed 16 pounds, 11 ounces and is 27 inches long at his appointment. He did great at his birthday party too! No tantrums, no crying while be sung too; just smiles and took it all in! His Dr. Seuss birthday theme was a hit ! From the photo booth to the bulletin board of monthly pictures and food placement cards! Alexander got lots of fun toys that made our house look like Christmas all over again! Here's a little preview of the party:
