9 Month Check-In

I absolutely can not believe that this kid is 9 months. Some days I feel like he was just born and others it feels like it's been forever. Brody is doing very well. We have been very busy keeping up with doctors appointments. Over the last 2 weeks, we have only had one day of no appointments. Everyone has been telling me that he is looking good and growing well. We are now in the 15 % for his weight and he is looking quite chunky (mainly because he isn't on the curve at all for his length). It's funny to be in a waiting room and people comment at how big he is. I laugh and say "We've been working really hard on that." His different specialists are happy with his progress. Here's a breakdown of his appointments recently. 

Cardiac Outcomes: They did an assessment for his development and it is no surprise that he is developementally behind, but we are working on getting him set up with his therapies and Trey and I feel like he is advancing more and more every day. 

General Surgery: I wanted them to look at his G-button to look at some redness. They gave me an ointment and it's been good. I found these cute little pads that go around the button that absorb some of the leakage to prevent skin irritation. 

Pediatrician: 9 month check up went well. He got a couple of booster shots and all seems to be well. We had to get some of his presecriptions switched over to 90 day supplies per the insurance. This has been somewhat of a headache, but once it is all set up should be smooth. 

Eye Dr: The developmental doctor wanted him to have his eyes checked because he really wasn't following the object she had and the CMV virus he had can be in the eyes and cause eye problems. Eye dr said his eyes looked really good and he didn't see any trace of the virus. Brody was following his light up toy just fine. I think Brody just didn't like the boring ring she was trying to use. 

Feeding Evaluation: We are in the process of getting him set up to work with someone on his feeding. We went for an evalauation with an occupational and speech therapist to see who could best help him with his needs. All in all, speech therapy is going to work on his feeds and a little with his communication and occupational therapy is going to work on some of his developmental delays. On a side note, at home Brody is doing a lot better with his baby food. He is willing to take more and we are having more sucessfully attempts than failed attempts. 

Back to the Pediatrician: During his feeding evaluation, the occupational therpaist noticed tightness in his neck and how he always had his head leaning. I always wrote this off as he just wasn't able to support his head yet, but they called in a physical therapist who said he had torticollis. They wanted me to take him to the pediatrician and get his PT orders revised, so they could start working with him sooner. (His PT evaluation was originally scheduled for May). His pediatrician changed the orders and that was that. She has been really good about helping us get everything set up. 

Allergy and Immunology: His immune system has not improved which means that there is probably something going on with that. Brody and I both had blood work done so that they could look at his genetics and try and figure out why he is having immune system issues. 

PT Evaluation: We met with the physicial therapist for her evaluation. She gave us some stretches to do at home and we will start going to her as well. She mainly will work with his Torticollis, but a lot of the stuff she does will also help with his development. 

We still have a few more appointments left. Urology wants to check his boy parts, Infectious Disease wants to check in on his CMV. His levels are at 0, but they want to keep him on the meds until allergy and immunology says his system is better. While on the meds they need to monitor him for side effects. Cardiology will do an echo and check his heart. They have noticed a slight change between the echo he had when he was released and the one he had last month, so they want to check again and see how things are looking. Our cardiologist didn't seem overly concerned last time, so hopefully things are still looking good. 

We stay very busy, but a lot of this should calm down. Most of these appointments we have had recently won't be every month, but once we get his therapies set up we are probably looking at three different appointments a week just for that. Luckily, I have been able to set those appointments up at West Campus which is a much easier drive. 

Mom and Brody Selfie

He is so cute when he sleeps. Sometimes we can't help but stare at him. I love when he looks like he is praying. We finally have him sleeping through the night which has been a huge blessing for Mommy! I bought a cooler pack for his overnight feeds, so I don't have to wake up and change them out. For the first time in a very long time, I have slept through the night. I never thought I would be so excited to get to sleep until 6!

I think he is going to be a blankie kid. He loves to have burp rags or blankets in his hands or by his face. 

It's early in the morning which means it is time to play! 

We go to check the mail in style 

The first time my friends and I were out together with all the kids. The most "normal" I have felt in a while.

Easter Bunny. He did so well. I was really nervous because he was really fussy that morning. He really doesn't care who holds him as long as someone is holding him even if that means it is a giant bunny. 

These two are so cute together. The big one really loves his cousin Brody.