Since it's been over a year...

It's about time for an update.

Luke is doing really well. He's growing like a weed and has a huge vocabulary. He's learning his letters; saying our meal blessing and night-night prayers; sings Jesus Loves Me, Jingle Bells, and numerous songs from VeggieTales; he got drums, a saxophone and guitar for Christmas and loves music; he learned the story of Jonah and the Whale on the 16th of January and even though we missed church on the 23rd, was able to re-tell it to his teachers on the 30th. He's off the bottle and sleeps through the night at home.

He's about 39" tall and weighs around 35 lbs.

I'm updating some of our pictures on the site.

On other news, Mom retired from DHR yesterday! Congratulations on a job well done!

So, it's been a while

I know that I haven't posted since September, but being a single mom to an 18-month-old is challenging.

Today, Luke saw a pediatric opthamologist for the first time. He was diagnosed with Accomodative Esotropia. We ordered our first pair of glasses today. When the glasses come in, we have to use Atropine eye drops to make the stronger eye (Luke's right) blur and force him to use the weaker eye. This is much better than the patches I had to wear. I can't imagine how my parents kept those patches on me!

Luke has remained off the top of the growth charts for height. At his 18 month check-up, he was 35 1/2 inches tall and weighed 27 lbs 4 oz.

I'll try to get a new picture up soon.

The new game...What's making Luke sick now?

Luke started running a fever (101.7) Sunday afternoon. He was super congested and had a cough. He was also super fussy. Mommy started thinking maybe he had the flu. Well, I called the after hours number and at 3:00 that afternoon, Children's South was already booked solid. But, we could go to the ER if I thought he really needed to be seen. Knowing that if we did go to the ER he probably wouldn't get seen until this morning anyway, I decided to fight the fever and call the doctor first thing Monday morning.



Monday morning arrives and you'd think the doctor's office was giving away Jonas Brothers tickets or something. You guessed it. Busy. Again. And Again. And Again. After 25 minutes straight of dialing, I managed to leave a message for the nurse (no, they won't give you an appointment without talking with the nurse first.)

So she calls back around 9am and after our 2 minute assessment, she decides that we do need to come in. Can we be here at 11:30? Of course.



So, I load-up my precious baby boy who's eyes are so very tired and we head down to Redmont Pediatrics. We get there a few minutes before 11:00 (so we don't miss our appointment time). There are big signs on each door stating which entry (sick vs. well) we should use. Which, if you've ever been to the new office, doesn't make much sense since the rooms are open! Along with the traffic signs are signs saying "The flu arrived early this year, please be patient as your appointment may take longer than usual."



We finally get called-back around 12:10. My 'little' baby weighs 23 lbs 7 oz today's visit. After being shown into a room and waiting another 20 minutes, Dr. Walley comes in and comments that of all the babies he's seen today, you can look at Luke and tell he doesn't feel well. Dr. Walley checked his ears, listened to his chest, and makes the same conclusion that I do that its probably the flu.



We head to the lab waiting room for another 20 minute wait before it's Luke's turn to be poked and prodded. We have to move back to the main 'sick' waiting room to give the lab time to work. For the next ten minutes, I'm trying to calm my screaming baby who's just had a flu test (you KNOW the one!) and a finger stick.



Another 15 minute wait and we get called back to find-out that Luke doesn't have the flu (YEAH!), but he is running a fever. His white blood cell count was higher than would be indicated with the flu. Apparently, the flu is presenting with a low white blood cell count even when the flu test is negative in infants.

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Tuesday morning, here. I got called away by a crying baby last night when I started the post.

Last night, Luke was up and down throughout the night with screaming pain. I checked his gums, but don't feel any new teeth trying to come through. Dr. Walley suggested that I watch his ears for any sign of drainage in the next few days. The congestion and fever, coupled with these screaming sessions are usually a sign of an imminent ear infection.

This morning Luke has been his happy, normal self. It's almost like nothing was ever wrong! I guess it was just a virus. We do have to take another day off because daycare won't accept him back until he's gone 24 hours without a fever.

Hopefully, he'll feel great next week when he turns ONE!!!!