Holidays

I am so excited about spending the holidays with our new baby boy. We had so much fun during Halloween dressing Christian up as a little mooo (not a cow). He also had daycare pictures taken and they turned out so cute. I wasn't expecting much from the pictures but he had the biggest smile on his face and was so precious that I just had to buy them all.  Thanksgiving is coming up and we plan to make the rounds with the family. There are lots of cousins and grandparents to see. Christian also has two cousins on the way in December. We can't wait to meet them. It's going to be so much fun with all the little ones. Here are some more pictures of the Holidays so far, including halloween.

Get this off of me!

Being cute for candy is exhausting.

Getting ready for school pictures.

I found my feet!

Fall Fun

I am so excited that fall is finally here. We got past all the hot dry days of summer with Christian and now he gets to experience the inconsistent weather of Louisiana fall. Andrew and I have loved every minute that we have been blessed with raising Christian. We can't even put into words what a huge blessing he is to our family. He is definitely going to be a spoiled little boy, and I am totally fine with that. I will try and update you a little on what's been going on in the month of October. It's been a busy month and I haven't been the best at updating the blog. Several of my friends have gotten on to me about updating my pictures because they want to keep up with Christian. To them, I am sorry and I will try to do better.

Christian got a new bike trailer to ride in when we go bike riding. He is so cute in it. We took cousin Michelle and Christian to the neighborhood fall festival in the trailer and they had a lot of fun riding in it. Michelle was really cute because she held Christian's hand and would lean over and give him a kiss on the head. That little girl melts my heart! Christian also got to go to the pumpkin patch and see his first pumpkins. He blended right in because he is a "pumpkin" himself. Actually, he wasn't really interested in the pumpkins and was probably wondering why we were taking pictures of him with all the big round orange things. We got a couple of good pictures of him. It was hot when we went so we didn't get to stay long.

I have gotten a little crafty since I became a mom. My sister, Lynn, has helped me get more into sewing. We made Christian two outfits together and then I got brave and made one all by myself. They turned out super cute and he looks adorable in them. My sister is a good teacher and I can't wait to learn more from her. She is the crafty one in our family so I have to steal all my ideas from her. I will post some pictures of our work below.

Christian has enjoyed experiencing LSU football this fall as well. He has several LSU outfits that his daddy dresses him in each time he's in charge of getting him dressed. It never fails that Christian will come out in one of his LSU outfits when dad gets him dressed, even if the outfit is a little too small. Andrew and I got to go to the Florida/LSU game with my sisters and brother-in-laws. It was a lot of fun. Little Christian stayed here with the grandparents while we went for the day. He really likes to watch football too. He constantly stares at the TV when there is a game on. I think he must be a born Tiger fan.

Halloween is coming up. I am so excited about it this year. It's the first year in a long time that I am actually excited about Halloween. The past few years I've purposefully avoided Halloween and Andrew and I have gone camping instead. This year I plan on taking Christian trick-or-treating with cousin Michelle and just enjoying ourselves with what ever the night may bring. We have two costumes to choose from this year depending on what the weather is going to do. If it's cold he is going to be a little cow (a cute one) and if it's hot he will be a football (that I made out of a onsie; compliments of pinterest). Either way he is going to be so handsome.

Here are some updated pictures of Christian. Last week at the doctor he weighted 20 pounds. He is getting so big. I can't believe how fast my little baby is growing. It just seems like yesterday we were at the hospital meeting him for the first time. I must say, God is so good!

Pictures at the pumpkin patch. Christian looks excited! Lynn and I made the outfit C is wearing.

one of the decent pictures of C but he wouldn't look at the camera

What is this strange thing?

I love my jumper that Aunt Lynn gave me!

Loaded up in the bike trailer to go to the neighborhood fall festival.

Breakfast time. I'm up to something!

LSU outfit that I made Christian. It turned out really cute.

Michelle and Christian getting ready for the game.

Family picture at my sister's house before the game.

Long Overdue

Wow have we been extremely busy with our new sweet baby boy. He has truly been a huge blessing to Andrew and I and I can't even describe what a good baby he has been. There have been many things that have happened since the last time I posted an update on the blog. I will try my best not to ramble too much but no promises.

We had a follow up appointment back in early August with both the geneticist and the neurologist. We got good and bad news from them. The geneticist said that Christian appeared to be healthy and he didn't agree with what the eye doctor tried to diagnose Christian with (which was tuberous sclerosis or neurofibromotosis). The bad new was from the neurologist. He re-read the MRI of Christian's brain that was done in the NICU and said that there were some questionable things going on with it. I won't go into detail, but needless to say, we will probably have to repeat the MRI sometime soon to see if those questionable things still exists or if he has "outgrown" them. The neurologist kept saying the quaility of the MRI was poor so he wanted to get his own and read it then.

Andrew and I know that Christian is going to be just fine. We also had a physical therapy appointment in August and Chrisitan was meeting all his milestones at that time, which was great news. I have been working hard with him trying to keep him on target (I guess that's the OT in me). He is now 3 months old and has just really grown fast. Christian is now wearing 6-9 month old clothes. I can't believe how fast he is growing and how quickly he grows out of his clothes. It's hard to keep clothes that fit him because he's growing too fast. He's also is sleeping all the way through the night and hardly ever fusses except when he's hungry or needs attention. God truly gave us a sweet baby.

Christian also started day care. It was really hard on me the first few times that I took him, and it's still hard, but I know that it's good for him and he is going to learn a lot there. I really like where he is going and I think that all his "teachers" are very sweet and patient with all the babies. I also like the fact that I get off around 2:30 each day. I rush everyday to get Christian as soon as I get off work. I just can't wait to see my little angel at the end of the work day. He just smiles at me and coos and that is the best feeling in the whole world. When we get home we have play time and nap time before Andrew gets home. I love getting to play with Christian most of the afternoon and into the evenings. He's just a joy to be around and so loving.

All of you that live in the South know how hot it has been lately. We finally had a break in the weather about 2 weeks ago and we were able to take Christian out in the stroller each evening around the block. I think he really enjoyed it becasue each time he fell sound asleep. I know that he is going to like being outside just like his mom does.

Just this past weekend Christian was dedicated at our church. We had such a great time with all our family that came to see him. We took up the first 3 rows of the side of the church because there are so many of us. I just love how our family has really grown and Christian is so lucky to have such a close knit family who loves each other, but more importantly who will teach him life lessons and lead him down the right paths. I pray often that God will give me the knowlege to teach Christian about Him and raise him to the know the Lord.

I continue to thank each and every one of you who has prayed for Christian and sent sweet messages and encouragement to Andrew and I. It's so great to know that we have such an amazing support system. Please continue to pray for healing for Christian and that his MRI that has to be repeated is fine. As a mother it's hard to have to take your child to so many specialists and have test after test run. I know that he is in God's hands and God will take care of him, and from that I can draw strength and comfort. Thanks again! 

I am attaching several pictures of Christian so you can see how fast he has grown. Enjoy! 

A couple new born pictures by Nicole Spikes Photography

7 weeks old

9 weeks old

Michelle with Christian both smiling!

So precious!

He loves his bath time. Splish Splash!!!

3 months and getting great head control

Little Tiger fan! Geaux Tigers!!!

Just being a sweet boy

Christian's Dedication 9/11/11

God's faithfullness shines once again!

Andrew, Christian, and I just got back from the neurologist this afternoon. I was really nervous sitting in the office just thinking about what all he was going to tell us. We got called back and Christian had to get weighed and measured again. He's continuing to grow like a champ. We discussed all the findings with the neurologist but he wasn't able to read any of the tests results from when he was in the NICU because, of course, they weren't sent over. But from the exam and what we were able to tell him, the neurologist said that Christian is a healthy baby. We weren't sure how to take this considering that the EEG was abnormal but the doc said that he was going to have to read the EEG and MRI (which was normal according to the radiologist at WK)  in order to rule out true seizures. We showed him a video of the abnormal movements that Christian was having when he slept and the neurologist said, "that's normal, I wouldn't have even readmitted him to the NICU for that movement." He seems to think that they are just myoclonic jerks that he has when he sleeps.

We aren't totally cleared yet, but one thing that he said that was very reassuring was "I am 98% sure that Christian is going to be fine. Just look at him, he is a healthy boy." We still have to obtain all the medical records and tests that were run in the NICU and let the neurologist interpret them himself.  He said that Christian would be a sick baby if he were having seizures and from his exam Christan was fine. We are going to have to follow-up with him in 4 weeks after we obtain all the records.

If there was a mountain in Shreveport for me to stand on and scream Hallelujah from, trust me I would have. God is shining straight through all these doctors appointments that we are going to and I totally believe that He is taking care of our sweet baby. God's faithfulness is totally amazing and He continues to amaze me everyday with one answered prayer after another.

Thank you everyone for your continued prayers for Christian. Please continue to pray that once he rereads the EEG and MRI that Christian truly will be just fine. God is good, so so good!

Blessings from Above

Christian has been adjusting really well to his new environment, our house. Andrew and I were really surprised at how well the dogs are doing with him. Koby just loves to cuddle and sits in the recliner with me while I feed him whether it's 2:00 in the afternoon or 2:00 in the morning. Tucker comes in and checks up on Christian throughout the day to make sure he's still there. It will be fun to see how Christian interacts with them when he's old enough.

We had our follow-up eye appointment last Friday and it went fairly well. The doctor said that the spots on Christian's eyes were still there but haven't grown any or multiplied. He also said that they are way in the periphery of the eyes and aren't affecting his vision at all and he doesn't suspect that they will in the future either. We have to go back to him in 3 months for another check-up. We go tomorrow to the neurologist to follow-up with the seizures Christian was having. Andrew and I haven't noticed any more seizure activity lately, which is good. He does have an occasional jerk while he's sleeping but the pediatrician says those jerks are normal, as long as they aren't repetitive (like Christian's were in the beginning).

Christian also had his shots this last Tuesday. He took them like a champ and only cried for about 10 seconds after each one of them. He was easily calmed with his bottle after. Prior to going to get the shots, I read him "Winnie the Pooh plays Doctor". Pooh Bear was really encouraging to let Christian know that the shots only hurt for a second and then it goes away. I kept reminding Christian of this prior to the nurse coming in to give him the shots (I think it may have worked too). I was worried that he would run a fever after the shots, but he didn't. I think his little thighs may have been a little sore for the remainder of the day but after that he was just fine.

God has really blessed us with a good baby. Christian is sleeping really well and still only gets up once at night to eat. Sometimes he wakes up really early though. Andrew has also been a trooper to let me run in the mornings. I can't wait until Christian is a little older and the weather is cooler so he can go with me in a jogging stroller. I took Christian on a walk around the block one morning in the regular stroller and it was a lot of fun, but really hot. I think he liked it because he was sound asleep before we even made it out of the door.

I still thank God every day for this awesome blessing. I continue to pray for a peace that all these doctor's appointments will continue to go well. I know that God is in control of the whole situation and He will never give us more than we can handle. He will test us, but I've come to learn that it's a test of faith and his way of bringing us closer to Him. Thank you God for blessing me with my sweet Christian. He is the perfect little angel!

Such a sweet face!

I love love love his smiles. It makes me so happy!

Waiting to see the eye doctor. (I'm glad someone was smiling because I was a nervous wreck).

Sweet Baby Boy

I haven't gotten to update the blog in a while because I've been super busy with Christian and trying to catch up on some sleep during my spare time. I just wanted to give a quick update on how he is doing. We went to the pediatrician yesterday for a check-up post NICU. All went well, Christian has gained weight and now weighs in at 10 pounds 2.5 ounces, 21 1/2 inches long. He has been having small seizure like activity only when he sleeps, and they are only little twitches that last for about 30 seconds to a minute. I was doing some research online about infants who twitched in their sleep and found an article and video on a condition called Benign Neonatal Sleep Myoclonus (BNSM). This condition occurs when the infant is sleeping and usually begins around the 4th day after birth (which is around the time when Christian's began). I brought this up to our doctor and she said it very well could be this condition. They had another newborn who was diagnosed with BNSM and she eventually outgrew it. I am crossing my fingers and toes in hopes that this may just be a temporary thing.

We have more doctors visits coming up, the next being the eye doctor follow-up. This one makes me the most nervous because they found lesions on Christian's eyes when he was in the NICU. I am praying hard everyday that God has healed those spots on his eyes and nothing else needs to be done. My biggest fear is that they haven't gone away and have gotten worse. I am trying to let God take this situation over but it's hard not to have the thought in the back of my mind. The nurse in the NICU also put the thought in my head of eye cancer (thanks nurse, but I could have done without that). So, of course, I am scared to death of that possibility. Other doctors appointments include the neurologist on 7/15/11 and the geneticist on 8/8/11. I'm not as worried about those because Christian's last MRI was clean and so was his CT scan.

On a lighter note, Christian got to have his newborn pictures taken this last Sunday. I am sooooo excited to see what they look like. Nicole Spikes, with Nicole Spikes photography, did an awesome job posing our little man. He cooperated for the most part and only peed and pooped once or twice. I will try and get those pictures posted as soon as they are ready. Also, Christian decided to sleep most of the night last night. Andrew and I had been waking him up every 3 hours to feed him and our pediatrician told us not to. She said he weighted enough and to let him sleep and feed him only when he wakes up. We didn't argue with this because Andrew and I love our sleep. He did awesome with his first night and only woke up once around 12:30. Bless his little heart!

We are asking for continued prayers for Christian and his healing. I am going to thank my God in advance for His healing hands on sweet little Christian. I know that His angels are still watching over him and he is going to be just fine.

Daddy finds it amusing to play dress up with me!

Little Tiger Fan in the making!

My Child of God

So, today is Sunday June 19, which happens to be Father's Day, and we are still in the hospital. I know that a lot of you have been checking the blog for updates. It's been hard to update with everything that is going on but I have some time now so here goes:

 Christian has done really well for the last week. He hasn't had any seizures since last Sunday morning around 7 a.m. He continues to have some trouble with his oxygen levels while he is feeding but it's getting better and he is steadily gaining weight. Andrew and I have learned to pace him while he eats which helps him with his suck, swallow, breathe pattern.  We had a long week last week with more tests run and more tears trying to figure out why Christian is having seizures. The eye doctor came last Monday and found lesions on both of Christian's retinas. Christian also had an MRI done the same day of his brain to get a finer picture of what may be going on. Once the eye doctor was finished with his exam he called Andrew and I back into the room and said that he thought Christian may have tuberous sclerosis or neurofibromatosis (which both present with lesions to the eyes and other abnormalities). He also said that this could cause some mental retardation and other developmental delays in the future. Andrew and I were both just crushed. How could such a perfect baby have this condition?

Then about 30 minutes later both Dr. M and Dr. W came in and said that the radiologist had read the MRI and said that he was pretty sure that it was not tuberous sclerosis. Christian's MRI was totally clean and had no tumors on it. The radiologist said, that had it been tuberous sclerosis, that there would already be tumors or other lesions on the brain as well, and it was clean! Oh, what an emotional roller coaster it has been. We know that the lesions in the eyes aren't normal but we don't know what is causing them. We have a follow up appointment in a couple of weeks with the eye doctor to see what, if anything, is going on with the lesions. We hope that they will be healed and no further tests will have to be run. We do know that Christian has no other symptoms of either of those conditions, and the doctors can't find any other reasons that he may have the lesions to his eyes. Andrew and I are convinced that there is nothing wrong with him. Just looking at him he is a normal healthy child. I know that doctors are really smart and I know that they aren't making stuff up, but it just seems to me that they are looking for something to be wrong; trying to find a diagnosis and there is nothing to be found.  I know that God has this under control and I trust Him completely over any medical diagnosis that can be made.

I also know that God heals those that are sick. My prayer is that Christian's eyes will be okay and that God will heal him. He has been with us every step of the way through this adoption process, financially, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. I know that God will not let us down now. Andrew and I are both confident that God gave us Christian for a reason. Whatever it may be, if anything, that is causing these lesions to his eyes will not effect the way that we love him. He is our child, perfect in every way, and God has chosen us to raise him. Christan may not be the smartest, fastest, tallest, child there is (or he might) but he IS a child of God and for that reason he is PERFECT! I love my baby more than anything in this world and nothing can and will ever take that away. Please just continue to pray for healing and that we can bring him home soon. We are more than ready to begin the normal family raising process.

One more thing, Happy first Father's Day to Andrew! You are already a great dad and Christian is very lucky to have you!

False Alarm

Today was the day we were suppose to go home from our second trip to the NICU. Andrew and I were looking forward to this day. We went home early last night to do some last minute things around the house so it would be perfect for Christian's return. We also got up early and put the new car seat in the car. It was really hot out there and both of us were sweating trying to figure out how to install it. It wasn't hard but trying to pull the strap tight enough is a job in itself. Off to the hospital we went. Things were right on schedule to discharge home; we were just waiting on Doctor M to make rounds and write the discharge orders. Andrew and I left for lunch and got back in time for Christian's lunch. He gets really irritable around his feeding times and he is like clock work (likes to eat every 3 hours). Once he got a full belly it was time for a nice nap. I was holding him and rocking him when suddenly he started trembling. They only lasted for about 30 seconds and that was it. We ran out to find our nurse and she came in the room. I told her that I think he just had a seizure but it wasn't anything near what they were like when we first brought him in.

Dr. M recommended we continue to keep a close eye on him and she ordered another EEG to be done to check for any abnormality in his brain waves. As we were waiting Andrew's parents came by for a visit along with Jennifer, his sister. Sweet Christian decided to take another nap and started the trembling again. This time I was told to push the nurse call button if it happened again. The nurse came running in and witnessed the seizure. I also got it on video (thank goodness for I-phones). I was able to show the doctor exactly what he was doing.

Needless to say a good day ended up with a set-back. My sweet baby is still in the hospital and will be there a few more days now. The goal (per Dr. M) is to get him as asymptomatic as possible. We also want his seizure medicine to be at the right dose in order to control the seizures. I just can't stand my baby being away from home. The hardest thing is having to leave him at the hospital to stay in that empty room all by himself. I know that he is just resting but at least it makes me feel better just sitting with him and being there just in case he may need me. Again, I've asked for God's angels to comfort him and bring him rest.

When we started this whole process I prayed for patience. God has taught me, and is still teaching me, the meaning of patience. He knows exactly when to give you what you need but continues to test you in ways that forces you to grow in your faith. I trust in Him and I know He knows what he's doing. All I can do is be patient and wait. I will continue to put this in God's hands with the faith that everything, in the end, will be just fine. Our God is truly an awesome God! Goodnight my sweet angel. May you rest with the angels that God sends to heal and comfort you! Kisses from your biggest fan, Mama!