All's well that ends well

Ben and Gramma

Happy anniversary to Clay and me! We just realized that 12 years ago today we were in El Paso getting married! It's funny to think how much things can change in twelve years. We have had such a roller coaster of ups and downs in the last week, it's no wonder we didn't remember our anniversary until this afternoon.

After being taken to the hospital last Wednesday around noon, Ben quickly stabilized and now seems mostly himself. Wednesday night they wanted to keep him in the hospital over night to monitor him, so I went home, packed an over-night bag, and stayed with him Wednesday night at the hospital. Because the doctors thought Ben had some sort of a virus (he had a runny nose and a cough), we were put in the "airborne infection isolation room." Every nurse who came in had to suit up in plastic gown and mask every time they entered the room (until his respiratory panel came back negative the next day).

our scary hospital room door

I don't think I'd had that sleepless of a night since right after Ben was born. The fold-out chair-bed was like sleeping on creaky iron bars, and the nurses came in every hour or so to check Ben's vitals. At some point the machine Ben was hooked up to started to beep because his oxygen level dipped down below 90, so the nurses had to come in and adjust his position repeatedly. Luckily Ben only woke up twice during the night, but I don't think I got more than 2 and a half hours of sleep altogether.

hospital "cage"

The only thing that got me through that terrible night in any semblance of a good mood was that I assumed we would be discharged from the hospital that day (since Ben's vital signs were okay). The pulmonologist came in Thursday morning, however, and took a look at Ben and decided his breathing was still concerning enough that there were three more tests he'd like to run: an ultrasound to test for little heart defects (which came back just fine), an EKG to check out his lungs in detail (which we still haven't done), and a "sweat test" to see if he has cystic fibrosis (which finally this morning came back negative!).

the "sweat test"

an unhappy hospital moment

The doctor said that each of these tests would be a 4-6 hour out-patient visit to the hospital, but if Ben stayed in the hospital (admitted as a patient), we could get at least 2 of them done that day. The LAST thing in the world that I wanted to do was stay another minute in the hospital but I knew that it was the best thing to do. So Clay brought me breakfast, and I tried to keep Ben happy throughout another long day in the hospital. Now that he has learned to crawl, he really felt confined when he could only crawl in the hospital crib. The only good thing about Thursday was that the pulmonologist told the hospital Ben could be unhooked from all the machines, which made him a lot happier. The nurses were all very nice, and there was even a "volunteer grandma"at the hospital that came around and brought him toys and exersaucers to play in.

everybody (but especially grandparents) loves Benjamin

Clay's mom (as usual) rose to the occasion, and drove down Thursday from Oklahoma to help out during our hospital stay, and that made things so much better. Not surprisingly the hospital only managed to get one of the three tests done on Thursday, and the "sweat test" done Friday morning. (Clay went above and beyond    Friday the hospital's pediatrician mentioned some OTHER tests we might have done for Ben, but at that point I said we would just have to do them out-patient, and that we needed to get home. We didn't actually get discharged until Friday around 3 in the afternoon (Clay's mom made that wait so much more bearable, though!), and we all slept so much better Friday night!

Since then San Antonio has had a bit of a flood--Saturday was the second rainiest day in San Antonio's history (we got almost 10 inches). We all stayed (mostly) high and dry, and after Clay's mom left for Oklahoma, my parents drove in from El Paso to spend the holiday weekend. A lovely time was had by all, and I finally, FINALLY feel like things might get back to normal.

"driving" grandma

Ben and his best bud (Luke)

Grandpa smack-down

lovin' the Hendrix

An ambulance ride for Benjamin

feeling better once at the hospital

A visit to the pediatrician's office this morning turned into a nightmare today. I took Ben to the pediatrician's office for cold-like symptoms, but his breathing was very fast and his oxygen levels were very low. The pediatrician gave him a abuterol nebulizer treatment to try to improve his breathing, and his stats got much worse.

We could hear a crackly sound when he breathed and he didn't want to wake up. The pediatrician got even more concerned and gave him oxygen, which didn't really seem to help how he was feeling, but it did improbe his stats. She was afraid he might start turning blue, so they called the ambulance to take him to the hospital. Talk about one of the scariest moments of my life.

I can honestly say I have always been a bit curious about the inside of an ambulance, but NEVER wanted to have that curiosity satisfied. Oh well. They strapped him into a little child seat in the ambulance and sat next to him holding the oxygen mask on the whole way.

Clay followed the ambulance in his car, and has been at the hospital with me all afternoon. A chest x-ray revealed no pneumonia, and a different nebulizer treatment seemed to stabilize his breathing. His oxygen levels have returned to normal. I'd forgotten how S-L-O-W-L-Y everything moves at a hospital: from the ordering of x-rays to the relaying of info to the letting us know what the doctor wants to do.

We finally saw a hospital pediatricianand she confirmed that they want to keep him over night for observation. She thinks his reflux + his floppy larynx + a whatever virus he has combined into a bad situation and the first nebulizer treatment made things worse (apparently some kids just react poorly to abuterol).

So.... basically Ben is probably fine (other than a cold or some other virus), but given the scary situation earlier, he's going to be "under observation" over night. I think that's a good idea... I just don't relish the idea of sleeping on a chair-bed tonight. Maybe it won't be as bad as I think.

Anyway, the important thing is that Ben seems to be back to his old hammy self, chewing on everything and desperately wanting to crawl on the dirty hospital floor.

a floppy larynx!

this little piggy went to the hospital

After 5 hours at the hospital this morning, we finally have a definitive answer to Ben's breathing abnormalities: he has laryngomalasia, or a "floppy larynx." This means that the cartilage in his larynx is a bit softer than normal, but it will harden as he gets older. This is apparently the very best possible outcome we could have hoped for.

The doctor also said that Ben's reflux may be making the laryngomalasia worse, so we've got a prescription for reflux medicine. He wants us to continue the inhaler twice a day and the reflux medicine once a day, and the doctor thinks we will probably see an improvement in how hard he has to work to breathe in a few weeks. I have an appointment to go back to the doctor's office in mid-June and he'll take another look a Ben and adjust (or eliminate) the meds.

pre-op kisses

I am so, so pleased that this is the outcome. I feel like I've had this constant worry stomach-ache for the last few weeks, and finally can let it go.

 I am also so so tired from getting up at 1 a.m. to feed Ben right before his 6 hour fasting started, then getting up at 4:00 to have him at the hospital by 5:30 a.m. Poor Ben wasn't happy to be fasting for that long, but he eventually got so tired of fussing that he fell asleep right on the gurney, so he was alseep when they wheeled him away. The procedure only took like 30 minutes (most of that time was them trying to get the IV in), and then the doctor came out to explain everything to us. What a morning!

In other news, I continue to thoroughly enjoy having my wonderful sister's company this week. She, Ben and I spent yesterday at the zoo, and he got to splash around in the Tiny Tots area's Riverbank for the fist time (see video below) . He was a little unsure at first (he still doesn't like baths), but after a while really loved it.

This week Nic also helped me get a bit more organized: we separated all of Ben's outgrown clothing into different sizes and then used space bags to shrink them down. Ben will probably have a brother or sister one day and I'm hoping a lot of the clothes will be wearable.

sleepy buddy

Ben "helping" us to organize all of his outgrown clothes

ALL of Ben's outgrown clothes space-bagged down to this

baby bear (in front of the bear enclosure at the zoo)

enjoying the Riverbank at the zoo

Auntie N and Ben with a tapir

petting zoo piggy

more Auntie time

Still needs the broncoscopy :(

lookin' good in the hospital gown

Yesterday we had Ben's "swallow test" to try to figure out why his breathing is abnormal. The technical name for the procedure Ben had yesterday is an "upper GI series." He did not want to drink the barium substance in their little bottle, but luckily I had a clean, empty bottle in the diaper bag, and once in a familiar bottle Ben obligingly polished off the chalky white liquid.

on the screen behind me is an x-ray of Ben's stomach (filled with barium)

It was amazing to get to see the x-ray "video" in real time as Ben was drinking: we could watch every swallow as what looked like garden slugs glugged down his esophagus and into his stomach. Once his stomach was filled with what appeared on the tv screen to be black liquid (see pic), the radiologist kept seeing what she called "spiking" where tiny amounts of liquid went back up his esophagus. Finally, after getting him to drink a bit more barium, we all saw a huge spike of liquid come back up his esophagus from his stomach. This confirmed what the radiologist suspected: he has reflux. As an infant, Ben did spit up a lot, but he hardly spits up at all now, so I was very surprised.

However, after speaking with the pulmonologist's office today, the reflux finding doesn't really explain Ben's strange breathing so it doesn't negate the need to do the broncoscopy on Friday. I am NOT excited about having to go back to the hospital on Friday (nor about Ben having to fast for 6 hours), but it will be good to have all the information possible.

snuggin'

Ben being entertained by his "Auntie N" at the hospital

I am so so lucky to have my amazing sister, Nic, staying with me right now. She was awesome yesterday at the hospital. We had arrived at the hospital 45 minutes early, but she kept Ben entertained (even though he was hungry and cranky). Then during the Upper GI Series, while he had to lay still in the machine for 15 or 20 minutes, she stood to the side and kept him happy. Last night she even got up and fed him at 1:00 when he started crying. So wonderful!

Mother's Day kisses

                                                             yooooogurt!

The cats can stay!

Ben's first professional haircut: no more wispy mulleting!

Ben saw the allergist today, and after an uncomfortable skin prick test (they tested for cat, dust mites and several pollens) he tested negative for everything (except a very slight reaction to dust mites). The allergist said that in no way could his small reaction to dust mites be causing the way Ben breathes.

...So we'll be reporting to the hospital Monday morning for the "swallow test." If that doesn't show anything then we have a second appointment on Friday morning for the bronchoscopy. NOT fun. For the swallow test, he can't have eaten or drunk anything 3 hours prior; for the bronchoscopy he can't have had anything 6 hours prior. Looks like I may be trying to "explain" to my 9 month old why I can't give him any breakfast (or 2, 3, or 4 a.m. feedings like he likes). Luckily the bronchoscopy appointment is at 7:30 in the morning.

showin' off the back of Ben's haircut

Anyway, it is such a relief to be sure that we will not have to find a new home for our cats! It was really sad to lose The Colonel, and I'd hate to not have something furring up the place and demanding to be petted.

Ben at the doctor's office this morning

both my boys on their "phones"

stinky feet :)

No news till next week

no "cage" can hold me for long!!

Ben and Clay at yesterday's Spring Fling rally

I just wanted to let everyone know that we won't find out anything more about Ben's breathing condition until next week. He has an appointment Monday morning for the "swallow test", and then we'll go from there.

Then This Thursday I've made him an appointment with an allergist just in case his breathing trouble is allergy-to-our-cats-related. Clay developed cat allergies when he was a baby (which he out-grew), so we're getting this possibility checked out as well. Thanks to everyone for all the good thoughts and well-wishes sent our way!

It's funny, parenthood never felt so real as last night when I was carrying Ben's meds, the inhaler, and his bedtime milk to the nursery while Clay got him dressed for bed. Sheesh.

more piggy face!

Breathing not normal... tests next week

just-woke-up Benji in his jammies this morning

So the pulmonary specialist confirmed that there IS something wrong with Ben. Just watching him breathe, the doctor could immediately tell that Ben uses his stomach muscles to breathe and that each breath is takes work: coming in and going out. The doctor said Ben's case is particularly "interesting" (which he knows isn't what a parent wants to hear); since Ben has done just fine this far in his life, but he is breathing in a way that another baby might be showing real signs of distress and need to be taken to the hospital. I feel like a terrible mom, because all this time I just thought he was normal and never did anything about it...

Anyway, the gist of the two hour doctor visit is this: while Ben clearly is a happy, developing baby, and doesn't appear to be in any immediate danger, his breathing isn't normal and could cause problems for him later on. The doctor thinks something is either obstructing his airway or his trachea is underdeveloped and making him work really hard for each breath. There could be a blood vessel in the wrong place, a polyp, or the cartilage in his trachea could be underdeveloped. All of these could cause either large or negligent problems for him in the future and could either need surgery or need no intervention at all.

The doctor's office is scheduling an appointment for him at the hospital next week to have Ben drink barium-laced milk and then take an x-ray. This will tell us if there is anything pressing on the back of his trachea (like a blood vessel in the wrong place). If that procedure doesn't show anything, then Ben will have to be put under and have a procedure where they put a tube with a tiny camera in it down his trachea. That procedure will almost certainly tell us something the doctor said.

In the meantime Ben was prescribed asthma meds twice a day (not that they think it's actually asthma, but just in case).

Poor little guy.

May Day! May Day! Nine-month Doc Visit/Breathing Debacle

"Piggy-face" Ben approves this swing

Ben's nine-month "well-baby visit" today turned into a bit of a nightmare today.

During our discussion of Ben's development, I mentioned to the doctor that one of the daycare workers at our gym had said Ben breathes really fast sometimes. His breathing never seemed out of the ordinary to me, nor did he ever seem to be struggling to breathe, so I hadn't brought him into the doctor to have it checked out.

The doctor listened to him breathe repeatedly, and she became a little bit concerned. She had the nurses give him a nebulizer treatment (which he HATED), and that only made him scream and cough, and didn't slow his breathing down. The good part about that treatment not helping him breathe is that it probably rules out him having asthma.

Then the doctor sent us over to a lab to get his chest x-rayed (in case he had the beginnings of pnemonia or his lungs or heart weren't growing properly) and then she made Ben an appointment with a pulminary specialist for tomorrow morning.

The doctor's office called a little while ago with the x-ray results, and while his heart and lungs appear to be normal size and growing just fine, there was a bit of liquid in his lungs.

The doctor's office said he might just be getting over a cold or the flu (although he hasn't had any symptoms), or he might be about to come down with something, which could explain the liquid on the lungs. Anyway, they sent the x-rays on to the pulminary specialist so he can tell me what (if anything) needs to be done tomorrow. So much for a WELL baby visit.

Anyway, on the happier side of things, Ben now weighs 20.5 lbs and is in the 50% percentile on weight. He is 29.25 inches long (80% percentile), and his head circumference is in the 90% percentile. (Baby big-head!)

Of course none of those stats tell what a lovely, happy baby he is to be around most of the time. All of his latest advances sure make interacting with him more fun. He is really getting into peek-a-boo now, and he even initiated the game last night by hiding himself behind part of the couch and peeking out at me. He loves pulling all his books off of his shelf, and there is even one with extra-thick pages he can turn himself! (See video below)

"Baby Time" at the library: now he can finally really join in!

He's liking his new backyard swing Clay put up for him (installed just in time for us to get swarmed by the first mosquitos of the year). He's also pulling up on hands, legs, and furniture very well: he even pulled himself up in his crib for the first time the other day!

As a child development book I've been reading says: at this age babies go from being "problem solvers" to "problem posers." So instead of being satisfied by sitting back and "solving" what ever problem (toy) we put in front of him, he is now moving into the phase where he wants to make and then solve his own "problems."

Ben's April

two days ago he pulled up for the first time in his crib!

turning the pages and "Readin'", yo!