Harrison - 15 month Dr. Check-Up

Harrison went to the doctor this morning for his 15 month check-up (even though he will be 16 months tomorrow!). Over the past few months we have developed a couple of concerns about him. One is that we are 99.9% sure he is allergic to peanuts, and two, his legs have straightened a little, but not enough, and his feet are definitely turning in. So I went in wanting to make sure those concerns were addressed and we were on the right track.

Poor guy started off on a bad note because he started crying as soon as we got into the exam room. He knew what was coming and he was having none of it. After our doc checked him out and said how fantastic he was developing (weighing in at 26 lbs and 6 oz at the 75th percentile and measuring 33 and 1/4 inches long and rocking the 95th percentile), she said she was definitely concerned about his symptoms with the peanut butter and she felt it was time to refer him to an orthopaedic specialist about his legs and feet.

At such a young age, getting a lock on allergens is very difficult. She said that we would screen his blood now and then keep rescreening as his allergies changed and he aged. We also came home with a prescription for an Epi Pen, an instructional DVD, and a brief training on how to use it!

So we ended with a lot of crying, a lot of snotting, an extreme amount of clinging, 2 shots, a vial of blood, and a worn out boy.

We will visit the specialist next Friday to look at Harrison legs and feet. I really feel like it is a minor issue at this point and it can be corrected easily. I hope it is and I am going to have faith that it is. Please keep us in your prayers as we go next Friday to that appointment.

Cholesterol Test

Ava had to go to the dr. today for a cholesterol test. At her 2 year check up she was screened for high cholesterol due to high risk factors. The screening came back a little high so after fasting since midnight, Ava went in to get blood drawn. It was not as bad as I had anticipated. I felt so sorry for the little squirt. It took me holding her, a nurse holding her arm, Nana sitting in front of her, and the blood taker lady. Of course she cried through the whole thing starting with when they put the tourniquet on her arm, but once she put her big purple bandage on, she was good. Also I am sure she was starving and thirsty, so once she got her milk she was in great shape.

As far as the cholesterol goes, her is what the doctor said: They are testing to see the ratio between the good cholesterol and the bad. They have to test every year to get baseline readings because at age 10 if it has been consistently high she will have to take medication. At this point we need to monitor her diet and watch fried foods and fatty ones. They want her eating Fat Free Cheese and Fat Free Milk. So monitor the diet is the answer. Seems like some pointless pain just to tell me to watch what she eats. But it is over now and barring any sickness, she doesn't go back until Feb.

(all photos taken by Nana)

Trip to the Dentist

Ava's first trip to the dentist was at 3:oo this afternoon and at 2:00 we had a bit of an accident. Ava and I were playing with her rocking horse and she was dancing when all of a sudden she slipped and fell. She had her paci in her mouth and I saw it hit the floor. This is not an unusual event, but this time the paci hit the skin between her lip and nose and cut it in three small places. It bled and bled and the poor little thing cried and cried. At first I had thought it was her nose and we could just wipe the blood off but I was so sad that she was hurt and it was so visible right before her first trip to the dentist. By the time we got there, the blood had dried up and she looked like a dirty little kid with the blood caked up around her nose. But every time I wiped at it, it started bleeding again so I decided to just leave well enough alone.

The dentist was very busy, but he has an awesome waiting room. It is a pediatric dentist so all clients are children and the waiting rooms are like Disneyland. Toys, games, and fun galore. Ava just played and played and enjoyed the other kids (all were older) and time flew by. When we got to the back they checked Ava out and gave her a toothbrush with the Little Mermaid on it, which she immediately kissed and then started brushing with. The hygienist complimented on her teeth and how nicely they were coming in and commented on her complexion. She cried a little, but not too bad. The dentist was the same, he was super good to Ava, and just went on and on about how beautiful she was and kept saying, "I really mean it, she's gorgeous! Her complexion is fantastic!" How I love hearing that!

Diagnosis - Her teeth are all coming in great. Great space between them and lots of room. They are clean and he can tell they are taken care of. Eye teeth will be dropping down at any time they are just under the gum right now and they usually cause the most trouble. He said that by age 5 she will have a beautiful smile once they are all in. He is concerned because the muscle that connects the lip to the gum at the top of the mouth is too thick. He thinks it will thin up on its own later, but she may have to have some work done on it to prevent a huge gap from being between her too front teeth. He assured me that it would not be a huge deal to fix. He also assured me that the paci is not a big deal right now and all he cares about is that she is not going to sleep with a bottle or sippy cup.

Anyway, it was fantastic. The workers were great and it was just a great experience. Next appointment is in July! So, here are pics of Ava's soon to be Hitler-scabby mustache and passed out in the car on the way home. I'm off to do a SNOW DANCE and you should too!

P.S. Ava has another playdate on Wednesday so I guess she wasn't too scary on Saturday!

Ava the Adventurer

Ava had a Dr.'s appt on Monday just for a "well-baby" check-up. He said she looked great and he would see her at a year old. She weighs 21 lbs. and 4 oz. and is 28 inches tall.

As you can imagine, now that Ava is mobile (crawling and pulling up mobile), she is into everything. I followed her around the house yesterday and this is what I saw:

For some reason, she has an obsession with the crockpot lid!

We also got Ava's 7 month pictures back from Kori and this is one of them. She's fantastic. Check out her website at www.koriburkhead.com and see her pictures. Ava is still on the newborn pages (she is in the black held by Bradley's hands with her eyes open).

Ava's Shots, Round 3

Ava had a Dr.'s appt yesterday for a check-up and her third round of shots. Boy let me tell you, she was in a mood before we even got there and it only got worse! Then, not only did they give her 2 shots and some oral type of vaccine, they did some blood work! It was really only a finger prick that they had to squeeze a lot of blood out of, but you would have thought we were killing her! It was so sad. I tried to tell her she should be happy because at least she got a Hello Kitty Band-Aid, but a 7 month old obviouslt doesn't care about the consolation of the Hello Kitty band-aid. Anyway, glad that is over. She goes back in 2 months just for a check-up and no more shots.

Anyway, the blood work was to check her blood for lead since we live in a house built before 1960. Yep, that's us, our house was built in 1924, so Ava qualifies for the lead test (and they also check for anemia since they have her blood). Anyway, the nurse starts to tell us about kids who have gotten high levels of lead in their bodies from things besides paint. Are you ready for this, one child had high levels of blood from chewing on fishing lures! Fishing lures! Apparantly his dad is an avid collector and they gave the baby a metal lure to teeth on. Idiot number 2 - This baby loved to chew on his mom's keychain which had a bullet on it! A BULLET! Are you kidding me! A civil war collectible bullet, but a bullet no less! Anyway, we hope Ava's lead levels are fine. We try to keep her away from lures and bullets, and we only let her eat paint chips once a day! But seriously, if we haven't heard from them by the end of the week it means her tests we fine. Keep your fingers crossed! Well, someone's awake, have a great day!

By the way, she weighs 19 lbs. and 5 oz. and is 27 and 1/2 inches long now.