Samuel is hitting major milestones! Thursday we went for our first appointment with our local pediatrician. I know that doesn't sound too crazy, but each time he has come home, Samuel has been readmitted to the hospital the day before our local appointment!
Also, we went to a few routine follow-up appointments today back at MUSC... and they didn't keep him! Our family is still together at home... amazing.
It was a great day of appointments - first with the pulmonologist. Since Samuel came home, we have continued to tweak things... all of the tweaks were based on his co2 levels and doctors recommendations, not just paranoid momma :) We did a blood test at the beginning of the appointment this time, since Samuel's happy smile can be a bit deceiving, and things came back great. YEA! We will keep all respiratory stuff the same for two more weeks, then we go back to the pulmonologist to re-evaluate. In the meantime, if we feel it's necessary to check another co2 level, our home nurse is able to pull it from his PICC line and our local hospital can run the numbers.
The second follow-up was with the neurologist. I had never met him before - he seems great! We went over all of the MRI's taken before Samuel was discharged - so crazy to see your child's brain on the computer screen, the detail is absolutely amazing. He still has slightly swollen ventricles, but it doesn't appear to be affecting brain development... we will continue to watch this. We also wanted to check Samuel's eyes because they go a little googly sometimes. It was really bad when he woke up from his medical paralysis last July, but has gotten much better since then. So far we see no neurological connection to this, besides of course that your brain controls your entire body :) We think this will be followed by ophthalmology, which is great.
The third follow-up was a brief visit with the high-risk clinic doctor, who was one of his attending physicians in the NICU. She came in to say hello, check him out, ask a few questions, and make sure we are tied into services at home (PT, OT, Speech). Another good visit!
Three for three is pretty great! We are back at MUSC almost once per week, with multiple doctors each time... here's hoping all of our days are this smooth.
Also, we went to a few routine follow-up appointments today back at MUSC... and they didn't keep him! Our family is still together at home... amazing.
It was a great day of appointments - first with the pulmonologist. Since Samuel came home, we have continued to tweak things... all of the tweaks were based on his co2 levels and doctors recommendations, not just paranoid momma :) We did a blood test at the beginning of the appointment this time, since Samuel's happy smile can be a bit deceiving, and things came back great. YEA! We will keep all respiratory stuff the same for two more weeks, then we go back to the pulmonologist to re-evaluate. In the meantime, if we feel it's necessary to check another co2 level, our home nurse is able to pull it from his PICC line and our local hospital can run the numbers.
The second follow-up was with the neurologist. I had never met him before - he seems great! We went over all of the MRI's taken before Samuel was discharged - so crazy to see your child's brain on the computer screen, the detail is absolutely amazing. He still has slightly swollen ventricles, but it doesn't appear to be affecting brain development... we will continue to watch this. We also wanted to check Samuel's eyes because they go a little googly sometimes. It was really bad when he woke up from his medical paralysis last July, but has gotten much better since then. So far we see no neurological connection to this, besides of course that your brain controls your entire body :) We think this will be followed by ophthalmology, which is great.
The third follow-up was a brief visit with the high-risk clinic doctor, who was one of his attending physicians in the NICU. She came in to say hello, check him out, ask a few questions, and make sure we are tied into services at home (PT, OT, Speech). Another good visit!
Three for three is pretty great! We are back at MUSC almost once per week, with multiple doctors each time... here's hoping all of our days are this smooth.
Our beautiful girl loves to laugh!
She also loves to explore, although usually she checks out the entire room within minutes. This was one of her quieter moments :)
Cheese!
Olivia picked up some extra oxygen tubing... which I realize sounds strange... but I love that she's sharing it with Samuel!
Samuel looks pretty happy to finally make his local pediatrician visit.
Contemplating...
I can smile even bigger when I close my eyes!I'm pretty sure Samuel picked this up from one of his nurses, but we certainly reinforce it at home :)
I love my brother and sister THIS much!
George has been snapping for months! We all take credit for teaching him this skill, but I'm pretty sure it's all him.
The wiggly giggler - one of the favorite toys :)
I love my brother and sister THIS much!
George has been snapping for months! We all take credit for teaching him this skill, but I'm pretty sure it's all him.
The wiggly giggler - one of the favorite toys :)
Sweet boy :)
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