Karter getting EKG for 6 month PDA Ligation follow up.

Karter's 6 Week Check-Up

Today Karter had his 6 week check-up with the cardiologist. He had to have an x-ray and EKG. He did fantastic on both, only saying he wanted to go home a few times.

Everything looked good. He will go back in 6months for a Echo cardiogram to have a closer look and make sure tissue is forming correctly around the occluder.

In 6 weeks Karter has gained 3lbs, no longer requires more sleep than Kolton and has so much energy. He has always been active, but required about two more hours of sleep than Kolton and he ate but now he really eats.

It's know that children with heart issues sometimes have difficulty gaining weight, require more sleep or tire easily. I didn't think that Karter fit into that category before, I think I might have been wrong.

I'm so glad it's over and Karter is doing more than fine.

Kolton's Tooth

Kolton's had this little dark spot on his front tooth for a year or more now. As a matter of fact I don't really every remember it not being there. I had heard and read that some antibiotics can affect a babies teeth in utero when the mother takes them. I don't remember if I took antibiotics other than when I went into preterm labor, I think I had a bladder infection very early on. Anyway, I assumed that this is what that spot was. It doesn't hurt him and his tooth seems strong. We even showed it to the dental assistant a few months back when I had my teeth cleaned. She agreed with us.

To make a long story shorter. At some point we went to the pediatrician for something a month or so back. He told me that the tooth was rotting and I needed to get it looked at. I was surprised by that since it has been there since, well forever, and he has seen it before. I made the appointment to have it looked at. That was last Thursday. Kolton did such a great job! He said he didn't want to go, but once we got in there he wanted me to hold his hand and once he decided it was all ok he let go of my hand. Karter sat in the corner in a chair and watched.

We had taken them with us once a few months back so they would know what the dentist was and what happened there. I think had I not done that it would have been way scarier for them. So the dentist looked at it and said that it was more than likely caused by what I thought it was and that it was fine, although it was discolored and the enamel was a bit weaker it was still a strong tooth and we will just keep and eye on it.

I'm glad that's all it is. His permanent tooth should not be affected the dentist said. Besides the little dark mark on his tooth he still has a perfect little smile.

The One Where I Brag about My Husband

I don't brag about my husband enough especially here on the ole blog, but it's time to change that.

These past four weeks have been very trying for Jimmy and I as we tried to figure out what was going on with this pregnancy, dealt with Karter's procedure, tried to ready our old house for closing next week, and many other minor things in day to day life.

Several times throughout last week I was unable to do my nightly chores because of cramping and bleeding and Jimmy willingly stepped up to fill in. He's filled in where needing cooking dinner, giving baths to little boys and cleaning up the kitchen and toy littered room.

On top of that He's still been working and also working at our old house, which is were he headed off to now, even though it's late and he's very tired from having to take me to the ER last night because of the miscarriage. More on that in a minute.

I just wanted to publicly announce that I think he's an awesome husband and daddy. The boys adore him and didn't appear to miss me much today while I was at the hospital, due to all the daddy fun they had. While we do have out different opinions about things we are united at parents and that's very important.

My house is in shambles, my body is trying to recover, we've both probably gained some weight from comfort eating, but we are together and in the end that's what matters.

I love and appreciate you Jimmy!

I also want to thank my brother who came to our house in the middle of the night to be with the boys while they slept, even though he had to work early the next day. I love you guys too all three of you and I owe you one.

I will write a further post about this later, but I did miscarry last night. I had to go to the ER because of the bleeding and had to stay overnight. I have a early morning appointment tomorrow with the doctor to make sure it's complete and nothing further is needed. I'm still dealing with it tonight, taking some medication that makes me feel bad, but it's almost over.

So Thankful

In spite of what I'm going through right now with this pregnancy I'm so thankful.

Thankful that Karter made it through his procedure just fine. We arrived at 9:00 that morning and got all checked in and sat down in the waiting room. We were surprised when one of our pastors showed up. He stayed with us awhile prayed and then he had to leave. After checking to make sure the PDA was present this time with and echocardiogram, the took him back at about 11:30. Unfortunately I was not allowed to actually go in with him while they sedated him as I had intended because I'm pregnant and Jimmy just couldn't do it. I had to stand at the door and he did cry and didn't want the mask put on his face, but I knew the more he cried the faster the anesthesia would work, he was out in about 30 seconds.

We moved to the waiting room were my dad was. My dad and I went to the cafeteria while Jimmy waited for us to return with his food.

Somewhere in there the nurse called to tell us things were going fine and they would be done soon. At 1:30 or so the Doctor came out to tell us things had gone fine. The reason his PDA was there sometime and not at others was because there was a bend in the vessel sometimes making it closed and others open. It was a pretty good sized PDA and they placed an occluder.

We were then sent to recovery to be with Karter as he woke. I forgot to mention that my Pediatrician was there as well because his child had to have a surgical procedure that day as well as was in the recovery bed across from Karter. So Dr. C was able to see Karter as he woke.

After an hour in recovery and after me having to climb in his bed so he wouldn't climb out, we were moved to the step down area. There we had to stay for 4 hours. It was uncertain if he would have to stay overnight at that time, but he was such a good boy and stayed still for the whole time that he had no problems and we were able to leave at 7:00p that night.

He was such a good boy.

They were both good boys. Kolton did great here with my mom, asking to call daddy from time to time. He was happy to see Karter when he came home and asked Karter if he could sit next to him on the couch.

Kolton is a little worried now and wants to make sure if he's going somewhere that Karter and Daddy get to go too.

I'm so thankful that's behind us, it was a huge stressor looming over our heads. Thankful that it went well and Karter is back to his normal if not more busy self.

__________________________________________________________________

On to something else. I've been reading this blog for awhile. They are having a really rough time with their baby Stellen, who is having some heart issues. I'm sure your thoughts and prayer would be appreciated.

My Medical Mess and Rock N Roll

Oy, where do I start? A few weeks back I mentioned that I thought I was having gallbladder issues. I went to the doctor, he confirmed that, that is indeed what it sounded like but sent me to have an ultrasound of my gallbladder to confirm it. The ultrasound showed nothing wrong with my gallbladder but it did show that I had "spots" on my liver. My doctor said that it looked to be a Hemangioma but we would do a catscan of my liver to confirm. It was in fact a hemangioma and I don't really need to worry about it. They don't seem to cause any issues.

That's just part one of the story. Part two is that for two years I've been having back and leg issues. Recently my leg began to hurt so bad that I could hardly stand on it. My gallbladder/liver issue was going on at the same time so I wanted to have it looked at. Of course my mind began to wonder and think that maybe I had some sort of cancer in my leg and it was spreading to my liver. Yeah, I know sometimes I get carried away. Anyway, I was sent to orthopedics were they sent me to have x-rays on my neck, back, and hips. The x-rays showed that I have Spondylolisthesis. Basically my L5 vertebra is slipping over my L6 causing pinched nerves, which in turn is what is causing my back and leg pain. Sooooo, are you tired yet, I am being sent to Physical Therapy where they have put me in traction, hooked me up to some electro stimulation and taught me some exercises. He also added that I need to lose significant weight or face horrible back surgery. Um, so yeah that's whats been going on around here along with the typical stuff that goes on with two, two year olds.

I know I need to lose weight. I recently lost 22lbs, I have gained about 6 of that back, but I need to lose more, which as any of you out there who have lost weight before know it is no easy task. Especially when you have two picky eaters in the house and you seem to always be rushing around. Anyway, I have to stop the excuses and just do it because I DON'T want surgery.

Now on to the Rock N Roll. The boys love to sing they use any and every thing as a microphone. It's cute. Their cute.

Even with everything I've stated above I have to say I'm thankful that even though I have minor issues my body is still healthy considering all the stress I have put it through. I am able to see my to crazies sing and dance and jump and run and most times I can get right in there with them too. I might feel like a mac truck hit me afterwards but I'm working on that.

Doctors Dictation

Last week we requested the dictation from the doctors office. Basically we wanted the before and after not only for us, but our church would like us to do a testimony they would like to put on video and it would be nice to have that documentation for that as well. We requested snapshots of the Echo cardiograms, but have not received those as of yet.

I realize that there are those of you who are not believers out there who do not believe our son was healed by God, I also realize that there are also a fair amount of those of you out there who classify yourselves as Christians that do not believe me either. That's ok. I KNOW my son was healed and that's really all that matters. So I'm not posting this stuff to convince you otherwise, just to document a momentous moment in our families life and to maybe share with those of you the joy we have felt from this and the reality that God is real and He is awesome.

This is in doctor talk, but you can pretty much decipher what it's saying.

Finding per Dr. B via echo cardiogram on 8/4/08:

"There is normal segmental anatomy. The atrial and ventricular septums are intact. There is trivial, physiologic tricuspid valve regurgitation, which is insufficient for accurate quantitation of right ventricular pressures. No other valve stenosis or regurgitation is noted. The pulmonary venous and systemic venous returns appear normal. The aortic arch is unobstructed. There is a 4mm, small to moderate sized patent ductus arteriosus with a peak instantaneous pressure gradient of 85mmHg obtained. Subjectively, the left heart is borderline dialted. There is good ventricular function."

Findings per Dr. S(the surgeon) via echocardiogram on 10/16/08:

"The study today is compared to the study of a few months previously. There has been interval closure of a significant serpiginous PDA. There is no evidence of residual shunting between the aorta and the pulmonary artery by imaging or color flow doppler. Intracardiac anatomy is not visualized. The aortic arch is unobstructed and left sided. There is no branch pulmonary artery stenosis."

Impression:
"No ductus arteriosus noted on today's study; interval closure of the previous PDA."

God is good!

A Time Line of Sorts.

I've still been thinking of our miracle yesterday. As I thought about it further I decided that I wanted to narrow down the time of the healing, just for my own records. I though I would share it with you all as well.

July 22, 2008
Significant murmur was heard on Karter.

August 4, 2008
Karter is diagnosed with a 4mm PDA by Echo cardiogram.

August 13, 2008
Time and date set for Karter's procedure.

August 21, 2008
Both Kolton and Karter saw the pediatrician. Kolton had his heart listend to and a small murmur was heard, nothing serious. Referral sent to cardiologist to have him checked out to be sure. Karter was listened to again by Ped. and significant murmur was still there.

September 1, 2008
Kolton saw cardiologist on Aug. 29th. It was not the same doctor Karter saw originally. Kolton's cardiologist also listened to Karter on that day. He had a student and he wanted the student to hear what a PDA sounded like. It was still very audiable.

Jimmy and I began to pray for healing for Karter in late September early October.

Early October we had Karter prayed for and anointed with oil, although I didn't document that on the blog.

So the awesomeness took place somewhere between September and October 16th.

Our Miracle Story

I don't think it's a secret that I wanted Karter healed. I knew God could do it, my question was would he? I have personally been going through a confusing time recently. We have recently moved, we still have two houses on the market and no one is offering, Karter was diagnosed with a PDA and we started a new church. I have known God for years but it has been only recently that Jimmy and I have decided to recommit ourselves to the Lord and the life that that means leading. With all these changes things have been a bit confusing to me. I began to wonder if I had enough Faith (Matthew 17:20), if I was committed enough to the Lord, why were my prayers not being answered. I have prayed for the sale of at least one of our two homes, a smooth transaction.. After not having those prayers answered I began to get frustrated with God. What I realized is that I was trying to tell God what to do, I wanted him to prove something to me, although I'm not sure what.


All the while Jimmy and I had been discussing different things we had read in the Bible. He and I both wanted healing for Karter and didn't really see any reason biblically that he shouldn't have it. One day while in the shower, which is were I do my praying and deep thinking it's the only quiet time I have, I was praying and I was a little frustrated. I was just talking to the Lord and I asked why don't you just heal it Lord, you can close it, it's just a little 4mm vessel, you can raise the dead, you can certainly close this vessel, and I left it at that.

We had Karter anointed with oil and prayed for by Pastor Al at our church (James 5:14). Our church, family and friends were praying, though I don't think any of them knew we were specifically praying for healing. We felt we had covered Karter in every way we knew how.

It's here that I want to thank each and every one of you who prayed for calmness and peacefulness for Jimmy and I. It worked, at least for me, I'm not sure what Jimmy felt but he appeared to be ok. Yesterday, I was calm and had a peaceful feeling that things would be fine. My anxiety was gone.

I wrote the above to give you a little background of what has been going on in our house spiritually. Now we get to the really good stuff.

Today I got up at 5:20am got dressed gathered up some stuff, Jimmy got dressed and loaded the car with some stuff. At 6:00am I woke Karter put some shoes on him and we left. We had to be at the hospital at 6:30am when we entered the pre-registration room it was full at that early hour of the morning. Things were going rather smoothly, Karter was not cranky as I thought he might be and he only asked once for juice. We waited about 30 mins and were called back to prep him for the surgery. Here they did the usual, gave him something to change into, did the usual 50 questions, took his vitals and wheeled us to another room where we would speak with the anesthesiologist and the doctor. Things were still moving smoothly, we spoke with the anesthesiologist he told us what to expect and that one of us could go back with Karter as they put him to sleep with gas . Jimmy did not want to see Karter that way, so I was going to go with him. The last person we were to speak to before he went back was the doctor. He explained what he would be doing, showed us the devices that he would be placing and then he listened to his heart. It was at this point that he said, "I'm not hearing a murmur" he then stated that he would like to get a quick look by ultrasound. He left and we were taken around the corner, the tech looked for a little while, excused herself for a second, and returned stating she needed one more picture. At this point Karter had began asking to "go bye bye" but was still doing fine. She took us back to our room and at that point the doctor entered as he crossed the threshhold of the door he asked "have you guys been praying" to which we answered yes. At this point I believe he said it worked, but I'm not really sure because all I heard next was gone, it's no longer there. It was at this point I began to cry. It was just how I envisioned it would be if he were healed, how it played through my mind in the shower a month or so ago. The place began to buzz, Jimmy asked the doctor how often this happens, the doctor stated not much and that with the size of the vessel and the age of Karter they just don't close, he stated that it was a miracle. All the nurses were coming in and at one point one of them gave me a hug. It was all so awesome. The doctor said "your done, you can go, just follow up in 6 months." As we were dressing Karter and getting ready to leave the doctor stated that looking at his Echo from two months ago and looking at today's was drastically different, it was completely gone and it had been a pretty large PDA. The doctor made it clear, PDA's don't go away on their own, at Karters age nor at that level of severity...

It was a very exciting day, many, many prayers were answered from calmness for Jimmy and I to calmness for both Kolton and Karter. To my questions of if we were in the right church and on the right path. Although our houses have not sold, it's ok. I know God will take care of us and I will take a healing over a house selling any day. I fully surrendered today and I have no idea where it will take us but I'm excited to find out.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is Karter's procedure. We have to be at the hospital at 6:30 am, I will have to get up at 5:30 to get dressed and get stuff gathered up. I have told both Kolton and Karter that tomorrow Mommy and Daddy are going to take Karter to the doctor to have his heart looked at, while he is asleep and that Nannie will be staying with Kolton tomorrow and playing with him all day. To this Kolton responded, "I go daddy" I'm sure that does not need a translation. Karter than responded that he was going to get his "heart looked at." My Mom is coming tonight to stay and be with Kolton tomorrow, it's going to be a hard day for him, he's the protector of the two and is extremely concerned if he is not in the near vicinity of his brother.

Karter is going to be hacked when he is awoken so early and is not allowed to have his coveted juice. He will at least be able to have his B(binkie) which he also loves.

I have a peaceful feeling about what has to be done. While I still wish it didn't have to be done at all, I believe that I have finally given it all over to God. He knows my innermost wishes. I'm sure I will have to hold back the tears as they take Karter away and when he is out of my site I will cry and grieve for myself having to go through this. Then I will get myself together to be strong for both Karter and Jimmy.

My Mom has arranged to stay on Thurs night if Karter has to stay the night in the hospital. We will deal with all that entails as we get closer.

As I awoke this morning a thought immediately came to my mind, I have been reading this blog for some time now. I thought of all she had to go through on the day she went to the hospital to meet her son and tell him goodbye, all on the same day. While my heart aches for her and her journey, it was also filled with thankfulness. I'm so thankful that I'm not having to be faced with that situation.

I fully expect to see my son wake from his procedure, be at his beck and call and take him home where he will no doubt drive me nuts with his demands. Demands I am thankful I can fulfill for him. Thankful that he is here for me to fulfill them for.

Pray tomorrow as we are taken through yet another journey.

(Since Karter is currently in the computer room turning the server on and off, pictures will have to be added at a later date.)

The Sickies

We have all had the sickies around here lately. I actually seem to be the one who has been sick the longest. It starts with drainage and a sore throat and moves to a stopped up nose and coughing and for me massive pressure in my face, so much so that my teeth began to hurt.

I have a little routine that I do when the boys get stuffy noses and it has worked really well for us. It allows them to sleep through the night without much trouble from their noses. During the day I will give them Benadryl if they are miserable this seems to dry up their nose and allow them to have a decent day. At night I use Baby Vick Rub. I remember as a kid my mom and grandma rubbing this all over my chest, neck and under my nose when I didn't feel well. To this day I immediately feel relaxed when I smell it. I still use it and it seems the boys like it as well. When they see me getting it they raise their shirts for me to rub it on them and then they ask for it under their noses. I then use the Traminic Flowing Vapors fan with cherry menthol inserts. I found these last year and I've been pleased with them every since. The only draw back is the little fan in the unit will squeak sometimes while it's annoying it does not seem to wake either boy up. Those two things combined have worked very well for us and when I go in to check on them they are breathing and sleeping well.

Maybe I should get one of these for my room because I had a little more trouble staying asleep because of my stopped up nose and swollen face. I finally bought a Neti-pot. I had watched an Oprah a year or so ago with Dr. Oz and those that has used it said they felt so much better. I have to tell you it works. I used it for two days every 3-4 hours and the swelling and pain in my face not to mention all the yucky stuff started going away. I've used it twice a day since then and I've felt much better.

Also, just so you know all the products I mentioned above are ones I have found I like, I'm not being paid by the companies. However, if they would like to pay me that would be ok with me.

In other news, Karter had his 6 month check up at the eye doctor yesterday. Initially the doctor thought Karter might be a little near-sighted so we waited 6 months and had a recheck and all is well. All is well with both Kolton and Karter's eyes and the doctor won't need to see them for another year.

Update on Kolton's Doctor Appointment

On Friday Kolton saw the cardiologist. Everything is fine, he does have a slight murmur but nothing to worry about. He does not have an open PDA like Karter and the doctor does not need to see him again.

It's nice to know his heart looks fine and we don't have to worry about him having any procedures done.

Doctor update and ice cream

Things have been busy. I have several post brewing in my head but have yet found the time to write them down.

Everyone is fine. Kolton has a cardiologist appointment on Friday, just to check and make sure everything is good with him. His Allergy test came back negative, so I supposed that's good, but he sure did have some sort of reaction. The doctor was sure to inform me that he didn't need to eat nuts anyway because he could choke, which I'm well aware of. It's not like we gave him a nut and said there you go, run around and play, but be careful not to choke. I know he was just informing me and we will not be letting him have anymore nuts for awhile anyway.

The boys are napping, who knows for how long, I have ice cream calling my name so I need to get to that.

Doctor Appointments

Yesterday both the boys went to the doctor. Karter to the dermatologist because his eczema on his feet has gotten pretty bad and his current meds don't seem to be helping much. He ended up getting a new ointment for his feet to use for a couple of weeks.

Kolton went to the Pediatrician for two reasons, first to have his heart listened to, to see if he needed to be seen by the cardiologist. Dr. C listened to him for quite a while and decided that he should be seen just to be safe. He did hear a murmur, but Kolton's murmur is unlike Karter's. Dr. C said it is more like the "normal" murmurs that you hear, but since Karter has an issue just to be on the safe side he will have him looked at. He is referring us to someone besides the doctor that saw Karter. So we will be taking Kolton to have and echo cardiogram and EKG too. If I go off what I feel, I don't feel that Kolton has an issue that will have to be dealt with. Hopefully my feelings are right. Secondly, Kolton went to get tested for a nut allergy. Last week Jimmy was eating cashews and gave both Kolton and Karter one, they have both had cashews before, actually several times before. About five mins after Kolton ate the nuts he began to cough and wheeze, I watched for a minuet more and he began to cough more. I immediately thought that he was having a reaction to the cashew. I gave him Benadryl and an Albuterol Nebulizer Treatment and watched him for four hours. After 30 mins his breathing became normal and he showed no other respiratory signs, however he did have diarrhea the next day. Jimmy searched online and we found out that some kids after the age of two can have reactions to things that they previously didn't, Dr. C confirmed this. We also found out that had I taken him to the emergency room they would have done the exact same thing I did. They would have given Benadryl and a nebulizer treatment. Of course I would have immediately gone to the E.R. had his breathing not improved quickly, thankfully it did. I suggest everyone have Benadryl and know the correct dosage to give your child as this medication comes in handy for many reactions, just follow your doctors orders on when and how to give it. Anyway, he had blood drawn and we should have those results in about a week. I don't think he is allergic to peanuts, just cashews, which thankfully are easier to avoid. Dr. C did give me a script for an Epi-Pen just in case we were to need it. I hope we never, ever need it.

With all that said I have to tell you, I really do have the best kids in the whole wide world. Kolton's appointment was at 9am, they were wonderful in the waiting room and the exam room. I no longer use strollers when taking them to the doctor, they don't like to sit in it for long and it is so hard to get them in and out of the doors, how brave am i? They allowed the doctor and I to talk without much fuss. After Kolton's appointment we had to go to the lab to get his blood drawn. Now Kolton is a bit more dramatic with that kind of stuff than Karter so I knew there would be some tears. They poked my poor little guy 3, yes 3 times and still didn't get blood. Kolton was so brave, he cried but didn't freak out. Karter just watched. We decided that we would try again after Karter's appointment because someone else who was a better stick with kids would be there. Once again the boys were wonderful in the waiting room and the exam room and in the waiting room of the lab for the second, well actually fourth attempt. Thankfully they got blood and Kolton was once again brave. After they were all done he said "Karter's turn" and believe it or not Karter actually wanted a turn. I just asked if they could give Karter a band-aid, which pleased both boys.

I actually wanted to buy them the world. They are normally good, but with all the waiting we did I was just so proud of them.

Procedure Date Set & Then and Now Pics

We got the call yesterday that October 16 will be the date that they do Karter's procedure. I'm OK with the date, it's after our March of Dimes Walk, after Daddy's birthday and after his eye appointment on Oct. 3rd and my birthday on the 8th. We have to be at the hospital at 6:30am they will talk with us, answer all our questions, I'm assuming do some blood work and then the procedure. We may be able to go home the same day but we may end up staying overnight, it all depends on Karter and how he reacts and how quickly he wakes up. I'm sure as the date gets closer I will have more things to say about how I feel about it. For now I feel peaceful about it. I wish it didn't have to happen but I don't really feel all that worried at the moment.

Than and Now August Edition

August 17, 2006

August 9, 2007

August 13, 2008

PDA

Karter's appointment with the cardiologist was this morning. They did an EKG and a echocardiogram. They found that Karter has a PDA or Patent Ductus Arteriosus. This is very common in preemies and is usually diagnosed while still in the NICU, however for some reason ours wasn't. I remember the doctors speaking to us about PDA's and I can only assume we were lead to believe all was well or we just didn't remember to ask about it again. The cardiologist says that sometimes they just leave them alone until the child is older and stronger to treat the problem. You know here's were the instinct things comes into play again. Two weeks ago when we visited his Pediatrician I began racking my brain to try to figure out what it could be, the only thing I could come up with, and I'm not doctor mind you, it that it was an undiagnosed PDA. I said this several times to Jimmy and even researched it. I just knew this is what he had. As the doctor began to tell us what she thought it was, I asked, are we dealing with a PDA and she said yes she believed so. She thought that it has always been there, while I think it has always been there I wonder if it has always been so easily detected by stethoscope. He has had his heart listened to at every doctor visit by every doctor and no one up until recently has said anything about it. The cardiologist said that sometimes murmurs go undetected for awhile due to it just being plane ole loud in the exam room.

While we were not to fond of the doctors bedside manner, I am confident in her skills. Thankfully she will not be doing his procedure. Speaking of procedure he will be having a heart catheterization either before the Summer's end or next Summer. It will all depend on the doctor whom will be doing the procedure. We have yet to speak to him as the Cardiologist need to speak with him first and give him all details and test results, but we should know something shortly.

While I don't really want Karter or us for that matter to have to deal with any of this, I'm thankful that it's not something worse. We don't need to limit his activity and we don't have to worry about it messing with any electrical parts of his heart, at this point anyway. If it were to be undiagnosed for a very long time then those things might come into play.

Thank you for all your prayers and well thoughts. God is good.

21 month Stats, and Ghost Hunters

The doctor appointment of Friday went good. I was even brave enough to take them both in without the stroller. Both boys held my hand like perfect little gentleman and, I even let them play with the germie public toys in the office. Eww! They were so good, when our name was called they held my hands and followed me back. They both got a little teary eyed when the nurse weighed them and took their measurements, but recovered quickly. They both kept saying "bye bye" and "daddy" over and over, basically telling me they wanted to leave. As we waited for the doctor both sat on my lap and I told them several times that the doctor was going to come and see them and listen to their hearts and tell us how big they have gotten. They both seemed to understand and Kolton kept saying "see me". I was trying to prepare them because Kolton has "white coat syndrome" and usually cries which starts Karter crying. When the doctor came in both just continued to sit on my lap as the doctor looked in their eyes and ears and did the whole spill. They kept talking to the doctor about "bobo" the dog. No crying while the doctor was in the room. Then it was shot time. I laid both on the table pulled down both their pants. The nurse gave each one a shot quickly, I brought out the b's(binkies) and they cried for a second. Kolton however before the shot said "no" several time and then when she poked him he said "oww" and pushed her hand away. Karter said "no" several times. When we were fixing to leave Kolton with tears still in his eyes ran to the door, opened it(he can open the ones with the handicap handles) and said "go". They got suckers and as we left they both said "bye" to the nurse. Then they held my hand as we left. I was so proud of them they are growing up.

Kolton:
26 lbs
34 1/2 in tall
49 1/2 cm head

Karter:
25 lbs
33 1/2 in tall
48 1/2 cm head

Oh, I forgot to mention that the doctor said, that what is on Kolton's face did in fact look like pimples. At first he didn't look at it very well and tried to give me some sort of cream. I was persistent and kept saying it's been there for months. It acts like a pimple he look at it closely and said it did indeed look like a pimple and it had some blackhead looking things around it. So he gave us some cream for pimples and said it should be gone in 7 to 14 days. We will see, I'm calling the dermatologist if it isn't gone in the allotted days, however it does look better today.

And now for the Ghost Hunters part.

I really like the show Ghost Hunters, I DVR it every Wednesday and watch it commercial free later.

Last weeks episode had the funniest blooper I've yet to see on this show. I died laughing, because you know every one loves a little poo humor.

4 month doctor visit

The boys had their 4 month doctor visit yesterday. The doctor said they are growing well and doing fine. Kolton weighed in at 11lb 3 0z and 22 in long. Karter was 11lb 13oz and 23 in long. He ok'd us to let them sleep up to 6 hours a night if they wanted. This is what we have been waiting for, of course they have yet to do it, but just knowing that it is ok if they do sleep that long makes me feel better. We still have the monitors and will until at least their next visit in 2 months. They need to not have had any alarms for at least 1 to 2 months and both have had an alarm in the last month when they where sick.

Today Karter had his last visit at OU Med. Center for his BPD (bronchial pulmonary dysplasia). He no longer needs oxygen and has been off it for a month, so they wrote the scrip to remove the tanks and oximeter from our home, this is a step towards more normalcy, we won't have to walk by their room and see a 5 foot ugly green tank anymore. The doctor he saw today was the one who released them from the NICU, she was happy to see us and was surprised to see how big they have gotten.

I have gotten some really cute pictures in the last couple of days, since I know everyone likes pictures here are a few. Enjoy!


Despite getting 4 shots yesterday and having his blood drawn for a CBC and running a slight fever today, he's still a pretty happy and cute little guy. This is Kolton working his charm.


Ready for their trip to the doctor. They have grown so much since they where last in their car seats and have gained 5 pounds or so since we brought them home.


Karter a few days ago, such a happy boy. He likes his bouncy seat too.
And last but not least Kolton working on his head and neck control.

November-Whatever the Date Is.

I realize it has been awhile since we last updated. A lot has been going on. Both boys came down with a cold, but before we knew it was a cold we had to make our first trip to the emergency room. We called the doctor on call in our town since it was the weekend and she said it would be better to take them back to Childrens Hosp. just in case it was RSV because that is where they would send us only by ambulance. So we made a trip there and wouldn't you know it Kolton was as sweet as could be. His alarms didn't go off once and he was up and smiling. The doctor did diagnose him with a cold and reflux, which we got medicine for and pink eye, I thought he has just scratched his eye and was going to take him to the doctor on the following Monday for this. Anyway they both had to be seen being they share the same bed and such and both were tested for RSV, which they didn't have. So we leave there and wouldn't you know it Kolton's alarm went off the minute we got in the car. Apparently this is normal when kids are sick and the doctor said all kids probably do it but we just don't know because they don't have monitors hooked up to them. So it took a week for them to get over this. Kolton got it first and his alarms went off quite a bit with his cold. Then a couple of days later Karter got it, but it made him have lots of drainage and a stuffy nose, so he threw up his food a lot. I spent a good four days praying and holding and begging him not to gag. On top of this Jimmy and I both got sick. It's very had to take care of twins, but taking care of them when you don't feel well is even harder.

I also realize we have not posted any pictures lately. This is due to the camera batteries being dead. We are charging them now and will takes pictures in the next day or so.

So that is what has been going on here. Now I suppose I should go tend to one or both of them. They have actually been awake 7 hours, that's right 7 hours and they don't want to sleep now unless you are holding them. I think we might have spoiled them and times like these we pay the price. Welp gotta go help Jimmy.