Health Update

On Wednesday we went to Bennett's one year well-child exam and then he had a bunch of x-rays taken at the hospital including a bone-age scan. Bennett hasn't been feeling very good, and it just so happened that he had a fever at his appointment which meant no vaccinations. It ended up that he has a bad ear infection in his left ear. I was actually relieved that he didn't have to get vaccines that day because I knew that he would be going through a lot later that morning. He also needed to get pricked to check his iron, nutrition, and thyroid again.

Bennett's weight was 16lbs. 13oz (less than 3rd percentile)
His height was 28 3/4 inches (10th percentile)
Head circumference was 44.4 cm (between the 5th and 10th percentile)

Despite our appointment being at exactly when Bennett usually takes his first nap and being sick on top of it, he was such a trooper. He was pretty happy during the entire appointment. We then headed into the hospital to radiology where he had a skeletal survey and bone-age scan done. The skeletal survey was a repeat from when he was first born. It is basically x-rays of Bennett's entire body. They are going to send the pictures off to the doctor that specializes in dwarfism in Wisconsin again (Dr. Pauli) to see if he notices anything new. The bone-age scan is just an x-ray of his hand and foot. From this picture they can tell the actual age of his bones- if they are younger than his actual age- that can mean that he may be blooming late, if they are the same age as he is- we are more likely looking at a skeletal dysplasia.


After we got home from the hospital I received a call from the U of I. Great news! Bennett's chromosome test came back normal. So, she helped me understand what this means. She explained it as- "Think of our chromosomes as an entire set of encyclopedias. The chromosome test that we did would tell us if an entire book was missing, probably even if a chapter in a book was missing. It wouldn't be able to tell us anything about if a sentence or letter was missing though." She said the the letters in the books are our genes. If they want to know something specific about the genes, they have to tell a test exactly what to look for. Basically, the chromosome test ruled out a few more types of disorders, but didn't lead them to a diagnosis.

I also asked her about typical arm span length because on our report the average was not given. Bennett arm span is 61cm whereas the average arm span at 1 year is between 70 and 75. So we can conclude that his span to height ratio is a little smaller than is should be. We knew this!

The last thing that her and I talked about was that Bennett will probably need to have the x-rays done again at 2 and maybe even 3 years old, BUT the later they can come to a diagnosis, the more milder the form of skeletal dysplasia. So I am hoping they continue NOT to find anything! She reiterated that they feel that he most likely has a form of dwarfism, but are hoping that it is a mild form. We shall see and we'll love him either way!

*Update* - Before a got a chance to post this, I heard back on Bennett's blood tests. His iron is still a little low so we have to continue to give him a supplement plus around 1 pediasure a day for calories and iron. His thyroid and basic scan (that shows nutrition) came back normal again. Go Bennett!

Silliness

Ethan stuck "Baby" in for a ride with Benne in the jump-a-roo.

Huh?

Ethan wears his "Cars" hospital hat every chance he gets. He got it when he got tubes put in his ears. Here he was acting like a rock star!

So cute!!!

A Year Ago...

One year ago today God performed a modern day miracle when my second son was born but let me start at the beginning. I've never put my labor story on the blog, so I thought that this would be the perfect time to do it- the day of Bennett's one year birthday.

On April 15th I thought for sure I was going into labor and that Bennett would be sharing his birthday with his Aunt Erin and Uncle James. Here is my carepage (bthilges) post from that day:

"I am 38 weeks today! Yesterday we had another NST and Bennett did great. I have been having a lot of stronger and more consistent contractions the last couple of days and last night we almost made a trip to the hospital. They have subsided a little bit this morning, but I'm definitely not sure I am going to make it to the 22nd! Please keep praying that I know when it is the real thing, that we make it to the hospital safely, and that the doctors are ready for Bennett- preferably we will be there during the day time hours! Also, I have been struggling with some anxiety about Bennett coming out of me where he is so safe. Pray really hard for him as we go through labor, and pray that I am able to not let the anxiety overwhelm me as I have to be strong for him."

The next day, Wednesday, I was certain (again) that Bennett would be joining us so we took Ethan to daycare and headed down to the Iowa City area so that could be close to the hospital. We stopped at the Coralville Mall (thought the walking might help things along:), ate a spicy meal, and went to a movie...nothing. I remember being SO FRUSTRATED. Actually, frustrated is a huge understatement. To be honest, I was angry as we drove back to Independence. I wanted to be close to the hospital when he came, I was so anxious about that, and after all that we had been through didn't I deserve it? I thought so.

We ended up leaving Ethan at Leia and Ryan's house for the evening just in case and went to bed. Early the next morning, on Thursday, April 17th, I woke up and took a shower and started bleeding, a lot. It just didn't seem right so we called the hospital. They asked us to come down so that they could make sure everything was o.k. This was it! We were on our way, I was sure of it.

When we arrived Bennett and I got attached to a monitor and waited for the doctor. We were so excited to see Dr. R (the ONLY Ob-Gyn that we really had trusted and liked). She wanted us to have a final ultrasound to measure amniotic fluid. In that ultrasound we found that my fluid was the lowest it had ever been and Dr. R was feeling that it was time for him to come out. At that point she was thinking that I would need to have a C-section for Bennett's safety but thought that we could give labor a try to see how Bennett reacted to the contractions.

There were several points during contractions Bennett's heart rate dropped dramatically but we quickly found out that as long as I remained on my side, he handled them pretty well. At 3 cm I decided I could use a epidural (I wanted to actually see what one felt like since the one with Ethan never worked!:). At the U of I hospitals they do a spinal/epidural combo...very nice, and I got to have it done while I layed on my side for Bennett's safety. WOW, that was lovely. I didn't feel a thing!:)

After the epidural, within an hour, I was checked and found to be at 9cm. The time was drawing very close and then the next thing I knew, I wanted to push! I asked the doctor to check and sure enough, Bennett was ready. They quickly called Dr. R who had to RUN from the other side of the hospital to get there in time. I literally pushed Bennett out in 3 pushes.

And he cried.

HE CRIED!!!

They told us to expect respiratory distress due to the extremely low fluid, due to his chest size. They almost guaranteed him to go the NICU- we had a room full of neonatologists to prove it. (Which, by the way, one of them was a dwarf herself!)

They took one look at him and felt that he didn't need anything but observation in the regular nursery for an hour to monitor his oxygen levels. My miracle. I can't even put into words the joy that I felt. God FORCED me to trust in Him, He FORCED me to let go of control, He had a plan...a glorious plan for Bennett.


Bennett, you are here and you are wonderful. I am blessed to be your mommy. You have taught me and so many others so much in your short life already! You are a fighter. Your daddy and I will always stand up for you, we will help you to feel "big" because we know that you have a big heart to share, we will help you love who you are- just the way you are. Every life has hardships, but we can have hope because God has a plan even in the pain that we must endure. He has a plan for you. You are a gift. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. We can have hope for your future, look at how much you have gone through already!

Happy 1st Birthday sweet Benne James! I love you dearly.

Bennett's One Year Pics

Please come and check out Bennett's one year pictures at: http://www.infiniteimagedesign.exposuremanager.com/g/bennett

The password is: thilges

We just had them done today. I was SO PROUD of how he sat up in the chair she had and he even stood up against it as well!

Also, just an update regarding his testing in Iowa City. His growth hormone test came back normal, so that is good news. We still have an appointment with the endocronologist on July 1st and on April 22nd we are having the full skeletal survey and bone age scan done at St. Lukes. In another couple of weeks we should have the chromosome test back.

PEEK!

Bennett started to do peek-a-boo today. He had been doing it for awhile with his blankie, but now he covers his eyes...stinking adorable. Also, he is now signing "more" and "all done", and he gives kisses too! So exciting!:)

An Eggcellent Day

Despite the weather (yet another snow storm) we had a wonderful day today. We made Easter gifts for the grandparents, dyed Easter eggs, and played our hearts out. Here is Ethan one year ago when he dyed Easter eggs for the first time:

His hands were stained for days!

And here he was today! Not near as messy!:) Look at that mop of hair. His huge paint shirt that we got him isn't looking so huge anymore!

I love you Dada!

Our "bootiful" creations (as Ethan would say it):

Glitter EVERYWHERE!

Ethan and Benne played in their tent for a long time today. Bennett is starting to follow Ethan everywhere he goes, no matter what the distance!

All is Well with Ethan's Ears

Ethan had tubes placed in his ears on Friday morning. It was a very quick procedure. By the time I had left him and taken off my hospital gown, cap, and booties and went out in the waiting room, the nurse came and told us it was over. Ethan cried for over an hour after he woke up (and all of the way home), but after that, he was in good spirits. He has to have antibiotic drops put in twice a day until Wednesday, which I'm pretty sure is the worst part of the whole thing! You can tell that the drops must sting a little because he gets really upset afterwards, especially with his left ear. Thank you for praying and thinking of Ethan on Friday. I was just a wreck, but we made it through!:)