Successful Doctor's Visit

Yes, I did say successful!!

We went on Friday to see Dr. Russell and Kathy the dietician. I was very nervous that nothing was going to be different, but decided that whatever happens, at last we had wonderful doctors who have been helpful and supportive so far.

Well, my little guy gained 1 lb. and 5 oz. in 24 days!!! Granted, he was very constipated, but even once that waste was removed he still had a positive gain of weight!! He hadn't grown at all in height though. It seems to be the pattern with him. If he gains weight, no height gain and vice versa.

The dietician looked over the food journal I had kept every day for the past 24 days. First let me just say, it is exhausting trying to keep track of every little morsel of food and drink that goes into a 3 year olds body. I can't imagine how much more it would be if he was eating normally!!

She calculated 5 of those days in calories and came up with an average of 1000 calories a day. Better than last visit where he was only taking in about 800 a day. However, he still needs at least another 400 calories a day to really be able to put on the weight.

Back to the constipation, we went back to his glycolax, and we had to give him a suppository to try and clear him out. Boy does that stuff work well. His belly actually went down enough for us to notice and he isn't complaining about pain in his belly anymore.

The doctor was so pleased that he won't see us back for 3 months unless Ethan continues to have constipation problems. Which is fine with me, as long as we can keep his appetite up, which has definitely increased over the past several weeks.

This week both Ethan and his little brother Joshua will be going in to have a sweat test down for Cystic Fibrosis. The pediatrician doesn't believe they have it but she wants to rule out any and all possibilities. It's not invasive and will only take about a half hour or so for each of them.

With the summer coming and the possibility of us moving to a new house soon, we look forward to many cook outs, ice cream sundaes and outdoor activities. All of which should help Ethan gain the weight he needs, so he can grow up "big and strong like his daddy"!

Late Mother's Day Thanks

Happy Mother's Day!

Well better late then never!

Sorry sweetie. Spending mother's day at the hospital with you family is not the best of days. But everyone is ok and home now!

Just a little update. We woke up on Saturday morning took one look at Ethan and called the doctor. The whole let side of his face was swollen. So the nurse said we should come in, we did and the doctor on call decided it best to admit him. So we go to the hospital, Ethan gets admitted, gets an IV, blood work and a Catscan and handles it like a pro. After dad and Ethan spend the night at the hospital Michelle and Joshua come to the hospital for a mother's day breakfast, which was a Dunkin Donut's bagelwich thing. To make a long story short he is home and fine, he is on antibiotics and should be fine.

Now I have a chance I'll thank my wife for the job she has done. 2 children plus one on the way. She is doing a great job. I know it's not easy but she does a wonderful job. Both boys are loving and lively children who love their mother! So I'll speak or the boys and say "Mom you are doing a great job!" changing diapers, feeding a pre-schooler (is that what they call a 3 year old) who had Celiacs disease. As we all know feeding a 3 year old who can eat anything is a challenge not to mention one who had dietary restrictions . Put a 10 month old in there as well as running a house hold and you have one busy mom!

I know I don't say it enough as well - you are doing a great job! Thank you!

I love you!
.mike


ps - She did get an early mother's day present - I just could not wait to give it to her. Once you come to our house you can see it. Ethan and Joshua did a great job!

pps - I should also mention that her birthday night out was a bust as well - everyone was sick. So I swear that I'll make it up to you sweetie! Love ya!

Our Growing Family

It is simply amazing how quickly time flys. One moment we are in the hospital expecting everything in our lives to change dramaticaly with the arrival of one little boy. That little boy not only changes our life but opens our eyes to so many possibilities. We get comfortable with the way our life has changed...(you know after those first couple of months of "are we doing this right??") Sleepless nights, engorgement from an impossible nurser, and all of the trials and tribulations seem small compared to the end result, a happy smiling child.

So, then we figure that we are ready to bring on baby number two. I mean if we can handle this little bitty thing, why not another? Plus, with my Mother-In-Laws failing health we wanted to continue to bless her with more grandchildren as these little ones gave her the strenght to fight for her life. Unfortunately she passed away in June of 2004 before we conceived our second child.

With the happiness of the second pregnancy and the sadness at the loss of our beloved "Maam", we began to settle into the fact that our life was going to change dramatically again. But life dealt us a whole new change...a miscarriage. With heavy hearts, and a lot of prayer with close family and friends, we discovered just how much we both wanted to continue trying to grow our family. Plus, it was a comfort to us to know that our daughter was up in heaven with her Meme. This loss strengthened us to try again and bring forth more children into our family.

So, we tried again...and were blessed on the 4th of July with our newest bundle of energy...another boy. Needless to say, we've had our hands full. Being dealt with Ethan's Celiac diagnosis, and subsequent eating issues has been difficult at best. But every night when I go in to kiss that little sleeping head goodnight, I reflect on the millions of times during the day when he told me he loved me, or gave me a hug for no reason. I say a little prayer of protection, kiss him good night, and ask God for another day in Paradise...knowing that we will have another day with more trials and tribulations, but more importantly it will be another day full of kisses, hugs and I love yous!

So, you say, where exactly is she going with this?? Well, we are here to tell the world we are happily expecting our lives to change again with the expected arrival of Baby Ouellette (known to some as Bumby...don't ask) sometime in January!! We couldn't be happier. Yes, our lives are crazy, tiring, and some days VERY trying...but we both agreed that God knows what we can and can't handle, and apparently He has a lot of faith and trust in us. So, why not let Him decide how many children we are to have as well as all that comes along with them.

We don't know where life will lead us. We don't know how long we are here. But, what we do know is that we need to make the most of our time, and we both want our children to be part of a large family who will be able to help take care of each other, support each other and above all love each other through all of their day's.

My children on earth will never know who their Meme was, while my child who has gone to heaven sits in her lap and keeps her company. But we are determined to keep her memory alive by showing them the ways she cared for and loved her family before she died.

Just look at the smile on her husbands face as he holds his two grandkids. Tell me that isn't reason enough to have more children!