Chunkin's Blog

Mommy is not a good updater...

2008-09-19T12:34:00.003-05:00

I had a very busy summer with summer school and lots of fun playing outside with my little brother, Drew. I also got a new stroller, which you can see in the photo included!

It's September now and I'm back at school in the same class I was in last year. It's like being a senior in high school, only with snacktime.

Mommy promises to concentrate more on getting updates out. Help me hold her to that!

Awesome news!

2008-05-12T12:47:00.001-05:00

So this morning Mommy and Daddy took me to see Dr. McClintock, my brain doctor (I can't spell his real title yet!) It was a good appointment. We scheduled another EEG (brain test!!) for July, and he said that if it's a clear test, we will start scaling back on one of my regular medications! It's possible that I could be a meds-free Connor someday. How wonderful is that?

I think it's pretty cool. It's not so bad to take my medicine, but it would make life nicer not to need medicine every day. :)

So despite the rain, my outlook is SUNNY!

Cool dude...

2008-04-15T18:30:00.002-05:00

I have to go to the dentist - it's a part of being a big grown up boy, apparently. I did great, though, and was told that my teeth look PERFECT! Yay! (Or, as Drew would say, yay YAY!)

Here's some photos of me at the dentist office keeping it cool...

Big boy haircut!!

2008-02-20T14:02:00.003-05:00

Check out my new haircut - it matches my big boy status now that I'm 4 years old!!!

More me on YouTube.com

2008-02-12T12:18:00.000-05:00

Here's a newer link. We'll videotape more of me playing this weekend and get those posted as soon as we can, too!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGHKIJ8KxXQ

I love my new toys!

2008-01-23T13:54:00.000-05:00

Check me out on YouTube! More to come...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pv51gfQCYMk

Happy 2008!

2008-01-23T13:23:00.000-05:00

We had a good holiday - saw all the family and had much fun sharing in the joy of the season. Connor is back at school - we are thinking of adding in some new items to his work there, including a gait trainer (http://www.southwestmedical.com/Pediatric_Products/Gait_Trainers/460/0/category?gclid=CNHdu8_9jJECFQGdPAodvnAJFw) which would help Connor hold himself upright so he can move, as he so desperately wants to! I'll keep you posted on that.

The only other news - Connor will be 4 in just a few weeks. HOW DID HE GET TO BE SO BIG???

Some recent photos of Connor (one at school when Drew and Mommy went to music class):

Snow!

2007-12-06T11:31:00.000-05:00

Our first snow of the season came so, so early. We got about 4 inches of snow, but I had no time off from school? Well, we started late today, but that's it.

We had a good Thanksgiving - we traveled to Aunt Erin's house and to Aunt Kim's house for two Thanksgiving dinners. One was on Thursday, and one on Friday. We had a really good time seeing everyone!

Otherwise, I've been sick, so not much has gone on. I am feeling a lot better, so that's definitely good news. No one wants to go in to the holidays not feeling well!

October

2007-11-06T13:51:00.001-05:00

We had such a fun October, finishing up with my favorite Halloween (though not my favorite costume...) The Sunday before Halloween we went to a pumpkin-carving party and watched the Redskins game - outside! Very cool. I also had a party at school, and then we went to the Halloweenie Roast at the Powers' across the street. It was a really good time.

Below are some pictures from the last week of October for you to enjoy. In the meantime, I went to the eye doctor today and he gave me a great bill of ocular health! My eyes are healthy, slightly farsighted, and seem to be focusing better and more frequently, so Dr. Seidman was very happy.

More soon, I promise!
Connor

The Redskins let the other team score - Daddy and I are skeptical...
I do NOT like my costume!! Well, I guess it is okay. Will everyone be able to tell I am an Ewok?

Yoda (Drew) and I hang out at the Halloweenie Roast!

New School, New Year

2007-10-16T12:31:00.000-05:00

We've had such a busy summer and fall! First, we went to Uncle Joe and Aunt Julie's wedding in Atlanta. It was so much fun - I got to see so many aunts, uncles, gr'aunts, gr'uncles and cousins! And, of course, lots of time with Granny Kate and Pop-pop. I also was a featured performer at the wedding, lending my finely practiced burping skills to the ceremony!

Then in August, Mommy traveled a lot, so it was Bachelor's Month with Daddy, Drew and me!

In September, I went back to school. I have a new school this year, which means a new teacher and new therapists, too. It's been so busy! I'm doing pretty well at school, too. In a few weeks, I have a very important Doctor's appointment - I have to go see Dr. McClintock. I've been almost a whole YEAR without any seizure behavior - YAY!!!! He'll give me a test (an EEG) and if it's clear, then I'm halfway to stopping taking medicine. The doctor said that if I go 24 months without seizure behavior and had clear EEGs, we can start taking me off my medicines. We're all very excited.

Anyway, I know Drew gave Mommy a hard time about how long it's been, so I'll give her a break. Here's some pictures from the end of the summer and the start of school...

Brothers...

2007-07-05T08:48:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures of Drew and me yesterday!

Daddy graduated, and I left school!

2007-07-02T14:32:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not, my Daddy graduated and now he's an MBA!! It was really fun to go to Chapel Hill for graduation. Almost everyone I'm related to was there - Nana and Poppy, Aunt Kim, Uncle Brian, my cousins, and that's just Daddy's side! Then there were Granny & Pop-pop, Aunt Erin, Aunt Shannon & Uncle Todd, and of course Mommy and Drew, too. We went to a Japanese Steakhouse for dinner one night - that was FUN!!

That'e Mommy, me and Aunt Shannon at graduation. I did really well during the ceremony, and Daddy went right past us as they processed in. It was pretty cool!

Then school ended a little over a week ago. Mommy took some pictures of me with my classmates, but they are still on the camera. She'll send them out later.

Here's me with my Aunt Kim (and some cousins - Jack & Mac!)

We just had Daddy's graduation party, too. I'll post on that soon!

long time...bad Mommy!

2007-05-17T09:38:00.000-05:00

Sorry - it's been a terrible time for Mommy! She had to work all by herself for almost 6 weeks at work, and it was really hard on her. She was cranky at home a LOT. Now she has a new friend, Ms. Stephanie, who is there to help, so she's in a better mood. Just in time - Daddy is on a trip for a l-o-n-g time and it's just us for the next few days.

I've still been doing lots of good stuff at school, and I am going to keep getting my school services over the summer so I can keep going. I also saw my eye doctor and my brain doctor recently, and they were both very pleased with how I was looking (and also, how I was looking! Bah-dump-dum!)

Here's a recent photo of me working on my sitting. I'm still working hard at sitting by myself! Check out my awesome shoes, courtesy of Aunt Shannon & Uncle Todd!
Mommy had a dream this weekend where I was standing all by myself. I can't wait until we can post that photo when it's not a dream anymore. I am tired of sitting all the time...

Get me a throne!

2007-03-23T11:42:00.000-05:00

Well, Aunt Megan got this out first, but I can forgive Mommy for being slow to post this. She's sad because her friend Miss Megan doesn't work with her anymore and she (Mommy) is working really hard now! Anyway, last weekend, I hit another big milestone. Mommy helped me get situated in a sitting position, and I leaned forward and propped myself up and sat on the floor, all by myself. For more than a minute! Everyone was very excited, and it was a good thing the camera was there. Notice how there are no people anywhere near me at all? That's because I can do it all by myself now. YAY ME!!

Home Birthday

2007-02-22T10:47:00.000-05:00

I'm feeling better today, and we got our new photos finally (we got Vista and Daddy had to wrestle the computer into working with all our existing stuff). Here I am on my birthday!

As you can see, I'm still a big fan of the icing :)

February

2007-02-21T13:29:00.000-05:00

So I finally gave up and caught the cold that has gone around the family. It's a bummer. I've been cranky, but who isn't when they are sick. I've had good days at school, regardless, up until today.

So I'm home resting, and hopefully I'll feel better soon! I have gone to see the doctor for my three year check up after my birthday and Dr. Fox says that I am looking fantastic! I would cheer but that takes too much energy, so I'll just say "cool".

Here's a picture of me at school last week reading one of the Valentines I got from my classmates...

I'm THREE!

2007-02-09T12:50:00.000-05:00

I'm Three! I'm THREE! I'm so cool! Check me out at school with my classmates - I ate a cupcake!!!!!!!!

My classmate Sebby's birthday was also today. Here he is:

We had so much fun. And, more cupcakes tonight with Mommy and Daddy! Drew can't have one yet. That's okay - more for me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Can you tell that there was something of a sugar high going??)

SNOW DAY!

2007-01-22T10:59:00.000-05:00

Today is my first official snow day from school. This is so cool - I get to stay home and play with Christy and Drew all day, instead of going to school and working so hard. And I prepared very well for it by sleeping for FOUR HOURS yesterday as a nap. Then I slept hard all night, too, just in case I needed extra energy today. So today I will play at home and work in the stander, etcetera. There isn't a lot of snow on the ground, so I expect that I'll have to go back to school tomorrow. Oh well, at least I got to have a little fun today!

Shout it from the rooftops!!!

2007-01-08T21:51:00.000-05:00

I couldn't have better news to share! In December, I had surgery to straighten my eyes and they look SO GOOD now! Not only that, but my teachers at school seem to think that I am looking better at things all the time. I had some time off of school around the holidays, and boy did I have fun with Mommy, Daddy and Drew. And man, was it tiring getting back to the daily grind.

But here is the best, best news of all: I had an EEG test done in November, and it says that there was no seizure activity in my brain waves. This is the test that I had that told the doctors that I was having seizures, and now I don't seem to have ANY bad brainwaves any more. This is AWESOME!!!!!!!!! It could mean that I could stop taking so much medicine, which would be great for me.

Anyway, thanks to everyone for all their thoughts and prayers to get me to this point. You guys rock.

Been a while...

2006-12-19T13:14:00.000-05:00

Hey guys -it's been a very busy month. I had surgery on my eyes to help straighten then, and in a few hours I have to go back to the doctor to make sure they are okay. I was great for the surgery - only a little cranky afterwards. It's amazinf that I had surgery on both my eyes and went home 2 hours later!!!

Anyway, my brother keeps getting bigger. He's a monster-weed! He's started smiling at everyone lately, trying to get in their good graces. Whatever - I'm the favorite!

Mommy will have to go abck to work soon and I'll have to share Christy with Drew. I hope he knows how to share? I am learning all about sharing at school, where I am still a star pupil. We go to the library on Mondays and I get to bring a book home every week now! Very, very cool. Mommy and I read the books every night before bed, and it's cool because with my new eyes I may be able to see better, and the pictures will make more sense. I've also started using more consonant sounds - "j", "g", "n" and "b" have all made appearances lately. I guess I am trying to say Jug or Nub. Or Jag or Nab. Or...you get the picture!!

Check it out...

2006-11-14T22:05:00.000-05:00

If you look to the right, you'll see a new blog listed in my favorites. Mommy has started Drew's blog! Yaaaaaaay! No more having to report on my stupid brother ;)

So, if you want to learn more about Drew, click to the right...

Halloween...on Election Day!

2006-11-07T09:26:00.000-05:00

by the way...exercise your RIGHTS today! Participate in the longest-running modern democracy. Please go vote.

Good News

2006-11-06T22:01:00.000-05:00

I know I said, as Connor, that we'd get Halloween photos up, and that will come tomorrow. But today...today was great. Today we went to see Connor's neurologist, Dr. McClintock. It was a good appointment, but the best part was at the end, when he said that he thinks Connor will stand independently someday. This is by far the most positive he has been about Connor's potential and it was truly exciting, and unexpected, to hear.

I hope each of you reading this is as happy to read it as I am to write it for you.

And I do promise - Halloween photos tomorrow. And look for a companion blog soon - for Drew! I think we have a good nickname started, so I can finally arrange for the new blog address.

Almost Forgot!

2006-10-31T12:33:00.000-05:00

If you look to the right, there's a list of blogs you can visit from here. The last one listed is "Connor's school blog" and is the page that his teacher, Ms. Rachael, updates. There are frequently photos of Connor doing great things at school there, so you should check it out!!! (signed - Mommy)

All Hallow's Eve...

2006-10-31T12:29:00.000-05:00

Today, I am a MONKEY MAN!!!!! I can't wait for the party tonight in the neighborhood. I am going to be a monkey, and Drew is going to be a banana. I promise not to eat my little brother, though. He is 4 weeks old today! He slept for 5 hours a few nights ago. Mommy is very excited about that. He's over 9 pounds, too.

As for me, I have been the usual star pupil at school. Yesterday, my job was to help my teacher go get lunch for eveyone, and she said I did a fantastic job. I held on to the papers with everyone's order the whole time. I never hold things that well at home... But that's okay, because when I got home, I was playing with Mommy and Christy and when Mommy said "Hello!" to me, I would lift up my right hand and wave it at her! Every time!

Yes, I know. I'm so cool. We'll post some photos from Halloween tomorrow. And lots of new Drew pictures on the website, too, if I can get Daddy to do that...

My first full week as a big brother

2006-10-16T14:22:00.000-05:00

Wow. Can Drew cry in the night! He keeps Mommy up a lot, but he's growing a LOT faster than they expected, so he needs all that food to keep getting bigger. He's pretty quiet and looks around a lot, otherwise.

I went back to school last week and had my best week yet, according to my teacher. They were very pleased and wrote a lot of notes home to Mommy and Daddy about how well I was doing. I even learned to bowl, and got a strike in my first try! That's what this picture is - me learning to bowl. I'll have to teach Drew when he gets a little bigger...

HE'S HERE!!!!!!

2006-10-07T09:23:00.000-05:00

I am so excited! This week, Mommy and Daddy ran out to the hospital on Tuesday morning, and yesterday they came home with my baby brother, Drew! He's pretty cool. You can tell I think so from this picture Daddy took when we went to the hospital to visit Mommy and meet Drew.

So far he isn't too noisy or bothersome (to me, at least) and I find that I can sleep through his crying no problem. I hope I can keep doing that.

If you want to see more pictures of me and my brother, go to www.leeandcolleen.com

Homework, what??

2006-09-22T14:50:00.000-05:00

So school is going very well for Connor. Here is a report from his teacher today:
"When we first got to the classroom he was sitting on the floor with minimal support and then he drank some. Then in the motor room today we had him on a ½ round foam block (on his stomach) and he kept picking up his head to look at the other kids. For ot and speech connor was in his stander and finger painted and listened to a story and we worked on pointing! Then we started a few pages from our "fall counting books" all before lunch and naps!
But it is all going so well..everyday he seems to keep his head up a little longer or seem a bit stronger when he sits..I hope that all of this leads to great progress for Connor. The other students are interacting with him..he is the first student that gets hugs during our "4 hugs a day" song. Even when he was crying another student went to hold his hand!"

vocabulary key:
motor room - a special room where all the equipment they use for physical therapy lives.
ot - occupational therapy - fine motor skills (finger work, etc)
speech - speech therapy

Needless to say, we are very proud parents. :)

SCHOOL!!!!

2006-09-12T08:33:00.000-05:00

I started school yesterday! It was really cool - first I had to get in my new stroller (the stupidly expensive one that my parents found for WAY less on eBay...) and they had to figure out how to close all the straps. That took a few minutes. Then I had to wait - the bus was late! But Mommy, Daddy, Christy (my nanny) and Granny Kate waited with me. You should have seen my face when the bus lift started to rise to bring me up! It was so cool! My teacher sent home a note to Mommy and Daddy that I had a good day, even though I got tired a little earlier than nap time. Then again, if you had all those changes, you'd want a nap, too. I came home and played and worked with Christy until she had to go, then I took a catnap with Granny Kate until Mommy and Daddy got home. It was a great first day of school!

And on top of all that, I only have three and a half more weeks before I become a big brother! I don't know how I'm going to handle all this change... I promise to keep you updated!

If you want to see more pictures of getting ready for the bus on my first day, you can go to my Mommy and Daddy's website - www.leeandcolleen.com.

Late breaking news...

2006-08-02T11:13:00.000-05:00

Well, we don't really have any, as everyone knows that (1) it's crazy hot outside and (2) things are relatively normal, for us. Last week, Connor tried to take a step forward, literally, which was a new thing. I haven't seen him replicate that yet, but I know he will keep trying. He will roll to both the left and the right now as well when on his bed. but since he was only rolling to his right, and only in his bed at first, and now he's rolling to his right all over the place, we figure it's only a little while before it's left, right, left, right... everywhere!

Connor has also left the wilds of daycare behind, and is now staying at home with our nanny, Christina. We decided we had to go that route because of Connor's school schedule coming up, and found a wonderful woman who has many, many years of experience, and seems to love Connor a lot already! It's certainly an adjustment for me (Colleen, the control-freak in the relationship) but I think I'm doing okay, esp. at this late stage of the pregnancy.

Speaking of that, everything seems to be moving along swimmingly in that regard. I am in my 30th week, which means less than 10 to go! I am commonly mistaken for a woman only 6 months pregnant, which is totally okay with me! And my friend Anne will welcome her second in only a few days time!!! Her daughter (Connor's betrothed) Olivia was born the day after Connor - how her son will be a few months older than our second!

I've also included a photo of Connor that we recently uncovered that was too cute to keep to ourselves - enjoy!

Rain, rain...

2006-06-29T18:39:00.000-05:00

Whew - well, we made it through the drenching rainstorms that hovered over the east coast for the past few days. Our basement stayed dry, though our backyard is somewhat swampy now. We expect that in a few days, we'll have approimately one MIIIIIIIIIILLION mosquitos hanging out back there...

Anyway, nothing truly exciting to report - Connor is having an off week - much crankier, and possibly more 2-ish? His second to last baby tooth has started to erupt. Now we just need that last one to come, and no more drool!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Well, no more excessive drool. I hope!

30 days

2006-06-20T20:10:00.000-05:00

I am a terrible blogger. Terrible.

See, what happened is this - my office moved, then 14 of my 21 summer clerks started working simultaneously, and suddenly, I barely had time to breathe at the office!

So I'll try to make up for it all here...

Okay, so Connor is a ROCK STAR in his stander. He has done incredibly well, and Miss Megan could not be prouder of him. Within days he was up to 30+ minutes in the stander being all engaged and playful. We are very proud of his progress, which is evidenced by the fact that he will now pull/push himself into a standing position when he has additional support (such as, one of us is holding his hands)!!! It kind of came as a surprise, but a lovely, lovely one. That was the first of June.

He also moved into his big boy twin bed over this past weekend! He takes after his father and is a side sleeper, which is a little disconcerting but we are trying to adapt. We'll go up for bed and he'll be settled in, all snuggled onto his right side. If we move him to his back, within 5 minutes he's back on his side. If the flash weren't going to disturb him, we'd take a picture. Maybe this weekend during a daytime nap. I'll see what I can do. Lee will be in NC at school so my sister, Shannon, is coming to help me while Lee is gone. We had our first true DC summer day last weekend, and I was kind of a wretched lump upon completion. It was saaaaaaaaad. But today we are six months along, and so far everything looks well. The Little Monster inside is very active, but not painfully so. That will come in August/September. We had our first sonogram, and the doctor was very kind and spent a great deal of time on it reassuring us regarding the brain's development and why everything looks to be good right now. Of course, we may never be truly calm about it, but we are trying.

Anyway, we'll be away on vacation soon so I'll try to add one more update before we go in an effort to reinvigorate my NY resolution here!!

Lest I forget...

2006-05-18T15:42:00.000-05:00

I didn't mention in my earlier post on the new stander that you can also see videos of Connor in the stander playing on www.leeandcolleen.com. Scroll down near the bottom of the main page to see where Lee has linked the videos. :) Happy viewing!

My new stander!

2006-05-18T08:11:00.000-05:00

This is my new stander! We got rid of Hannibal the Stander on Tuesday when this little beauty came in. You can see more pictures at my parents' website, www.leeandcolleen.com. Just click on the picture of me, and then on the thumbnail that says "My New Stander". I did really, really well for my first time. My awesome PT, Megan, (as opposed to my awesome Aunt Megan), told me that she was so proud of me. So I had to reset her expectations and cried for 20 minutes inconsolably. It went better the next day.

Back in the saddle...

2006-05-02T15:11:00.000-05:00

I made it back from California, and Connor was allegedly well-behaved in my absence. I'm still waiting for him to crack and tell me all about his time while I was away. He did get a haircut from his dad, and a very good one at that.

Today, Wednesday, his school went to the Washington Monument grounds for a kite picnic. The photo included shows you Connor's level of excitement for the kites. It was windy, definitely good, but also a little cool. Sort of like the backseat of the car on a nice afternoon when his Dad will put the windows down...

Good heavens

2006-04-22T11:15:00.000-05:00

Has it really been 2 weeks? This is what happened. Lee came home from Europe, and promptly fell into the despairs of a terrible headcold. For a week. Then one day after he began to feel better, I did the same. Same cold. My deal, of course, was that I couldn't take anything except Sudafed for it. I'm more a NyQuil girl, so let's just say that sleep and I became separated. So it took me a week to feel better.

Then this week was just full. The good news is this - we are FINALLY finished the eligibility process for Connor's school. He is, in fact, eligible, and he will be going to Ashlawn Elementary School starting in September as a member of their 2-year old classroom for special needs children. He'll get dedicated PT, ST and OT at school, in part or whole, each day that he's there. That's WAY more than he gets now. We're very excited.

Anyway, that's why I haven't posted. Now that I'm mainly healthy and not insane, it should be better. Having said that, I leave on Tuesday for a business trip, so there may be nothing here until next weekend. But all is well in Wright-land these days, finally! :)

Gait Trainer

2006-04-06T13:07:00.000-05:00

So in addition to Connor's new stander (arrival date TBD, but soon!) Ms. Megan has been bringing something called a gait trainer to therapy as well. It's somewhat similar to a stander but it is on casters, and will move with him and continue to support him, should he choose to move. So far, he's pushed himself backwards on it, but he is lifting up his left leg as though he were trying to take a step while supported in this machine. It's pretty cool looking, and very exciting to see him figuring out one leg at a time.

We also have the Eligibility Meeting for preschool on April 18. We expect to know then which class Connor is going to be assigned to, either at Reed or Ashlawn school. I'll certainly keep people apprised here of his school plans so we can coordinate the school colors into our daily outfit choices. Or something to that effect. Maybe bumper stickers that say "Connor goes to (BLANK) School" for everyone?

Big Week!

2006-03-31T14:12:00.000-05:00

Connor's had a picture perfect week, culminating in a great therapy session with Ms. Megan and Ms. Kristy yesterday. And we found out that his new stander, the one we ordered in November, has been paid for by insurance and should be at our house in April. Very exciting stuff. We cannot wait to get rid of the Hannibal Lechter stander currently scaring people in our house. YAY!!!

And then, Connor is pleased to announce...he is going to be a big brother in October!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What else could one say to follow that up?

Weekend Fun!

2006-03-27T12:21:00.000-05:00

Late last week, Lee went to Europe for a 10-day trip with school. Well, really, his school time is only 7 days, but with time difference and jet-lag-depleting days built in, it comes to 10. Anyway, Connor and I decided that a long weekend spent at "SpoilLand", aka, my parents' home in Wilmington, DE, was the right way to go. I mean, who wants to be a single parent for 10 days when it's just not necessary?

Anyway, so Thursday, after Connor's PT and ST evaluation for preschool, we packed up and headed north. A few words on the eval. They. Love. Him. He was Mr. Personality and the teachers at both schools he is eligible for are just over the moon with him. They atmosphere is so much like his current daycare that we think this will be a really good thing. And then, on top of all that, I was sitting there answering their questions when the PT asked me, "You look familiar to me - do you know me?" I had to admit not, and that she probably knew me from the halcyon days of the Nose. That, in fact, was that case, and all the women in the room with me found that to be completely interesting. I reminded them that we were there for Connor. Oops. Anyway, so much for that.

Anyway, we drove home, and I MISSED the DUKE-LSU game. I was quite unhappy about that. I mean, really! We spent Friday and Saturday visiting with folks (friends and family who came to see my little guy, and even sometimes to see me) and relaxing. But two exciting things happened!! First of all, on Friday morning, Connor pushed himself off the sofa. Once it was established that he wasn't actually injured, only scared and a little bumped around, there was much rejoicing because he's never done that before, and it's a BIG muscle output for him. (As a side note, Lee was very unhappy with me about that, even though I pointed out that Connor did it to himself, not someone doing it to him.) Then, on Saturday morning, as I was changing his diaper, he planted his left foot against my right shin and pushed himself over from his back to his belly. He's been able to do belly to back for a while, but that was the first time we had back to belly. And, I was treated to an adorable view of his little boy bottom as a reward!

In any case, we're very excited by these new developments, and by the lack of a bump on his noggin.

More later this week - for now I have to go put out some fires in the office...

Nothing to report

2006-03-16T13:03:00.000-05:00

I guess that's a good thing, though, isn't it? Connor is still thriving and has become pretty much the most hilarious little boy in the mornings now. He's Mr. Crankypants until he gets about an ounce of milk into himself, and then he magically transforms into Cute Boy Who Loves to Chatter and Kick. I'll be trying to sleep but he's talking so loudly with Lee that I lie awake upstairs and giggle in my sleepiness.

This past weekend, we had LOTS of visitors! Our house was bursting. My parents came to see Connor (and us, too, I suppose) after their first true Retired Couple Trip, to Australia and Tahiti. They brought Connor, among other things, a miniature didgeridoo. What's that? Well, you can learn official things here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Didgeridoo. Connor's isn't the more traditional, 1+ meter long version. His is only 12 inches or so. As a joke, I told them that he wanted one more than anything. I have yet to learn, apparently, that when I tell my parents outrageous things, they do their best to nail me. You'd think 32+ years of this experience would have taught me something, but this is the latest evidence to the contrary.

In addition to my parents, my best friend from my littlest childhood came to visit with her son, Julian. I don't even know when Michele and I met, because as far back as I can remember, she is there. I know for a fact that couldn't have met prior to 1975, because that is when we moved to Parkersburg, WV, and that is where she lived up until college. However, Michele and I have, against pretty much all the odds, managed to remain in touch through our lives, and eventually married unrelated guys with the same last name and had our first children, both boys, within 4 months of each other. No small feat for women who hadn't been in each other's pockets since I moved away in September, 1981. In any case, Michele and Julian came to see us/meet us and Michele had the extra bonus of seeing more than half my family. It was fun, and really nice to see her and meet her awesome little boy!

And then, because it still wasn't truly a party, Shannon & Todd came up as well. And Erin came over at times as well. At maximum attendance, we had 2 toddlers, 8 adults, and 4 dogs all at the house.

No wonder I am still tired!

Late, late...

2006-03-09T10:15:00.000-05:00

Broke my resolution again, but mainly because work has been pounding me lately. Connor is doing wonderfully! If only his mommy were in as good shape as he were! :)
Seriously, though, things are well, and our computer is almost back to normal, so we'll get that sledding video up as soon as we can - hopefully this weekend!

Waiting Rooms

2006-02-27T14:10:00.000-05:00

We spent a while this morning in the waiting room at Connor's neurologist. I don't look forward to these appointments as it is, but 45 minutes in the waiting room and I was pretty annoyed. However, once we were in, it went pretty well. We found out that the episodes we mentioned back in December/January aren't what we hoped - they are partial seizure behavior. For us, it's better to know - and do what we can to take care of that. Connor's had a really good month, only a few episodes, and he's been very happy and working very hard at therapy. So it was disappointing but not too surprising. Then the doctor told us how pleased he was to see Connor looking and, from what we told him, working so well. We were happy with "pleased" as it now sets a new high for enthusiasm from Dr. McClintock. Connor, of course, was full of vim and vigor at the doctor's, and then promptly fell asleep on the way in to day care. Anyway, that's the news, and I wanted to get it up on the blog as soon as I could. I'd say 3 hours is pretty good turnaround time for me!

Preschool

2006-02-23T14:56:00.000-05:00

I know it sounds crazy but it is time for us to start looking into the county-sponsored preschool programming for special needs children. We've had some meetings, and next week we get to go see one of the 2-year-old classrooms. It's very exciting - I've heard from some people that the transition into the classroom has changed their child's life (and usually, for the better) so we are hopeful that being in real school will make Connor's development continue! He'll even ride the school bus every day. I'm still nervous about it, but am "on board" per se since basically I don't have much choice anyway.

Now that we've started this process, it means two very significant changes for Connor. Change one, of course, is that he'll be in school and not in daycare, and the wonderful people at his daycare are very unhappy about this. It's nice to know that he will be missed. While the program isn't a full day, we're researching other care options (daycare closer to home, in-home care) for the second half of his days as the school bus will only take him back home or to another facility in the county, which his current daycare is not. The second is that he will no longer be working exclusively with his current therapists, Megan and Kristy. Lee thinks that they will find "replacement Connors" in their roster of kiddos. I know that is not the case. I expect that they will be at Connor's graduations, Connor's birthday parties, and Connor's wedding way off in the future. If he's lucky, one of them will wait for him ;)

Connor's first blizzard

2006-02-13T19:45:00.000-05:00

So if the biggest news in your weekend actually WAS that the vice president SHOT another man accidentally over the weekend while hunting, you may have missed the large snowstorm that covered Virginia to Maine this weekend. We had a LOT of fun with Connor this weekend. For Christmas, we bought him a special sled that would work for him, and hadn't been able to use it until now! Well, Lee spent quite a while on Saturday night inflating it. While he was doing that, I fed Connor his dinner and started singing "Let it Snow" which, in fact, it had been doing for hours at this point. I know it's a Christmas carol, although it never mentions Christmas in the first verse, which is all I sang to Connor. Mainly because I started singing to him and he treated me to a HUGE smile. It was gorgeous, and hilarious. Gorgeous because he is. Hilarious because he had a big spoonful of sweet potaotes at the time, and when he smiled, I got an orange-slice-smile, basically. You remember those, right? When you'd put an orange quarter (or one-sixth) and fit your teeth into the orange pulp against the rind and then grin? That's it, but with sweet potato. It was great.
In any case, then it was Sunday morning, and the snow had pretty much stopped, about 14 inches or so in. We bundled Connor up and then took him out and put him in the sled - he sat PERFECTLY in it! Unfortunately, as we started to pull him in it, it tipped over (no rollover bars on this bad boy) and Connor faceplanted into the snow. You can imagine his feelings about that. We calmed him down and changed our approach. Unfortunately, that didn't work so well, either. You can see why on the video...which we will post as soon as we get our computer working again. We had what Lee is calling a "total hardware failure" on Monday. Very not good. Movie to follow.

I'm TWO!!!!!!!

2006-02-09T20:55:00.000-05:00

Here's me and my birthday cake yesterday!

I loved being sung to - thanks to Aunt Erin, godparents Jon and Kelly, and of course, Mommy and Daddy!

Mmmmmmm - pound cake!

D-Day Approaches

2006-02-07T22:36:00.000-05:00

Thursday will be a good day. Thursday there will be cake and celebration as Connor turns 2! Connor's godparents Jon & Kelly Discount will be here to celebrate with us, along with Aunt Erin. Connor will have to work for that cake, though, since Miss Kristy and Miss Megan will be here to give him his therapy. In preparation, Connor worked out today with his daddy, sitting up on the floor (a little bit on his own, but also with some assistance) and rolling from belly to back on both sides! We started using a new toy last week, but the ER incident kept us from incorporating it more over the weekend. I'll take some pictures of him using it with his therapists this week and post them here.

More on Thursday. For now...bedtime!

Technical Difficulties

2006-02-04T21:59:00.000-05:00

Now, admittedly, I did not post anything this week, but I tried to this morning and it got zapped somewhere else and I can't seem to locate it and make it post here properly.

The general gist was this - I was sorry I missed a whole week of posting. I went to NYC for a business trip, and then Connor was sick, culminating in a late night visit to the ER thanks to a very, very high fever. Fever is gone now, but I did have the joy of working on Friday with 3.5 hours of sleep. Just like the old days, with the band. Except with the band I would get such a small amount of sleep because I was out with friends, doing my favorite thing, and getting adoration AND cash. Not quite the same at the ER.

Now, hopefully this will post. And with no business trips - or ER trips - on the horizon, you can expect great things from me!

New year's resolution

2006-01-27T11:05:00.000-05:00

This year (well, the rest of it) I resolve to be better about posting here.

January has been very good to us. Connor has now spent more than one year without being admitted to the hospital! This is a big hurdle for us. The 4 hospitalizations in 2004-early 2005 had quite an emotional/mental toll on Lee and I, and we were so pleased to pass by the date that Connor was last a patient at Fairfax Inova Hospital. Only 10 more months, and I'll have my own one year anniversary of that :)

Lee has a birthday, which I'm pretty sure he would not want me to mention, but since he rarely, if ever, checks this blog, I feel safe in reporting. Many members of my family came down to visit and fill in as his parents and sister's family were dealing with our nephew Mac's illness, which unfortunately required a hospital stay as well. We're glad, though, that Mac navigated his time in Richmond at the hospital well and is back home, thriving again. We did get to visit Nana and Poppy prior to that, and have a little birthday for Lee and late Christmas then.

Connor's been having some unexplained behavior in his left arm lately, although it's been many days now since any occurrences, which is a good sign. It's a mirror image of some activity in his right arm last September, and there are a few theories of the reasons behind it. One theory (and Lee's and my favorite one) is that his arms nerve systems are starting to fire up properly, and the neuromuscular electricity is causing, in essence, muscle spasms. His therapists think it may have nothing at all to do with his brain and only a revisiting of the reflux which he suffered from right after birth. We're okay with that theory, too. The doctors seem reluctant to state any theories, although they are trying to warn us that it's more seizure behavior. We're waiting for some responses from them - they have videos of a few episodes to review.

Connor has also been doing excellent work with his therapists - they just completed a six month review of his goals and he is accomplishing, in part or totality, several of the goals we set for this year. He will be 2 in less than two weeks (OH MY GOD!!) and once he passes that, his name is up for pre-school. The pre-school early Head Start programming in Arlington County is well-regarded, and he will receive daily PT and OT from qualified teachers each week day while in school. This will certainly be an uptick in his therapy now, where he gets the qualilty stuff from his therapists once a week, and the jerry-rigged version at daycare and at home when we can.

Okay, I hope this long posting makes up for my terrible showing so far this year. I promise weekly, if not more frequent, postings. Take care out there.

Merry Christmas, Belatedly, From Connor

2006-01-19T15:17:00.000-05:00

Oops, part deux

2006-01-09T10:17:00.000-05:00

So on my sister's blog (http://lagniappeca.blogspot.com/) I commented on her posting about our annual family Amaryllis bulb that our mother sends each year. Including giving her tips on how to keep it alive from year to year. You can link to the post here (I hope):
http://lagniappeca.blogspot.com/2005/11/annual-amaryllis.html. Here's the quick & dirty - I have a history in my family that I am a plant-killer. Sometimes out of sheer meanness (telling a clematis that I hoped it would die...and it did) and sometimes from overwatering (poor, poor little cactus). This year, we have hit a new high, or low, depending on your perspective.

Every year, my parents send each of us an amaryllis bulb, and so far, I have managed to not only not kill them, but to have them bloom successfully 2 years for each of them. Then this year rolled around, and I had to open my mouth. I mentioned to my sister on her blog that I found that the best care to get the amarylli bulbs to bloom for a second season was essentially to ignore the "damn thing" until December. This was a mistake. First, my 2004 bulb decided that it didn't like being spoken of that way, and flatly refused to grow any new leaves or bloom. Then, last week, my 2005 bulb decided that it had enough of my verbal abuse and THREW ITSELF OFF THE COUNTERTOP, breaking off 3 of it's 4 blossoms, and ending it's life too soon. Lee was in the basement and Connor and I were in the family room. I heard a big splat, and when I made it into the kitchen I found it, broken and sad with dirt pooled all around it, on the floor.

I'll never give gardening advice again. I am the Grim Reaper of the Garden.

Oops...

2006-01-03T09:45:00.000-05:00

Those cute pictures we promised? Well, they are in Uncle Todd's camera, which was left at our house after New Years. Looks like a week will pass between when the pictures were taken on NYE, and when they will be available for posting. Sorry, Mom!! We'll take some sitting photos of him this week and get them up, but the cute outfit from his great-grandparents will have to be put on the backburner...

Big Day

2005-12-30T17:05:00.000-05:00

I mean HUGE!!! Today, Connor sat independently on Tiffany's lap. For almost a full minute (which for Connor is a long, long time) (and also, Tiffany is one of his two teachers at day care). He sat on her lap and was able to balance himself. We are overexcited about this - he is taking it in stride much better. :)
In any case, Happy New Year to all of you who check this site - we'll post some NYE photos as soon as possible - hopefully with some independent sitting!!!

Swing low...sweet beanbag chair

2005-12-20T11:58:00.000-05:00

Connor's first Christmas presents have rolled in. He got a swing and stand from his grandparents and it takes up a bit more space than we'd initially anticipated inside. Lucky for us it's an indoor-outdoor piece. If only it were light enough when we got home, we could swing for a few minutes! That will have to wait for March, or so. In the meantime, we can bundle him up on weekends and let him swing for a few minutes, and then come back inside and warm him up by cuddling him in the beanbag chair which he got from his grandparents on the other side! The swing is helping him learn balance, and that carries right into the beanbag chair, where if he shifts, he changes his balance! I'm sure he never thought that sitting down would be therapy, but there you have it...

I'll take some pictures of him in both the swing and chair in the next few days once the fam's arrived for the holidays and there will be extra hands on deck!

To see the world in glorious technicolor...

2005-12-16T21:58:00.000-05:00

Well, a week of patience paid off. The house is painted and mostly put back together, we're just waiting for the last spaces to go from 'potentially tacky' (as in dryness, not lack of taste) to 'yeah, okay, totally dry'. Our house is now full of color! In some rooms, it's more like COLOR!! Our kitchen was a dark blue before - not navy, but highly saturated, grayed-down cornflower blue. Now it's green. I mean, green! Kermit green. It's not that easy being green when you are a kitchen, apparently. Something about having to spend the days the color of the leaves and not some splashy, like stars in the sky.

In any case, if you can't come see it in person, you should be able to see some new pictures at our website, www.leeandcolleen.com. I'm pretty sure Lee is putting them up as I blog...

Hallelujah!

2005-12-12T12:43:00.000-05:00

We did it. We fought and fought and fought...and now it's finally happened. The insurance companies have paid. THEY HAVE PAID. They have finally paid his doctor appointments. They have finally paid his therapists. Finally.

It's an early Christmas for the Wrights. :)

No more bottles!

2005-12-08T17:14:00.000-05:00

Connor has taken a big step - he is officially OFF THE BOTTLE! Sure, it's a little late, but we've finally gotten him there. Most of the credit goes to Lee, who is meaner than me when it comes to this. He fought through Connor's reluctance, spitting, refusals, and general crankiness. I was too soft for this, but I'm glad it happened.

Of course, give him 14 years, and he'll be all about the bottle again. But then, I hope, there will be no nipples, crosscut or otherwise...

Good-bye, old paint

2005-12-05T21:26:00.000-05:00

So in the past few months, I have been possessed of changing the inside colors of my house. This week, my latest dream will start to come true. Almost all the rooms in our house are going to be painted. Simultaneously. We'll be living in the basement, all three of us. Shadow is going to have to go live with Erin, or there'll be her lovely fur dried into the paint. They say it will only take a week! We'll see...When it's all done, I'll post photos of the "new" house up for everyone.

And, to top it off, today it SNOWED!! I love snow. It's just so much fun. It doesn't have to stick. Just look pretty. Of course, tomorrow morning I am headed south to Atlanta - no snow there. I'm glad I was here for today's pretty, quiet snowfall.

Peanuts

2005-12-02T13:52:00.000-05:00

For an early Christmas present, Connor received a peanut ball. It looks (no surprise here) like a peanut, will bulbous ends and a narrow middle. Although the resemblance ends there, as I don't know who would want to eat a giant blue rubber peanut. In any case, we used it for the first time yesterday at therapy. He is not a fan. He has to use it to sit on - straddling the peanut at the narrow-middle point - to work on his sitting and head control. It makes him work very hard, and Connor just isn't into that kind of physical work. Then again, few people are. We also had him kneel (not his favorite thing to do) and lean on the ball with his elbows. This was slightly better received.
In addition to that particular torture, we also started using Chewy Sticks yesterday. Again, exactly as they sound. Chewy rubber tubes that we place in the sides of his mouth to help him increase his jaw strength. This went much better. Kristy, his speech therapist, was impressed that he so rapidly started gnawing on the tube. I, however, was unsurprised. If you put anything in this kiddo's mouth, he will chomp down. Heck, even on my birthday, he managed to bite me on my chin. I had a welt on my chin for almost an hour. I think his jaw strength is fine (especially after my birthday) but I'm not the professional here.
So, on to the weekend and next week!

Back to the grind...

2005-11-28T20:47:00.000-05:00

Well, there was only so much time I could take before I ended up back in the proverbial saddle. Today marked my first day back to work, and it was really quite good. People seemed happy to see me, I think. I discovered how fast your feet forget, though. By lunchtime, my feet were KILLING me from wearing heels. Seriously. Got out the little wooden roll-y thing I keep in my office for foot massage. And it only worked to a certain degree. I'm considering hauling out the foot spa for a little relaxation.

Connor went back to day care full time today. It went well, from what I understand on his daily sheet. I saw a picture of him working on a painting with Miss Makina, one of the two teachers in his class. His last molar FINALLY started it's slow descent on Wednesday last week, so now Connor has at least part of all his teeth for the first 2 years. While the drool production is up again, I am glad that the molar is in so that we can work more on his chewing.

Well, that's all for now. I have some dishes to do, some thank you notes to write, and some laundry to fold. And then, some feet to massage.....

Assistive Devices for Connor

2005-11-14T14:53:00.000-05:00

So last week, in the midst of my recuperation, a nice man came to the house to measure Connor for a stander. The one we have is old, and only a loaner. They (the PIE Program, Early Intervention for Arlington County) are pruchasing one for Connor, so we'll have shiny new one that looks less Luddite. It's called the Giraffe, and is a prduct of Sammons Preston (www.sammonspreston.com). WE aslo took Connor to the therapy center where both his speech and physical therapists work to try out some swings. My parents are going to buy one swing for Connor and build the other. My parents take better care of Connor than I do most of the time. Of course, I'm still not even allowed to pick him up and am at my mother's mercy when it comes to holding him!

More Tiggors

2005-11-10T18:28:00.000-05:00

I've gotten some happier pictures of Connor on Halloween and wanted everyone to know that he's actually okay with the costume :)

I rise...

2005-11-08T11:21:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of information - I've been in the hospital being repaired, and I'm happy to say that this time, it worked! I'm supposedly all fixed up. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!! There is, in fact, much rejoicing! The worst part of the surgery, other than the lack of eating for 5 days, was that I was not allowed to see Connor. :( Lee brought me videos of him to try and assuage my sadness. It was wonderful to get home and see him again. He's had a lovely time with his Daddy and Granny Kate, and on Saturday his Nana and Poppy came to see him as well.

In any case, I'm still "in recovery" and get tired way faster than I used to, so that's all for now. Tomorrow I'll try to muster the energy to post about his new stander that will be ordered soon and is less Luddite than the Lechter-Special we have now...

The wonderful thing about Tiggors...

2005-10-31T21:27:00.000-05:00

It's Halloween!

I wasn't too happy about being Tigger again, so I renamed him Tiggor - closer to my own name!! Next year, I am going to be something else. Mommy is thinking maybe an alligator. We'll see. If I am walking by then, I'll be a marathoner, just like my Daddy and my Aunt Shannon. (Thanks for the shout-out A-S, in your post-'thon recap)

I hope you enjoy my movie, too. I'm ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille...

http://www.leeandcolleen.com/Images/MVI_0014.AVI

Tiggor - aka Connor

I stand in the face of danger

2005-10-24T19:23:00.000-05:00

Okay, so Connor wasn't totally into the stander this weekend, but he did very well. He stood for 15 minutes on Saturday, and engaged with the toys I held for him. I gave him pudding as a reward, but that was after he was out of the stander (which is why his face is still so clean.)

He also stood on Sunday and Monday, and has done really well.

We are still battling with the insurance companies as they are not doing their jobs paying for his therapy. I avoided Human Resources in my career so that I wouldn't have to deal with Health Benefits. Health Benefits, however, appears to have decided that it wants to deal with me. I feel lucky and blessed. Not really.

In any case, not much else is going on - just getting ready to take the month of November off - maybe I could catch up on my sleep??

On his own two feet

2005-10-20T09:51:00.000-05:00

This week, Megan (the physical therapist) brought a BIG new toy for Connor to work with. It's called a stander, and for lack of a better way to describe it, it looks like the cart they wheeled Hannibal Lechter around on in "Silence of the Lambs" (I'll have...the laaaaaaaaaaaaaahmb). Anyway, the stander is designed to strap across his chest, hips and knees. Once in it, Connor's hip joints get all kinds of new stimulation, for growth, and strengthening, and balance. It's a great, if kind of large, tool.

So last night, Lee decided that before dinner would be stander-time. That lasted three very long, very screamy minutes. We pulled him out and calmed him down, and went immediately on to dinner. After dinner, it was a completely different story. He stood in the stander for more than 5 minutes, looking around and calm. The moral of the story - feeding Connor needs to always be the first thing :)

The amazing thing is, I didn't realize how tall he is until he was standing up. We'll take a picture tonight if he's not Screamy McScreamerson again and I'll post it so the rest of the world can see how tall my boy is!

Photograph

2005-10-17T14:49:00.000-05:00

I don't want ya...I don't need ya...all I got is a photograph...

Tomorrow morning, Connor will have his first formal photograph taken at school. We opted out last year because, well, because we were scared of our reactions to the pictures of him not connecting with the photographer. I won't paint it any other color - it's hard to be around 104 healthy little children who connect with everyone and pick up the 105th, who is Connor. He's blossomed a lot in the last year and his teachers have a plan in place to get him into the process and engaged. And this morning, as I dropped his stuff off in his classroom, I saw a series of photos that they made into a little book of Connor fingerpainting. They actually have the pictures of him painting glued to the paintings themselves. And in the last picture, he is looking up over his shoulder at one of his teachers, Ms. Tiffani, and it's just a lovely photo of him making the connection with her and with what he is doing.

Or at least it looks that way in the photograph. They tell a thousand words, supposedly.

Supercuts

2005-10-11T21:03:00.000-05:00

Chunkin has always been blessed with a full head of hair. The day he was born, he had this hair...

So here's the thing - with his lack of 100% head control, and his healthy follicles, he needs to get his hair cut, but he can't go to a Kids Cutz or whatever. I have to do it myself. I won't let Lee do it because he cuts the bangs so short Connor ends up with a painful Prince Valiant-ish looking thing. So it's up to me, and I don't mind, but yesterday I was giving him a trim and nicked his ear. LOTS of crying. LOTS of screaming in between wails of what we now call "immunization cries". Even a teeny bit of blood. And, of course, LOTS of guilt on my part. 24 hours later, you can't even tell that anything happened at all. The haircut is also finished, and it's one of the better jobs I've done. I'll post a photo of the new 'do as soon as we've taken a photo of him in it.

Another Chunkin picture

2005-10-11T09:31:00.000-05:00

He's just too cute - I had to post another ...

Bad blogger

2005-10-09T16:49:00.000-05:00

I know I should be better about updating this, but I had a hard week followed by a business trip. Business trips are fun because, while it may be cheesy, I actually really like the people I work with. Yes, Mom, that is a dangling preposition. It's my blog. Anyway, I had to be away for a few days, and my brother came to visit in my absence. I hated missing him, but I'll get to see him tonight and maybe some tomorrow. Connor, luckily, thrived and had a lovely time eating. And eating. And eating. Apparently that's his new thing. Which is great, although we've been warned by both Dr. Fox (see the first report blog entry on who he is and how awesome) and his physical therapist, Megan, to keep his weight growth along the percentage course he is on right now( 20th percentile). That way, he can't grow too fast and make therapy impossible to perform.

In any case, since I've come home he's stopped his Sherman's-March-Through-The-Fridge somewhat, but hopefully that's only so he can coo at me adoringly...

More details on Connor's tests

2005-10-03T13:02:00.000-05:00

1. MRI - Changes
There were some white matter changes. (note - white matter v. gray matter: Gray matter represents information processing centers in the brain, and white matter represents the network or connections between those processing centers.) These changes are referred to as Periventricular Leukomalacia (PVL). I've looked up PVL on WebMD and this is part of the description: PVL is a condition in which the brain tissue around the ventricles is damaged, possibly from decreased oxygen or blood flow to the brain that may have occurred before, during, or after delivery. I literally just looked this up and am now quite concerned. We put off delivering him for hours after a heart rate decrease while I was in labor. Anyway, back to the report. Dr. Fox's interpretation of the PVL change is that it is likely that Connor will have significant delays his whole life. Dr. McClintock's interpretation is that the PVL is not consistent with "white matter issues" and thought that the new situation was unrelated to his IS. He wants to repeat the MRI next September to see if there are further changes.

2. Corpus Calossum (Connects right and left hemisphere to allow for communication between the hemispheres. Forms roof of the lateral and third ventricles.)

Dr. Fox spoke to us of seeing some "hypoplasia" which is defined thusly: "A medical condition where an organ or tissue has less than the normal amount of cells that it needs to fully develop. Such an organ or tissue is smaller in size than normal. Destruction of part of an organ or tissue which results in its becoming atrophied. Any plant disease which results in lower than normal numbers of cells being produced, so that the plant is unable to fully develop its organs and/or tissues." He said it appears only on one part of Connor's Corpus Colossum, and had no interpretation. Dr. McClintock did not mention this at all, and I can only assume because he doesn't think it's related?

3. MECP2 Gene mapping
Dr. McClintock had a blood test run to check the MCEP2 gene for Connor. Apparently it's related to Rett Syndrome, which we have heard from the neurogeneticist. You can learn more about Rett Syndrome here: http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition=rettsyndrome. It's something that normally affects females, and he tested completely clear there. Dr. McClintock seemed to think that this would give us an indiction of his finer motor skills with his hands. I can't figure out why. I'll ask the neurogeneticist.

Doctor, Doctor - give me the news!

2005-09-29T16:24:00.000-05:00

Okay, so the news is in, and it's not good, not bad, not really indicative of anything.

Connor's MRI showed some new "changes". We spoke with Dr. Fox first. Dr. Fox is Connor's pediatrician and possibly my favorite person outside my family. He has truly invested himself into Connor's well being. We will never move as long as Dr. Fox is here and willing to be Connor's doctor. He told us the results and gave us, to be honest, a pretty grim view on the long-term possibilities for Connor. His call was immediately followed by one from Dr. McClintock, Connor's pediatric neurologist. His description of the results were identical. His interpretation, the opposite. He believes that the "changes" that took place are not related to nor affect Connor's condition, and said that the Magnetic Spectroscopy was good. So basically, Connor's brain isn't completely normal, but we knew that already. And we are still encouraged by his progress (see previous posting regarding his hands). So - status quo. We've got no closure, but we've also still got reason to believe and hope for the best!

Comedy of the absurd, anyone?

2005-09-29T13:14:00.000-05:00

I've missed the third call now, and I had my cell phone with me. Now his pediatrician is in on this and has the report, but has the wrong phone number for us at home and so spent last night calling and getting ring...ring...ring...So he called my office, while I was out trolling, and I missed the call.

Maybe we just aren't supposed to know the results of this test series?

Chunkin, a Hands-On little boy

2005-09-29T09:18:00.000-05:00

So, I missed the doctor's call yesterday. Connor told me the whole way home how uncool it was of me to miss the call. It's not my fault! My cell phone lost signal in my office. My excuses meant nothing to him. He guh-ed at me the whole way out Constitution and 66.

Connor has started to do something very significant - he tries to eat his fists ALL THE TIME now. It's like his hands are chocolate-flavored, which in all honesty they sometimes are, thanks to pudding. But this hand awareness is a major, major cognitive development for him. It took a little time to get used to it. Let's say it this way - he used to be WAY easier to keep clean! But even when he smears peas up into his eyebrows, I am now delighted because it means he's figuring out how those things at the ends of his arms can work for him. he even uses his arms and hands to push some more when he has tummy time, too. Could crawling come? We're not sure, but we are hopeful. And we leave him on his tummy for way more time than he has any interest in. So to calm him down, we give him pudding...

Why waiting is hard

2005-09-28T09:25:00.000-05:00

Chunkin has a problem. Most of you already know this, of course. 2 weeks ago my mother and I took him to Children's Hospital for some tests. We still have not heard the results. These tests are an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Image - I think that's the meaning behind the acronym) and a Magnetic Spectroscopy. I have gotten uninforming voicemail messages from his neurologist, but nothing final. The last time he had an MRI, I got the results call in 4 days and was driving down 66 on my way home from a shopping expedition. The news was good - his brain was completely normal in form. I called Lee and started to cry, and he may have, too. Then I called my parents and they may have, also. Luckily, I was able to pull off the highway very soon after the call.

And now with each day that passes, I try to gird myself for the worst news from his doctor. I can wait forever for my own results. Why am I having to wait for Connor's?

I love the taste of napalm in the morning...

2005-09-26T21:03:00.000-05:00

This morning was interesting. See, I have this problem with my lower intestines, apparently, and I'm having some surgery soon. I haven't really been bothered, but the doctor says I have to, or I could risk doing nasty things to myself, like sending myself into sepsis. Anyway, one of the prep tests I had to do was "an Upper GI" What does that mean? It means I got to get up, NOT eat or drink anything, not even brush my teeth, and then wait until 10:00 am when they gave my 100mL of a thick, white substance known as Barium. Ring a bell? Barium is an element. You can find out *actual* things about barium here: http://www.scescape.net/~woods/elements/barium.html

Here's the thing - I was really, really bad at chemistry, but I'm pretty certain I remember Mrs. Webster telling us about radioactivity in elements like barium. Then I read something like this...
"All barium compounds that are water or acid soluble are poisonous. Naturally occurring barium is a mixture of seven stable isotopes. Twenty two other radioactive isotopes are known to exist."
I am also relatively sure that the berry flavor was never mentioned.

So I drank a lovely 100mL cocktail of radioactivity this morning. Then I chased it with 350mL, then I waited about 45 minutes and then got to watch them take "fluoros" of my small intestine. And it was...so...freaking...cool! Do you think about your body? Do you think about it as a solid thing? Let me tell you, I was watching my intestines, showing up black in the fluoro thanks to the Barium-mopolitan, swish gently back and forth as they pushed around on my stomach with a very cool lead-lined glove with a paddle attached. My body moves on the inside. All the time! Not just the blood. Basically everything that isn't a bone is moving, shifting, finding it's best home for a moment before I change position and gravity grapples with the confines of my skin.

It's amazing what you can learn about yourself when your body decides that if you won't give it a break, it will just mutinously decide to cut you off at the knees. I kind of wish that I could have seen more of me work under that camera, but that would require, among other things, a whole lot more barium. And while I like the berry flavor all right, I'll admit that I left the doctor's office and stopped at McDonald's for lunch. I figured that I desereved a break today. Plus I wanted to give them my new idea for their milkshakes...

Meet Chunkin

2005-09-23T20:17:00.000-05:00

This is Chunkin. He was first called the Baby Fantastic, Curtis and Squash (all pre-birth names) and then became Punkin Chunkin, then just Chunkin. What a great smile he has! We love when he smiles and giggles with us.

Urgh...

2005-09-23T09:05:00.000-05:00

So I've had my first spammer already. Less than 24 hours. I've set up the word verification system so I can avoid more spamming comments in the future. Sorry, all. You have to flash your ID to get any words in on this blog...

Not so good with the posting yet...

2005-09-23T08:35:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I really didn't post a long report last night. As I told Erin, Lee left me with no wireless in the house this week, and I didn't feel like spelunking in the basement to come up with something to post. So here I am today, doing it when I should be working. Again.

Lee comes home from school tomorrow - just in time for him to get caught in a 100,000+ person anti-war and anti-IMF protest on the National Mall. One of the best parts of living in this area is that you get slammed with protests at the drop of a hat. If it isn't traffic slowing you down, it's road closures due to "marching". I drove him in on Sunday last week to school and we were felled by...a march going up Calvert Street, NW. Not just any march - a disabled persons march. So it wasn't much of a march so much as a parade. Either way, we'll be getting it at the drop off and the pick up this time. I am glad that after this week, Lee has to drive himself to and from school!

Connor's teachers at school yesterday gave him some of a sundae from McDonald's. I hope I won't get in trouble with their corporate office by using the name. I'm not sure how I feel about him starting down the fast-food route. At least it wasn't fries, though. He'd probably stop eating anything else if it were fries. Silly, yummy, addictive fries... Mmmmmmmm...I can't wait for lunch!

2005-09-22T13:06:00.000-05:00

It's alive!

Okay, now that I know it works, I will add more later once I get home. back to work for now...

2005-09-22T12:53:00.000-05:00

Welcome to our blog! My husband and I have a website, but he's the webmaster, and unfortunately also now an MBA student. As such, I've decided (unilaterally) to start blogging to get news out on Connor's progress, because even I can blog. :) I hope I can... If this works, I will blog more soon, I very much promise.