The Field House: March 2011

This little guy joined us on November 12th, at 6:23 pm, weighing in at 8 lb. 5oz and 20 inches long. Birth was very different than Izzy. There were some real rocky moments that afternoon, but God did an amazing thing and brought him to us safe and sound. Recovery was shorter than expected and I was back on my feet fairly quick. I think when women have children, we get super natural powers and become these super humans and we really can do more than we think, but probably shouldn't. I sure did miss having my mom here this go around.

Isabella ADORES her little brother. From the beginning, she has just loved on him and tells him how much she loves him. She prays for him every night before dinner. Precious.

Colton has had his fair share of hospital visits since birth. At the 20 week ultrasound, we learned his kidneys were enlarged, so it was something we were watching and confirmed from another doctor. A few days after birth, an ultrasound was done on his kidneys and they were still enlarged and contained fluid that should have drained to the bladder. So, we expect that with age, this will go away and we check again in a month. Still the same. Again in a month, and one side okay, other side, still enlarged. Hm. Another procedure (VCUG) was ordered to send fluid up and make him urinate to see what is happening. The verdict is, he has a grade 2 urinary reflux. His kidneys produce the urine, which draines to the bladder through ureters. Once he urinates, the urine should go out the bladder and straight down through urethras and out. Instead, the left side, goes back up to the kidney and is pooling there. This is bad, can cause infection and lead to many other things. SO...the poor little guy is on an antibiotic every night until he is re-checked (about a year) to see if it clears up and everything starts working correctly. Our hope and prayer is that when he is checked again, the flap from the bladder to the ureters works correctly and doesn't allow urine to back up into the kidney. The good news is, it does not hurt him to go potty. PTL.

At 3 weeks old, we noticed the little guy was having trouble nursing, keeping milk down, and extremely fussy. He went through a barium swallow procedure and we found that he has acid reflux. After testing out a few medicines, we are now giving him Prevacid every morning. This, too can be outgrown and that is what we are praying for. I do think it has gotten better, but every day is different and we just really take one day at a time. Needless to say, we just need to be patient and burp him a lot!

Whew! What a kid. Did I mention we have been busy? Anyway, I tell you all this becuase I want you to pray. Exercise your faith with me and believe this little guy will be in complete health.

So, where are we now? Almost 4 months old and he is happy most of the time. He still has trouble with bouncing including car seats and stroller rides. I think this makes the acid reflux issue flare up. I am believing that this too, shall pass. I love, love, love this little guy and want so badly for him to have a normal life without all these medications and exceptions. I am still dealing with a huge level of guilt and continue to ask myself what did I do wrong? What did I do/didn't do while pregnant that could have caused these problems. A constant lump in my throat about it all the time. I know I shouldn't beat myself up about it, but I am human and that is what we do. Mothers take the heat for many of the things their children do and we want nothing more than them to be healthy, happy kiddos. It's true.

So, now on to the pictures. Lots of catching up to do:)