Development Assessment

At the beginning of January, Aaron had a follow-up appointment with a developmental pediatrician. We had first seen her back in August. Anyway, our PT joined us for this visit which was great because Aaron got hungry halfway through and didn't want to do anything other than eat! She was able to attest to all that he really does when he wants to.

The doctor was very impressed with Aaron. He looked very healthy and well. He was being such a flirt and couldn't stop smiling at her voice. She then played with him a little bit and tried to get him to do a few things that babies his age (both actual and adjusted) should be doing.

Her assessment was that cognitively and socially, Aaron is pretty on track. He is laughing/smiling appropriately; he is cooing, screaming and blowing bubbles. And, he listens so intently. She could tell he was thinking about the new voices.

In the motor department, although he has been reaching for things, bringing them to his mouth, and using both hands, etc., Aaron is pretty behind, mostly due to his delayed vision. She could tell that he definitely has some tracking and focusing going on, but overall his vision is not where it should be for his age. Most of the time, if you put an object in front of the child, he would reach forward for it. Aaron doesn't do that yet based on site alone. He will if you allow the object to make noise. He also isn't too fond of tummy time because there is no visual stimulation for him to look up. Instead, he gets his fist in his mouth and chomps aways! It is these things that are hindering his motor advancement.

Her suggestions, to start therapy with the Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired (VABVI). She believes that Aaron has Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) and starting therapy as soon as possible is the best way to enhance his vision. Also, we are trying some new gagets out; mainly a corner seat with a table to help him sit up on his own and play sitting up and a tummy wedge to encourage him to do tummy time.

Other than that, she said to continue doing what we're doing becasue Aaron is doing amazing! Oh, and he weighed in at 14lbs 10oz. At discharge from the hospital last week, he wighed in at 15lbs 12oz!

Let's Try It One More Time

Today is Aaron's 2 month birthday!

Aaron had been on BiPap since Sunday afternoon. They've been weaning him off and he's been doing really well. They moved him to CPap on Tuesday (no set breaths/minute, just continuous pressurized oxygen for when he decides to take a breath) and back to cannula yesterday! Last time he was only on it for 24 hours so we're praying for a little longer this time. He was doing really well last night. We just love how comfortable he looks with these smaller tubes on. They've also started feeding again, very slowly. He is tolerating it well.

On Tuesday, he had another eye exam. Everything looks great so far! Aaron even went from stage 2 to stage 0. After speaking to a few doctors someone was finally able to explain that to us (apparently opthamology is a confusing thing). So pretty much there was a fibrous scar wall that could have potentially stopped Aaron's blood vessels from growing properly to his eyes (if it got really bad they would remove the scar surgically). But now that fibrous wall is resolving and getting better. Thank you Jesus for continuing to heal our little boy!!

Yesterday I had really special visit with Aaron. For the first time I could be with him and not look at the clock or worry about setting up for a patient. I was there for hours. And, since he's been doing very well on the cannula, I held him the whole time. Of course, he was sound asleep in my arms, which was not a problem at all. I think I managed to kiss every inch of his face and head. Here he is sleeping comfortably in mommy's arms!
Doesn't he look so much bigger?

Another Eye Exam

Aaron had another eye exam today. He had his first exam when he was 31 days old. It's done to check for ROP (retinopathy of prematurity). The doctor's findings show that Aaron's eyes are "immature", which is consistent with his gestational age (31 weeks yesterday). So pretty much, there is nothing the matter other than his eyes aren't fully developed yet. He will probably be getting an eye exam every 2 weeks until somewhere around 38-44 weeks gestational age, when they would normally be developed. They've increased his feedings today to 4cc every 6 hours and he is still tolerating it very well. He really seems to be loving breastmilk this time around! His breath rate on the vent is now down to 36 per minute. He started out at 60/min, was on 40/min for a while and since his PDA ligation last week they've been weaning his breath rate and pressure. Just another hurdle to get over before coming home. Hopefully tonight's blood gas readings will show that he is able to handle this lower setting.