Happy New Year..."2010"

Brandon is nearly 22 months old now and 22 pounds. We are looking forward to what this year will bring. As far as we know Brandon should be surgery free this year.

We will continue to see our wonderful pediatrician on a regular basis. Tis the season for colds, flu, etc... Brandon is actually trying to get over pneumonia right now. Sickness seems to hit him pretty hard, but he is a tough little guy.

We will also continue to be involved with Help Me Grow which has been very helpful. Our early intervention worker comes to the house for home visits to see how Brandon is progressing. She is even bringing a speech therapist and occupational therapist here and there to evaluate Brandon as well.

Brandon will also be following up with his endocrinologist for his growth hormone deficiency. He is growing taller each day with the help of his growth hormone shots, however he is not gaining weight as fast as we thought. He is doing fabulous with his shots and even rolls over into position on his own when he sees us coming towards him with the supplies. No tears, he just says "All done" in his own little way when we are finished. Such a good boy!

Also on the agenda this year is our scheduled follow ups with his opthamologist, Dr. Delmonte at U of M, his geneticist Dr. Hoo at St. V's, his urologist, Dr. Liu at St. Vs, and his orthopedist, Dr. Buerke at Toledo Hospital. As you can see, Brandon has a very busy social calendar. :o)

Halloween 2009

Went trick or treating with my sister and my two cousins. We had a great time. I am enjoying my independence as I am more and more mobile. My visits with Help Me Grow have been very helpful so far. My Help Me Grow workers have been very nice and I enjoy playing with them. They have a really cool bag of toys that they brought over to my house to let me play with. Soon they will be sending a speech therapist out to my house to give me some help too. I am starting to say more and more words, but need a little help with my articulation. Next week I journey up to U of M again to have my eyes looked at. Momma is a little worried that they are going to say I have to have another surgery...we'll see. I am making progress with my growth thanks to my growth hormone shots. My mom is starting to notice I am getting taller because my pants are all getting too short. Right now I am just loving life...no big complaints. Although, I have more teeth coming in and that is not fun, not fun at all.

The group: My sister as Cat in the Hat, myself as Thing 1, my cousin Logan as Thing 2, and my cousin Gabrielle as the pink fish.

19 Month Update

We finally took advantage of the referral to Help Me Grow. I felt I was already well linked in the community so I declined services through Help Me Grow at first, but after hearing more about the services they offer we have decided to give it a try. Any child with a qualifying medical diagnosis can receive free services through Help Me Grow until the age of 3. This is a state funded service. So far I have just met with the intake person, but soon will have a service coordinator assigned to us. Help Me Grow has several early intervention specialists who do home visits to monitor growth and development. More updates to come as we journey forward.

We are starting to see some results from the Growth Hormone shots. Brandon is getting taller and has finally hit the 20 pound mark. I don't think I notice his growth as much since I am around him all the time, but extended family members and friends are the first to remark. He is doing so well. No tears or fussing from the injections. Brandon knows when it's time for his nightly shot and just lays on his belly and waits for it. We have found that the back of his hip area is the least painful for him. Such a little trooper.

Within the last couple weeks Brandon has made remarkable progress with his speech. Several words may not sound "correct", but he is making an attempt and we tend to know what he is trying to say. Some examples of words he is saying...Momma, ga-ga = Da Da, Awna = Breanna, ile = Kyle, ball, gog =dog, elly = belly, uh-oh, no, owww = ouch, mine, bye, hi, bubba, more, and bite.