Photos

Attack of the Acid Reflux

Hello! I had hoped that I'd get to post a new entry sooner than this but we've had a busy time trying to make Brendan comfortable. The poor little guy has acid reflux and has just been suffering when he's awake. Julia had it as a baby as well but Brendan seems to have it worse. He just cries (screams) and squirms when he's awake and is just miserable.

After a week on the Zantac we were supposed to see results, but didn't. We saw the doctor again yesterday and she decided to switch him to Prevacid. I hope I'm not too optimistic but I think we're already seeing results. He seems to be more comfortable and goes back to sleep easier after meals which just wasn't happening before. Of course this means I'm off dairy which is not fun but if it makes things better for him I'll stick with it.

Hopefully once he's comfortable I/we will be able to get some sleep. He's been sleeping well during the day but a few nights ago was allowing me a half hour of sleep at a time. Needless to say I was ready to get in the car and drive away the next morning. Not to be too dramatic :-), but I could only take lack of sleep like that for so long. Last night was better though.

Other highlights in Brendan's life include "real" baths which he seems to like and watching his big sister do anything and everything. Julia loves to talk to "baby..." hold him, show him the food she's eating, show us his nose, mouth, etc.

Here are a few recent photos of Julia and Brendan.

Julia with her beloved "Big Bear". "Hawaii Julia", Julia holding Brendan, and Brendan chililn on his super soft and snuggly blanket. Hope everyone's doing well!

We're Home!

Hello! It's so great to be home again! Dare I ever complain about "normal" again? I don't think so. Brendan is doing much better. He's been fever-free and is eating well again. He's also having more alert periods during the day. He was discharged on the condition that we see his pediatrician tomorrow morning, which we will do.

Two of the things to watch for with this type of meningitis are a partial loss of hearing and heart problems. Usually the heart problems appear within 3-5 days of the first fever, so at this point the doctors at the hospital feel like he should be in the clear. Still, they want us to see our pediatrician in the morning. They also had a hearing specialist do the more involved EKG hearing test this morning. We won't see the results for about 7-10 days. Usually this problem appears in those with bacterial meningitis, so we're not too worried, but the doctors initially ordered the test because some of his lab results were not clearly indicating which kind of meningitis he had. It wasn't until the 48 hour spinal tap culture came back showing that it was specifically the enterovirus rather than a bacterial meningitis. Anyway, it's great to be home!

Thanks SO much to everyone who emailed, called, offered to help out, etc. We are extremely lucky to have you all in our lives. Looking forward to getting out with the little guy to see everyone, once he's had some time to continue with his recovery and get some of those immunizations. Hope everyone's doing well!!

Brendan Update

I only have time for a quick update.

We found out Sunday morning that Brendan has meningitis. We learned today that it is a relatively mild viral version and that there should be no long term effects. He is still running a little fever but is eating well. He will be able to come home when he beats his fever (for "24 to 48 hours").

Mom, dad and Julia are hanging in there. Mom is staying with Brendan so she can continue to nurse and that has been hard because she is also sick (sinus infection) and is getting very little sleep. Except for one exception, the nurses and doctors have been GREAT.

Thanks to everyone for all of the kind wishes and offers of help. We are truly lucky to have so many great friends, family and co-workers.

Just some side notes that would be more newsworthy (to the doting parents anyway) in less dramatic times, Brendan took his first bottle and pacifier today. Julia never cared for the pacifier and it was very tough for us to get her to take the bottle.

Brendan in the Hospital

In our last post we mentioned how Brendan slept most of the time while at the park. Although not entirely out of character for the chill little man, it was probably because he was getting sick. He woke up Saturday morning around 330AM with a very high fever. We cooled him down and put him back to bed but when he awoke again at 530AM he was burning up again. Mom took him to his doctor and they ended up in the ER and now admitted into the hospital.

All the tests haven't been completed but the early tests show he has at least a virus. The doctors don't think that what they have found so far is anything to be worried about long term and are aggressively treating it but as of ~1030 tonight, the fever hasn't subsided. The plan is to get the fever under control and keep Brendan in for observation for 48hours. Hopefully Brendan and his ailments are on board with this plan. Mom is staying with him and Dad and Julia are keeping busy and visiting when we can.

We are keeping our fingers crossed and our hopes up. Brendan is a tough guy and will fight this off. We will keep you posted as we can. Thanks.

The Park!

Today we headed to the park for Julia to run around and Brendan to get some fresh air. He was thoroughly unimpressed as sleeping seems to be more important these days. Julia had a great time teaching me how to drive in a more safe and courteous manner. This from the child who yells "Go!" when we start to slow down. I can't figure out where she learned that.

Big Sister with Brendan

Julia really likes Brendan, thank goodness! She delights in holding him, temporarily, and thinks that his little hands and feet are funny. This morning she was holding him and he was just staring up at her. She laughed and then said "take him." Really, she does like him!

Brendan with Mom & Dad

Here's a photo of Brendan and his happy parents.

Brendan Joins the Family!

He's here! Brendan Andrew joined us Thursday, September 1 at 3:06 pm. Weighing in at 7 lbs and 8 ounces and 20 inches long the little guy made his debut.