December 2007, Month 6 at Home
December 28 - Mission Accomplished:
Christmas at home
Presents from Rees: Sitting Up & Eating
Santa had so much fun at Rees’ house for his first Christmas at home! Rees loves all of
his new toys. What joy to spend the beautiful day with Rees thanking God for all of our
miracles this year.
We’ve had a busy holiday. On Thursday Rees started getting the sniffles and increased
secretions in his trach. We tried not to get too nervous. On Friday Rees had an ABRG
hearing test at TCH. (This is the test where Rees is sedated and they measure brain
waves in reaction to different tones.) It was supposed to take an hour, but it lasted
MUCH longer. We knew it must be something unexpected. Rees tested 10 decibels
better in one ear and 10 decibels worse in the other ear. The audiologist seems a little
bewildered but said it may be due to fluid in his middle ear.
Although it would have been nice for Rees’ doctor to take a peek in his ears, she wanted
to keep him out of the office. Everyone there had RSV or the flu and it was too risky to
bring Rees in. She called in antibiotics to be on the safe side.
On Christmas Eve mom had a good check up. My blood work continues to slowly
improve: my fighter white blood cells are staying further in normal range and my
hemoglobin is staying pretty high with less frequent use of Procrit for anemia.
Mom and Dad got their big Christmas present from Rees on Christmas Eve: Rees sat up
all by himself! Over the week he is lasting longer and longer. He is also more proficient
at propping himself up with his hands to avoid falling over. We are soooooo proud of our
tough guy. His therapists, who took a very short Christmas break, couldn’t believe his
new feat.
On Christmas when Rees had mostly recovered from his cold, we started our new
nightly feeding routine: at the end of Rees’ 4-hour break from his formula, Rees feeds
himself warm baby food plums with sugar and rice cereal with his dipping sticks. The
first night Rees gagged. The second night Rees took a few bites and then gagged. The
third night Rees ate so much that mom and dad got nervous and stopped the session
afraid he might eat too much. This is thrilling news! Feeding and digestion is what we
have always been told will be our biggest and longest medical challenge with Rees. Our
goal is to get him interested in eating more and more so when the trach comes out this
spring we can work towards graduating from the feeding tube.
We were expecting a visit from the Waco crew on Wednesday, but on Christmas Eve
cousin Camryn was diagnosed with RSV. RSV can be deadly to infants, especially
preemies with chronic lung disease and trachs…..so we won’t be able to see the Waco
crew for quite some time. Thankfully Camryn is a sturdy toddler and is feeling better.
December 19 - Christmas Cheer
Rees had his post op visit with Dr. Bloss this morning. After lots of kisses from his best
buddy, Rees was examined. He is doing great. We don’t have another appointment for
6 months.
Last Friday Rees attended memorial dedication for his friend Bennet who passed away
in June. The ceremony was in a nice park and Rees enjoyed being out for the beautiful
day. Dad even let him play on a jungle gym. Rees got to see a few of his old nurses.
They were very proud of their big boy.
On Saturday he went to Bennet’s sister Ellie’s first birthday party. It was too cold and
windy, so Rees had to stay in the car with his nurse. His NICU nurse Aunt Kaitlin was
there, so she also kept Rees company in the car.
Rees continues to make strides with his physical, occupational, oral motor and
hearing/speech therapy sessions. Last week the head speech pathologist at the Center
for Hearing and Speech came for Rees’ session. We learned more about Rees and how
blessed we are to be in Houston in 2007. Ten years ago, hearing aids could not aid in
the hearing of every sound for those with Rees’ severe hearing loss. The aids would not
pic up the “s” sounds. If you can’t hear “s,” you can’t say “s,” creating a
speech/hearing problem. This would have been hard for ReeS PottS. But with the
advances of hearing aids, Rees will have no problems hearing all important sounds.
Rees has now reached level 3 in hearing: turning towards sounds. He is making great
progress. He is also starting to make more and more sounds. His most accomplished
sound so far is “raspberries” with his tongue which is a precursor to talking.
We now understand the term “busy baby.” If Rees is awake, he is playing very hard.
We have him in a rotation of tummy time, back time, exer-saucer, swing, jumperoo with
minimal-assisted standing and sitting in-between. The jumperoo is the latest addition.
His therapist cleared him to try it on Saturday and he loves it. He hasn’t really started
jumping yet, but he likes to spin in circles. It is perfect with the Nutcracker playing in the
background.
We only have a few days off to rest during the holidays—Mom has an appointment
Christmas Eve and Rees has an appointment New Year’s Eve. Rees only has a couple of
days off from therapy—his therapists want him to keep the progress momentum going.
The Potts crew will be happily celebrating Christmas at HOME this year. We are so
thankful for the overwhelming contrast this Christmas season has been compared to
the heart-wrenching Christmas of 2006 when our tiny baby was so sick. The verse “and
wonders of His love” repeatedly plays in my head when I look at our beautiful angel.
December 13 - Speedy Recovery
Rees has completely recovered from his surgery. The day of the surgery he was very
agitated and sleepy. The next day he slept all morning then woke up playing. We tried
to make him take it easy, but he wanted to sit, stand and even roll on his tummy. Rees
quickly mastered his new precision firing weapon and was 3 for 3 spraying his targets—
Mom, Dad and Ya Ya—during diaper changes the day after surgery.
All three surgery sites look great and are healing perfectly. We took a few days break
from his therapy sessions. When we started back up, Rees hadn’t missed a beat. He
continues to make great progress. Every day Rees is more and more aware and
engaged. His favorite toys are the singing snowman from Aunt Petey that he gives hugs
when it starts singing and dancing, and the spinning alphabet ball from Krissi.
Everytime it stops, he spins it. Rees is making more and more sounds and started
making raspberries. This is a big deal in speech development.
Rees had to get his 3rd round of Synagis shots for RSV last Wednesday. They weigh
him to make sure he gets the proper dose. Rees is now 17 1/2 pounds. What a big boy!
Rees had lots of visitors last week to help with his recovery—Ya Ya, Uncle Steven, Pop
Pop, then Uncle Adam came from Indiana to meet Rees for the first time. Rees and his
Uncle had a fun time. Uncle Adam was a big help watching and entertaining Rees since
we didn’t have a nurse that weekend.
December 3 - Sucessful Surgery
Can you believe it! Reesy Pie Potts, who took 8 months to check out of his first hospital
stay, was discharged an hour and a half after his surgery today!
We actually had a rough start. The surgery was delayed an hour because they had a
terrible time drawing blood from Rees. Then the one-hour surgery lasted twice as long
because Rees made it a little more complicated than expected. Because of his past
surgeries and intestine problems, Rees had extra adhesions. The tissue had to be
“teased” away before they could be put back in place. The actual hernias were also
much larger than expected. Because of this there is a chance we’ll have to repeat the
surgery in the future.
Because the surgery was a little longer and more involved than planned, the doc warned
us that we may need to stay overnight to give him more time to recover. But Rees went
immediately to room air, breathing on his own in the recovery room. Because he did so
well the doctors decided to discharge….well, also because we have everything at home
that we would have in the hospital—equipment, supplies, trained parents and nurses—
everything except for the germs.
When the pain meds wear off, Rees gets very mad and cries big tears. His circumcision
site looks beautiful and doesn’t even look like a post op site. We change his hernia
dressing on his tummy in 3 days. He is expected to be back to normal activity in a day or
two.
Praise to God for the caring and talented hands of Rees’ buddy Dr. Minkes who
performed the surgery, and Dr. Bloss who came by the OR to check things out. These
guys are our super heroes. We are so thankful for having such a fabulous team taking
care of Rees.
All three of the Pottses are worn out, but saying big prayers of thanks to be in our own
beds tonight after a day of safe, successful procedures.
December 2 - Surgery on Monday
Rees is having what we hope is his last surgery on Monday morning. He is having a
double-hernia repair and circumcision. Hernias are very common with preemies and
need to be done before kids start walking. We are arriving at TCH at 6:30 a.m. and
planning to be home late afternoon. We are praying for a successful outcome which
includes just a short time back on the vent. We really hated unpacking the vent—it now
seems like years since we had to lug that thing around.
Rees is doing better and better with his “talking.” He now wears his speaking valve
most of the day. He is also starting to turn towards sound—a big step in his hearing
progress.
Rees has now grown out of the infant car seat and out of his basin tub, so he has a big
boy car seat and the funniest new bath tub. It is a giant inflatable duck that can fit in the
tub or on the floor.
Rees is doing very well with his therapies. He still loves to stand with help, and is now
taking steps. He is still working on strengthening his upper body so he’ll better his
balance and be able to sit up, stand and walk on his own. He is also definitely seeing,
reaching and grabbing at his toys with intent. We are thrilled with this progress!
Our computer crashed so we haven’t been able to do updates. Many many thanks to
cousin Ryan who provided us a loaner. (Mom had to actually use html for this update.)
December 28 - Mission Accomplished:
Christmas at home
Presents from Rees: Sitting Up & Eating
Santa had so much fun at Rees’ house for his first Christmas at home! Rees loves all of
his new toys. What joy to spend the beautiful day with Rees thanking God for all of our
miracles this year.
We’ve had a busy holiday. On Thursday Rees started getting the sniffles and increased
secretions in his trach. We tried not to get too nervous. On Friday Rees had an ABRG
hearing test at TCH. (This is the test where Rees is sedated and they measure brain
waves in reaction to different tones.) It was supposed to take an hour, but it lasted
MUCH longer. We knew it must be something unexpected. Rees tested 10 decibels
better in one ear and 10 decibels worse in the other ear. The audiologist seems a little
bewildered but said it may be due to fluid in his middle ear.
Although it would have been nice for Rees’ doctor to take a peek in his ears, she wanted
to keep him out of the office. Everyone there had RSV or the flu and it was too risky to
bring Rees in. She called in antibiotics to be on the safe side.
On Christmas Eve mom had a good check up. My blood work continues to slowly
improve: my fighter white blood cells are staying further in normal range and my
hemoglobin is staying pretty high with less frequent use of Procrit for anemia.
Mom and Dad got their big Christmas present from Rees on Christmas Eve: Rees sat up
all by himself! Over the week he is lasting longer and longer. He is also more proficient
at propping himself up with his hands to avoid falling over. We are soooooo proud of our
tough guy. His therapists, who took a very short Christmas break, couldn’t believe his
new feat.
On Christmas when Rees had mostly recovered from his cold, we started our new
nightly feeding routine: at the end of Rees’ 4-hour break from his formula, Rees feeds
himself warm baby food plums with sugar and rice cereal with his dipping sticks. The
first night Rees gagged. The second night Rees took a few bites and then gagged. The
third night Rees ate so much that mom and dad got nervous and stopped the session
afraid he might eat too much. This is thrilling news! Feeding and digestion is what we
have always been told will be our biggest and longest medical challenge with Rees. Our
goal is to get him interested in eating more and more so when the trach comes out this
spring we can work towards graduating from the feeding tube.
We were expecting a visit from the Waco crew on Wednesday, but on Christmas Eve
cousin Camryn was diagnosed with RSV. RSV can be deadly to infants, especially
preemies with chronic lung disease and trachs…..so we won’t be able to see the Waco
crew for quite some time. Thankfully Camryn is a sturdy toddler and is feeling better.
December 19 - Christmas Cheer
Rees had his post op visit with Dr. Bloss this morning. After lots of kisses from his best
buddy, Rees was examined. He is doing great. We don’t have another appointment for
6 months.
Last Friday Rees attended memorial dedication for his friend Bennet who passed away
in June. The ceremony was in a nice park and Rees enjoyed being out for the beautiful
day. Dad even let him play on a jungle gym. Rees got to see a few of his old nurses.
They were very proud of their big boy.
On Saturday he went to Bennet’s sister Ellie’s first birthday party. It was too cold and
windy, so Rees had to stay in the car with his nurse. His NICU nurse Aunt Kaitlin was
there, so she also kept Rees company in the car.
Rees continues to make strides with his physical, occupational, oral motor and
hearing/speech therapy sessions. Last week the head speech pathologist at the Center
for Hearing and Speech came for Rees’ session. We learned more about Rees and how
blessed we are to be in Houston in 2007. Ten years ago, hearing aids could not aid in
the hearing of every sound for those with Rees’ severe hearing loss. The aids would not
pic up the “s” sounds. If you can’t hear “s,” you can’t say “s,” creating a
speech/hearing problem. This would have been hard for ReeS PottS. But with the
advances of hearing aids, Rees will have no problems hearing all important sounds.
Rees has now reached level 3 in hearing: turning towards sounds. He is making great
progress. He is also starting to make more and more sounds. His most accomplished
sound so far is “raspberries” with his tongue which is a precursor to talking.
We now understand the term “busy baby.” If Rees is awake, he is playing very hard.
We have him in a rotation of tummy time, back time, exer-saucer, swing, jumperoo with
minimal-assisted standing and sitting in-between. The jumperoo is the latest addition.
His therapist cleared him to try it on Saturday and he loves it. He hasn’t really started
jumping yet, but he likes to spin in circles. It is perfect with the Nutcracker playing in the
background.
We only have a few days off to rest during the holidays—Mom has an appointment
Christmas Eve and Rees has an appointment New Year’s Eve. Rees only has a couple of
days off from therapy—his therapists want him to keep the progress momentum going.
The Potts crew will be happily celebrating Christmas at HOME this year. We are so
thankful for the overwhelming contrast this Christmas season has been compared to
the heart-wrenching Christmas of 2006 when our tiny baby was so sick. The verse “and
wonders of His love” repeatedly plays in my head when I look at our beautiful angel.
December 13 - Speedy Recovery
Rees has completely recovered from his surgery. The day of the surgery he was very
agitated and sleepy. The next day he slept all morning then woke up playing. We tried
to make him take it easy, but he wanted to sit, stand and even roll on his tummy. Rees
quickly mastered his new precision firing weapon and was 3 for 3 spraying his targets—
Mom, Dad and Ya Ya—during diaper changes the day after surgery.
All three surgery sites look great and are healing perfectly. We took a few days break
from his therapy sessions. When we started back up, Rees hadn’t missed a beat. He
continues to make great progress. Every day Rees is more and more aware and
engaged. His favorite toys are the singing snowman from Aunt Petey that he gives hugs
when it starts singing and dancing, and the spinning alphabet ball from Krissi.
Everytime it stops, he spins it. Rees is making more and more sounds and started
making raspberries. This is a big deal in speech development.
Rees had to get his 3rd round of Synagis shots for RSV last Wednesday. They weigh
him to make sure he gets the proper dose. Rees is now 17 1/2 pounds. What a big boy!
Rees had lots of visitors last week to help with his recovery—Ya Ya, Uncle Steven, Pop
Pop, then Uncle Adam came from Indiana to meet Rees for the first time. Rees and his
Uncle had a fun time. Uncle Adam was a big help watching and entertaining Rees since
we didn’t have a nurse that weekend.
December 3 - Sucessful Surgery
Can you believe it! Reesy Pie Potts, who took 8 months to check out of his first hospital
stay, was discharged an hour and a half after his surgery today!
We actually had a rough start. The surgery was delayed an hour because they had a
terrible time drawing blood from Rees. Then the one-hour surgery lasted twice as long
because Rees made it a little more complicated than expected. Because of his past
surgeries and intestine problems, Rees had extra adhesions. The tissue had to be
“teased” away before they could be put back in place. The actual hernias were also
much larger than expected. Because of this there is a chance we’ll have to repeat the
surgery in the future.
Because the surgery was a little longer and more involved than planned, the doc warned
us that we may need to stay overnight to give him more time to recover. But Rees went
immediately to room air, breathing on his own in the recovery room. Because he did so
well the doctors decided to discharge….well, also because we have everything at home
that we would have in the hospital—equipment, supplies, trained parents and nurses—
everything except for the germs.
When the pain meds wear off, Rees gets very mad and cries big tears. His circumcision
site looks beautiful and doesn’t even look like a post op site. We change his hernia
dressing on his tummy in 3 days. He is expected to be back to normal activity in a day or
two.
Praise to God for the caring and talented hands of Rees’ buddy Dr. Minkes who
performed the surgery, and Dr. Bloss who came by the OR to check things out. These
guys are our super heroes. We are so thankful for having such a fabulous team taking
care of Rees.
All three of the Pottses are worn out, but saying big prayers of thanks to be in our own
beds tonight after a day of safe, successful procedures.
December 2 - Surgery on Monday
Rees is having what we hope is his last surgery on Monday morning. He is having a
double-hernia repair and circumcision. Hernias are very common with preemies and
need to be done before kids start walking. We are arriving at TCH at 6:30 a.m. and
planning to be home late afternoon. We are praying for a successful outcome which
includes just a short time back on the vent. We really hated unpacking the vent—it now
seems like years since we had to lug that thing around.
Rees is doing better and better with his “talking.” He now wears his speaking valve
most of the day. He is also starting to turn towards sound—a big step in his hearing
progress.
Rees has now grown out of the infant car seat and out of his basin tub, so he has a big
boy car seat and the funniest new bath tub. It is a giant inflatable duck that can fit in the
tub or on the floor.
Rees is doing very well with his therapies. He still loves to stand with help, and is now
taking steps. He is still working on strengthening his upper body so he’ll better his
balance and be able to sit up, stand and walk on his own. He is also definitely seeing,
reaching and grabbing at his toys with intent. We are thrilled with this progress!
Our computer crashed so we haven’t been able to do updates. Many many thanks to
cousin Ryan who provided us a loaner. (Mom had to actually use html for this update.)
| LoneStarPotts |
| I took dad on a picnic for his birhday and snoozed through it |
| I tasted sweet potatoes at our Thanksgiving dinner |
| I try to humor her by posing |
| It was such I nice day that I decided to take a nap in the back yard. |
| Bundled up for winter weather on Thanksgiving day |
| Aunt Tina came from California and helped take me to my appointments |
| Aunt Cynthia stopped by to cuddle |
| Long walks make me sleepy |
| Yummy yummy puppy dog |
| Oh no, here they come with the tube |
| Uncle Adam came from Indiana to play with me |
| Mom gets the camera out every time I pull out my feeding tube |
| Mom gets the camera out every time I pull out my feeding tube |
| The longer I pose, the longer I have until they shove a new tube in |