24...

Pounds! Baby boy reached 24lbs yesterday and we have proof:

What does this mean exactly, you ask?  Well here's some stats based on the assumption that he hasn't grown taller since he was measured last month when he was 2' 6" tall and adjusting for his corrected age (or what he really should be since he was a preemie):

Length for Age = 25th percentile
Weight for Age = 25th percentile
Head Circumference for Age = 85th percentile *he is rather smart
Weight for Length = 60th percentile *yes, you read that correct, ABOVE AVERAGE!

So proud of my honey bunny!  We will continue to practice until he gets this whole 'eating' thing down and we can throw away his bottles and Pediasure for good! God is good and prayer pays off!

23lbs!

I think this was his birthday present to me...

A Numbers Game

Today Noah:

Weighs 22lbs 11.5oz (almost 25th percentile adjusted)
Stands 2' 7.5" tall (almost 50th percentile adjusted)
Has a noggin that is 18.7" around (almost 50th percentile adjusted)
His weight for length (something that is really looked at by the docs and pretty important) is in the 30th percentile.

So we're pretty happy with these numbers, I'm not going to lie, we'd love to see him in at least the 50th percentile for every category.  But, given his many gastro issues, we will gladly take it!
We had his follow-up appointment with his new GI (Dr Taylor suddenly vanished from Children's and we were never given an explanation or reason why) and she gave us the results of the DGE Scan they performed a couple weekends ago.  It came back NORMAL! Double-edged sword of course because that means that we still don't know why Noah is puking all the time or why he can't transition to solids and away from his bottle and Pediasure all day long.  I'm not too fond of this new doc so we're going to try and switch to someone else.  She wasn't super helpful or knowledgeable about Noah's history (which I think she should have been given this was his first visit with her and she could have looked at his chart more closely as to be prepared to answer any questions or concerns).  It seemed like we were just another number and she needed to get out of there as quickly as possible.  Her only suggestion was to increase his Prevacid dose (we weaned him off a couple months ago but recently started him up on a very low dose) because he was refluxing during the stomach scan.  When I asked about things like digestive enzymes to help get his gut going and hopefully aid in his digestion thus preventing the larger volume throw ups, she looked at me like I was crazy and said that they wouldn't help him.  Ugh, ok, well nothing has until this point so shouldn't we at least try?  They're natural and don't have any negative or long-term side effects, as a matter of fact they don't have any at all!  I guess I'm just crazy!  So, the long-term plan is to keep continuing with his feeding therapy (see below for more specifics) and see how he does in a couple months.  They want us to do a urinalysis and see how his kidneys are functioning and then eventually do an MRI to rule out anything neurological.  Yay, more tests I have to subject my poor son to.  The MRI is last resort or if he gets worse, I am not sedating my son and exposing him to more radioactivity than he already has been in his short little life.  I only want him to dress up and think he's Spiderman not actually turn into him.  So pretty much a waste of almost 2 hours of our lives today with no help or answers.  Surprise!
We also had the first part of his speech evaluation this afternoon.  2 good things came of this, the first is that the therapist is going to talk to Sunny Days and request an OT that specializes in feeding (something I have done in the past but with no luck so far), and second is that he will more than likely qualify for speech therapy even though she was pretty pleased with his vocalization and words.  I am happy about this because this is just another way for him to get therapy for his oral sensory issues.  Hooray!
And finally, we started seeing Dr. Peter, a chiropractor that comes highly recommended from family and we're hoping that this is just another step in the right direction as we seek for answers 'outside the box'.  Noah cries for a few minutes as the adjustments are made and then he is fine.  Mike started getting treated and after watching Daddy go first and not cry (Mike's good at hiding it and wipes his tears away pretty fast, LOL) he is getting more comfortable.
I think that's it, once again, I have to say how proud I am of our little guy.  He's come a long way!

A Couple of Milestones to Report

It's been too long since my last post.  I guess I've earned a couple more ballot entries for Bad Mother of the Year Award.  Things have been pretty tame as of late and I'm just counting down the days until I can write 'that' blog entry.  We bought him some new kicks at Stride Rite that he seems to love but obviously not that much because he's not walking yet!
Some pretty cool things happened this Easter weekend.  There wasn't any Earth-moving events like last year when we thought the world was coming to end as we crouched into the fetal position during that 7.something quake, but it's crazy to think how far we've come since this time last year (see the pics).  My little bunny is a big ol' rabbit now!

Some pretty neat things happened this weekend starting on Saturday.  While we were having an early Easter get together at The Palacio's (good times BTW, I can't tell you how much we've been blessed with amazing family and friends), Noah decided to take 6 steps as he rushed towards the open front door.  We have yet to replicate this.
Then on Sunday our big boy decided to take over one of his cousin Isaiah's Easter basket gifts we got him (an egg shaped cup with a straw) and he learned how to suck from it!  Yippee!  So now, I'm going to head to BRU and see what kinda new cups I can get him.
Finally, today he reached the 21lb mark!  Whoot whoot!  Keep on growing peanut, or take your time, mommy doesn't mind! ;)

Screw you throw-up!

We had to take Noah to the ER yesterday because he was vomiting every feed.  We think he may have caught what Mike and almost every other member of this family had the last couple weeks, a flu bug or virus that wreaks havoc for a couple days and then goes away.  Nonetheless, we can probably say good bye to the short-lived world of 20 lbs because he has not been eating well, understandably, and throwing up a lot.  Damn, I can't wait until we can move and I don't have to worry about all the germs.

Entering the world of deuces!

So the last time Noah had a 2 at the start of his weight measurement was back in January of 2010 while he sat in an isolette in the NICU of Sharp Mary Birch Hospital.  I still can't believe the set of circumstances that brought us to the point where I had given birth to a 2lb 8.4oz  baby boy.  I still don't think the magnitude of everything registered to me in my just-came-out-of-a-coma haze when they told me that Noah was okay, that I was okay.  I do, however, remember how I felt the first time I held all 2 pounds of him in my arms that had to be propped up by numerous pillows because of my atrophied body and subsequent weakness.  Hearing his tiny little cry, seeing his tiny little hands and feet, looking into those big eyes and knowing what complete and perfect love was.  And today when the scale read out something with a 2 in front, I was reminded of that love and how Noah continually shows me what a strong and determined soul he is.  This journey, this path, that we walk on everyday can be so challenging.  But it's moments like this that make it all worth it.  I am so proud of my little boy.  He inspires me and reminds me of how blessed we are, everyday, and that is a gift that cannot be quantified.  I thank God everyday and pray for the ability, patience and promise to be the best mother I can be, now and always.  I love you Noah Matthew.

The Saga Continues

Oi vay, it's been to long since my last update.  Nothing much has happened since then.  We got Noah a chair to sit at the table with us and watch us eat.  So far so good.  He likes to make a mess but is having success with Cheerios, Graham Crackers, cheese puffs and freeze-dried mangos.  He still likes rice and guacamole from Chipotle and fried rice from anywhere.  He also likes the Stuffed Baker from Claim Jumpers as well.  That being said, he still will only take a couple bites max and then his is over it.  Nothing we can write home about and clearly not anything that would constitute a 'meal'.  We had an appointment with ENT today because he is still very congested despite our efforts to treat what we thought were allergies with sinus rinses, saline, suctioning Nasonex and Claritin all to no avail.  He had a soft-tissue X-Ray done on his face this afternoon to look at his adenoids and see if they are enlarged.  Dr. Bothwell will call us tomorrow with the results.  For the first time ever I am hoping for a positive result because if that is what is causing all this congestion it may possibly be resulting in trouble eating and loss sense of taste among other things.  If he does have enlarged adenoids, the procedure to remove them is very easy and can be done at the same time he does his endoscopy next week.  I read this article and was surprised to see how common it is and how unnecessary the tonsils and adenoids really are. Oh good Lord, please help us find some answers because we still haven't gotten any to this day.  I found this cool tool to put in the blog: 
By infantchart.com

Please say your prayers for Noah tonight.  Good night and God Bless!

In other news: pounds and ounces!

... Mister Noah Matthew Pacheco has crossed the 19lb threshold as of tonight!  So proud of our 'little' guy. If we use his previous height measurement at the doctor's office in mid-December with today's weight, on the growth scale he is @ almost at the 10th percentile adjusted for weight, @ the 75th percentile for length, and @ at the 50th percentile for head circumference!!  So looking at the big picture, he's a tall skinnyish kid who holds our hearts in his little hands. <3