Our Precious Little Girl?

Yep. Here we are...back at Shands...so proud of our son and all of the progress he has made....yet over and over again we have been greeted by smiling faces exclaiming, "What a precious little girl!"--this happens in Birmingham already, but not EVERY person...needless to say, we are starting to wonder if this is foreshadowing in some way....
You see...Par is having a special little procedure done tomorrow...ahem....ahem...
He is going to be circumcised. Now before ANYONE comments on their own feelings about the procedure--this was not a decision we made lightly--and we are VERY aware of both sides--still, we have chosen to proceed--so regardless of your feelings on the issue, we ask for your prayers tomorrow at 7:30 AM...Par will be put under general anaesthesia which is always a risk--and then there is the healing process...a little different than for an infant--mainly because Par can reach it....
But all of that isn't as important as our meeting with Dr. Kays...
Although he was 2 hours late...we didn't care, we were just thrilled to be waiting for him with a little boy to show off! When Terri the nurse practitioner came in for vitals, Par started to cry but calmed down...then Dr. Kays came in and Par was all smiles. I'd like to think he remembers Dr. Kays--or at least his voice. Dr. Kays seemed pleased with how his lungs sound, he does not show any signs of scoliosis yet, his brain development seems fine, his walking and other motor skills are fine and his heart sounds fine...these were the good things...
Unfortunately, our little Par is still not on the growth chart and we need to fatten him up...well...of course, we already know this...and Dr. Kays knows we know this...but now, we need to really focus on fats/high calorie foods--more precisely, more fats and less veggies. (Uhhh...I can do that... I had special training in college and while pregnant....hee hee hee)...Dr. Kays seemed stunned when he looked at his measurements plotted...but we all know it is because he is so active...so we are going to get right down to business...feel free to drop off cheesecakes by the caseload to our house!
Dr. Kays commented on Par's pectus excavatum (a common outcome of CDH babies)but said that nothing needs to be done now (or ever really). Dr. Kays also ordered a chest xray but decided to hold off on the echocardiogram until he is 2 since he sounded fine. We skipped on down to radiology with our precious sleeping baby thinking we could just lay him down for the xray and he would remain undisturbed....we are such idiots...no chance...take a gander at this torture chamber...

Afterwards, we thought we would introduce Par to our favorite restaurant at the hospital--get a jump start on the high fat diet...Wendy's!!!! Par enjoyed his french fries and frosty (don't worry, I know that isn't exactly what Dr. Kays meant)then we went up to the NICU III. We were able to see many familiar faces--and 2 of our favorite nurses--one who helped save his life and the other who helped get us home!!! It was a wonderful reunion--and it reminded us how thankful we are to ALL of the nurses who loved on our baby a little over a year ago.
We also got to visit with Elayne...the amazing OT who is responsible for my success in breastfeeding Par...I am so grateful to her--I was so excited to tell her that Par is still breastfeeding--she is a gift to Shands--I only wish every new mother had the opportunity to meet her!

We had the opportunity to talk to 2 families currently in the NICU with CDH babies. I so remember being there and I was happy I could offer encouragement to them about the near future by allowing them to meet Par...both of the little girls are SOOOO precious and are on the road home now (well, near future).
After our great hospital visit, we stopped by St. Augustine (our church while we were here) and hurried in to see the Funkhousers before they left for the day. Of course, we were unannounced since we never posted on the blog that we were going to Gainesville...but we were a joyful surprise for Bob and Anne and we had a wonderful visit. As you may remember, the Funkhousers were a warm welcome to us when we first moved to Gainesville and always checked in on us--invited us for Thanksgiving--visited us in the hospital--showered us with beautiful gifts (I'm sure you have seen Anne's handiwork--her blankets have become Par's favorites)--we loved letting them play with Par--more importantly, Par got to meet Cameo--their Sheltie. Par gave Cameo about a dozen treats and just giggled.

We hurried home (or to the Homewood Suites) to get ready to meet Doug and Jacy (parents to Olivia, a current CDH baby in the NICU) for dinner. They also brought Olivia's twin brother Mason--he is precious! We enjoyed dinner and talking about our experiences and how to move forward with supporting the CDH community.
So....now we are back in the hotel...playing with Par...he has no idea what is going to happen tomorrow morning...and I am so glad he doesn't...please pray for good sleep for all of us and that we arrive in time!!!! We'll keep you posted!
By the way...I'm sure you are wondering about a picture of Par and Dr. Kays...would you believe the with all the excitement we forgot to take a picture? Hopefully we'll get one tomorrow!