sweet relief!

At thirteen minutes to one, we arrived at the Medical Imaging department at Primary Children's. I checked Emery in and we sat down to wait. Because of the number of patients along with us in the room, were were surprised when they called us back so quickly. Nervous and scared does not even begin to describe the pit in our stomachs.



We were thrilled to find out they wouldn't have to sedate him for the CT scan. The cute tech told us she would put him in a papoose and then I could feed him a bottle while he was strapped in.

Nate and I were shocked at Emery's wonderment at the procedure-- no tears, no fighting once restrained... he just soaked it all in and didn't make a peep. The room was brightly decorated and most of the ceiling tiles were painted with pretty pictures of flowers and grass and the sun.



Our little Frankenstein.



When they began the scan, the tech told me to feed him to help him keep still. I was grateful I had remembered to bring his favorite treat-- white grape juice. I stood next to him and held his little hand through the papoose. When he fidgeted a tad, I sang his favorite song ("Baby Beluga") and he just looked at me. It was amazing to see how still he was.





The tech told us we were done and could leave. I asked to speak to the radiologist, as our doctor had instructed me to ask for a preliminary reading following the scan. She said they normally didn't do that, but then the radiologist came out from the booth and introduced himself.

He gave us the best news and exactly what we'd hoped to hear-- the bump is a dermoid cyst and is not related to his eye issues. No cancer, no tumor... music to our ears! The scan showed that it is not growing through his skull, though it is pressing into it. Because of the location and its' continued growth, it will require surgery to remove. However, it's very straight forward and should not be complicated.

Based on my crying spell at the appointment on Thursday, I didn't wear mascara. Good thing-- but happy tears today.

Squeals of delight--


Hugs of happiness--


and smiles abound.


And all of this took place before 1:10pm. 23 minutes and it was over. Nate had taken the afternoon off, as we thought it would take a couple of hours. So we headed over to the Gateway for a celebratory lunch. Uncle Kurt and Aunt Lindsy are in town for a wedding, so we got a chance to meet up with them.

Lunch for Emery.



And lunch for us at Tucanos.



It was a beautiful day and we spent a couple of hours walking around and enjoying the cold sunshine after a filling meal.









Tuckered out, we headed home.



Emery fell asleep around 7 and I decided to lay down, exhausted (physically and emotionally). Aside from getting up with Emery for his bottle in the middle of the night, we woke up at 9am this morning. And for the first time in awhile, I actually felt rested.

While we still have some obstacles to overcome (can a 7 month old REALLY wear glasses???), this experience has reminded me of my love for our family and friends. I'm grateful for kind words, thoughtful prayers, and faith with hope.

the little professor

After a two month wait for our appointment, Emery and I went to Primary Children's today regarding a small bump he's had on his forehead. It's been there since birth, but it's grown significantly in the last several months and his pediatrician recommended consulting a specialist. Nate had a work issue that came up this morning, so I put on my (not-so)brave face and drove to SLC.



Two things came of the visit.

One is that the specialist thinks the bump is a dermoid cyst and has scheduled a CT Scan for tomorrow afternoon. We'll know more hopefully immediately afterwards.

The second is a hidden blessing that Primary's had us see an opthomoligst instead of a general surgeon... it was discovered during the consult that Emery has esotropia in his left eye and astigmatism in both of his eyes.

I, of course, freaked out at the doctor's office and am grateful for the kind nurses and staff that hugged me and gave me tissues. It's mainly scary because there is a possibility that the bump on his forehead and the eyesight issues could be related and be something more severe. After the CT scan, we'll have a much better idea and will be able to treat both conditions accordingly. Most likely, he'll have surgery to remove the bump and he'll have glasses, an eye patch, and some corrective eye surgery to work on the esotropia.

Afterwards, we drove down to Orem and met Nate to pick out Emery's glasses. We settled on this pair, as they had a special nose bridge for infants that won't scratch him if (actually, WHEN) he pulls them off.



The man helping us at the eye center said that Emery should be an eyewear model. I concur.



Our little one was none the worse for wear, even after dilated eyes and a missed nap. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

suds and such

Emery grabs everything and it's made bath time a nightmare. We have a kitchen sink that's perfect for cleaning little ones, but it's become dangerous. He reaches for anything in sight and is able to turn the hot water on in an instant now. I'm too nervous to bathe him by myself anymore, so I made Nate rinse him off in the shower this evening before bed.

We think he likes it.













All clean and ready for bed, Emery had a little playtime with daddy.

Only one little problem-- footie pjs no more.

i heart nikon. and my husband.

Nate was less than pleased when I asked for a new camera for my birthday. We have a fancy one that we bought last Christmas in preparation for Emery's birth. It's fabulous and I use it all the time-- practically every day. But when I'm out and about, I had been carrying our old point-and-click (which isn't so fancy). It's been dropped way too many times and I was desperate to replace it. Nate told me it wasn't going to happen. I was a little sad.

So image my surprise when he handed me a brand new tiny Nikon on our way to my favorite birthday restaurant, PF Changs. He justified my present by telling me it was on sale at Costco and was the least expensive one he could find. No matter, it's perfect! Emery and I tested it out this morning and it works like a charm!









Emery likes it too. He spent most of the photo shoot trying to grab it.

mr. golden sun

As the sun was setting this afternoon, Emery spotted its' rays on the couch.
He spent no less than 25 minutes watching the shadows on the couch.







Nate was pleased with this, as it enabled me to make homemade lasagna for dinner.
che bouna.

sad, sad situation

Over the weekend, the little one came down with what we thought was a cold. A trip to the pediatrician on Monday confirmed it. Although she wasn't our regular favorite Dr. W., she said his lungs sounded great and that it was just in his throat-- a simple cold that would peak in a couple of days and last another week or so.



We had a HORRIBLE night of sleeping (I use the term lightly) in the recliner, trying to stay upright so that he could breath with a little more ease. All night, he sounded like he had sprinted a 400 meter dash. Why is always so much worse at 2am? We even made a sauna in the bathroom for a half hour in an attempt to make it a little easier for him. Nothing worked. I knew we were in bad shape when all he wanted to do was cuddle and moan-- because this child does not stop moving. Ever. Even in his sleep.

Tuesday morning, mother's intuition kicked in and I knew it was more than a cold. We were able to get an early appointment with our Dr. W., who diagnosed Emery with croup. He got a steroid shot to reduce the inflammation of his vocal cords long term and a breathing treatment to help immediately since it might take the shot a number of hours to become effective.



So we haven't done much of anything this week except revert back to the pre-sleep training days-- lots of holding/rocking/white grape juice, a messy house, and piles of dirty laundry. He's been so sick, he hasn't even enjoyed his beloved walker.

This video is from Wednesday. He started sounding a lot better that morning and even got through some peaches for breakfast. Still not feeling too fabulous, though--



Looking on the bright side of things, with all his complaining came a great photo-op. Normally, I try to get a picture of his teeth and it turns out like this:



This time, I just encouraged the sad song he was singing and I got this (click to enlarge):



I even scored a smile.