tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65456617239554107472024-03-05T11:15:49.715-05:00The Best Things Come in Small PackagesJanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-60466357155953748552012-03-28T12:19:00.000-04:002012-03-28T20:21:35.621-04:00Cam and Fin lately<br />
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So we are now the proud owners of a three year old and a one year old. I'm not sure how that happened.<br />
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As much as I hate that my kids are growing up so fast, I love watching their personalities develop and seeing their relationship with each other grow. When I look at Camden and Finley, all I can think about is how blessed we are that God picked us to be their parents. He knows our hearts so well and our kids are a complete reflection of that.<br />
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They have such a cute dynamic going between the two of them. They are completely smitten with each other but also drive each other nuts. Yesterday Camden fell asleep on the couch after school and had some of his beloved cars next to him along with his stuffed dog, "Ralphie." We have tons of Matchbox cars and Finley isn't usually interested in them but yesterday she HAD to have the ones Cam had. As soon as she realized he was asleep, she loaded his cars into her doll stroller, slipped Ralphie out of Cam's hands and into her stroller next to the cars, and drank his whole cup of milk. Then she gave him a kiss on the cheek and took off. Pretty typical.<br />
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Camden used to be successful with the bait-and-switch technique (Finley has a toy he wants so he gives her something in one hand while he takes the targeted toy out of her other hand), but she has become wise to his ways so his attempts are usually futile. He's usually pretty good about just moving on and finding something to play with that's not in Finley's little death grip, but there are times when he's had enough and <strike>wrestles her to the ground</strike> takes it away. There is usually a lot of melodramatic crying and a time-out involved but they go back to playing together pretty quickly. <br />
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They tend to always gravitate towards each other and really do love being together. Cam went through a phase where we had to block off the stairs with a gate so he couldn't get to Finley's room when she was napping because he would go in and wake her up so they could play. Even if they aren't playing together, they are usually right next to each other. They also randomly hug each other on a regular basis and it's pretty darn cute. I'm so glad they have each other and I hope they are always close. <br />
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I know better than to say that I am going to do something regularly on my blog, but I am going to<i> try </i>do a little update on each of them every month or so. Knowing my track record with my blog, they will probably be graduating from college the next time I do this, but here goes...</div>
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<b>Camden</b></div>
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<li>He turned three at the beginning of March and seems more like a little boy than a toddler now. I wish I could still call him a toddler. Maybe I will until someone tells me it's weird. Which is probably now.</li>
<li>He is talking constantly. In full sentences. And has started asking lots and lots and lots of questions. </li>
<li>He loves music and is usually signing or pretending to play the drums. His current favorite songs are "The Wheels on the Bus," the theme from Bubble Guppies, "Jesus Loves Me," and some random song he made up about grandpas and fire trucks.</li>
<li>He still LOVES anything with wheels and can tell you the names of every type of vehicle on the road. Did you know that a tractor trailer pulling multiple trailers is called a "road train"? I did not until he told me (it really is called a road train--his kindle book about trucks says so).</li>
<li>He is really into pretend play. Sometimes I think he really thinks he's a train conductor:)</li>
<li>When we are driving somewhere, he can tell where we are going based on what street we are on or what we are passing. </li>
<li>He has a great sense of humor and loves making people laugh. </li>
<li>He is super strong and can climb anything. Too bad he has my fear of heights because usually once he gets up on something, he wants to get down immediately. </li>
<li>He loves to read and is starting to recognize words. He can also spell his name.</li>
<li>He is still really into drawing and coloring. He is starting to draw pictures that actually look like what he's trying to draw. He also loves to draw on his easel while he tells a story. That makes my little nerdy teacher heart happy:) </li>
<li>I've had a few people ask me if we are going to try growth hormone with him, so here is my answer to that: No, we aren't. Even though it's been shown to be somewhat effective with kids that have his type of dwarfism, often times it can cause their disproportion to become even more obvious. Hypo effects the long bones in his arms and legs, but doesn't have any effect on his torso. Growth hormone may help the bones in his arms and legs grow, but it would also do the same for his torso, so he may end up a little taller but with the same proportions. It works well for some kids with hypo, but Camden isn't an ideal candidate for it because he has such a long torso to begin with. There is also a lot of uncertainty surrounding the side effects of growth hormone in kids with hypo (increased risk for developing diabetes, cancer, heart disease, etc.) and it's enough for us to opt out of trying it. He is already at risk for those things because of family history and we can't justify putting him at an even higher risk to gain a few inches. <i>(Other hypo mamas...I don't want to come off sounding like we think growth hormone treatment is bad--it's just not right for Camden!)</i></li>
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<b>Finley Blair</b></div>
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<li style="text-align: left;">We get asked often if we had always planned to call Finley by her first and middle names (which we do regularly). No, but we love her name and it just kind of seems natural. She also answers to Sissy, Poots Magoots (Poots for short--I know, she's going to love hearing about that when she gets older), Finny Bear, Finny, and Fin. Hopefully she won't introduce herself as Poots in the future.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She loves to cuddle with stuffed animals. I've also caught her snuggling up to our fuzzy bath mat (seriously).</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She is talking a ton. Right now she says mama, dada, Dede (Camden), cat, bird, tweet tweet, milk, dog, more, yay, that, hi, no, bouncy, dance, yes and bye. She's also tells us little stories that we can't understand and then nods at us like we should agree with her. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She LOVES to dance. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">When she's getting ready to do something she knows she should't do, she says "no" and shakes her head as she's doing it. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She is also a climber like Cam but unfortunately, she <i>doesn't </i>have my fear of heights and scares me to death on a regular basis. We've tried to block off everything we think she can climb but she amazes us daily with her monkey skills. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She can eat all 3 of us under the table. It's so funny watching someone so dainty eat as much as she does. Her favorite foods right now are cheese, hard boiled eggs (ew), avocado, and yogurt. She is also having a little love affair with sliced cucumbers.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She is getting better about not flailing around when she gets her diaper changed, but its still a challenge. Don't even ask me how I get her hair in pig tails. Let's just say it's part of my fitness plan.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Speaking of pig tails, it's pretty much our only hair style option at the moment because her hair is really long on top and not so long on the sides. If her hair is down, it's in her eyes and if it's in a little pony tail on top, it sticks out on the sides a la Bozo the clown. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She loves toys that you can put things in (like <a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41HQS21MHTL._SL500_AA300_.jpg" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">this piggy bank</span></a>) or toys that have pieces that fit together. I think she's going to like puzzles like her mama. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">She is WALKING finally! She's been cruising since she could pull up at 7 months but didn't take her first steps until this week. She is a really fast crawler, so walking just hasn't gotten her where she wants to go fast enough for her to commit.</li>
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<a href="http://s815.photobucket.com/albums/zz74/janesays6141/?action=view&current=signature.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i815.photobucket.com/albums/zz74/janesays6141/signature.jpg" /></a>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-64164489927255366312011-12-11T14:07:00.001-05:002012-03-28T14:50:24.500-04:00Oh yeah, I have a blog<div style="text-align: left;">
Soooo it's been a really long time since I updated my blog. The last time I posted, Finley was a newborn. She just turned ten months old yesterday and is <strike>constantly asking for the keys to the car</strike> almost an official toddler. We have had a super busy last few months and it finally took a case of the stomach flu to slow my little family down enough for me to update this thing. I am a perfectionist and it was bugging me that Finley's picture wasn't in the header of my blog (I know it was bothering you too, just admit it) and I wanted to be able to change it before I posted again. So I stayed up late last night because my sleep schedule is all out of whack thanks to being sick, figured out how to do it, and now here we are. </div>
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We are doing great--Patrick just wrapped up his CFP exam and I am still loving being home with Camden and Finley. They keep growing up way too fast even though I've asked them to stop. I thought I would do a little update on both of them since they are both SO different from the last time I posted in April. </div>
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My two and a half year old (I can't believe he's almost 3) went to camp this summer at <a href="https://www.speechgarden.org/" target="_blank">The Speech Garden Institute</a> and absolutely loved it. We found out in November of last year (I can't remember if I mentioned this in a previous post or not) that he had a mild delay in expressive speech and he's been in speech therapy once a week since then. A few weeks after camp was over, we had him reevaluated and he tested out of needing services! Now he won't stop talking! We asked our geneticist this summer if speech issues are common in people with Hypo, but there isn't much research to substantiate a real answer. I know I've mentioned this before, but one of the most frustrating things with a Hypo diagnosis is the fact that there is so little known about it compared to other types of dwarfism. It's also frustrating that it is lumped together with achondroplasia even though there are many innate differences. (Hypo parents, are your kids in speech therapy? What have you been told about speech?)</div>
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He started preschool in September and the first thing out of his mouth in the morning is "I have school today?!" followed by "I'm hungry!!!" (such a guy). He loves his teachers and his friends and has learned so much. Every once in a while, he'll freak us out with something we had no idea he knew. One day we were on our way to Target and he told me the days of the week and then corrected me on where I was turning (I was going a different way so I could run by the post office first). </div>
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He has turned into quite the budding artist and is definitely left-handed like my mom. He's used it pretty dominantly for a long time but it's the only hand he uses now. </div>
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Here are a few of his latest masterpieces. </div>
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My favorite part is how he traced around the tile using the grout as a guide. Very inventive. This is just a sampling of the different artistic bases he works with--he also enjoys using the couch and his sister's tummy. </div>
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Camden's personality is still one of my absolute favorite things about him. He is so loving and sweet, but he also has a very witty and mischievous side that totally make me melt. He love cars (his favorite is his <i>gini</i>--a yellow car that looks like a Lamborghini) and his tool set. He eats pancakes every morning for breakfast and can climb on anything. He loves his sister and has gotten really good at sharing with her (except for his gini). They wrestle and pick at each other constantly and crack each other up all the time. </div>
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Finley can hold her own with her brother and has become quite sassy (in a really cute way). She started crawling when she was six months old and is <i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">thisclose</span></i> to walking and gets into everything. She LOVES shoes and will chase you down to try to get yours off of your feet. Whenever anybody comes into our house, they have to take their shoes off and put them in our coat closet immediately before she can get to them. </div>
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She does not have her mama (and brother's) fear of heights and loves swinging and and climbing. I think we are going to have to worry more about her breaking bones or needing stitches when she gets older than we will with Camden. She definitely has an adventurous side. </div>
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She dances, claps, and bounces all day long and is such a happy baby.</div>
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She is not crazy about baby food and has been <strike>covering herself with food </strike>feeding herself for a while now. Her favorite food right now is cheese. </div>
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She has four teeth (her front tops and bottoms) and has started grinding them (it makes the most awful sound ever but her doctor said it sounds worse than it is) so we have been keeping pacis close by and popping them in her mouth whenever we hear her do it. </div>
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Despite her bubbly and extroverted personality, she is going through a major stranger-danger phase right now. She did not appreciate Santa this year. </div>
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She does appreciate a good tiara and fairy wings though :)</div>
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So there you have it, an update after nine months. I promise it won't be that long next time (I hope)! </div>
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</div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-11556626749100943792011-12-11T14:02:00.002-05:002012-03-28T14:52:53.644-04:00Cottage Cheese and CancerI absolutely adore my husband, but he is not necessarily the most observant person in the world. Patrick loves cottage cheese (which I can't stand unless I'm pregnant) and kept asking me what I did with the container of it in the fridge. I didn't even know we owned cottage cheese and if I did, I sure wasn't responsible for its disappearance. After he asked me about it for the fiftieth time, I opened the fridge to see if I could find it. I kid you not, it was the first thing I saw when I opened the door. It couldn't have been in a more prominent place. It was on the highest shelf, at eye-level, right smack in the center. <br />
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So you can imagine my reaction when I was brushing my teeth sometime at the end of June and Patrick noticed that a mole on my neck looked a little bigger and darker than he remembered it. Ooookay. I looked at it and it did seem a little different but I figured it was fine and eventually forgot about it. I had a questionable looking mole removed after I had Camden and although it turned out to be pre-cancerous (something called a dysplastic nevus), it <i>wasn't</i> cancerous. I figured this one was just like that one and who gets skin cancer in their twenties anyway? Patrick kept bugging me to get it checked so I finally made an appointment with my dermatologist. I went in, my doctor did a quick check of all my other moles and freckles, and said he would biopsy the mole in question but he didn't think it would turn out to be anything. He left the room, the nurse came in and gave me a shot with the local anesthetic, and the doctor came back in and took off the mole. It took about 5 minutes and we were out of there.<br />
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My mom came to visit for a few days and help me make some pillows for Fin's room. She was cutting fabric when my phone rang. I answered and when I heard my doctor's voice, my heart sank. I had completely forgotten about my biopsy and when I realized it was him calling instead of one of his nurses, I knew it was bad news. He told me that I had melanoma and then I freaked out. I am so glad my mom was there. He told me that he wanted me to come in that afternoon so he could talk to me about what we needed to do. <br />
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An hour later, Patrick met me at my doctor's office. It's amazing how fast things can change. One minute, your biggest worry is what size pillows to make for your daughter's room and the next minute, you're sitting in a cold little exam room waiting on a doctor to talk about what needs to be done about the cancer on your neck. My dermatologist is also a plastic surgeon and has had <s>whole bunch</s> a bit of work done himself. Let's just say it was hard to read his expression when he walked in the room. He always looks a little surprised. In his defense, he is probably one of the sweetest men I have ever met and is a fabulous doctor. Anyway, my doctor came in and after my futile attempt to evaluate the situation by reading his expression, he sat down to talk about my mole.<br />
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He told me that what I had is called "Superficial Spreading Melanoma." I breathed a little sigh of relief when he told me that. <i>Superficial? Doesn't that mean that it's just on the surface? That can't be too bad. </i>And then he told me that this type of melanoma is the leading cause of cancer deaths in my age group . <i>WHAT?! </i>I must have given him a look because he immediately followed that statement up by saying that since we caught mine early, it shouldn't be that hard to treat. <i>Whew.</i> Way to scare the crap out of me. <br />
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Because my melanoma was less than a millimeter thick, more than likely it hadn't had time to spread to my lymph nodes or any other parts of my body. If it had been closer to or over a millimeter thick, I would have had to have something called a "sentinel lymph node biopsy" to see if the melanoma cells had spread. They inject a dye into the mole to see what lymph nodes the melanoma drains into. Then they take out those lymph nodes and examine them to see if there are melanoma cells present. Luckily, my doctor was pretty confident that this surgery wasn't necessary and that my melanoma could be taken care of by a different type of surgery. I am so grateful that my sweet husband was so persistent in bugging me to get this mole checked. If I had waited a few more months, my melanoma could have spread and this would have been a completely different ball game. <br />
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My doctor explained that the type of surgery I would have to have is called a "wide local excision." In other words, I needed to have the mole and a big chunk of skin taken out to make sure the melanoma didn't spread or come back. He drew a picture on the back of my file to show me what the surgery would look like. Basically, there was a little dot about the diameter of a pencil eraser (my mole) and a bigger circle around it about the size of a quarter (the area he needed to take out to get a clear margin around the mole). Then he showed me that in order to stitch the area up without having it pucker on the ends, he needed to remove a triangular area above and below the quarter-sized circle. What he ended up with was a football shaped excision that was about 3 inches long. Eek. I had NO idea that such a tiny little mole would leave such a big scar. Luckily this was something that could be done in their office the next day and I wouldn't have to be put under for it.<br />
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This is a really crappy picture of my mole after it had been biopsied (I had a<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003840.htm" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">shave biopsy</span></a> </span>for this mole). My actual mole was a little bit smaller, but I wanted you to have a reference for size.<br />
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Before I could go home, my doctor sent me for a full lab work-up and a chest x-ray to see if there was any sign of cancer in my lungs. Luckily, everything came back clear. I went home to <strike>freak out some more</strike> get myself together. All night long, the only thing I could think of was getting that thing--<i>that cancer--</i>off of my neck. I don't remember much about that morning but I do remember going back to my doctor's office that afternoon, going back into that little room where my life changed, and having the sweetest nurse in the world administer my local anesthetic. My doctor came in a few minutes later, cranked up his iPod, and got to work. I think it only took him about forty-five minutes to do the actual surgery but it felt like <i>forever. </i>The worst part about it <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(other than when he hit a spot where the local anesthetic didn't quite numb--and the sweetest nurse ever quickly came to the rescue with her little needle)</span> was the fact that I could actually hear him cutting my skin. I'm sorry. I know that's gross, but nothing about skin cancer is pretty. <br />
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This is what my neck looked like about an hour after my surgery. The scar goes behind my ear as well. See, not pretty. All of that from a tiny mole.<br />
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After he got everything stitched up, they let Patrick come back to see me and we talked about the next step in my treatment. Although my melanoma wasn't alarmingly deep, my doctor still wanted me to go to an oncologist for a second opinion. He referred me to an amazing melanoma specialist at the Blumenthal Cancer Center in Charlotte who I went to see about two weeks later. He confirmed what my doctor had told me about not needing a sentinel lymph node biopsy and explained that my cancer was classified as Stage 1B (<a href="http://www.melanoma.org/learn-more/melanoma-101/staging-melanoma" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">here</span></a> is an explanation of melanoma staging from melanoma.org) and that the chances of this particular melanoma spreading to other parts of my body were less than 2%. I am at high risk of developing other melanomas, so I have to have my skin checked frequently by my dermatologist. I recently had two more moles biopsied that both came back clear and I go again in March for my next check. <br />
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I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would be dealing with cancer in my twenties. I tanned in tanning beds, laid in the sun without sunblock, and didn't take care of my skin. I knew it could cause skin cancer, but it was "just" skin cancer (please read <a href="http://adventurewithmelanoma.blogspot.com/2011/11/lets-not-say-that.html" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">this</span></a> post by my friend Chelsea). It never occurred to me that "just" skin cancer could threaten to take me away from my babies and my husband. It never occurred to me that it could leave me with a 3 inch scar on my neck for the rest of my life and worry in my heart. Please, please, please take care of your skin. Wear sunscreen everyday (even in the winter!!), be careful in the sun, check your skin for changes, and if you find a mole that <a href="http://www.melanoma.org/learn-more/melanoma-101/abcdes-melanoma" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">looks a little different</span></a>--get it checked out.Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-73645823937105152522011-03-30T16:46:00.002-04:002012-03-28T14:50:52.865-04:00Camden has been a busy guy...He got a baby sister AND turned two in the matter of a few weeks. <br />
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Finley Blair O'Rourke was born on February 10th at 7:46 am. We checked in to the hospital at 5:30 that morning for my scheduled c-section and when they hooked me up to the monitors to prep me for surgery, we found out I was in labor. I had been having random contractions for about a week and they never amounted to anything, but that morning they were about 3 minutes apart. Apparently she was coming that day no matter what :)</div>
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I opted for a repeat c-section with Finley since I had one with Cam. With him, I was induced, labored for about 24 hours, pushed for 2, and ended up with a c-section because I wasn't progressing and his heart rate was doing weird things towards the end. We found out after he was born that the c-section was the best choice we had ever made because he had a complete knot in his umbilical cord. I had so much anxiety over his birth that the prospect of a quick delivery by c-section seemed fabulous to me. </div>
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Finley entered the world screaming and then fell asleep (we learned pretty quickly that this is typical...she loves her sleep, just like her mama). </div>
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Camden came to meet her as soon as I was out of recovery. He wasn't very impressed with her since she was sleeping but LOVED my hospital room. It was toddler heaven with all sorts of tempting buttons and cords and un-childproofed<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;"> (not a real word?)</span> electrical outlets. She woke up later and he thought she was acceptable, especially after he realized that she had toes that he could play with and a house arrest-style ankle bracelet he could try to take off.</div>
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He's doing okay adjusting to being a big brother. He absolutely adores her and gives her kisses all the time, but he is still trying to come to terms with the fact that she is sticking around. The biggest issue we have had is that he gets really jealous when he thinks that Finley is going to be alone with us. We were having a hard time getting him to go to bed until we realized that he thought we were leaving him alone in his room to go play with Finley. We started having him help us put her to bed so he could see that we weren't having an all night dance party minus him and then he started going to bed without freaking out or waking up all night long. </div>
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I can't wait to see what kind of relationship they develop as they get older. He is constantly bringing her things to look at and trying to get her to play with his cars (that are overtaking my house). He gets so worried when she cries and brings her a paci <s>and tries to shove it in her mouth</s>. She gets a big gummy smile when she sees him and loves to "talk" to him. They are so similar in a lot of ways but completely different at the same time. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">In case you were wondering if the old wives tale about having heartburn when you are pregnant is true--it is. Very much so.</span></div>
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Since Camden's birthday was only a few weeks after Finley was born and I was still recovering from surgery, we didn't have a party for him this year and just had family over for brunch and cake instead. As you can tell from the picture below, Camden didn't mind. He went from politely eating his cake with a fork to shoving it in his mouth like an apple in about two seconds. </div>
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We took Camden to his second LPA regional conference at the Great Wolf Lodge in Williamsburg the weekend after his birthday. Unfortunately, he was sick with a stomach bug and ear infection (his first since October) but he still managed to get the attention of all the <s>Irish dancers</s> ladies. </div>
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He also got to hang out with his buddies Brea and Betsy Grace and we got to spend time with their wonderful families. We are so blessed to have them and all of our LPA family in our lives. </div>
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I am really loving being at home with Cam and Finley. I miss my class, my colleagues, and teaching, but nothing beats spending the day with my babies. </div>
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<br /></div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-4093744824872017362011-03-17T16:59:00.001-04:002012-03-28T14:51:13.363-04:00St. Patrick's Day Photo FailI tried really hard to get Camden and Finley to pose for pictures in their green on St. Patrick's day. Finley was grumpy and Camden was <s> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">being a two year old</span></s> not cooperating. <br />
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This is the best one I got of the two of them together. Notice the toothbrush in Cam's mouth. I thought that was a nice touch.</div>
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Then Cam ran off so I thought I'd get one of Finley by herself. Not great.</div>
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This one is a little better but she looks like she is trying to take the camera away from me. </div>
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Then Patrick tried. Cam wouldn't let go of the toothbrush and added a toy drumstick to the mix. Finley still isn't happy about having her picture taken.</div>
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If you're interested, my killer photography skills are for hire. You're welcome.</div>
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<br /></div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-75769534063599648332010-11-07T10:21:00.001-05:002012-03-28T14:51:53.842-04:00An update, FINALLY!The last time I updated my blog, I was about 7 weeks pregnant and on summer break. I'm now 26 weeks (!!!) and Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Since my grandpa checks my blog every day hoping for an update, I think it's about time that I finally gave him something to read, and more importantly, some pictures of his great grandson:)<br />
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First of all, we found out at the beginning of October that Baby 2 is a GIRL! Her name is Finley Blair, and we are so excited for Camden to have a little sister. Finley is a Scotch-Irish name from Patrick's side of the family and Blair is an Irish name that has been really popular on my side. In fact, when my family immigrated from Ireland, they settled in Blairs, Virginia. </div>
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I felt Finley move for the first time at about 16 weeks and she is a wild woman. I didn't feel Cam move until I was almost 24 weeks with him, so she definitely made her presence known early! Camden points to my tummy and says "baby" all the time, but definitely doesn't know what he is in for with a little sister:) </div>
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Things looked great at her 12 and 20 week ultrasounds and we go back in a few weeks for one more. We are going to the same Maternal Fetal Specialists that we went to when they found the spot on Cam's heart for a more comprehensive ultrasound to just double check her growth. They are just doing it as a precaution because of Cam's dwarfism. There isn't any indication that she has Hypo and it would be really rare if she were to have it since neither Patrick and I are carriers, but since we opted out of the amnio we get to see her one more time. </div>
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This is a picture of a distracted Cam and me at 25 weeks on Halloween. She is getting so big! I can't believe I am going to be in the 3rd trimester in a few weeks. I am dying to get started on her nursery. Patrick is using her room as an office so he can study for his CFP exam, but as soon as he is done (just a few more weeks!!!!!), I am going to be in a nesting frenzy. </div>
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Camden is growing up so fast and we still can't believe he's ours. He's running everywhere and is so sweet. He's really into giving us kisses and hugs and loves to share his snacks and toys. Let me just tell you, already chewed-up gold fish are super appetizing. He's really into cars and blocks and anything he can push around. Especially his little car he got from Aunt Jess and Uncle Joe last Christmas. He runs over our cat and slams it into walls. He's not getting his drivers license until he's 40. </div>
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We stopped daycare a few weeks ago because Cam was sick constantly and now one of my student's moms (I taught his older brother too!) is keeping him for us. I can't tell you what a blessing she has been to us. He's doing great now and we have been ear infection-free for about a month! <br />
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Since I'm a bad blog-updater, here are some pictures from the last few months:<br />
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<br /></div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-72494837092242930122010-06-25T00:38:00.004-04:002012-03-28T14:52:34.933-04:00Surprise!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Camden is going to be a big brother! My official due date is February 17, 2011. Those of you that know my sweet husband are aware that he is <span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: line-through;">obsessed</span> a big fan of Michael Jordan. If Baby 2 happens to arrive on its due date, he or she will share a birthday with #23. <br />
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We have debated telling family and friends this early on in the pregnancy but we realized that neither one of us could keep it a secret for too long. That, and I'm already showing a little bit. I'm hoping I'm just bloated but I've already had someone ask me when I'm due. Joking aside, the main reason we wanted to tell everyone this early is so that you can keep this little baby and our family in your prayers. Please pray that Baby 2 is healthy. Please also pray for an uneventful pregnancy. We had lots of stuff going on during my pregnancy with Camden (meetings with perinatologists, non-stress tests, high blood pressure, etc) and I'm starting to feel a lot of that anxiety coming back. <br />
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We went for our initial ultrasound this morning and Baby 2 is measuring right on track and had a fabulous heartbeat! It has already learned how to wave hello! All it needs now are some arms. <br />
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Right now, Baby 2 is the size of a sweet pea:</div>
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We haven't decided yet if we are going to find out the sex of the baby. Patrick let me decide when we were pregnant with Camden so it's his turn this time:) We go back in a few weeks for another ultrasound called an NT (nuchal translucency) scan where they will be able to give us an idea if the baby is at risk for certain types of birth defects. There is also a sequential blood screening that goes along with it. When I was pregnant with Cam, my doctor only recommended this test for high risk patients so we didn't have it but this time around it's become routine. Plus we get to see the baby again! This pregnancy is not considered high risk but because of Camden's dwarfism we were also offered an amnio to see if Baby 2 is affected. We declined. Because Cam's dwarfism was spontaneous and neither of us are carriers of the mutation, there is very little chance that Baby 2 will have hypo. </div>
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When we were leaving our ultrasound after talking about all of the testing that's available to us, I couldn't help but wonder how we never found out that Camden had hypo before he was born. With all of the technology available, it just amazes me that there weren't any clues along the way. It wouldn't have changed anything if we had known before he was born, but maybe it would have helped us prepare a little more. </div>
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Things like that make me realize how purposeful God's plan is and I revel in the fact that even though it may not be what we expect, it's <i>perfect </i>anyway. I may never understand why things happened the way they did but I have faith that they happened that way for a reason. And I'm okay with that.</div>
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<br /></div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-34164105194611405842010-06-16T22:57:00.002-04:002012-03-28T14:53:31.947-04:00Forget Voice Mail<div style="text-align: left;">
Apparently I'm worse at updating my blog than I am at listening to voicemails. Now that school is out for the summer, I have no excuse for not updating:) I think one of the reasons it takes me forever to return phone calls/write blog posts is because I want to have time to invest in the person I'm talking to or writing for. If I only have a few minutes, I feel like I can't put my heart into what I say. And my heart has been so full over the past few months that I just felt like I couldn't get everything out the way I wanted to without spending some quality time with my Mac. And unfortunately for it, my Mac has some serious competition when it come to attention-getting:</div>
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He wins every time. What has this <span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: line-through;">baby </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">toddler </span>been up to? Here is a quick little update about Camden to catch you up:<br />
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<li style="text-align: left;">He is talking and babbling constantly. Currently anything he points to is an <i>apple</i> or <i>apple juice</i>. I don't think I have to add a separate bullet for his favorite food/beverage. He also says <i>hi dad</i> (with the phone up to his ear), <i>hi cat <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">(usually while he is terrorizing our cat Chloe)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">, <i>mama</i>, <i>dada</i>, <i>baby</i>,<i> bottle</i>, <i>Aunt B</i>, </span>yay<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">, and a bunch of other stuff we haven't quite figured out yet. He also meows when he sees or hears Chloe. </span></i></li>
<li style="text-align: left;">He is sooo snuggly. My favorite is when he comes up behind me when I'm cooking and attaches himself to my leg like a little koala. So cute.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">He is walking! This is such a big deal for us because we were told during our whirlwind appointments surrounding his diagnosis that he probably wouldn't be walking until 18 months. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">He has 9 teeth and 2 molars. We haven't gotten a lot of sleep lately. We did have about 2 blissful months of all-night sleep until round 2 of teething started a few weeks ago. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">He LOVES Chloe. She loves him back and lets him do this: </li>
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<li style="text-align: left;">He loves to dance and pretend like things are drums:</li>
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<li style="text-align: left;">He can point to his belly button, nose, and tries to put on his shoes by himself. He also tries to put on his own diaper when he's not spinning like an alligator on the changing table.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">He is a climber. He loves to climb onto the back of his chair in our living room and turn the TV on and off. I have also found him on top of the whicker hamper in his room. Hopefully I won't find him on top of the refrigerator one day like our cat. </li>
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</div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-90107502933133996222010-03-05T09:50:00.012-05:002012-03-28T14:53:47.140-04:00Hypochondroplasia Update<div>
I'm am way behind in updating our blog and am working on a 1st birthday post but I just wanted to get the boring medical stuff updated before I move on to more important things:). We met with Cam's genetic counselor, the other Cam, about his new diagnosis of Hypochondroplasia (from now on I'm going to refer to it as "hypo" because, let's be honest, it's the longest word ever) just to get a little more information about it and ask her a million questions. We played phone tag for about a week<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(I'm still working on being a better voicemail checker...)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span>and we finally decided on a time to meet the next morning. This is just another example of how amazing the genetics department at Levine Children's Hospital has been through all of this. They have gotten us in super-fast for appointments that usually take months to schedule and have gone above and beyond to make us feel comfortable. I really can't say enough about them! </div>
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Anyway, Genetic Counselor Cam explained at our meeting that hypo is very similar to achondroplasia but that Camden may grow to be a little taller than expected and we may be able to use growth hormone treatments that we wouldn't have been able to use with achondroplasia. Generally, hypo is milder than achondroplasia. The mutation for hypo is in the same gene as achon (the FGFR3 gene) but it occurs at a different position within the gene. We have to monitor the same things and he will still be measured on the achon growth chart. There is still a risk for spinal compression so he will have to be careful about rough sports and get regular CT scans. </div>
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We went for Cam's 12 month well visit yesterday (it was scheduled for today but he's been sick so I took him in yesterday) and he has almost fallen off the charts for average height kids but was in the 75th percentile for height on the achon chart! Go Cammers! He escaped getting his shots since he had a fever so we have to go back for those once he's better. We are going to an ENT in April to talk about having his adenoids and tonsils removed so he can breathe better and hopefully won't invite us to anymore late-night dance parties in his room (as much as we love those, we also love sleeping too:)). Kids with dwarfism often have issues with breathing/snoring and sleep apnea, so it's a pretty common procedure. After that, hopefully there won't be anymore big doctor visits other than check-ups. He needs a break! </div>
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</span></div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-62989172486763130422010-02-04T16:59:00.003-05:002012-03-28T14:53:58.561-04:00Voice MailI am really bad at checking my voice mail. REALLY bad. I have a habit of leaving them as reminders to call people back after I've missed a call. Then I forget that they are still in my inbox and a few days (or weeks) later, I realize that I forgot and panic that the people whose calls I've missed are upset because I haven't called them back. Then I listen to all of them at once and try to call everyone back. And then usually I have to leave voice mails for the people I call back and then they call me back and I miss their call and they leave me one...it's a vicious cycle and maybe one day I will learn my lesson.<br />
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Anyways, today was one of those days that I panicked and realized I had a bunch of voice mails I hadn't listened to. I had a few from my mom, a reminder that I had an appointment to get my hair cut last Thursday, a call from my dad, and a few from Patrick when he was still in Jackson Hole.<br />
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And then there was the one from Camden's genetic counselor.<br />
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When we had our initial meeting with Cam's geneticist on December 15th, they did a skeletal exam (aka, they took about a million x-rays of every bone in Cam's body) and also took blood to run a DNA test to confirm that Camden has the genetic mutation for achondroplasia. A few days after the appointment, his genetic counselor (who is also named Cam:)) called to tell us that the skeletal exam came back consistent with Dr. Spence's diagnosis of achon. She said she would call us in a month or so when the DNA test results came back for more confirmation.<br />
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I called her back when I got the message today and of course, got her voice mail. I left her a message to call me back while simultaneously praying that I wouldn't miss her call so she wouldn't fall back into my voice mail black hole. She called back about 15 minutes later, right after I picked up my phone to make sure my ringer was on. I apologized for being a crappy voice mail checker and she laughed and told me that she was actually glad that I called back today instead of last week.<br />
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This is when it gets weird.<br />
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She told me that she called last week to tell us that the test they ran to confirm Cam's achon came back NEGATIVE.<br />
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NEGATIVE.<br />
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<span style="font-size: 180%;">WHAT?</span><br />
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Apparently they tested him for the 2 most common gene mutations that are found in people with achon. And they both came back NEGATIVE. WHAT?<br />
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So of course I freaked out. Did this mean that we are back at square one? Would we have to go back to more specialists to try to find out what else could be causing all of Cam's growth issues? Would he have to have more tests and meet more scary people in white coats?<br />
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Then she told me the good news. She told me that they sent his sample back to the lab to test it for a different mutation--one found in a different type of dwarfism called hypochondroplasia, which is very similar to achon. Apparently when I called a few minutes before, she had JUST gotten the results back from that test. She told me was seeing a patient and when she finished with that appointment, the results were waiting for her on her desk. Dr. Spence hadn't even seen them yet. She said that as she was thumbing through Camden's folder, she happened to check her voice mail and hear my message. WEIRD.<br />
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She then went on to tell me that Cam DOES have the mutation for hypochondroplasia.<br />
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I can't tell you how excited I am to know 100% for sure what is going on with my little guy...<br />
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...and I promise I am going to be a much better voice mail checker from now on:)</div>Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-6629032252084779872010-01-27T17:37:00.007-05:002012-03-28T14:54:27.818-04:00Baby TeethCamden has been getting a bunch of new teeth lately. This means that during the day, Cam is his super-perky, cute self and then he transforms into a drooling, grumpy mess as soon as he realizes bedtime is near. Last night when we were playing in his room before bed, he was happily clapping, dancing, chasing our cat, and pulling up on everything. About 15 minutes later, you would have thought I was lowering him into a fiery pit of lava instead of his crib. Usually at bedtime, we put him down in his crib, he sits up and waves as we walk out of the room, and then we hear a plop over the monitor a few seconds later and we know he has zonked out, so this whole crying when I put him in his crib thing is new. I think part of it is a little separation anxiety from being away from his daddy (Patrick is on a snowboarding trip to Jackson Hole this week, and it's the longest he's ever been away from Cam) but I think it's mostly because of those teeth. He literally shakes with joy when he sees the Tylenol bottle. My poor little guy.<br />
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<span style="font-size: 180%;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9plk6pQL4sQhDbQsAWtKJi8OhFcpR-hfDBDhySWFbrQWj01fMrg-wz90Sue9PHEvPS9jImIVtgz5sKSQ_SuelVRL3Kfhw1CgPuvki3yjvz8uL_e3rWF3D2SdUINORJk0Lih7n2OizbhmT/s1600-h/IMG_3526.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431559166910481474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9plk6pQL4sQhDbQsAWtKJi8OhFcpR-hfDBDhySWFbrQWj01fMrg-wz90Sue9PHEvPS9jImIVtgz5sKSQ_SuelVRL3Kfhw1CgPuvki3yjvz8uL_e3rWF3D2SdUINORJk0Lih7n2OizbhmT/s320/IMG_3526.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 320px; width: 180px;" /></a></span></div>
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Camden is also suddenly into <span style="font-style: italic;">everything. </span>He's been mobile for a long time but has always been happy moving from toy to toy and pulling up on the occasional piece of furniture. Now, all of our furniture is bolted to the wall and his favorite "toys" are any type of electrical cord and any teeny tiny little object that he finds on the floor that he's not supposed to have. After an afternoon of intercepting him speed-crawling toward a variety of cords and pulling little crumbs out of his jaws-of-life grip, I am now an obsessive vacuumer and all of our cords are carefully hidden away. We baby proofed our house a while ago but it's amazing what you overlook. This age is SO much fun but it takes the worrying to a whole new level:)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSHn_ccBm4XEmGq2wYDkdyjhtU5RUHZoSZpwGP54VmdOeb6852ACN1M6LNvsVn9jigMyqTXtp2xb3p4ueXFx6f8T4HSRk4WcWJLHl_dTuZiEporvkm_G-gXIneyHYfC0dD-O1NEu0vYKaU/s1600-h/IMG_3530.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431565147438260034" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSHn_ccBm4XEmGq2wYDkdyjhtU5RUHZoSZpwGP54VmdOeb6852ACN1M6LNvsVn9jigMyqTXtp2xb3p4ueXFx6f8T4HSRk4WcWJLHl_dTuZiEporvkm_G-gXIneyHYfC0dD-O1NEu0vYKaU/s320/IMG_3530.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 320px; width: 180px;" /></a><br />
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All of these new developments have brought me closer to coming to grips with the "T" word <span style="font-size: 78%;">(</span><span style="font-size: 78%;">toddler)</span>. I can't even type it without getting teary-eyed. I have been in total denial and have tried really, really hard to ignore the elephant in the room, but I guess it's time for me to admit that he's not a baby anymore (even though he'll always be <span style="font-style: italic;">my</span> baby). Everybody tells you how fast it goes but I had no idea it would go by <span style="font-style: italic;">this </span>fast. I feel like I'm going to wake up one day and he's going to be a kindergartner. Or even worse, a <span style="font-style: italic;">teenager</span>.Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-24676554372645898712010-01-11T22:23:00.001-05:002012-03-28T14:54:41.209-04:00Camden's First Date (and some other fun stuff)We went over to our friends P.J. and Jessica's house for dinner on New Years Day and Camden got to hang out with their their precious baby girl, Cara. They held hands and gave each other hugs. And then Cam stole her lipstick. And they poked each other in the eyes and stuck their fingers in each other's mouths. You know, typical first date stuff.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVzfzTzzxSuyvpPEA0PcW5Vx3KbM8i5sXWJLB5B_kGhNeS_5J1Hny5U_p2ahy5R6Rjfd3W6SvK-tQx0_sNxYGkoqFKYRZTYH1tijX8tkncZkhnbFEP1_kYWzCyvqDTfom0RPdxlQ5YikIl/s1600-h/cara+and+cam.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425680811110059986" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVzfzTzzxSuyvpPEA0PcW5Vx3KbM8i5sXWJLB5B_kGhNeS_5J1Hny5U_p2ahy5R6Rjfd3W6SvK-tQx0_sNxYGkoqFKYRZTYH1tijX8tkncZkhnbFEP1_kYWzCyvqDTfom0RPdxlQ5YikIl/s200/cara+and+cam.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; height: 134px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
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Cam got his hair cut for the first time on Saturday. We went out to eat lunch before and we ordered from the kid's menu for the first time. He got a grilled cheese and danced while he ate it. Then we went to a place near our house called "Pigtails and Crewcuts" (how cute is that?!) and Cam settled into his fire truck for his very first big boy hair cut. He laughed, he cried, he drove his little heart out, and then it was finally over and he got an animal cracker to celebrate.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSmjlcDPbm7iwYQua6EqYo7CnV1xJmD4OzAiIdz6XvstN8pm11eU5bFYihgVYxydLkI8Cgn8Ek96XHWJ7CpxuYNCD5LfzS9BNs0wEzQI0herZ1D9NZB-RW6-HRdQjc7Oc7zS1xtrKbNgu/s1600-h/IMG_3479.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425683546972422514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtSmjlcDPbm7iwYQua6EqYo7CnV1xJmD4OzAiIdz6XvstN8pm11eU5bFYihgVYxydLkI8Cgn8Ek96XHWJ7CpxuYNCD5LfzS9BNs0wEzQI0herZ1D9NZB-RW6-HRdQjc7Oc7zS1xtrKbNgu/s200/IMG_3479.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 200px; width: 112px;" /></a><br />
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On Sunday, Camden's good friend Emma came over to play. I got to chat with her mommy, Jennifer, about how fast our babies are growing (they were born 2 weeks apart) and the babies had a blast.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfCDo-tG0oybE8jKX_9mrj-FH69OoULNO5OoTj6b_irTwD9dzJYEecxR-wKTvmaetl7ust7l4m7T6Tes2EM3sDrZFBRf-x6FRt1aEvLOTT8lwrQtmi4YA9QcB0oAfbNGK5T0nfV9_0C5ZP/s1600-h/IMG_3502.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425686126741716018" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfCDo-tG0oybE8jKX_9mrj-FH69OoULNO5OoTj6b_irTwD9dzJYEecxR-wKTvmaetl7ust7l4m7T6Tes2EM3sDrZFBRf-x6FRt1aEvLOTT8lwrQtmi4YA9QcB0oAfbNGK5T0nfV9_0C5ZP/s200/IMG_3502.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 112px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
This is one of the few pictures of their playdate where Camden wasn't doing this crazy looking "smile" that he all of a sudden decided to do in all of his pictures. As soon as he sees the red-eye flash, he poses and does this huge grin. Here is a picture I took of him tonight cheesing it up before bedtime:<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHyFE7OH7VSLvZKS82YHE_MEPGjOj7UH6Cb4gsD_KpXc-9qDXnM3rWK5miziaLfp3sVcS5vSBilRrVR3zH054xcNnOZs_iNnGNBREhUHyM850EvctimI-7t63xc_JXZHUOtCLvGHOes0jj/s1600-h/IMG_3510.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425687482128423474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHyFE7OH7VSLvZKS82YHE_MEPGjOj7UH6Cb4gsD_KpXc-9qDXnM3rWK5miziaLfp3sVcS5vSBilRrVR3zH054xcNnOZs_iNnGNBREhUHyM850EvctimI-7t63xc_JXZHUOtCLvGHOes0jj/s200/IMG_3510.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; height: 200px; width: 112px;" /></a><br />
He is such a ham:)Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-88567745013183580542010-01-02T14:04:00.002-05:002012-03-28T14:54:59.232-04:00A New NormalIt's been almost a month since we got our news about Camden and I can't tell you how much this little boy has changed our lives, especially in the past few weeks. I keep saying this has been such a blessing to us, and I know it may be hard for a lot of people to understand why, but it truly has been. Don't get me wrong, we have struggled and shed our fair share of tears, but most of that happened BEFORE we got Cam's diagnosis when we were in that scary place of knowing something was "wrong" but not knowing what it was. <br />
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After that first well-child checkup when Camden's measurements were so disproportionate, I found myself holding my breath whenever the nurses would pull out the tape measure. <span style="font-style: italic;">Every single time</span> they would say "that can't be right" and recheck everything, only to get the same measurements. His growth charts always looked so "off" and that's such a nerve-racking thing to see as a mom. We started blaming ourselves, thinking he wasn't eating the way he should, or that we needed to start supplementing with formula, or that he wasn't getting enough of all the vitamins he needed from me. Camden has never really been a fan of the bottle since he's been exclusively breastfed since he was born and I started blaming myself for the fact that he wasn't growing the way he "should." We thought it would get better once he started solids but it never did. Cam's pediatrician has always been wonderful and has been very emphatic that we were doing everything right, but we couldn't help but feel like we were failing our son if he wasn't growing the way he should. <br />
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It turns out we <span style="font-style: italic;">were</span> doing everything right, but we just weren't measuring him on the right scale. Once Dr. Spence inputted his measurements on a growth chart for kids with achondroplasia, suddenly Cam's measurements were completely on track. His head circumference was in the 25th percentile and his height and weight were in the 75th. We had been comparing apples to oranges all along. It has been SUCH a relief to know that Camden is okay and that he's been fine this whole time.<br />
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Not only has Cam's diagnosis brought us peace about his growth and his health, but it has also brought our family together in a way I never knew was possible. It has made me realize just how supportive and loving both sides of our families are. It is so humbling to know how adored your child is by the people around you. Everyone has handled the news about Camden in their own way but it has ultimately brought us all to the same place--a place where we are just thankful for the healthy, happy little guy we are all crazy about. It has also added a new dimension to my marriage that I will forever be grateful for. It has made me fall in love with Patrick all over again and has really shown me what a wonderful <span style="font-style: italic;">friend</span> I have in him in addition to the amazing husband he's always been. We've met so many new people that have truly become part of our family and have had so much support from everyone around us. I know Camden will have challenges being a little person, but it is incredibly comforting to know that he's got so much support and love around him. Thank you so much for all of the prayers and encouragement. You have no idea how much it means to us.Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-40916434097915926982010-01-01T16:39:00.000-05:002012-03-28T14:55:13.235-04:002009 in Pictures<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Oy0w3TcV9VSRXeYAjxhyq9AJMSGf05kECyiBok7eq0euRACJReTH3vF12ECK5UV53iWlpv0egYeX0Jvzqz2i5BASZtriRMSvxvVXhmv8in2spQtyKG6hJhIJ-5pXu0WtmfYFwsvK3Pz0/s1600-h/IMG_1705.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422261132489732498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3Oy0w3TcV9VSRXeYAjxhyq9AJMSGf05kECyiBok7eq0euRACJReTH3vF12ECK5UV53iWlpv0egYeX0Jvzqz2i5BASZtriRMSvxvVXhmv8in2spQtyKG6hJhIJ-5pXu0WtmfYFwsvK3Pz0/s200/IMG_1705.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 150px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
January<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6DPI2fT7duFIG4YcNoig7dFqPoBq4NCtIfVfWPvqQSWqKY68Cp7K5wtXFAdHWxwL1FFhVyTKR8nvKMha_DWp_PNZpFQ1Cmz2K5uJIjXbAnGoEU3F6lbFhc1_pRj48yjKJt4T3YkgtlwwQ/s1600-h/IMG_1793.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422262040409346450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6DPI2fT7duFIG4YcNoig7dFqPoBq4NCtIfVfWPvqQSWqKY68Cp7K5wtXFAdHWxwL1FFhVyTKR8nvKMha_DWp_PNZpFQ1Cmz2K5uJIjXbAnGoEU3F6lbFhc1_pRj48yjKJt4T3YkgtlwwQ/s200/IMG_1793.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 150px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
February<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjonpZ5MwoVoM4mN8Bfd4uiWbNqMWXgra-udwyFn0fbdi6ZtZmmSOJbyUDjo4vvO5-73SYfCvuzH4NyaIIRro9SBBOc8WTuFct7imu21Yl0Jsu9kC45gpi86mc8mqCBoknnklZbbw5UwMm3/s1600-h/IMG_1904.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422264410695105794" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjonpZ5MwoVoM4mN8Bfd4uiWbNqMWXgra-udwyFn0fbdi6ZtZmmSOJbyUDjo4vvO5-73SYfCvuzH4NyaIIRro9SBBOc8WTuFct7imu21Yl0Jsu9kC45gpi86mc8mqCBoknnklZbbw5UwMm3/s200/IMG_1904.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 150px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
March<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjumZewydm5pBuCa9QW1oP_3ia3LPo64ITOBph10hmA74Js365Q79A0zhHZDqdGbhm4eC6-G-dM0pJhOx2ZnDl4aHpF6EMFiAuiFZw6WiLjzgAWm5GHCns51gFK8HL2lhuI0Z2gARV9nGCY/s1600-h/IMG_2207.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422265269596241186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjumZewydm5pBuCa9QW1oP_3ia3LPo64ITOBph10hmA74Js365Q79A0zhHZDqdGbhm4eC6-G-dM0pJhOx2ZnDl4aHpF6EMFiAuiFZw6WiLjzgAWm5GHCns51gFK8HL2lhuI0Z2gARV9nGCY/s200/IMG_2207.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 200px; width: 150px;" /></a><br />
April<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizP2oTP4pLzq4KgfCoJKsAeSqfcYfwNGkMqxzTJYD79dotcqFCTXoTNXU-dSB_46gsFu4A4wKmv-u2DULgnb-ppwSJjK1zNbJblkymXBghPIoscdw-UzpL9_ECgO87cs0ywzBt96m2BRkG/s1600-h/IMG_2325.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422266154785878130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizP2oTP4pLzq4KgfCoJKsAeSqfcYfwNGkMqxzTJYD79dotcqFCTXoTNXU-dSB_46gsFu4A4wKmv-u2DULgnb-ppwSJjK1zNbJblkymXBghPIoscdw-UzpL9_ECgO87cs0ywzBt96m2BRkG/s200/IMG_2325.JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; height: 150px; width: 200px;" /></a><br />
May<br />
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June<br />
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July<br />
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August<br />
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September<br />
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October<br />
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November<br />
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DecemberJanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-57323547401703377732009-12-30T13:00:00.000-05:002012-03-28T14:55:25.152-04:00QuestionsWe have had a lot of people ask us questions about Camden's dwarfism and I realize that many people have questions they want to ask, but just don't know how. I thought I would write this post to answer some of the most frequent questions we've gotten. Please know that we welcome any questions that you have, so please don't be afraid to ask. Besides we really love talking about Camden:)<br />
<br />
*I got all of the statistics from the LPA website<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;"><br />What is achondroplasia? </span><br />
Achondroplasia is a skeletal disorder that causes dwarfism. Camden's body does not convert cartilage into bone as efficiently and as quickly as a person of average height. Because of this, his bones (especially the long bones in his arms and legs) will be shorter than normal. Achondroplasia is the most common type of dwarfism and it occurs in 1: 26,000-40,000 births.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">Is it an inherited condition?</span><br />
In Camden's case it is not inherited. More than 80% of all babies born with achon come from average size parents with no family history of the condition. Camden's achon was caused by a random gene mutation at conception. He has one normal gene and one abnormal gene. He has a 50% chance of passing it on to his children. <br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">How tall will Cam be?</span><br />
We have no idea exactly how tall he will be but the average height for an adult male with achon is about 4 feet. <br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;"><br />What can be done to treat it? </span> <br />
This question has been hard for me to answer because I don't view achondroplasia as a disease that needs to be treated, but instead as a condition that needs to be managed. There is no way to "fix" Cam's condition. There has been a lot of research done about growth hormone therapy, but it hasn't proven to be very effective. There are also limb-lengthening treatments and surgeries that are incredibly expensive and painful. It doesn't make sense to us to put Cam through those types of things to try to "correct" his dwarfism. We don't want him to grow up thinking that there is something wrong with him, and to me, that is what those treatments would do. He is going to be little so we don't think it's fair to put Cam through those things just to gain a few inches. We want him to be proud of who he is. <br />
On the other hand, there are things we need to monitor closely to make sure he is safe and healthy. For example, he will have to have regular CT scans to monitor the opening at the base of his skull. In average height people, this opening is round, but in people with achon, the hole is misshapen so there is a possibility of his spine being "pinched" or cerebral-spinal fluid not passing efficiently. Cam had a CT scan a few months ago when we went to see the neurosurgeon and everything looked great. Also, kids with achon are prone to ear infections because they have shorter ear canals/nasal passages so he may have to have tubes put in eventually. He's never had an ear infection, so this may not be a problem for us. He may also end up needing physical therapy depending on his development. <br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Will your future kids have a chance of being born with dwarfism?</span><br />
Most likely, they won't be. Since Cam's dwarfism was random, there is very little possibility of it happening again.<br />
<br />
<br />
I think the main thing that Patrick and I want everyone to know is that Cam is a totally normal kid that just happens to be small. Achondroplasia is not a mental disability and is not a handicap. He will grow up to be anything he wants to be. He will be able to go to college, get married, have kids of his own--whatever he wants to achieve, he can. He may just need a stool every once in a while to reach things:)Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6545661723955410747.post-11287200070407247122009-12-17T22:16:00.004-05:002012-03-28T14:55:50.423-04:00Our StoryWe found out we were pregnant with Camden in June of 2008 when we were visiting Patrick's family in Michigan. We had a miscarriage a month before and were excited to find out that we were pregnant again. I took about a million pregnancy tests just to be sure it was true. Seeing that pink plus sign over and over again was one of the best feelings in the world. I was blessed with a really easy pregnancy until our anatomy ultrasound at 20 weeks. The ultrasound tech saw a white "spot" on Camden's heart that was abnormal. We went to a perinatologist for a more comprehensive ultrasound and he determined that the spot was an area of calcification on his heart that wasn't anything to worry about. We were so relieved.<br />
<br />
Fast forward 20 weeks and 2 days and our brand new baby boy arrived. After about 14 hours of labor, a failed epidural, a new epidural, 2 hours of pushing, and a c-section later, Camden was finally in our arms. Everything about him was perfect. All 8 pounds and 21 inches of him. Patrick was the proudest daddy in the world, and I turned into mush when I met my sweet guy. <br />
<br />
He grew like a weed and by the time his first month check-up rolled around, he had gained 5 (!!) pounds and grown almost an inch. At check-up after check-up, Camden grew and grew and grew. Then we went in for his 6 month appointment and everything changed. All of a sudden his head circumference jumped to the 95th percentile and his height and weight dropped to below the 25th. His doctor was worried that there was fluid around his brain that had caused the discrepancy so she sent us for a cranial ultrasound a few days later. She also mentioned the possibility of surgery to correct it and Patrick and I were terrified.<br />
<br />
They performed an ultrasound through the soft spot on Cam's head to look for any fluid that could have built up. We breathed a sigh of relief when Cam's doctor called a few days later to tell us there wasn't any fluid detected. She went on to tell us that she wanted us to go have a consultation with a neurosurgeon to rule out anything else that could be going on. So we freaked out again. <br />
<br />
The neurosurgeon examined Camden and told us that he didn't think there was anything that he was really worried about but that he still wanted Camden to have a CT scan just to be sure. <br />
<br />
We went to the hospital later that week and Camden had the CT scan...<br />
<br />
...that came back normal.<br />
<br />
So we celebrated. But we still knew there was something we were missing.<br />
<br />
I took Cam to his 9 month appointment and this time, his height fell to the 10th percentile and his head circumference was almost off the charts. His doctor suggested doing a battery of blood tests to see if there was an issue with his thyroid, or if he was anemic, or if there was any other clue to what was going on. <br />
<br />
After more normal test results, we were relieved but still knew there was something else. Cam's doctor called me at 6 pm on a Friday night, an hour after their office closed, and told me she had been pouring over his charts trying to come up with an answer. She told me that she wanted us to meet with a genetics specialist to rule out another possibility. I asked her what that possibility was and when she said "achondroplasia," my heart jumped. As soon as she said that word, so many things made sense. I called Patrick and told him and his immediate reaction was that our doctor was crazy. <br />
<br />
Then it sank in and we started researching it. The more we learned about it, the more we felt like we were closer to finding an answer for our sweet boy. Camden's doctor called the geneticist personally and got us an appointment for the next week. The genetics department had a 6-7 month waiting period for appointments so we were both relieved and nervous about getting an appointment so quickly.<br />
<br />
December 15th came and Patrick and I took Camden to Levine Childrens' Hospital to meet with the genetics specialist. After a meeting with a genetic counselor, Dr. Spence came in to meet Camden. He took some measurements, looked at Cam's hands, did a few other tests, and told us that he believed our son has Achondroplasia. <br />
<br />
It sounds weird, but as soon as he said it, Patrick and I were relieved. All of this guessing and testing and wondering was over and we finally knew the answer. Camden is healthy, happy, and has a life full of possibilities ahead of him, and that put Patrick and I at peace. It isn't a disease. It isn't something that he needs to be operated on or medicated for. It's just him. <br />
<br />
We are so lucky to be Camden's parents. We are humbled that God entrusted with such an amazing child and we are so excited start this new chapter in our life.Janehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00168985894206136185noreply@blogger.com4