Calvin has been with us now 7 months and he is such a different child. He is happier, more relaxed with us, not as scared or uptight. He now knows mommy tickling him, rolling on the floor with him is fun and not scary. I remind him mommy won't hurt you, mommy takes care of you, mommy is playing with you. Before he would be really scared and cry. He is also now being affectionate on his own without us initiating it. He will hug my leg and say lub you. He will not sit next to us on the couch when watching t.v, instead of sitting in the bean bag on the floor. He loves his bath time and reminds us every night at dinner.
Language: Calvin uses I instead of saying Calvin (he does this sometimes but not as much), he did use the past tense (I saw fire truck). He prefers to just used 2 words to get his point across, but when redirected he will use a sentence like: May I have another book, instead of , book please.
Next week he is being evaluated by the school district for speech therapy, OT and PT. He isn't falling as much either, probably because he weighs more and is building up his strength. After his dental procedure though, he was a bit tipsy for a few days. He has another dental procedure coming up the first week of March (2 more fillings).
Another mile stone is we left him and our 2 girls with a close family friend for an hour so we could go out and celebrate Valentine's Day. He did fine. My friend though did say he would bring toys and play close to her (insecurity?) . After his nap he was also a bit emotional (weepy)and couldn't explain why. He kept saying because......because...... I tried to give him feelings, and he said he was sad but couldn't say why he was sad. We talked about how mommy will always come back and how we take his sisters to school and always pick them up and bring them home. I am not sure when we will try that again, but I think it did help having his sisters there.
Calvin talks non stop, loves us to read him books, wants to help unload the dishwasher, asks to have his teeth brushed, loves swimming, very outgoing, tattles on his sisters all the time, and is a very happy fun loving boy.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
Diaper Fundraiser for Bulgaria Orphanage
http://thehowe5.blogspot.com/2012/02/share-your-love.html
And some great incentives to give!
These children only have 1 diaper sometimes for the whole day to wear. Please help these little ones.
And some great incentives to give!
These children only have 1 diaper sometimes for the whole day to wear. Please help these little ones.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Pictures....
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
MRI update
Before I get into the MRI results, I have to admit that I am contemplating closing my blog and turning it into a book for Calvin. He has now been home with us for almost 7 months and I feel like there really isn't much more to share with families in the process. We brought our son home and now we are moving on with life as a family of 5. He is adapting well and like I say at the end of each post, we are blessed beyond measure by him. Will let you know before I close this blog down, but it will be in the near future. I still enjoy reading other families blogs who have adopted before us and around the same time as us. Without further adieu....
Calvin and I drove to Ann Arbor, stayed in a hotel (in the hospital) because our MRI appointment was at 6:45 am. Needless to say, it was a horrible night sharing a bed with Calvin. He hates being under covers, he was crying on and off through the night (don't know why, he couldn't tell me), at one point he even fell out of the bed (trying to get out from under the sheet), and it was so hot in the room. We got no sleep. I think if there is a next time, I will stay home, get some good sleep and leave very early instead.
He wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything after 5:45am. We were up before that.... We got to our appointment at 6:15. My mother in law met me there and kept me company while he was in the MRI from 8:30 (we left him flying high as a kite) until they paged us at 11am. The procedure took them from 9:20-10:30. He was in recovery until 11 (sleeping). They are so good at that hospital. I was able to go and eat breakfast in the cafeteria with a pager. If they needed me they would page me. Calvin doesn't remember anything from the time I left him at 8:30 until the time I came back.
The good news is that the blood clots are gone (thank you blood thinners). They want to keep him on them thought at least for another couple of months until our next appointment. The not so good news, is that they saw a sac of fluid next to his lung. So once he was awake they did an echo of his lung, compared it to the X-ray they did in November. Our doctor says it looks like it was there in November, the good news is he has no pneumonia, so it isn't affecting his breathing. However, we would like to know what it is. So in a couple of months he has to have a CAT scan done. They said it could be a sponge left from his last surgery (got to be kidding me) or just enclosed fluid from his last heart surgery. Please pray it isn't anything serious and that it will either disappear on its own or we can do something about it. Calvin's heart function has improved on the medications he has been on, so they wan't to continue the medications for another year and go from there. The downside of this is right now our insurance company isn't covering these medications anymore, we are appealing their decision. I thank my God for holding this little boy in his hand, for saving his life at birth and I know He has a special plan for his life. I will continue to pray for healing for him.
Calvin and I drove to Ann Arbor, stayed in a hotel (in the hospital) because our MRI appointment was at 6:45 am. Needless to say, it was a horrible night sharing a bed with Calvin. He hates being under covers, he was crying on and off through the night (don't know why, he couldn't tell me), at one point he even fell out of the bed (trying to get out from under the sheet), and it was so hot in the room. We got no sleep. I think if there is a next time, I will stay home, get some good sleep and leave very early instead.
He wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything after 5:45am. We were up before that.... We got to our appointment at 6:15. My mother in law met me there and kept me company while he was in the MRI from 8:30 (we left him flying high as a kite) until they paged us at 11am. The procedure took them from 9:20-10:30. He was in recovery until 11 (sleeping). They are so good at that hospital. I was able to go and eat breakfast in the cafeteria with a pager. If they needed me they would page me. Calvin doesn't remember anything from the time I left him at 8:30 until the time I came back.
The good news is that the blood clots are gone (thank you blood thinners). They want to keep him on them thought at least for another couple of months until our next appointment. The not so good news, is that they saw a sac of fluid next to his lung. So once he was awake they did an echo of his lung, compared it to the X-ray they did in November. Our doctor says it looks like it was there in November, the good news is he has no pneumonia, so it isn't affecting his breathing. However, we would like to know what it is. So in a couple of months he has to have a CAT scan done. They said it could be a sponge left from his last surgery (got to be kidding me) or just enclosed fluid from his last heart surgery. Please pray it isn't anything serious and that it will either disappear on its own or we can do something about it. Calvin's heart function has improved on the medications he has been on, so they wan't to continue the medications for another year and go from there. The downside of this is right now our insurance company isn't covering these medications anymore, we are appealing their decision. I thank my God for holding this little boy in his hand, for saving his life at birth and I know He has a special plan for his life. I will continue to pray for healing for him.
Friday, February 3, 2012
Dental Work
Calvin went to the dentist for a checkup just before Christmas. The dentist said he had 6 cavities and needed a crown on his back molar. Calvin was given some medications to make him a bit relaxed for the procedure. I was more nervous than him. They took him and he was only gone for 30 min to get 2 of them done. He has to go back 3 more times. He did great, no tears! The crown was a bit sensitive the first day, he woke up from nap crying and in the middle of the night saying his teeth hurt. So we gave him some baby tylenol. He is such a trooper. We scheduled the next appointment for March.
This Monday Calvin has another appointment in Ann Arbor for his heart. He is having a sedated MRI. I am praying the blood clots have been absorbed into his body and he can be taken off the blood thinners. I would be even happier if he was taken off all his medications if at all possible.
Calvin has been home now 6 months and 2 weeks, and he used a complete sentence without being asked or prompted yesterday. He is scheduled to have an evaluation for services Feb 27th. He has improved so much since being home, it is amazing what food and exercise can do for a little body. He is a very smart boy, he knows his colors, shapes and learns songs quickly. We are so blessed by this little boy!
This Monday Calvin has another appointment in Ann Arbor for his heart. He is having a sedated MRI. I am praying the blood clots have been absorbed into his body and he can be taken off the blood thinners. I would be even happier if he was taken off all his medications if at all possible.
Calvin has been home now 6 months and 2 weeks, and he used a complete sentence without being asked or prompted yesterday. He is scheduled to have an evaluation for services Feb 27th. He has improved so much since being home, it is amazing what food and exercise can do for a little body. He is a very smart boy, he knows his colors, shapes and learns songs quickly. We are so blessed by this little boy!
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