Blade’s 1 Year Check Up

Blade had his ONE year check up with Dr. Reyes last week. Our little man is growing perfectly and in great health, we are blessed :)

 

The one question I’ve been asked since he’s been born (besides if he was an ‘accident’) is how different it is going from having 4 babies to just 1. While of course there’s a huge difference, there’s JUST as big of a difference in a baby(ies) born at 28 weeks and having a baby born full term. Blade has had a handful of appointments over his first year where the quads had what seems like hundreds with multiple doctors and specialists. Blade’s 1 year check up was a typical, average, boring one and for that we are thankful!

At birth our little/big man was 10lbs8oz putting him well into the 90th+ percentile. At 1 year he is 25lbs3oz which lands him in the 80th percentile and only 5lbs heavier than Brody at a year old! His height is 31 1/4 inches (87th percentile) and his little noggin is 18 3/8inches (57th percentile).

Our Birthday Boy also had his very first visit to the dentist! We’ve been taking the quads every 6 months since their adjusted first birthday and Blade’s first birthday fell at the same time so they were all due for their 6 month appointment. Dr. Brister’s staff did an excellent job accommodating all of the kiddos at once like always and Blade did great during his little cleaning and exam too! Currently he has 5 (and a half) teeth and lucky for us, like his brothers and sisters, he’s handled cutting new teeth like a pro!

 

 Blade spent the morning of his actual birth “day” at Cook Children’s Hospital with Brody. Brody had been complaining of pain around his scar on his tummy where his shunt leads. Docs ordered an extensive sonogram and turns out he’s got a lot of scar tissue that’s likely bothering him. Not fun but so thankful it’s nothing serious. Brody enjoyed getting to spend some special one on one time with Blade and we all enjoyed Daddy taking the day off to be with us!

 

Kylee & Baxlyn spent the night at Nana and Aunt Beth’s the night of Blade’s birthday so we went out to dinner with some of the family to celebrate with just the boys. I love love love love love when we get to do special things with just a few of them! And, yes, all three boys are wearing the same matching shirts ;)

I thought I’d throw this one in. Blade is starting to climb. Scares me to death but cute to see him accomplish something and be so proud! In addition to climbing he still LOVES to empty the cabinets in the kitchen – one of these days we’ll break down and baby proof them. Although he still takes a few steps here and there, he’s not full blown walking yet, and I’m ok with that! He loves baths, the trashcan and will still make a quick dash to play in the toilet given the opportunity. He currently wears mostly 18mos clothing and a size 2-3 shoe! He still naps twice a day and gets a good 11hours in at night before I have to wake him to get the quads to school.

Last but  not least, here’s a video of Blade taking a few steps! Stay tuned for an inside look at his birthday party!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtube_gdata_player&v=fQTfkUHQq6g&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DfQTfkUHQq6g%26feature%3Dyoutube_gdata_player&app=desktop

What's up Docs?

We've had several doctors appointments within the past month or so and I've yet to blog about any of them. Let's play catch up, shall we? Brody & Kylee had their annual follow up with the pediatric eye doctor. It was just the three of us and it was so fun! I love getting out with just one or two of them by myself, it's special bonding time as well as a feeling of independence for me not having to use a stroller. Nobody takes pictures of us, we don't get many questions, nothing. It's nice to have that feeling of being normal every once in a while.

Kylee, Dudu & Brody

I used to absolutely DREAD going to this particular doctor. They had to be seen several times within weeks of being released from NICU. I'll never ever forget those early days and having to wait in the waiting room with my 5lb preemies and being absolutely terrified of the germs surrounding us... if a fear of germs would have given me a heart attack, I would have dropped right then and there (I know you other preemie moms know what I'm talking about!). I had their seats covered with blankets and was literally afraid of them breathing the same air as the "big kids" around them for fear they could catch something. Now that they're older and my germaphobia disorder (haha) has subsided a bit I let them actually play in the waiting room with the other kids! After 2 hours of dilating and sitting and being examined they both checked out fine and don't have to be seen for another year! Here's a pic of Brody and Kylee checking out the cool tools before the doc came in.

Our next two patients were Korbin and Baxlyn. They were seen by Dr. Roberts, the developmental pediatrician, and impressed her, like always. This was the longest they had gone since being born without seeing her, 6 months. Korbin is right on track for actual age and Baxlyn was above, scoring at 30months on most areas!!! They don't have to be seen for another YEAR! Here's Baxlyn showing off her picture recognition skills...

My little man and little lady sitting on the curb checking out their stickers!
Up next was the dentist with all four. This was our first time to go into an appointment stroller free, it was challenging, but we did it! So many people are shocked I already take them to the dentist. This was their 3rd appointment actually (4th for the Korb). We were told by our docs that because they were preemies, they were at higher risk for complications and that they need to be seen at a year adjusted. We've taken them back every 6 months and they've done great every time. Kylee was a little apprehensive the second we walked in the door and said "aw done, aw done. awmost done...awwwmost" trying so hard to talk me in to believing we were indeed all done with this place! The dental hygienists always take them 2 at a time. 2 go in one room to be evaluated and cleaned while the other 2 go in another and then they all come together to see the dentist. Brody and Kylee have the hardest time relaxing to let Dr. Brister take a peek inside, Baxlyn on the other hand jumps right up there like she owns the place! He warned us (which we already knew) we for sure have braces in our future and we need to start saving now...yikes...braces X 4... what age can we put them to work?! Beseides being a little crooked and crowded, their teeth all look great. He did tell us that he has a feeling Baxlyn is missing a tooth. She's a late teether, they all are actually, so we haven't thought much about her not having all of her incisors yet. He said he could be wrong, it may show up eventually, but based on the looks of her gums he wouldn't be surprised if it's not there at all. Luckily it's a bottom tooth, so it shouldn't be too noticeable if it is missing. Time will tell! Korbin was looked at a little closer because of his incident a little while back. We hit the good side of the 50/50 chance and I am SO happy to say his tooth has survived! I've gotten used to it being out of place now and I'm just so happy it die altogether. Missing a top front tooth would have been a big deal to this momma!

Therapy wise (ECI), we've had lots of success and changes! Korbin just graduated from Speech while Brody and Kylee just said good bye to their Developmental Specialist! Thanks soo so much for all you've done Ms. Lindsey & Ms. Lauren!

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Humpty Dumpty...Humpty Korbin...

"In the clubhouse Korbin stood tall,

Through the window Korbin did fall...

A land on the head and a scream from Mom,

Blood coming from the mouth said something was wrong..."

I'd continue in rhyme, but it may be a few more weeks before I'd have a new blog post ;) Amy came over yesterday to teach me a thing or two on my new camera. We were in the backyard letting the kids roam and play while we were snapping pictures when I turned just in time to see Korbin fall, headfirst, out the small window of their new clubhouse (seen in a post a few weeks ago). As if seeing his head hit the ground were not bad enough, when he started crying, blood came running out of his mouth - FREAKED ME OUT. Thank goodness Amy, a mother of three rambunctious girls, was a little more collected than myself!

A good "mommy evaluation" was done and we felt his little noggin was fine, his front tooth on the other hand, was shifted forward and easy to wiggle. A call to the ped's office led us to a visit with the dentist this morning. He was a champ through the whole thing, Xrays and all! The doctor said his tooth is extruded and has a 50/50 chance of "dying". Although I'm thankful his fall didn't lead to anything more serious, I'm reeeeeaalllyyyyy hoping we hit the good 50% chance and his tooth survives! If it does she said it won't go back into its "correct" spot, but shouldn't affect his permanent tooth. He will go back in 6 weeks (which happens to be the time of their semi-annual check up) to see how the lil guy is doing!

I knew the times were coming... accidents, bloody noses, broken bones, cracked noggins... but do they HAVE to start at 2?!?!?! Ahhh...the joys of parenthood!

Pearly Whites

The babies had their 2nd checkup at the dentist this week! Their first visit went great but I was a little apprehensive about this one, now that they're older. Anna and I stayed in one room with Brody & Baxlyn while Ashley took Kylee & Korb to another to get their cleanings. Like last time, Brody had the hardest time and cried a little bit. He clung to his Mickey until the torture was over...

Baxlyn on the other hand, was a champ. After checking out the tools and toothbrush she glady handed over her pink puppy, laid back, and opened wide so the nice lady could clean her 4 little teeth! The dental assistant said she was the perfect patient!

Korbin and Kylee did great during their cleanings too and everyone's teeth looked perfect and healthy!
We WOULD HAVE been in and out of the office within, no joke, 30minutes. As we were loading up, I went to my purse to dig for my keys... nothing. OK, no worries they must be in the diaper bag... nope nothing. Back to the purse...nothing...diaper bag again... nothing.... pockets... nothing. I went and peeked into the car and there were my keys sitting in Brody's car seat, locked in the car. I KNEW this would happen one day and thankfully it happened on the day I wasn't by myself, we were in no rush, had beautiful weather, and an office staff that was kind and welcoming. We played in the big empty waiting room and strolled around the parking lot until the roadside assistance guy got there 45 minutes later. Hoping that doesn't ever happen again!

First Dentist Appointment - SUCCESS!

We have been told by several doctors the babies should see a dentist at one year adjusted and well, here we are! After some research we went with Dr. Brister and he and his staff were fabulous. We made our appointment bright and early at 8am (Bret and I had to get up at 5:45am in order to get ready and loaded...ugh!) so the babies would be in the best mood possible and the appointment wouldn't interfere with any naps. Let me tell you, they did GREAT! All of them were so happy (almost) the entire time! Upon arriving the staff mentioned they wanted to split them up 2 and 2 for their exams just in case there were any meltdowns. Anna and I took Kylee and Korbin and Bret stayed with Baxlyn and the Broman. During their exams they got to play with the tools, have their teeth and gums brushed and become the proud owner of their very OWN toothbrush. I'm a bad Mommy and have been using one toothbrush between all of them... yuck I know (trust me tho, not the nastiest thing going on in our house lately... I'll elaborate in an upcoming blog - eww)!

Korbin checking out the cool light and his new toothbrush!

After their exams they were all in one big room together to meet Dr. Brister. Below, a picture of Baxlyn with Anna (and Levi who should be here early July!) playing with the cool light.
Kylee getting checked out by the doc!
Baxlyn stood the whole time clinging to the doctor waiting for her turn... so sweet!
Miss B... Brody was having a good ole time minding his own business, watching everybody, playing with his light, and holding his little cup...

but when it was time to see Dr. Brister, his feelings got a little hurt :[ Dr. Brister was very impressed overall how the babies are doing

and how their little teeth are coming in. Because of being preemies and high order multiples they are at risk for "complications" but so far so good! We go back in 6 months and are hoping things go as smoothly as they did this morning!

Next week... follow up eye exams :/