- Weight: 18 pounds
- Height: 28 3/4
Bree fell off her curve. She only gained 6 ounces in three months. The doctor asked us if we had time to take Bree for lab work that day. Since I had taken the whole day off, and my mom is on vacation anyway, we said yes.
The doctor wants to check for any metabolic disorders that might be preventing Bree from gaining weight. She's checking for thyroid problems (although this would affect Bree's height as well, and she actually grew 1 and 1/4 inches), kidney problems and celiac's disease. There are other tests as well, but those are the "big" ones.
Because Bree is still perfectly proportionate, and eats well, the doctor just wants to make sure that she's not missing something. There is no other indication that Bree might have some medical issue that's preventing her from gaining weight. She eats well, eats at every meal, and has normal bodily functions.
In order to collect the urine sample, the pediatric nurse put a bag in Bree's diaper. (It was attached to Bree but I'm going to spare all of us the details.) The nurse said that often babies will urinate when the blood is drawn - from the shock of the needle stick. Great.
At the lab we got the "better" lab technician - and I'm sure that while it's true, I don't need to know that certain lab technicians are better than others. I mean really, if you need a medical procedure done, don't you want to have confidence that every technician/doctor has the know-how and skill to perform the procedure? Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad that they brought out the best for my baby - but if it had been, let's say, ME, would I have gotten the "B Team?"
But even their best guy couldn't find a vein in Bree's left arm. So he had to try again in her right arm. Bree tolerated it as well as could be expected. There was much crying and many tears, but she got over it very quickly. She actually has worse reactions to the vaccine shots. And sure enough, she was able to get enough "product" in her little bag so there was no discussion of a catheter to get the urine sample. (And I'll be honest with you, they wouldn't have gotten a urine sample if there hadn't have been any in the bag. I'm okay with the blood work, but to put a catheter in a baby? That bothers me for some reason.)
We'll have the results of all these tests at the beginning of next week. Either way, we'll be going to the doctor more often. Either for weight checks or for other things. I'm concerned that they're going to label her "Failure To Thrive." Let's hope that we can fatten this girl up somehow.
In other news, the A/C is STILL BROKEN. The home warranty company assigned a new vendor to my account, because of problems with the the first one. I'm not sure if I posted it here, but they kept missing their appointments, and then the last time, the guy had the nerve to not show up, then call me on the phone later that day and yell at ME. So I called the home warranty company and explained that I did not want to work with that vendor any more. They promptly assigned another vendor, and they came out the very next day. They diagnosed the problem, and then had to wait on the part. On Wednesday July 2nd they were back to replace the part, only to have other pieces of the unit fall apart around them as they tried to extract the fan motor. After 20 minutes, the guy said, "enough of this crap!" (essentially) and said that we'd have to get a whole new unit.
A WHOLE NEW UNIT. WHOO HOOO! But wait - when?
I don't know yet. So we continue to sweat. But I have hope alive in my heart! We'll be cool someday! I'm just hoping I don't have to take too many more days off of work for this. There are worse ways to spend your vacation days, I guess. And I eventually will have A/C, and a bright! shiny! new! unit! but still. . . . . I've taken off more time than I really should have to deal with this.
Let's see . . . What else?
Bree's first three days at her new day care seem to be going very well. Except for the fact that she screams every time Miss Jenna is out of her line of sight. At the day care center, this was never an issue - there was a teacher in the room at all times. But in a home care setting, you have to expect the provider to have to use the little girl's room from time to time during the day. Bree's just not used to that, so she's going to have to get used to it. Also, she's just a nosy little thing (just like her mama) and she likes to know what everyone is doing at all times. You can't just leave the room when she's in it. She does not like it. One bit.
And now, what you've all been waiting for: the pictures! These were taken the morning of her appointment. Later that day she had a flourescent orange band aid on her right arm, and a flourescent yellow band aid on her left arm. She liked her band aids very much.
But I digress:
Bree is about to put a WWE move on her baby. Look out, baby!
Now she shows her baby some love.
Bree is demonstrating the proper way to put baby to sleep: by forcibly shutting their eyes. If I get desperate enough, I just might try it.
Bree with a book. And yes, that's our portable A/C unit on the end table in the dining room. We have to have the drainage tube higher than the bucket, and the vent tube high enough to go out the window. It's a bit, uh, dangerous, to have something on casters sitting on an end table, but we're desperate people here. It's still 86 degrees in the house with that running 24 hours a day.
Bree is dancing with her Grandpa.
And that's it! Whew! Stay tuned for the updates on the lab work.
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