Wordless Wednesday

Totally tubular

Wednesday morning we got to the ENT surgery center at about 6:50am.  Signed her in and waited to be called back.  There were two other babies there who were just over 1yr old getting tubes also.  It was comforting having a common interest there…made it a little easier.  I’m thankful we didn’t have to do it so young, but it wasn’t easy regardless.

We got situated in a room, they asked us a bunch of questions, gave us info on the procedure and how it’s done.  We let her ride in this giant chair with her Daisy and Mickey blanket and waited in the waiting room.   

They were so sweet talking to her, they even gave her some crayons and paper to color.

Within 30min it was her turn.  They escorted us back out into the waiting room.  Approx 15min later we could hear her crying (which meant she was awake) and they came to get us.  She immediately began drinking the juice they gave her and sent us on our way.

She was a little groggy/cranky on the car ride home, but asked for cookies so we swung in the McD’s drive-thru and got her some chocolate chip cookies.  I thought she was going to nap when we got home – I was mistaken.  You seriously would NEVER know she had anything done.  She was playing as normal, ate like a hog and was in a great mood all day.

The procedure itself was very quick; he made a small incision in her ear drum, popped in the tubes and voila!  They’re designed to last 4-18mos and as the ear drum heals it will eventually push the tube out.  Ideally by the time they’ve fallen out the sinuses should be better developed and can drain properly.  We have some drops he prescribed that we are to do twice a day in both ears for 4 days….good luck to us.  I did it to one ear last night and she wouldn’t let me touch them again.

She’s still feeling great and I’m hopeful the tubes are doing their job.

Swamps of Sadness

One of my favorite childhood movies is The Neverending Story.  I've watched it over 100 times at least in my lifetime.  If you've seen it, and you're familiar with the characters this will make sense to you.  There's a warrior, Atreyu who the people of Fantasia enlist to stop "the nothing" from destroying their world.  As Atreyu is on this journey with his horse, Artax...they have to travel through the swamps of sadness.  Artax begins to sink until he's submerged, despite Atreyu trying to pull at his harness and get him to keep walking, he stops trying.  This is the most heartbreaking part of the movie.

Yesterday we found my 10.5yr old cat Tinkerbell unresponsive.  She was a few pounds overweight and "old" in cat years, but acted normal.  We had been playing in Persephone's room, which is directly across from the bathroom.  Persephone wanted to play with her night light - which I didn't piece together until today was actually a Tinkerbell night light.  Now I feel as if it all happened right around that moment Persephone talked about it.   I told Hardy to plug it into a bathroom outlet since that would be the darkest room mid-day.  He entered the room, I saw him move his leg and then he returned to Persephone's doorway to deliver the news.

I immediately jumped up, I laid on the floor next to my sweet Tink sobbing.  I stroked her hair, tried squeezing her paws and petting her where I knew a conscious Tink wouldn't put up with. I was so confused, still am.  What could I have done differently?  Why did I push her away last time she wanted to lay in my lap?  Why didn't she come find me first?  Did Flower (our other cat) know this was coming?  Where do I bury her?  Did I see her breathe?

My heart was slowly breaking into a million pieces.  I could hear Hardy trying to keep Persephone occupied in another room, she was freaking out only because she could hear me crying.  I called my mom, called my friend/co-worker and fellow cat lover Pamela then sucked it up and went to Hardy and Persephone.  We obviously didn't let her see Tinkerbell or told her what happened, she wouldn't understand at her age.  It's not like she seeks the cats out, she only interacts if they're in her general line of vision.

Once we had a chance to hug one another, we plugged in the Tinkerbell night light in the hallway and let Persephone play.  I called my sister in law, asked her and my brother to come get Tink and bury her for me.  This is one downfall to living in a townhome community, the property outside isn't 100% yours.  Plus with the house on the market, I didn't want us to "leaver" her behind.  They showed up about 20min later.  I said my final goodbyes and watched as Hardy got a Disneystore.com box, he lined it with the bathmat that she was obsessed with, wrapped her in a towel and laid her down.  I didn't want to bury her, I can't do that right now.  She's currently buried with some of my sister in laws cats and other beloved animals who have passed.

I miss you terribly Tinkerbell (aka Tink, Tinkydink, Stinkerbell)

4/4/2004 - 1/21/2015

Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas.  This was the first year Persephone could actually say "Santa Claus" and show excitement for her toys.  I can't wait for every year to come, but I also don't want her to grow up so fast....can't have both.

Daycare provided her with a goodie bag for the Reindeer

A couple of days after Christmas we went outside for a while 

to break up the cabin fever

I just threw some clothes together - don't judge

Ear Update

I wish this was like a Disney trip update or something...but it's not haha

We had our appointment Thursday at Northeast Georgia Otolaryngology with Dr. Garlich.  Persephone was so so good.  She sat still and let the nurse and the doctor do exactly what they needed.  I would like to thank Doc McStuffins for this “no doctor fear.”  If it weren’t for that show she probably wouldn’t be so comfortable.  They were able to determine her latest ear infection has cleared up thanks to the rocephin shots, but she still has fluid build-up.  Her hearing tests came back showing some hearing loss, so they definitely recommend tubes.

She looks so grown up in this pic :(

 

In just the few minutes we were there, Dr. Garlich was so kind and explained everything to us.  I asked him about the spot on Persephone’s scalp and he said he didn’t like to do plastic surgery on children so young if it’s not necessary.  Their skin is so elastic that it would stretch and could cause a bigger scar, which would make the bald spot larger.  If it changes or bothers her, then certainly he would take a look at it again for us.

He said the tympanostomy tubes procedure would take 3-4 mins per ear, they do it at an outpatient facility connected to his office.  There’s no IV involved, she will just have gas hovered over her during the surgery.  The tubes are designed to last 4-18mo and usually fall out on their own as the ear drum heals.  He said he’ll check her after the surgery and again in 1yr to see their placement.  It won’t cure her of ear infections forever, but it will allow her ears to drain properly and we would be able to use ear drops in the future –vs- oral antibiotics.

I do feel much better knowing she won’t have an IV and that it’s such a quick procedure.  I know in the long run we’ll be thankful we did it.  It kind of shocked me when he said there were signs of temporary hearing loss.  With her being 2 and really starting to talk, I don’t want to rob her of learning correctly.  At least we’re on the right track now.  I’m nervous for next week, but hopeful it will go smoothly.

E.N.T.

I’ve posted before about Persephone’s battle with ear infections…ever since she started daycare she’s caught every bug.  You would think six months in - her immune system wouldn’t be “the new guy” anymore.  Since May her pediatrician has calculated that she’s had about 7 ear infections.  From May-July it was pretty bad…we’ve tried so many oral antibiotics (Amoxicillin, Augmentin, Cednifir, Cefprozil…etc) they just don't cut it.  Finally in July we allowed the doctor to administer Rocephin which is a high dose antibiotic given as a shot.   

That thing is M E A N let me tell you. 

   

The needle they have to use is bigger because the medicine is thick and it hurts. Luckily she still has a little meat in her legs so there’s a little cushion.

In July we had to go every 2 days to get the shot, for a total of 3.  The experience was bad, because you have to hold her down and there's nothing you can do.  But it did make her feel WORLDS better and cleared up the ear infection as we wanted it too.  It gave her horrible diarrhea, but it never had a smell so if that’s the only side effect, I’m happy.

Fast forward to November, we began to notice a runny nose and the pink/purple under her eyes.  My mother in law took her in and sure enough, ear infection.  They gave her Amoxicillin, we finished it and all appeared to be ok.  Three weeks later, her nose is running again, now she’s developed a cough…I took her in on 12/22/14, another (or maybe the same) ear infection.  This time we try Cefprozil – pure torture.   

Hardy is a good Daddy and he tries every medicine she’s ever had to take….he admitted this one was nasty.  Despite it having the “pink” bubble gum flavor, Persephone would.not.take.it.  Friday 12/26/14 I called and was able to get her a new medicine, Cednifir.  It smelled like buttered popcorn, but had a better flavor.  She took it for 10 days, but still had a cough and a nasty runny nose.

Now lets go to Monday 1/5/15, my mother in law took her back for her follow up appointment and the ear infection had actually gotten worse.  So like in July, our last option is the Rocephin shot.  She goes back today and Friday for the final two.  The pediatrician this time advised that they would put in a referral to an ENT for us because she’s had such a bad record.  Her appointment is next Thursday the 15^th.  We will have a consultation about her ears and if she’s a good candidate for tubes.  Of course I want her to feel better, but knowing she’ll have to have anesthesia is scary.  I know children go through it all the time, even younger than she is…but it doesn’t make it any less nerve-wracking. 

Now the second part of this post is in relation to a spot on her scalp that’s been there since birth.  It hasn’t really grown or changed, but there’s a possibility it will change and could become cancerous as she nears puberty.  When she was about 2mos old my mom and I took her to Grady to see a dermatologist, they identified it as nevus sebaceous – it’s a congenital skin lesion..basically the skin didn’t fully form across that part of her scalp and is often considered pre-malignant.  The dermatologist told me our next step would be a plastic surgeon.  

Took me FOREVER to find one who worked on children believe it or not..but when I finally did find one he brought me some relief.  He agreed he would certainly remove it before puberty but if/when she needed another surgery and would need anesthesia (tubes, tonsil removal..).  We're going to Northeast Georgia Otolaryngology in Gainesville - seeing Dr. Garlich.  I noticed on their website that Dr. Garlich actually does facial plastic surgery so I'm crossing my fingers he can help us with the spot on her head as well.

Wish us luck!