1 year checkup

Dan and I took Ethan for his 1 year checkup on Monday morning (yes, I know he'll be 13 months tomorrow but that was the only appointment they had when I called the week of his birthday last month). Everything looked good! They said he passed his developmental milestones (which is encouraging since not all heart babies are on track developmentally due to their condition plus extended time spent cooped up in a hospital bed). He weighed in at 21 lb. 12 3/4 oz. He is in the 50% range for head circumference and weight and in the 90% range for length! What a tall boy we've got!

Ethan had his finger pricked to test his blood for lead levels and also anemia (standard 12mo. checkup test - nothing related to his heart defect). All those levels came back normal! Then he had to get 4 vaccines, one of which (MMR) the doc said could cause a fever spike of 103 in about 10 days so we'll be watching out for that. So far he seems to be doing fine from the shots, although he did wak up about 3 hours early yesterday morning (around 5am) whining and crying a little so I gave him some extended cuddle time and a little Tylenol and he was able to settle back down and nap from 7-9am, until it was time for us to leave to go to church for MOPS.
Speaking of MOPS (Mothers Of Preschoolers), I'm excited about getting together bi-monthly with other moms of young kids (really birth-kindergarten age) and build some new friendships and let Ethan get a chance to socialize in the nursery. Hopefully I'll be able to attend all fall/winter without having to keep him out of the nursery too much.

I really debated about whether or not to get involved since we're getting ready to hit cold/flu/RSV season in a few months. Even though Ethan's been staying so healthy and doesn't have his final surgery for a few more years, we still have to be extra cautious during the cold/flu and especially RSV season. Ethan's pediatrician wants us to get the RSV antibody shots again this year but we just don't think we're going to be able to afford it. Based on our most recent medical bills from Ethan's hospital for his 2nd surgery and the bills for the RSV shots, Ethan's surgery and hospital stay was a lot cheaper than the shots - INSANE! I don't like to talk about finances on here much (although it is a real part of life and we do help teach a finance course at our church) so I won't say anything else about this issue. Just please pray for wisdom for us as we decide what to do. The pediatrician said that he was even surprised at our out of pocket costs (even with the help of insurance) and said that they'd talk to their insurance rep to make sure that everythings getting filed properly so hopefully it won't cost as much this time. But even if we took insurance out of the picture, the cost of the RSV shots was still much higher than the surgery/hospital stay!

Well enough rambling for today. Thanks for checking in on us and continuing to think about and pray for us. We continue to praise God daily for keeping Ethan's heart functioning so well and for all the days He's given us with our sweet little boy. We go back to the cardiologist in about 2 weeks for another checkup and we just pray the docs continue to be amazed at Ethan's good health. Well I hear Ethan screaming in the other room so I better go check on him!