update 12/22/11

Hello everyone!  Not sure where the time goes, but it looks like I have been a bit neglectful in my blogging updates, so here ya go.

Andrew's surgery was on Tuesday and praise God our prayers were answered.  Everything turned out better than expected and his parts are where they are supposed to be!!  He did a great job and has been such a good patient!!  Grandma Pam has been at our house tending to him the past couple of days and we really appreciate that, so we don't have to miss more work.  I know some may judge me for working outside the home, but the only one who can do that is God, and this is what works best for our family. 

Jacob's tube surgery is scheduled for January 3rd and hopefully everything will stay put this time!!  Poor guy has had an ear infection that will not go away, so I am hoping this will get rid of it.  Other than that he is our little stinker and keeps us on our toes.

Lucas is still our happy little guy despite all of his medical issues.  On December 6th we met with the craniofacial team in Minneapolis and were very impressed.  So much so, we scheduled surgery for January 30th.  We are going to Dallas next week to meet with the craniofacial team down there to make sure we are making the right decision by Lucas, but we are confident we are doing right by him.  I am ready for it to be over and for all to settle down for a bit in our home.  I am going to take him to the nephrologist (kidney specialist) tomorrow for his three month ultrasound and check up, and we are praying for good results with this as well.

 

Thursday

I have found that I am not a clever blog title updater.  I just don't have the energy or cuteness to come up with titles it seems.  So since it's Thursday, I thought, hey let's call this blog post Thursday (it's like Billy Madison said I wanted to color the duck blue because I've never seen a blue duck).  ANYWAY!!!  Here is the latest on our kiddos:
Andrew is scheduled for surgery in DSM on November 30th.  So now its the waiting game for that.  We also have an ENT apt for him on the 22nd to get his ears checked out in case he needs tubes again.  We have been watching this for awhile and I hope he won't need surgery again for this either.

Jacob: We meet with the ENT on the 22nd as well to see the status of his tubes.  So we will know (maybe) at that point what we will do about his ears.

Lucas: We are going to MN to meet with a specialist there December 6th and then December 29 we have an apt scheduled in Dallas to meet with the specialist there.  At that point we will decide who we will go with and when we will preform surgery. 

So that's the latest.  I am so ready for Thanksgiving.  I hope to relax, drink a beer, and maybe squeeze in a nap.  Oh and eat some turkey, but that comes after the nap.

Sunday's update

I supposed I should have updated this sooner, but life gets away from me and I hardly have time to breathe it seems!  I heard back from Dr. Fearon in Texas, and from the pictures I sent him of Lucas, he states he is a candidate for surgery.  So now comes a lot of questions about what John and I are to do.  We have to make a lot of decisions fairly quickly as Dr. Fearon likes the surgery done by 11 months.  He will be 8 months tomorrow, so we have a lot to do in a pretty short time.  I will keep everyone posted on that. 
I am going to meet with Andrew's surgeon tomorrow and will have some questions for him as well.  His surgery is scheduled for the 30th and I hope and pray all will turn out how its supposed to.

On a more fun note, my parents are here visiting providing John and me a much needed break.  We went to the Hawkeye game yesterday with Paul and Emily and cheered the Hawkeyes onto victory against Michigan.  yes I know I am from MI, but I wasn't a big fan when I lived there, and its much more fun being a Hawkeye fan anyway :-)  We had a great time and are already looking forward to next season!!

Friday update

I am still waiting to hear back from Dr. Fearon in Dallas.  I am a little surprised that I haven't heard from him because other parents I have read about on the site cranio kids heard back from him within 24 hours.  So I can take it as, his head isn't that bad and so he doesn't feel an urgency to get back to us, he's on vacation, or he's been so busy fixing other babies heads that I should just calm down (with hand motion, this goes back to college days with my friend Autumn).  At any rate, I did contact Gillette Children's hospital in Minneapolis today to have a consult with Dr. Wood.  We have decided to meet with him to see what he has to say and I am going to have a ton of questions for him as well.  We are currently scheduled for November 29 (the day before Andrew's surgery, perfect timing insert sarcasm), but they are hoping to move us up.  Dr. Wood is on vacation the first two weeks of November, so hopefully we can get up there before that.  I also have a CT scan scheduled for Lucas on the 15th of November, but I will most likely push this back as well.  Reason for that, Dr. Fearon has done 25 studies where a CT scan isn't necessary and he doesn't want to expose a child to radiation.  Lucas has already had three tests where he has been exposed to radiation, so if we can get away without having a CT scan, I am all for that!  So we continue to wait and pray that all goes well. 

I finally did it!!!

I went ahead and emailed Dr. Fearon tonight!!!  This is the craniofacial specialist in Dallas.  I finally heard back from the pediatrician that referred us to Dr. Frank and I can honestly say I am glad I do not go to this pediatrician!  Our PA that we see wanted us to see a Ped. to make sure she wasn't missing anything in terms of Lucas' head.  At any rate, he basically said (through his nurse) that Dr. Frank (who mind you is a plastic surgeon and not board certified) would be a good match for surgery.  Really, gee thanks Doc but no thanks.  He did get us some information about Gillette hospital in Minneapolis, so I am going to do some checking there.  This pediatrician is very nonchalant about the whole surgery and at one point stated that I know more than he does!  I find that to be a very telling comment as I have just started to do research on craniosynostosis and hadn't heard of it until a month ago so I really don't think I know more than this Dr., but I am trying to find out as much as I can so I know the right questions to ask when going into such a serious surgery.  I am very anxious to hear what Dr. Fearon is going to say.  I basically asked him if he thinks Lucas is a candidate for surgery and I sent him some photos.  We will see.  I pray that God continues to lead us in the right direction and we come to the right decision that is in our hearts.  We want to make sure we seek out every option and thoroughly weigh our decisions as what we do will affect Lucas for the rest of his life.  Please continue to keep him in your prayers, along with Andrew and Jacob.

where we are a/o 10/22/11

I wanted to update our blog with what's going on with all three boys.  Needless to say its been stressful due to all the unknowns, but I am praying that all will work out the way its supposed to.  I'll start with oldest to youngest:
Andrew had a communicating hydrocele a few years ago that was repaired surgically by a pediatric urologist in DSM.  At his five year well child our PA could only feel one testicle and so she ordered an ultrasound to see what's going on.  Unfortunately, the testicle is not where its supposed to be and so we were referred to Dr. Glowaki who is a urologist.  The surgeon who did his surgery the first time is no longer in the state (I can't get anymore information as to why) so we met with Dr. Glowaki.  He wants to do an exploratory surgery to see what's going on and to see if Andrew's testicle can be salvaged.  I have asked for a 2nd opinion in IA City (which is incidentally the same Dr. we see for Lucas Dr. Kieren), but the earliest we can get in with her is Feb 7.  Currently we have his surgery scheduled for Nov 30 and if we can't get in with IA City sooner than we will most likely go ahead with the surgery Nov 30.  So many prayers that the Dr. will do right by Andrew with all of this.

Jacob had tubes put in his ears in January.  Since then he has had two ear infections and the last time he went to the Dr (which was about 2 weeks ago with an ear infection) the Dr. didn't think either tube was where it needs to be.  The earliest I can get in with Jacob's ENT is Nov 22, so we wait and see if he will need to have surgery again or if the tubes are where they need to be.  Again more prayers for our little Jake-man.

Now onto little Lucas.  As you might remember, Lucas has urine reflux.  From his last ultrasound a month ago, the Dr. in DSM and IA City are happy with the progress, but we are still not out of the woods as his reflux is still Grade 5 (the worst).  We go back to the nephrologist in Dec for another ultrasound and follow up to see where we stand.  IA City already has scheduled a VCUG for March 30 and from then (I assume) a decision will be made if he has grown out of it or surgery is needed.  Concurrently, as some of you know I have a thing with heads, head size, and mis-shapen heads and I have always been very worried about my children's heads.  Well maybe this is biting me in the a$$ now because I little Lucas has been diagnosed with craniosynostosis of the myopic suture.  Basically he has a ridge on the front suture (basically the bridge of your nose, up to your soft spot is where the suture runs).  I have always noticed it, but didn't say too much because I didn't want people to think I was nuts.  At any rate at his 6 month well child our PA took noticed and referred us to a pediatrician.  He then referred us to a plastic surgeon who said that he does have craniosynostosis.  I have requested to go to Mayo clinic for all CT scans and if surgery is needed.  The issue is if the sutures close too soon it can cause issues for his brain because it will have no where to grow.  I have done a little bit of looking on-line and currently I am comfortable with Mayo and a hospital in Dallas, TX.  The pediatrician is also looking at Gillette Children's hospital in Minneapolis, so I am waiting to see what he comes up with.  So more prayers are needed for our Lucas.  He is SUCH a happy baby and  has been through so much in his 7 1/2 months of life. 

I just pray that all these Drs. know what they are doing and lead us down the right path...for all of our children.

So there's the update for now.  As soon as I know more I will update the blog.  So please check back often.
love
The Haase's

minor setback

We had a minor setback this weekend with Lucas.  On Sunday evening Lucas started running a high temp of 99 degrees.  I gave him some Tylenol and put him to bed.  At 1:00 Monday morning I heard him crying and since he has a cold and bad cough, he sounds kinda hoarse (poor buddy).  I went in and he was burning up.  I took his temp and it was 101.8 so I gave him some more Tylenol.  He took half the dropper and started dry heaving (it was awful).  He was crying and I got pretty scared.  He then threw up a little and he was not too happy about that.  I then got him calmed down and tried the rest of the dropper and rocked him to sleep.  I laid him down and then he started dry heaving again.  I picked him up and ran to the bathroom where he started throwing up again.  I was very scared and with the new medicine he is on for the reflux and the fact he was running a temp, I decided to bring him to the ER.  When I got to Blank there was no one in the waiting room so we got in right away.  The Dr. discovered he has an ear infection in his right ear.  Poor guy!  He also had to have a catheter, but thankfully no UTI!!!  We got home about 4 am and slept in until 7 and then we snuggled in bed until 9.  We were all pretty tired most of the morning as both Andrew and Jacob are getting over upper respiratory infections.  So needless to say we haven't been sleeping the greatest in our house.

here's a nice picture of our big boy at his 5 year well child

Lucas is feeling better!

Lucas and Jacob being cute

Jacob giving me a nice smile

Andrew also took quite a spill on his bike tonight too.  He fell mouth first on the sidewalk and nearly knocked out his two front teeth.  It looks pretty bad, but he is so tough that he cried for only 5 minutes and then went back to playing with his friends.  I have a picture, but will have to add it later.  I will be staying home with all three boys tomorrow as the baby would not be ready to go to daycare, Andrew needs to go to the Dentist and Jacob isn't feeling the greatest either.

right after the spill OUCH!

later that night

this afternoon.

 To note, the Dentist said that we are going to watch his teeth.  The front teeth will fall out soon and not long after the teeth next to it will fall out.  Poor guy, he is sooooooooooooo tough!

where has the time gone?

I cannot believe it has been since June that I have updated our blog!  Well to give a bit of an update...

Andrew: is almost 5 years old (September 13), has lost 2 teeth, 2 more are loose, his 6 year molars have come in on the top and are almost through on the bottom (our dentist stated he has an advanced mouth), enjoying being back at daycare and is ready to start pre K this fall at St. Paul Lutheran!  He continues to be a great big brother and loves to "daddy" his baby brother Lucas.  He currently weighs 54 lbs and is 3 feet 11 inches.  A big boy!  He is also excited to start flag football in September

Jacob turned 2 in May and continues to keep us on his toes.  Potty training is coming along as he almost has #1 down, but #2 is still touch and go.  But we are proud how close he is with being potty trained so young!  He continues to love on his baby brother and drive his big brother nuts (but they do play nice together too!)  Jacob is talking up a storm and his vocabulary is booming!  He enjoys being back at daycare and playing with his friends.

Lucas is almost 6 months old, which I still can't believe!  He is doing really well and growing and changing everyday.  He resembles both boys, but his hair is actually a lot lighter than the other two boys!  We did have one set back with the medication that he has been on.  He had an allergic reaction on August 20, so we had to switch to a new medication (its late and I don't have the name off hand).  So far he is doing pretty well with it, so we wait and see.  He goes in for his 3 month ultrasound in a couple weeks so we continue to pray his kidneys get better!!  He seems to really enjoy daycare and is currently the youngest in his room, so he is spoiled by the grandmas in the room!  The next oldest just turned a year so I like that he is the only baby.  He is also rolling EVERYWHERE!  And just last Saturday he started getting up on his toes and hands.  Pretty soon the pumpkin will be crawling.  Lord help us all!!  He continues to be the best sleeper of the three boys and I pray that continues.

All and all the boys are great.  I will have to post pictures soon!!

follow up with the specialist

Hard to believe its been almost two weeks since I brought Lucas to the specialist in Des Moines.  When we had went to Iowa City Dr. Kieren had said she wanted ultrasounds of Lucas' kidney every three months.  We are happy to report that everything thing went great!  Lucas is gaining weight!!  He weighed 13lbs 6oz!  I also told Dr. Auron before he even said anything about how the ultrasound went, that I noticed I was changing a lot more pee diapers.  He stated that the left kidney is stabilized and the right kidney looked better!!  This was great news because if things weren't getting better than surgery would be a stronger possibility.  Lucas also gave a urine sample and all checked out well with that.  He was supposed to give a blood sample, but after two pokes he was not a happy camper and this momma was tired of her baby crying so hard.  We did go back two days later and he gave a blood sample with the first poke!  All and all Lucas is doing great!  He is taking Bactrim every night to prevent a UTI and he takes that medicine really well.  He also sleeps 11 hours a night, which makes him the best sleeper of the three boys!  Hard to believe he is almost 4 months old.  Where has the time gone?

I also have to mention that Jacob is doing pretty well potty training.  Pee pee is pretty easy, but he isn't consistent with poopy.  So I keep on trying. 

 Andrew also had a wonderful week at vacation Bible school a few weeks back.  He also has been working on a loose tooth for a little over a week.  Its now on the point of hanging on by one thread, but he's too scared to pull it out.  I just hope he doesn't swallow it like his aunt Becky did (or so I am told by grandma Pam) :-)

single parenthood

I have always thought how hard it would be to be a single parent.  I feel blessed that I have such a wonderful husband who is also the best dad one could ask for.  I have gotten a taste of single parenthood this week while John and a couple buddies went up to the Black Hills on a motorcycle trip.  Yes its busy being home with a 4, 2 and 3 month old, but it honestly has been better than I thought it would be.  In the sense that I would fall apart with the stress of three little ones at home all day long by myself. 

My three boys!

The boys have been GREAT!!  Andrew is a HUGE help to me.  He has really stepped up as "man of the house" this week.  Helping me with his brothers or with other little chores I need him to do.  Jacob has also been very cooperative this week, which blows my mind.  He is usually quite the stinker, but this week he has been a model two year old (enter Twilight zone music here).  And Lucas, well he is pretty much the BEST baby in the world.  He sleeps AWESOME (hopefully not jinxing myself), eats well, plays, smiles, repeat.  God has truly blessed our family with a great last baby.  To prepare myself for being along for nearly 6 days I have kept a pretty jammed packed schedule. 

Lots of playdates and company has been wonderful for us.  The Schwendinger's came down from MN on Thursday and spent the night and then played most of the day on Friday.  Along with our friends the Hall's who came over Thursday for a BBQ and play time.  The weather has also cooperated so we have been able to get outside and wear my boys out!

the four big kids: Theo, Andrew, Jacob, and Ayla

 And I am not going to lie, TV has also been a good distraction.  I am not too proud to say that my kids watch TV and its a way to distract them and pass the time (and a bribe tool!).  Today (Saturday) my friend Amy and her two boys (her hubby John went with my John on the Harley trip) are coming over to play and have a sleep-over.  Should be a fun afternoon and evening!  Sunday we are heading up to Boone to see John's grandpa Bud, sister Becky and her family, possibly John's sister Sarah and brother Paul.  John should be home sometime around noon on Monday.  We are having a pretty good time just the four of us, but we do miss John a lot and really look forward to him coming home on Monday.  I commend all the men and women who are single parents and feel blessed that I have someone to take this crazy ride with me known as parenthood.  Love you babe and we hope you had a wonderful time in South Dakota!!

John and John ready for their ride to the Black Hills

 

2 months old and 2 years old

Hard to believe but Jacob officially turned 2 on May 12 and Lucas turned 2 months on May 7!  Where has the time gone?  Time flies when you are having fun!  Lucas had his 2 month well child and weighed 10 lbs 13 oz, and at this time he was switched to Bactrim.  He will be on this till he is 1 year old (or so I suspect).  He goes for his ultrasound of his kidney June 14 so we pray that his body keeps healing itself. 

Jacob had his 2 year well child today and all checked out well with him too.  He weighed 28 lbs and is in the 50% for his height, weight, and head circumference.  He had tubes put in back in January and on May 1st ended up getting an ear infection.  Then last Friday he broke out in hives.  This was a new experience in our household.  So the Dr put him on prednisone as needed.  I am so ready to have all my kids off of medicine!!  As of today (Tuesday the 17th) his skin looks the best it has looked.  Our PA suggested putting him on Claritin or Zyrtec as he most likely has allergies.  Since I have allergies, this doesn't surprise me in the least. 

Andrew and Jacob also were checked for any kidney function issue.  They both had their blood pressure checked, blood draw, and urine sample.  Both boys did great and both were very proud to tell daddy they peed in a cup!  Everything checked out fine with their urine and blood samples so Thursday they will both get ultrasounds done of their kidneys.  Here's to hoping all continues to check out fine with them in that department. 

After the Dr. we stopped at a park and played and then enjoyed McDonald's for lunch.  They have been great boys and I am so enjoying being home with them.

Its official

Jacob's favorite Handy Manny!

Lucas giving a big smile.  Baptism outfit made by grandma Lori

Jacob blowing out his candles with help from Andrea

Lucas' baptism cake May 1st 2011

all the adorable Haase cousins

4 generations of Haase men

Aunt Nancy Uncle John (my mom's brother), my mom and dad

Jacob opening presents

digging into the Handy Manny cake

Lucas' baptism May 1st he was so good and didn't cry

proud parents with our newly baptized baby

our wonderful family of five

My godmother aunty Nancy

Lucas being baptized

John, me, Lucas, Becky and Ben Lucas' godparents

The Haase's and the Hirn's

Its official, I am a terrible blogger.  I just have the hardest time trying to keep up.  I might take my friend Lisa's approach a do a blog of all pictures.  The past few weeks have been crazy busy.  Between Easter, Jacob's early 2nd bday party, Lucas' baptism, Lucas turning 2 months old, Pella Tulip Festival, Jacob's real birthday May 12, Andrew's last day of pre school May 13, I just can't keep up!  So here are some pictures of majority of the events listed above!!  I am hoping now that I downloaded Firefox, my laptop will cooperate better than IE.  Now that I have uploaded the pictures there is no organization so I apologize for that.  I consider myself techy (a Gene Larson word) but this website's way of posting pictures is not easy to move around.  So maybe one of my blogging friends can give me a tip!

this weekend

We had a busy weekend in which we celebrated Jacob's second birthday (a few weeks early) and Lucas' baptism.  It was a crazy busy weekend, but we really had a nice time.  It was great to see all of John's family and my parents and aunt Nancy and uncle John.  I will try to post some pictures soon.

today's results

waiting for the VCUG to start

Today’s appointment in Iowa City went really well for Lucas.  We got to Iowa City around noon and checked into the hospital.  By 12:15 we were back for vitals and were sent down to pediatric radiology for another VCUG.  The test consists of placing a catheter and putting a fluid in the catheter so the Drs. can see if there is reflux (where the urine is going back up to the kidneys) and a blockage (as they thought they saw a blockage in his last VCUG).  This time was harder than the first time as I knew what was going to happen and it broke my heart to have my baby crying so much.  They also restrained him down, but this was so they could rotate him to get better pictures.  He did not like this AT ALL!  However, the Dr. got some really good pictures and our little Lucas did really well.  The test lasted about 15 minutes and when it was over we went back to the pediatric clinic to meet with Dr. Kieran.  Once we met with her, she stated that there is not a blockage and that he will not need surgery at this point.  Praise God!!  Our plan of action is as follows, we will continue on amoxicillin until he is two months old and then switch to a different drug.  This is to prevent any UTI’s from occurring.  He will also get ultrasounds of the kidney every 3 months, but we will be able to do that at Blank.  The Dr. wants his kidney monitored so the collection part of the kidney doesn’t get any larger.  If he gets a fever or the collection part gets larger, we will most likely have to go back to IA City where surgery could be a possibility.  Our prayers now turn to no UTI’s and that the urine reflux will rectify itself.  He has a grade 5 level of reflux in the left kidney and grade 3 in the right kidney.  The worst is 5, but I am thankful the Dr. has decided we can monitor it.  Basically she said it is common in boys and most outgrow it.  If he was a 4 year old girl, we would most likely need surgery immediately.  All and all we are happy with today’s appointment and just continue to pray his condition will rectify itself.

being a brave little baby

And here is a super cute picture of Jacob this morning after his donut.

Improvise

Yesterday we were all in the basement watching a little TV and the big boys were playing with toys.  Andrew was playing with these things called Kinecks (I am sure I am spelling that so wrong).  He says to John and me, I don't have all the pieces so I need to improvise.  John and I look at each other and ask him what does improvise mean?  He responds, when you don't have all the pieces you need to improvise.  Ok, so where did you learn that from?  Handy Manny he says.  LOL. We were pretty impressed that he used the word correctly in a sentence and knew how to define it.  I know that there are 8th and 9th graders who wouldn't have a clue how to use the word correctly.  Good job buddy!!

Heading to IA city

Dr. Kieran's office called this morning and Lucas' appointment in Iowa City is scheduled for Monday at 12:15.  I have some questions for them as they want to do another VCUG.  I would rather not put him through this test if its not necessary since we just had it done.  However, if it needs to be done we will do it.  I just want to be sure. 

Lucas' results

Today marked the day that Lucas had his two tests to see what was going on with his kidneys.  Lucas and I arrived at the hospital at 7:30 and checked in.  After we checked in we went down to radiology where they got an IV started and catheter.  Both were not a pleasant experience and poor Lucas screamed his little lungs out.  I did pretty well, but it was hard to watch my little baby be so uncomfortable.  After this we went to the waiting room where we were going to have the MAG 3 done.  At this point they said I could feed him in 10 minutes and to keep him awake.  So once I got to feed him he nursed for a half an hour.  I thought we were good as he fell asleep.  We got in the room and woke up and was acting fussy.  I thought he needed a burp, which he did and then we thought we were good to go.  The test lasted for 32 minutes and he screamed through majority of the test.  I felt so bad for him, but we made it and once I picked him he stopped crying and I got him calmed down.  After this we went back down to radiology where they preformed the VCUG test.  This test lasted 15 minutes and again he screamed through the whole test.  The radiologist noticed that he had reflux in both kidneys, but we waited to see Dr. Auron the specialist to see what our next steps would be.  John then met me in the lobby and we had our apt with Dr. Auron.  We looked at the pictures from both tests and he also noted that there is reflux in both kidneys and also a possible blockage in his urethra.  The left kidney has severe reflux and the right kidney has moderate reflux.  So our next step is to give him antibiotics so he doesn't get a urinary tract infection and we are being referred to Iowa City to the pediatric urologists there.  Now surgery is a possibility, but there is also the possibility that this is something he will be able to grow out of.  I am hoping and praying he will grow out of this, but am prepared for him to have surgery if that is what the Dr. says is needed.  We then went out to lunch and afterwards Lucas and I came home and crashed for the next 2 hours.  It was emotionally draining today, but I am thankful we are finding this out now as opposed to later.  The Dr. also brought up that its possible the other two boys could have reflux so our PA needs to check each boy at their next well child visit.  She will check them by checking their blood and a urine sample.  Please continue to pray for Lucas that the reflux will resolve itself and surgery won't be needed.

Today also marks Jacob's 23 month birthday!  Its amazing how much he has done in two years of life.  He is starting to say a lot more that we can understand.  He is working on colors and its so cute!  He is also working on potty training, way to go Jacob!  Hard to believe he is almost two years old.

5 weeks old and 34 years old

Today marks Lucas' 5 week birthday.  I brought him in for a weight check and he was up 13 oz to 8lbs 9 oz.  This brings me back to Andrew and Jacob and remembering that the size Lucas is now is about where each of the other two were at birth.  Andrew was 8lbs 10 oz and Jacob was 8lbs 6oz.  Our PA is happy with this gain and we won't need to be seen until his 2 month check up.  Tomorrow is also the big day for Lucas' two tests of kidney function.  I have to be at the hospital at 7AM and then he will get an IV and catheter.  At 9 AM he will have the MAG 3 test where he will have the drug put in his IV (which should hopefully be in his arm) and then lay on a table where they will take pictures of his kidney.  The told me the test should take 32 minutes.  After that we go to another place in the hospital to have the VCUG test done and get the catheter out.  Then we will meet with our specialist Dr. Auron to see what the next steps will be.  I will make sure to get everyone posted of the results.

Today also marks John's 34th birthday!  I want to wish him a very happy birthday and hope he has a great day.  I wish he could be home with Lucas and me today, but duty calls.  John is such a wonderful husband and father.  I am so blessed to have him in my life.  Happy birthday honey!

Happy 1 month birthday!

Thursday April 7th was Lucas' one month birthday.  Its hard to believe a month has past since his birth.  When I am pregnant, I can hardly wait for it to be over because first off I really don't like being pregnant, but more importantly, I really want the baby to get here.  However, its amazing how much joy little Lucas has brought to our family.  He is such a little mister, we all love him so much.  On Monday we go in for another weight check.  Our Dr. wasn't totally pleased with his weight gain, so I have been bottle feeding him with pumped milk and honestly its going really well!  I enjoy nursing, but with bottle feeding I know exactly how much he is getting.  I still do nurse, but am totally ok with the bottle.  We want to thank all who are praying for Lucas as his apt is coming up quick.  I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason so mine is not to question, only to accept what God has given us.  He is a great God and maybe Lucas is going through this to help John and I work on patience or to teach the Drs. something about his condition that will help other babies and children in the future.  I know He will take care of Lucas and has brought this special angel to us.  We are thankful for Lucas in our family. 

On another note, Jacob has been doing really well with potty training.  Generally when I ask him, he will go and he is even beginning to tell us when he has to go!  He is going at daycare too, so we are getting closer!!  Since Sunday, we haven't changed any diapers as he goes on the potty!!

Andrew also continues to be our BIG helper.  He wants to help with the baby and even fed the baby a bottle.  He will also help with Jacob when I need him to.  He is such a great guy!!

Jacob's big news and update on Lucas

When I got home from the hospital about 4 weeks ago, Jacob decided he wanted to start potty training.  I went with it, but didn't push him.  Well, this past Sunday, he went a lot of #1 on the potty!!  Its bee pretty exciting and he is doing pretty well.  Since he and Andrew are at daycare during the day, I did let daycare know and they are trying with him there too.  I don't want to get my hopes up since the little guy isn't even 2, but I am going with it :-)

On another note, Lucas appointment is scheduled for April 12 at 7:15 at Blank.  His MAG 3 (this is the one that takes a picture of his kidney to see if there's a blockage, he will need an IV) starts at 9 and the VCUG (this checks to see if he has bladder reflux and will have a catheter inserted) will follow at 10.  I will get to be with him the whole time so I feel better about that.  Then at 11 we meet with our specialist Dr. Auron to see what the next steps will be.  Please prayer for our little Lucas that the tests will go smoothly and we will get some answers as to what is going on with his kidney.  I am really praying we can just watch his kidney and not have surgery.  Also, he weighed 7lbs 13 oz yesterday (Monday).  Our PA was ok with his weight gain, but wants us to come back in a week as she would prefer to see an ounce a day.  I decided to pump and give him a bottle and he took a 3 oz bottle.  Total I pumped 12 oz, so I know he is getting enough he just gets a little lazy during his feeds :-)

what we know thus far

I wanted to get everyone up to speed on our little Lucas...

At my 20 week ultrasound, the OB noticed that Lucas' left kidney was distended.  At that point the Dr. didn't seem too concerned and we were just going to monitor it with ultrasounds since the fluid was fine around the kidney.  At 24 weeks, we had another ultrasounds and the left kidney still was distended.  At 28 weeks, the OB said it was now "normal".  At 34 weeks I had an u/s but never heard anything from the u/s.  I think since I had it done at the hospital in triage, but I am not for certain.  At 35 weeks, I asked my OB what I am supposed to do with the information I know about his kidney, she says to let the peditrition know at the hospital and he will most likely order a renal u/s of his kidney.  So after Lucas was born, I informed the peditrition at the hospital and he did indeed order an u/s.  At 11 days old, Lucas had his first u/s and it showed he has hydronephrosis.  What that means is the kidney size is fine, its the part inside that collects the urine is dilated or larger.  We were then referred to Dr. Auron who is a pediatric nephrologist (a specialist).  We had another u/s yesterday (March 31) at Blank and then met with Dr. Auron.  He stated that his condition is moderate and that he would like to preform two more tests so we can see exactly what is going on.  He did state that we could just watch it, but there might be a blockage (which one test will check for) and then other test will check to see if he has bladder reflux.  Both are invasive and he will be exposed to radiation.  The Dr. did reassure me that these are tests that they do all the time (even to little babies like Lucas).  The tests are going to happen in two weeks.  I am now just waiting for the hospital to call with the apt.  Dr. Auron said it will be a long day and then after the tests we will meet with him to see what the next step will be.  If Lucas does need surgery, Dr. Auron said he would refer us to the University of Iowa as there are only two pediatric urologists in the whole state and they are both there.  He also assured me that we would be in expert hands with either of these Dr.'s.  I am hoping and praying that we will not have to go down this road, but of course we will do what's best for our precious baby.

Any and all prayers are appreciated for our baby Lucas. 

3 weeks old

Its hard to believe that Lucas is three weeks old today!  I was going to blog on Saturday the 26th as that was my due date :-)  I was at a friends baby shower and thought it was humorous that I had an almost 3 week old at home and here I was not pregnant on my due date.  However, I am one who has never seen a 39th week of pregnancy.  Lucas currently weighs 7lbs 8 oz.  When he was born he weighed 7lbs 3 oz and in the hospital he went down to 6lbs 12 oz.  Friday I decided to bring him in for a weight check just to see how my little man was doing.  He weighed 7lbs 5 oz, and I was happy with that, but our PA didn't think that was enough and wanted to do another weight check today (Monday).  Like I mentioned he now weighs 7lbs 8oz and she is happy with that weight gain over the weekend and we will re-check in a week. 
I have learned a lot about breastfeeding and pumping over all three of my kids.  With Andrew I didn't know what I was doing, with Jacob, felt more confident, and with Lucas, I feel like a pro!  I am actually bf and pumping simultaneously and pumping about 20oz a day.  I am filling up our freezer nicely, which means I need to start using more of the food I had frozen :-)  Speaking of food, we have not had to cook (except pizza one night) since we have been home from the hospital.  Our friends and neighbors have been extremely generous in bringing meals over to the house.  It has been so awesome.  Adjusting to life with a newborn is just that an adjustment.  So not having to worry about cooking has been great!  Thanks again to all that has brought us a meal!
Another thing I want to mention about Lucas is his left kidney.  When I was 20 weeks pregnant, my OB noticed that is left kidney was distended and that we neede to monitor it over the next could ultrasounds.  So I had an ultrasound at 24 and 28 weeks and at 28 weeks the Dr. (a different one than initially) said all looked normal.  I had another u/s at 34 weeks,  but never heard anything since I had the u/s in triage at the hospital.  I mentioned something to my ob at my next apt and she said to mention it to the peditrician after we had him.  So I did and the Dr. got the radiologists report from 34 weeks and it was still distended.  So on the 18th I brough Lucas in for an ultrasound of his kidney and bladder and was told he has hydronephrosis and it appeared to have a blockage of some sort in the left kidney.  When I got the report it said it was moderate, so it may be something they will just watch.  On the 31st we meet with the nephrologist Dr. Auron so we will see what he says.  We will also have another ultrasound before we see the Dr.  At this point I am not sure how I feel.  I know that the Dr.'s and medical facilities around DSM are just great so I will see what Dr. Auron says on Thursday.  I will make sure to post how everything went.

One week old

Its hard to believe that a week has past since Lucas James joined out lives.  It seems like he's been apart of our lives forever.  In some ways he has since I was pregnant for 37 weeks it is longer than a week.  At his Dr. apt today he is back up to 7lbs and is 20", so he is 3 oz away from birth weight and grew (or stretch out) 3/4". 
Lucas' delievery went really well and was rather quick.  I had it in my mind that I wanted to have him naturally and was pretty positive I could do it.  John and I talked about it and I knew he would be a great coach during the delivery, which he was.  I went to the Dr on March 7th (a scheduled apt) and I had been having contractions and wasn't feeling the greatest.  Usually that is a sign, but of course I didn't want to think it would be happening this soon.  Luckily, I had my bag packed and the boys bag packed the day before.  At any rate Dr.Fahnlander checked me and I was 3-4cm and 50% effaced.  I had quite a bit of bloody show so the Dr. felt since I was having so much change so fast, she would send me over.  I started to cry (because that was the rational thing to do, right??) because I didn't know where John was, the big boys were still at daycare, I didn't have my bag, etc...The Dr. said don't worry your husband will take care of it and she was right.  Thankfully John was home from work and he went to get the boys, Andrea and Chris headed over to our house, and I told John all that I needed.  Chris also drove John to the hospital (and had to make another trip because we forgot the camera thanks Chris!) so we didn't have two cars downtown.  Well I get to the hospital and the nurse asks me why the Dr. sent me over (I really dislike when they do that, I wanted to respond, Oh I don't know just for fun and to waste your time, but I didn't).  I explained what was going on and she wasn't convinced I was in labor.  Well I wasn't going to argue with Jeanne, so I just said well the Dr. wanted me to come over and have you guys monitor me since I was having so much change.  Honestly, I would have been back at 2 am or something crazy so I am glad they finally kept me.  This was around 5:00 and thankfully Jeanne's shift ended at 7, but I digress.  Once John gets downtown, we start walking the L & D floor and finally I am told that at 7 they will determine if they are going to keep me or not.  At 7 I was checked and was making progress so now they decided I was in labor and they were keeping me.  The Dr. then broke my water at 7:15 and we were off to the races.  Honestly, labor wasn't too bad until the bitter end and that lasted about 15 min of hard labor.  I think I am pretty tough, and John was the best support system I could ever ask for and our new nurse Danae was AWESOME!!  Finally, it was time to push and Dr. Dornbier delivered our beautiful baby Lucas.  I also wanted to mention that Dr. Fahlander was the Dr. who saw me through majority of the apts when I had the ectopic a year ago and on March 8th of 2010 was when I had the ectopic rupture and Dr. Dornbier was the Dr. who preformed my emergency surgery.  God really does work in mysterious ways.



My three son's



Lucas James one week old

The Chef Hat

The other night we were going out to a friends house when I hear Andrew playing with a plastic bag.  It was dark and I really couldn't see what it was, so I just said Andrew don't play with the plastic bag.  His reply?  "This is no plastic bag mommy, this is my chef hat!"  I turned the light on in the van and sure enough, it was indeed a chef hat.  Apparently they had "cooked" at daycare earlier that day and he left his hat in the van.  It was so darn cute. 

What a cute chef!!

Lucas James Haase

Lucas James Haase arrived Monday March 7th at 10:37 PM.  He weighed 7lbs 3oz and was 19 1/4" long.  He has a full head of dark hair and resembles his two big brothers as babies.  He is such a sweetie pie and we have dubbed him our little peanut because he is so much smaller than when Andrew and Jacob were babies.  I am still in a bit of shock that he is here as he arrived 3 weeks early.  I had the other two boys early, but I was over 38 weeks.  At any rate, he was ready and we are so blessed to have him in our lives.  Pictures will follow soon :-)

babys everywhere except at our house

This week has been quite the week for people I know having babies.  First it was my neighbor Nicole who wasn't due until the 16th had a baby boy February 28th (Monday).  Then our neighbor next to Nicole, Jen who was due March 8th had her baby girl March 1st (Tuesday).  Now my co worker Lindsey who was due March 13th had her baby boy today (March 5th)!  I am super excited for all of them but of course a bit jealous.  I am so uncomfortable and it almost seems to get worse everyday.  Obviously its the third pregnancy that's doing me in and makes me wonder how on God's green earth did my grandma Lil do this 13 times!  I just have to make it to Thursday for work and that is my last day.  Friday starts spring break and then I am hoping he will come over spring break.  Then I won't return to work until August!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Today we had a major freezer cooking day.  I already had a lasagna in the freezer and two gallon freezer bags full of meatballs.  Now we have 2 - 9x13 pans of chicken and rice casserole, 1 - 9x13 spaghetti casserole (I brought 2 - 8x8 to the neighbors above) 3 rubbermaid containers with Italian beef, 1 - 9x13 and 1 - 8x8 of scalloped potatoes and ham.  We had some of the Italian beef for supper tonight and it was AWESOME!!  I have all the clothes washed and put away, bassinet is up, carseat bases are in both vehicles, pump stuff is washed and dried, diapers in the drawer, now we just need to figure out a name!  That's right the time we find out the gender ahead of time and we still can't agree on a name.  If this were a girl it wouldn't have been a problem, but since its our third boy, we are having some issues agreeing on a name.  Oh it will come, but its just taking some time.

 

36 weeks and counting

Being 36 weeks pregnant with out third child is certainly exciting.  However, I feel this pregnancy has caught up with me.  having two little one's at home and working full time is taking its toll on my body.  Compared to where I was a year ago, I am thankful and blessed to be carrying this baby, but it doesn't take away from how uncomfortable I am!  I have 6 days left of work until spring break and hoping I can make it till then.  We pretty much have everything ready for our newest son's arrival.  Its nice knowing we are having a boy so I don't have to worry about getting the clothes out and washed when we get home, I can focus on the baby.  I feel like we are as ready as we can be at this point, so now we just wait for pumpkin to be ready.  My neighbor had her baby 15 days early, so of course that makes me exciting knowing that I will have this baby soon.  Hopefully the next post is the birth of our son!!

catching up

Hard to believe it is already February and baby boy #3 will be here soon!  Things are going well with the pregnancy, but I am super uncomfortable and wish that March would get here quicker than it is!!  There are four of us at work that are all due within a month of each other and one of the gals may have her baby next week!  That means I might be next...woo hoo!!

Basketball for Andrew is still going well.  He has his last game on Saturday.  We have enjoyed watching him play and I know he has loved playing.  Now comes time to see what activity to have him involved in next.  I really do not like soccer, but think it may be a good way to get him out an exercising for an hour on a Saturday.  We will see.

Other important news is the Packers won the Super Bowl!!!  What an awesome game it was.  They had me biting my fingernails the whole time, but they won!!

Go Packers!

So we have a bit of a torn household.  John is a Bears fan and so are our children (due to brainwashing from their father).  I am a Packer fan and have tried very hard to get Andrew on my side (lost cause), but I think there might be some home with Jacob.  So the game has started and heres to hoping the Packers come out on top!!

basketball!!

We decided to get Andrew involved in basketball this winter.  It lasts for six weeks and its every Saturday.  All of the four and five year old boys are so cute when they play. 


Warming up

I am trying to post a few more photos, but of course the blog isn't cooperating!!

I am also 30 weeks pregnant.  I have been feeling so so, just very tired.  We all got over colds/flu/ear infections and this past week was good.  Jacob is getting tubes on Wednesday, so hopefully that will help him out with all the fluid in his little ears.  I know when Andrew had it done it made a world of difference.