Lynn Howard

:D Saturday 6/4/11. Haven't posted in a long time. It's been a great year. Ethan is doing very well. He is 2 1/2 years old now. He is still not eating but is beginning to put a few things in his mouth like crackers and potato chips. He's not actually biting them or chewing, but just putting them in his mouth is a start. He seems to like salty stuff rather than sweet and likes stuff that isn't messy. We tried to start with soft foods like pudding and mashed potatoes, but so far no dice on those things. He won't use a spoon. When he sees the spoon coming, he backs up. He will drink water and tea; just small sips at the time and only from a regular cup. He never liked the sippy cup. He went to the dentist a couple of weeks ago and the Dr. said his teeth were in great shape. They had a lot of tartar built up on them. But she said that tube-fed kids build up a lot of tarter and fast. Just something about the chemical make up in their mouth. Healthwise, he's doing great. He had a stomach virus in early Nov 2010 and was hospitalized with dehydration, but only for a couple of days. He didn't have any really big illnesses this past winter which we are really thankful for. He got bronchitis about a month ago or more and the doctor still saw some atelactasis so he prescribed The Vest for him. It's used by cystic fibrosis patients but it does the percussion treatments. This should help keep the lung open and growing. He holds his oxygen saturation very well and has not had any trouble with that, but he gets winded easily. The doctor said that should get better as time goes by. He is a big boy now weighing 36 lbs and is 36 inches tall. He is saying a lot more words but not putting sentences together yet. Well, he will say "water please". That's a sentence. He knows how to sign (language) more, please, play, help and water. He doesn't run yet but kind of walks fast/jogs. He's trying though. He's getting into everything. It's great to see him curious about so much. He loves to play with pots, pans, spoons and bowls. He loves going outside and heads out everytime the door is opened. He loves turning the TV on and off and follows his sister around everywhere. He will point to his feet, hands, hair, legs and everything. He's just doing well. We are praying it continues and are looking forward to a great summer. His biggest problem for the moment is eating. We are going to try to get rid of the night feeds if he can tolerate enough boluses in the daytime. That won't be for a couple more months though. And hopefully wean him from the Lasix. His left arm swells but we have been told by numerous doctors, including his cardiologist that it is due to some scarring from a central line; that it can be fixed if it becomes a problem. He uses that arm fine and it is not blue or cold. The circulation seems to be fine. He has had some terrible eczema on his legs and feet. We noticed he has started scratching and keeps sores on his feet. He didn't use to realize the itching but does now. We have just tried everything to calm it down. It's worse in the summer and we cannot figure out if he is allergic to something or if his skin is just sensitive to a lot of elements like carpeting, grass and stuff. This is really small stuff in comparison. We are just enjoying the everyday stuff he does. He learned to say, "mine" yesterday. I was very surprised and pleased. He took the cordless phone, put around behind him and said, "mine". Very cute. One more normal thing he's doing. That's about it for now. [color=green:0e4e4d72c5][/color:0e4e4d72c5]