First Hockey Game

Texas has many sports passions -- football, NASCAR, football, tobacco chewing and football -- but hockey is not one of them. There is essentially no national TV coverage available here (don't even ask about getting Don Cherry -- though through the wonders of the Internet, even Texans can get access to the wisdom of Coach's Corner). We do get pretty decent coverage of the Dallas Stars on local TV but the NHL schedule makes it pretty rare to see either Montreal or Toronto -- which is a potential hurdle to the proper cultural development of our little man.

However, the hockey gods smiled on us yesterday -- Montreal came to Dallas for the first time in 2 years. We figured that Dougie was still a bit little to enjoy the game in person (especially for the price!) but we settled in at home to watch a bit of the game. (Our official "first sporting event" in HDTV!) We gave up after the first period as Dougie was starting to wane, but we had a good time all the same.

A couple of pictures of the two hockey fans:

Laying out the jerseys before the games (thanks to Auntie Suz for the extra-extra-extra small!)


What's the old Rocket Richard commercial... "Two minutes for looking so good!"


The newest Habs fan (gives new meaning to the term 'short-handed'!)


Dougie takes his first dive

Christmas Cookies, Part 1

An important part of the Sharabura family Christmas tradition (along with the infamous clementine-in-the-stocking) is the making of Christmas cookies. Ever since I can remember, each of the kids has received a chunk of dough that we mixed up, rolled out, cut the cookies, decorated and baked them. This also includes various sub-traditions..

• Fighting over who got the bigger chunk of dough (we didn't have a kitchen scale)


• Arguments over the optimum thickness of cookie (Mike always seemed to make them thick enough to have just 2 or 3 cookies)


• In a related debate, is it better to make many small cookies vs. investing all your dough into the big Snoopy doghouse


• Amazement at the various colors that Steve would use for frosting (I seem to remember orange, purple and green... no, not all in the same year, although I wouldn't put that out of the realm of possibility)


• What was the best canned good to use to prevent the pastry sheets from rolling up -- apple juice and soup were always a popular choice


• What the retail folks refer to as "shrinkage" -- the inevitable loss of raw cookie dough due to cutout scraps and random tasting


• ALWAYS a request from Dad for a thick, unsprinkled pig

Since Dougie missed out last year (contrary to popular belief, 10-day-old babies are not the most skilled cookie makers around) we figured that it was our duty to get things going this year. Yesterday, we made the dough -- apparently 12-month-old toddlers are still not that helpful but we're hoping that Dougie will have some fun with the cookie cutting later today.

Some pictures of the dough making...

Dougie and Daddy in the kitchen -- only a bit of flour on the nose!

Dougie is ready to start cutting cookies (yes, that is the infamous pig mold)

Blood Test Update

We got Dougie's blood test results back. His liver function test showed no issues and his lead level had actually decreased a point. In truth, that could just be a different lab running the test but I feel pretty certain that it isn't getting worse so I'm just going to hold on to that. All in all, a great report!

12 Month Check-up

On Monday, we brought Dougie in for his 12 Month check-up. Poor little guy wasn't feeling too well anyway so the trip was well timed.

Stats:

• Weight - 20lbs 5oz (17%)


• Height - 29" (25%)


• Head - 18.5" (69%)

As you can see, he's still a little guy though he is creeping above his standard growth line. The doctor is still pretty convinced that Dougie will end up being about 5'11" (despite my insisting that Sharabura's are tall), so, we'll see.

We got Dougie a Hep A shot while we were there. We'll need to go back in a month or so to get the MMR vaccine and we're going to hold off on the chicken pox vaccine for a while. It just isn't as good as actually getting chicken pox so we want to give Dougie a bit of time to see if he catches it.

They also took a ton of blood for various testing. We're expecting the results of that this morning. They tested Dougie's liver function as well as another lead level test. Both those results were a bit off in his last round of testing. The doctor felt the liver count was off because of the iron therapy and wasn't concerned but just wants to be sure it isn't something serious. The lead level we're just ensuring hasn't gotten worse. Once we know more about those tests, we'll let you know.

The doctor said that Dougie was doing really well though. He's well on target with his development.

Birthday Party Fun

We decided to just have a very small party for Dougie this year. We considered trying to throw a bigger shindig but we thought for his first year a party with just us would be nice. So, that's what we did. I didn't want him to miss out on anything though, so we made the party we did have a big deal.

We decorated the playroom




We even had party hats


Then Dougie started into his presents


Through whatever means necessary


This one was Daddy's favourite (thanks Auntie Suz!!)


Dougie eventually learned how to rip the paper


Dougie loved his wooden bench


And then proceeded to try to open all the other presents with his mallet


Mum helped open some too




Then it was time for cake


(it's supposed to be a hippo)


We all had a great time. Dougie seemed to understand that it was a special day, even if he didn't understand why.

Happy Birthday to our Toddler

It's so hard to believe it's been a year already. Dougie has changed so much.

Dougie this time last year


Dougie today


A very happy birthday to our little guy!

The Stockings Were Hung...

Grandma Sharabura sent Dougie down his "Sharabura Stocking" for this Christmas. All the Sharaburas have one. We put it up over Thanksgiving weekend when we decorated but we were missing a stocking hanger so mine didn't make it up until today. Now that we have the full compliment of stockings, I thought we should get a picture.

Santa Trauma

I took Dougie to get his picture taken with Santa today... it didn't go well. He hated Santa. He screamed and cried and generally made sure everyone in the mall knew he was undergoing some sort of baby torture. They even tried to give him a lollipop which he promptly threw. We only got one picture where he wasn't crying and he clearly isn't "happy".



Perhaps we'll have better luck next year.

First Steps

Dougie has done little steps between two things a few times now but it always seemed like more of a mistake than "real" first steps. Today, they were real. Dougie was upset about not being able to reach my cake pans (they're fun to throw on the tile floor) and was having a little fit about it. I sat down on the floor and called him over, he turned, put his arms out and took 5 little steps toward me. They were quite purposeful. I'm a little scared of when he really starts moving, but mostly excited that soon, our little man will be totally mobile.

Until we get independent mobility down, Dougie uses his cow to get around:

Sippy King

Dougie has learned to use his sippy cup. Since his discovery, he brings it everywhere and has little sips. I'm so glad that he finally worked out how to use it. We really didn't want to have to put him back on the bottle just to get some water into him.

Dougie and the Sippy


Have Sippy Will Travel

Another Medical Update

The neurologist's office finally faxed the blood test results to our pediatrician. The pediatrician called this afternoon to go over the results. It turns out, the doctor had also run some of those tests (just as part of a standard panel) when they did Dougie's last anemia check. So, the level that the neurologist had been most concerned about we had been rechecked two week after and that test said it was totally normal. (One point to Auntie Carol for predicting it was a lab error)

The doctor did mention some levels that the neurologist hadn't mention. First he said that one of the liver test levels was a bit elevated. He thought this was most likely a results of the iron supplements that Dougie is taking. He's going to keep an eye on it though and recheck it at our appointment in 2 weeks. He also said that Dougie had a bit of lead in his system. We're going to recheck that as well at his next appointment. If the level is still elevated, we'll do an aggressive check of what Dougie could be ingesting that is causing the increased level. In the meantime, we're supposed to keep an eye on what is going into his mouth. I also did another quick check of all the recalls for lead paint to make sure none of his toys are on there.

All in all, we're thrilled with the results of the doctor's call. I finally feel like we're done with all of this and we can just relax.

Pancake Breakfast With Santa

The fire department in the City of Grapevine hosts a pancake breakfast with Santa every year. It's a way for them to raise some money for a variety of their needs. The coolest part is that Santa, Rudolph and Frosty all arrive to the breakfast in helicopters. We decided to take Dougie yesterday. We ended up missing their arrival though we did see the helicopters as we were driving in.

Dougie enjoyed it. He got to meet Santa for the first time though he wasn't sure what to make of him. He wasn't really interested in having pancakes but Scott and I had some and they were quite tasty. We stayed about 45 minutes and then headed home. I'm so glad we went. We're going to make it a little family tradition. I bet Dougie will love it next year.

Helicopters Outside the Firehouse


Dougie Meeting Santa


Making Pancakes


Drum Core

More Medical Updates

We finally heard from the neurologist! They said that the MRI and the EEG both came back normal. The neurologist said that he is clinically normal. So, that is great news! It doesn't explain why he's having the spasms but it does mean that he'll likely just grow out of it. We're going to give it a month and see where he is at then. He does continue to have spasms but they seem to be in a reduced phase again, so perhaps that's a good sign.

The doctor did mention that there was an elevation in his blood levels. There seems to be a ton of things that could be causing it though. She is going to fax the blood work to our pediatrician tomorrow and we'll follow up with him. She did mention that it could be an allergy or something. Hopefully, those results will get to the pediatrician on Monday and we can find out a bit more from him.

Getting Festive

Get got inspired to Elf Ourselves.

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1141845691

No Longer Anemic

We got the official word last night from Dougie's pediatrician, Dougie is no longer anemic. YAY!! He needs to stay on the iron for another month to help rebuild his iron stores and then he can stop it. We'll recheck his iron levels at his 15 month appointment. Dougie is thrilled at the idea of getting off the iron.

Still no news on the MRI, blood work or EEG. We'll be calling about those again today.

Dougie Learns a Sign

We've been trying to do Baby Signs with Dougie. Apparently, it can help make the 2 year old stage a bit easier because when they don't have the ability to say the word, they can do the sign instead. Theoretically, this reduces the number of communication related tantrums. We'll see about that, but in the meantime, we're trying to teach him some signs. We've been doing this for a few months now and though Dougie seemed to understand some of them, he wouldn't actually make any signs. Yesterday, he made his first sign, "jump". Yes, I know, not the most useful sign for an 11 month old but he does love to jump. We're hoping this will be the beginning of many more signs to come.

EEG Updates

Last Monday morning through Wednesday morning Dougie did his second EEG. As you'd expect, it was a long process. Fortunately, he actually had some spasms so at least it was a lot more productive. The neurologist called midway through to let us know that at that point, the spasms were not causing abnormalities on the EEG but she did want us to finish it.

Dougie All Wired Up


At this point, we're waiting to hear the results of the rest of the test. We're also still waiting on the MRI results as well as the blood test results from the testing 2 weeks ago. I plan to call about that today. Things are looking more and more positive all the time though.

It's Official - No Milk Soy Allergy

I'm almost giddy as I type this. We got the word this morning that Dougie no longer has a milk or soy allergy!

November 16th, we took Dougie into the allergist. They did a scratch test there which showed no reaction for milk or soy. Apparently, they don't consider that sufficient results though and they sent Dougie for a blood serum test as well. Those results came in this morning that there was a negative reaction and he can start on milk and soy products. More importantly, so can I. What a great way to start a week!!

Dougie is Smarter than the Puppies

We knew the day would come, but we had been lulled into a bit of a sense of false security. With four dogs, we've gotten used to making things hard to access. Our methods have been contingent on a slightly lower problem solving ability. For example, we have one dog who thinks he can hide under my desk which is open on all 4 sides. As you can see, we didn't have to have solutions that were that brilliant. Up until now, those solutions have worked just fine to keep Dougie out of things as well. That was, until today.

Like all babies, Dougie has discovered the wonder that is our kitchen cupboards and is continually getting into them. We are working on getting child locks on them all but until then, I placed chairs up against the doors to stop him from opening them. Today, he learned that he could just move the chair.

That chair used to be up against the cupboard


Now those plastic bags are nice and accessible


Let the mess ensue


But wait, there's more. His talents aren't limited to accessing the bag cupboard. He can get Tupperware and baby food items


And even food itself


Looks like we'll have to get those cupboard locks installed this weekend.

Finger Feeding

It's about time we had some positive things going on in this blog. So, it is my pleasure to announce that Dougie officially finger fed for the first time tonight. I had placed some Puffs on his tray and given him a few. Then, I worked on my dinner. I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye and when I turned to look at him, he was putting the Puffs in his mouth. I'm so excited for him. He missed his mouth a few times but for the most part, it was a very successful meal. We're going to try some sort of different food tomorrow.

You can't see it, but there is a Puff in those fingers


Playing with PlayDoh containers


Throwing it is the most fun


In other news, we don't have any results yet though we're waiting for scheduling to call us to book the 48 hour EEG.

Dougie's MRI

Dougie went in for his MRI today. Because you have to remain completely still for an MRI, they sedate children Dougie's age. We arrive at the pediatric imaging center right at noon. They checked Dougie in quickly and we were called back. Dougie played in the back for a few minutes while they finished up with the previous patient and then they called us into the MRI room. We lay Dougie on the table and the anesthesiologist put a mask on him. He started to cry almost immediately. I think he just knew something was up and apparently, it smelled a bit. In about 30 seconds, Dougie was asleep. I left the room.

While they had Dougie under, they took more blood. Judging by the vials I saw them leave with, it's for the best that he slept through that. Then they started the MRI. The entire process took about 45 minutes.

They say it's common that children wake from anesthesia "irritable". Dougie was no exception to this rule. He cried loudly as soon as they woke him up. The doctor handed him to me and he continued to scream. They put us in a recovery room on the other side of the imaging center and apparently, people could still hear him screaming. It went on for 10-15 minutes solid and then in little bursts after that for the next hour or so. Once he got over that, he was fine. He did refuse to nap for the rest of the day but that was also to be expected. He's completely back to his normal self now.

Unfortunately, no news beyond that. I called the neurologists office twice today but no one called us back. I'm going to call tomorrow and be a bit more insistent that someone return our call. Hopefully by that time, they can also give us the MRI results. We'd really like to know if we need to go back in for another EEG though because Scott will need to make arrangements to get home and I'll need to make arrangements for the dogs.

Call from the Neurologist

The neurologist called today. She was reviewing the results and wanted some help finding the spasm. She was surprised Dougie didn't have more. She did say that the results she had seen so far were mostly normal. I asked if that was a positive sign and she said that it was too early to tell but didn't want us to get too excited about it. So, still no news there.

The one thing she did say was that we had to continue monitoring Dougie's episodes through the weekend. If they continue, she wants us to get another EEG done but this time a 48 hour one. We're not excited about the prospect of that. I'm still hopeful that one spasm will show her enough.

More Medical Updates

Sorry for the lack of update yesterday. The day proved to be pure insanity.

We had the neurologist appointment at 9am. She was very nice and spent over to an hour with us. She said Dougie was one of the most alert babies she had seen at this age. Our video wasn't a lot of help to her but she was very impressed with our log of his episodes. She wasn't able to give me any definite indicate as to what the problem was but she did list off a couple of options. As expected, she ordered tests. What wasn't expected was that the test was yesterday afternoon.

So, Dougie and I had about 45 minutes after we left the office to get ourselves packed up and ready for this 12 hour EEG. First, we called Scott. His plan was to get on the first flight he could back home and meet us up at the center. He wouldn't be able to be there at the beginning but with 12 hours of testing, he'd still be a lot of help once he arrived. Next, we packed up jammies, fed the puppies and got ourselves en route to Plano.

The test was done at the Pediatric Sleep Institute. It was a really nice facility. They were running a bit behind but we had been "fit" into the schedule so we were just appreciative to be able to get in so quickly. We managed to get Dougie all hooked up to the monitors and though he didn't appreciate the process, once it was finished, he was fine with his setup. He only pulled at the cords a few times and the head wrap a few times. Scott managed to get there a bit after 4 so he was there for most of the testing.

We waited... and waited... Little Dougie decided that perhaps he wouldn't spasm. You can imagine how impressed we were. Finally, with only an hour to go before the testing finished, he had an episode of 2 small spasms. I've never been so happy to see him do that. With that, we all went to sleep. The center allowed us to stay until morning even though our testing finished around 1:30am. They said it was safer than driving home that late. We were on the road home by 6am to avoid traffic. As you can imagine, we're all a bit tired.

So, now we wait again. We're going to call the neurologist this morning and find out about the MRI. We're also going to see how long it will take to know something. My hope is that we'll hear today but it's certainly possible that we won't hear anything for a little while. In the meantime, we're working hard to get the glue out of Dougie's hair.

Thanks for all the positive thoughts. We all really appreciate it.

Medical Update

Our little Dougie has been having a small medical problem lately. It started innocently enough. In fact, we hardly even noticed it at first. When he would nurse before bed, once in a while, he'd tense up. I thought he was stretching. This went on for a few weeks but I never gave it any thought. Then, last week, he did it while he was eating in his high chair. It caught my attention but I figured it was a one time thing. The next day at the park, he was eating an animal cracker and it happened again. On Friday, I decided it was time to talk to the doctor.

Initially, we sent an e-mail into the doctor's office but as I researched some of the causes of these spasms, we decided to call instead. The nurse made us an appointment for Monday morning but said that if the frequency increased, we should bring Dougie into the hospital. As the evening progressed, the frequency did increase. So, right before Dougie's bedtime, we packed him up and brought him to what we thought the hospital was. Turns out, it was actually an urgent care center. They were very nice there but they couldn't do any of the tests that were necessary to determine what was going on. So, we went back home with no answers.

By Saturday morning, we had decided we were going to bring Dougie to the hospital. He had had several spasm episodes Friday night and there was a dramatic up-shift. The nurses there were nice... the doctor, not so much. He did tells us that it wasn't seizures because Dougie wasn't falling asleep afterward. I happened to know that falling asleep wasn't a requirement for seizures but who was I to argue with him. He had the nerve to ask what else was wrong, like the convulsions our son was having wasn't reason enough to be there. He set us up with a referral for a neurologist and sent us on our way.

We made it through the rest of the weekend and Dougie didn't get any worse, which was good to see. Monday, we went to see the pediatrician. We had a little video of Dougie having some of his episodes so we could just show him instead of trying to explain it. The doctor wanted to do some blood work. There are a variety of things that could cause convulsions that are detectable in a blood test. He had no other ideas as to what could be going on though he did say he didn't think it was seizures. For the record, he also said sleeping wasn't a requirement for seizures but Dougie was too alert for it to be a seizure. By Monday afternoon, we had an appointment schedule with the neurologist for Wednesday morning.

Today, we got the results of the blood work. Everything came back normal. I'm not sure how to take the news. I guess it's good that there aren't any issues with any of Dougie's organs and that his blood is all fine, but it sounded like our best outcomes would have been found in blood work so I was hoping they would fine something. So, now we wait until tomorrow.

The good news in all this is that Dougie feels fine. He has a spasm and then continues with what he was previously doing. He's only gotten upset a few times and those tend to be when he has a lot in a row or the spasm is a bit stronger. We're keeping calm and not Googling anything more.

I'll definitely provide an update after we see the neurologist tomorrow. I don't expect a lot from the appointment other than getting schedule for some tests but I'll update regardless. If you could spare a few positive thoughts for our little guy, we'd all appreciate it.

Goin' Green

Before Dougie was born, I had a lengthy list of things I was never going to do. As time passes, thing are continually falling off the list. The latest list causality is cloth diapering. Yes, you read correctly, our little Dougie now wears cloth diapers. The more amazing part is the we're cleaning them ourselves. We're almost a week in, and so far, so good.

Here is our little Dougie in his first cloth diaper.

Dougie's First Halloween

Happy Halloween!

This year, Dougie was an elephant for Halloween. It was an adorable costume and he didn't seem to mind it too much. The feet were a bit too big and kept falling off and he eventually learned to take the head piece off but he still looked cute. He ended up wearing it three times so we got a lot of use out of it.



I think he looks pretty cute.

Showing Off the Teeth

Dougie's current tooth count is at 4. He can even take bites of things. He was showing them off today so I got a few pictures so you could see his teething progress.

Dougie's First Haircut

On Saturday, we took Dougie for his first haircut. His hair wasn't *that* long but it was hanging over his ears on the side and we wanted to clean him up a bit. We also wanted to get him exposed to the experience now so he's used to it and it won't be a big deal later.

As you can tell, we went to a place that specialized in children's hair cuts. He was pretty happy about it the entire time.

Before the Cut


Cutting


After


And "driving" his cab (you can see the cut a bit better)


And yes, we know the before and after pictures look almost the same. I actually had to sort them by time so I could work out which one was which. :)

Feeding Daddy

Dougie knows how to pick up food using a pincer grasp (using his thumb and index finger) but he hasn't learned to then put it his own mouth. He has learned to put it in our mouths.

We're hoping that this means he'll learn to feed himself soon. That'll make dinners a lot easier.