Meet Baby Jones

Dear Avery -

You turned 18 months yesterday. What a relief! You keep growing and growing and with no setbacks *knock on wood* - ahhhh, I can breathe a little easier now that you’ve reached this age. You’re a little sturdier so I no longer freak out about accidentally breaking you.

At your 18-month appointment today, Dr. Dilloway said you are the picture of perfect health. You are still taller than you are heavier on the percentile scale, which is definitely much preferred than the other way around, and you are still above average in height and weight . But your weight- and height-gain have slowed down A LOT. I think you only gained 3/4 of a pound and 3/4 of an inch since July, when before then, you were averaging 1 lb/month weight gain. Well, the furrow between my brows must’ve gotten deeper as your pediatrician spoke because she quickly reassured me that this slow down is normal.

A concern I brought up at this visit is your lack of verbal communication. The only words I’ve ever heard you say are Da Da (for Dad) and Ba Ba (for Bubbles or Banana). The rest of your communication is babble or The Point and Grunt. Fortunately, as frustrating as it is sometimes to try to understand, most of your communication I am able to decipher. Eventually. I think. You’ll let me know in the future how close I am to some of these guesses.

These days, you most often point to your head and grunt. I guess it’s because some of your fondest memories involve your head somehow. There was the time waaaay back in August when you got close enough to Gibson for him to nuzzle your head. Yes, it’s been many, many weeks ago, but since that day, you’ve been pointing to your head and then grunting as if to tell and retell about the time you and Gibson bonded. Or, it could also be the time when your lolo gave you a kiss on the forehead. And still of course, the culprit could be the Dr. Seuss classic, “The Cat in the Hat“, that you simply adore. Whenever we read the book, you squeal with delight as you point to the cat’s hat, then your head, then the cat’s hat again, then your head again.

So yeah, when you do the point to your head and grunt thingy, I just pick an experience you’ve had and we just talk about it. I ask you questions, and each time you reply by repointing to your head and regrunting. Sometimes you include a really big smile or a laugh. Other times you just walk away from me and start playing with your toys. But always though, we have a great time just shooting the breeze.

And although you can only utter 2 words, you can point out about a million things. You know practically every part of the body, about 10 animals, 20 things in nature (ie. grass, leaf, moon, stars, etc.) and most household and food items. You also can follow instructions really well. Except of course when you’re having too much fun, then you just tell me no.

Your pediatrician said that because you seem to have the ability to communicate in other ways and is making some effort to verbalize, that there’s no cause for worry. She said start to be concerned when you are 2 1/2 and are still where you are now.

Let’s see, what else is going on with you? Oh, the school thing. You do really well, Aves, extra-especially when you don’t spend 3 1/2 hours out of 4 crying. This is your third week and I really thought by now that you’d be used to being in school. But noooo, I think it is getting worse. It’s become so bad now that when we approach a brown building, any brown building, you start crying and dragging your feet. Oh boy. I hope it never comes to the point when I have to toss you over my shoulders or drag you by your feet to get you inside the school. That would so not be good for my hairdo.

Love,
Mommy

P.S.
We were at Springton Manor Farm today when I asked you where my car was. Guess how you responded? Yeah, yeah, yeah, you pointed to my car and then you grunted. But you also said, Dare. Yes, you said Dare (as in There for those who aren’t as good as I in figuring out baby talk). Music to my ears, Lil’ Dude, music to my ears.

Dear Avery -

So, you and I have survived your first couple of days of school. I was nervous, Daddy was relieved, and you, well, I told you all about going to school and stuff but I don’t think you had any clue what was coming.

The night before your big day, I felt so frenzied. At 8p, we still had a ton of stuff to do like take your Lola home (which by the way takes a total of 2.5 hours to complete and doesn’t begin until 9p so you do the math) and complete the 100-page application to your school that I felt like there was no way I was going to be going to bed at a decent hour so I can wake up and not be a crankypuss. I wanted to be genuinely pleasant on Monday so your morning is pleasant as well. But I worried this just wasn’t going to be.

Monday morning came, however, and it wasn’t as bad as I’d expected. While you were still asleep, I got up first and then showered. Before 8 am!! A rarity in our household since you were born. You then woke up and greeted me in the bathroom as I was blow-drying my hair with the loveliest, warmest smile ever. How can anyone be grumpy after being witness to that?

As I was getting you dressed, Daddy started talking to me from downstairs about making sure I took the digital AND video cameras with me to capture your first day at school. I told him that was impossible. There were just too many things for me to worry about that morning that taking photos, as hard as that was for even me to believe, was just the last thing on my very long list. That clearly wasn’t the answer Daddy wanted to hear though because without hesitation, he decided he would go in to work late so he could come with us and serve as the official documenter.

When we arrived at school, you still had no clue what was up. As usual, you were curious about everything, stopping to inspect every picture that was taped to the wall and playing with the toys in the lobby.

Your mood quickly changed, however, when we entered your classroom. All of a sudden, you couldn’t move a thing. You stood in the doorway and just observed everyone and everything. Forever.

After a few minutes of concentrated observation from your post, you finally started to venture away from the door and began to explore once again.

You even became comfortable enough with your teacher, Ms. Ashley, to approach her so you can proudly point to the dog on the puzzle tray.

Daddy and I hung around long enough to make sure you were ok in your new surroundings with all those new people. When it was time to leave, we were instructed to do so like we were removing a band-aid from a wound - swiftly and with our eyes closed. We did that, but it only took you a second to realize that we were no longer in the room. As soon as you realized we had snuck out, you let out a deafening cry.

It broke my heart to leave you and it took every bit of self-control I had not to turn back and snatch you away from your teacher. I kept silently repeating as I walked out of the school, “I’ll see you again in just 3 1/2 hours”, hoping you’ll somehow telepathically receive this message and stop your crying. Sadly, you didn’t get my message because Ms. Ashley said that you cried more than a few tears in class.

When I came to pick you up, Ms. Patti was carrying you as you guys stood by the window. You turned around when you heard the door open and almost flew out of Ms. Patti’s arms when you saw that it was me. I grabbed you from her and immediately, you started trying to tell me about your day. You started grunting while pointing to the outside, to your head, even to Ms. Ashley! It was as if you wanted to say (and as it was reported to me by Ms. Ashley) that you spent some time outside, that Ms. Jen showered you with kisses on your head, and that Ms. Ashley was the leader of the group.

Yes, I know you didn’t like being left with total strangers, but we’re only doing this now because we want you better prepared for when you really need to be in school for longer periods of time. Besides, although there were some sad moments for you, I was told that you had a great time overall, especially when you guys played outside!

Well, the day must’ve been truly exhausting for you because as soon as I put you in your carseat, you were done. I think you napped like 3 hours that day - a record for you these days.

This is the beginning of many years of schooling for you, Avery. You’ll learn so much about so many things and you’ll meet many different people. I am so excited for you and all the knowledge that you’re about to uncover through this educational journey that you’ve began.

Love,
Mommy

Dear Aves -

I haven’t written an open letter lately because, I dunno, I communicate with you so much now that I feel silly repeating everything I’ve said to you in a letter. But really, how much of what I say to you will you remember? How much will I remember? To be safe, I think I’ll continue.

So Bubba, we had a great time today. I took you to Barnes and Noble to pick up reads for the entire family and while there, we checked out the play area they have on the second floor. It was really cool up there and you went buck wild when I let you loose. Of course you wanted this, and you wanted that, but after I’d just spent $95 on books, I wasn’t trying to swipe my poor card anymore.

There was a Thomas the Tank train set in the play area that you soooo looked like you were just dying to play with, but a couple of kids had already marked their territory so you refused to get within a few feet of the table. You simply stood in the doorway and pitifully observed the frolic.

I couldn’t stand you looking so dejected, and the kids, along with their parents, didn’t look like they were trying to leave anytime soon, so I decided that we would leave.

We walked over to Becker’s (a local parent teacher store) to see if we could buy you some consolation. I mean no, you weren’t crying hysterically or anything. As a matter of fact, you weren’t even crying, but you just looked heartbroken. These things only a mother knows.

We get inside and lo and behold, there’s a Thomas the Tank train set on the same train table as there was in Barnes and Noble! Man, you ran up to that thing as if it was a mountain of blueberries spewing bubbles and sprinkled with pieces of coconut bread surrounded by different-colored binkies (your favorite things in this world). You squealed with delight as you touched each piece and giggled with excitement as you rolled the trains onto the tracks. You were enjoying it so much that I immediately start thinking about how I would explain to daddy yet another toy purchase. This week.

That was until I saw how much the entire thing would cost.

My good lawd! Ok, the table alone costs a buck fifty. And the table of course needs a playboard ($50). Then I peeped how much each toy component costs - just to give you an idea, a train costs about $15. Sets complete with tracks and accessories may be purchased at around $120 each.

So, your consolation easily comes out to about $400. Geez. And to think, you haven’t even started really asking for stuff.

Well, your daddy would’ve very likely killed me had we come home with that train set so we left it right there on the shelf. Not that he doesn’t want you to have nice things - he would give you the world if he could. It’s just that $400 today is not the same as it was 2 years ago. Don’t believe what you might read in your textbook when you’re in school - it’s 2008 and we are in the middle of a recession.

Anyway, I’m actively scouting Craigslist now hoping to get lucky. I’ve emailed a couple of people with comparable train tables and now it’s just wait and see. Hopefully by this weekend, we can have our own train party at home.

Love,
Mommy

Dear Avery -

History was made on June 3, 2008.

That video I’ve linked to will probably no longer be available by the time you’re old enough to read this blog that your Dad and I have created for you, but I hope that I’m still around to tell you the story.

Love,
Mommy

Dear Avery,

You have truly come alive developmentally this month. Everyday you amaze your daddy, your lola and me with new milestones you are meeting. It seems to all have come from nowhere! It seems just like yesterday when the only movement you made was turn your head towards your bottle’s nipple. Occasionally, you also threw in a slight kick here and there. But now, you are doing all sorts of cool things.

Just last weekend, you amazed your lola by lifting your upper body up from a 45 degree position. You also have started laughing out loud, especially when I play peek-a-boo with you. And just yesterday morning, you rolled over on to your stomach.

And let’s not forget about your communication skills. You are quite the chatterbox, lil’ man, just like your momma! The only time you’re not blabbing is when you’re asleep.

Aside from meeting your developmental milestones, you are also physically right on track. Well, sort of. At your doctor’s appointment yesterday, Dr. Dilloway said that you were in the 97th percentile for height and 92nd percentile for weight.

For full-term babies!

Which means that you are off the charts for preemies!

I mean, I guess that’s ok, right? Your daddy is tall afterall, so are both your paternal grandparents and your paternal uncles. I just have this crazy fear that you are big for your age not because of genes, but because of some pituitary gland-related disorder.

And you’ll grow and grow and grow, eventually turning into a giant.

And you’ll be famous not because you were the first black and filipino president, but because you surpassed this dude as the tallest man to have ever lived.

Yeah, so now you know. Your momma tends to worry incessantly. About everything. I also expect the very worst to happen most of the time. This is why I never learned to swim (fear of drowning), or ice skate (fear that I’d fall and crack my skull open), or do drugs (fear that I try something once and be addicted forever) among many, many things.

This is also why I’ve already told your daddy that we cannot allow you to play in the woods out back (ticks = lyme disease) or jump around on a trampoline (C2 fracture = quadraplegia) or drive a car until they make one that is accident-proof or I die, whichever comes first.

In all seriousness though, I’m glad that being born 6 weeks early does not seem to have affected you at all. I hope that you continue to develop physically, mentally and emotionally as close to normal as possible.

Love,
Mommy

Hey, Aves.

I was sitting in the family room, holding you last night after work. You looked up at my face, as if you were studying it. I learned that you prefer to look at human faces more than anything else right now.

Lately, you do this thing with your tongue. It’s not even a thing, really. You just like to stick it out every now and then.

So I stuck my tongue back out at you.

And you responded with the same. And back and forth - five or six times.

I thought it was pretty cool. Your mom got a kick out of it too.

Hey Sweetheart!

You gave me a serious scare this morning, Aves. You had projectile vomiting after your midnight feeding and another less serious episode after your 6:00 am feeding. I would normally not have been scared, but you’ve vomited 4 times in the last 10 days and that kinda freaked me out. I immediately started thinking the worst (pyloric stenosis) so I called your doctor’s office to make an emergency appointment. Thank goodness they had an availability for 11:10 this morning so off we went.

Dr. Dilloway was not in today so Dr. Gallaso saw you. After we talked about the vomiting episodes, she examined you, including a weigh-in. You now weigh 12 lbs., 9 oz.! Yeah boy, you definitely are a biggun! You are in the 75th percentile on the growth chart. So that was clue #1 that you probably do not have pyloric stenosis. Dr. Gallaso said that if you had pyloric stenosis, you’d be having projectile vomiting after every feeding and therefore would not be gaining any weight. Also, she palpated your belly in search of a mass (that would indicate obstruction) and none was found. Phew! Dr. Gallaso thinks that the likely culprit is GERD and her recommendations are that we stick to feeding you only 4 ozs. every 3 hours (I gave you 6 ozs. at midnight because I thought you were ready for the increase), burp you frequently, and keep your head elevated at least 30 degrees for at least 30 minutes after feedings. Easy enough.

I fed you 3 ozs. when we we got home at 1:00 pm and followed the rest of the recommendations and you did not vomit. You are now sleeping peacefully in your swing as I type. I hope this is the end of the vomiting episodes.

Love,
Mommy

Avery:

You’re growing really fast.

With each passing day, I realize that you’ll never be as small as you were the day before. Tomorrow, you’ll be bigger than you were yesterday.

And so on.

I’m enjoying watching you develop as a human being, day by day.

Love,

Dad

Avery:

I was laying next to your mom last night, while you lounged in her lap. Both of us were casually talking to each other about Oprah’s Earth Day show. You were looking up at your mom, your left leg propped up on her thigh. We both giggled with each other watching you. You seem very aware of what makes you comfortable.

I leaned in close to your left ear and said something to you in a normal speaking voice. You immediately perked up and slowly turned your head in my direction. I could have sworn your eyes met mine.

I tried it again a few moments later. Again, you struggled to turn your head to look at me.

Was it that you recognized my voice? Your mother and I started to tear up on the spot.

You made my day just by being you.

I love you, Aves. You’re an amazing guy.

Dear Avery -

I got home from visiting you at the hospital about 45 minutes ago. I pumped breast milk to take to you tomorrow, ate a sandwich, started Daddy’s dinner and now I’m sitting at the computer writing you this letter.

Wow, you are really making very impressive progress! I got to the hospital today at 3:00 pm and decided to stay for 2 feedings tonight (the nurses feed you at 6-9-12-3 around the clock). You finished your entire bottle (55 ml) for Mommy both times!!!! Yay!!!! You are doing so well that I really think you’ll be home really, really soon I can’t wait for the day when the NICU team decides to discharge you — it’ll be one of the happiest days of my life.

I love holding you in my arms. You are such a well-behaved baby (ALL the nurses have also noticed and commented on this) that you hardly ever cry! The only times you cry are when your temperature is being taken via armpit, your bottom is being wiped clean and when you are really, really hungry. I tried to breastfeed you today but I guess you just were not used to it ’cause you cried the entire time! You acted like you hadn’t been fed all day, Avery. You did suckle and milk started to come out, but you got impatient and wanted no part of my breast after 2 minutes. It’s ok though, buddy. We’ll keep working on it.

Your nurses today were Cookie (in the morning) and Kendra (in the evening). They’re both very nice, but they’re not Rosanna, Maggie or Tam. Your Daddy and I really like them because not only are they super-sweet, they’re also very much into education. The nurse you had over the weekend, Mary, was horrible! She got impatient and short with me a couple of times while I was visiting with you. She apologized later on though and blamed her ‘tude on caffeine withdrawal. Whatever.

Oh, by the way, while I was there today, I kinda saw a circumcision being performed by Dr. Chasteney right there in the NICU. I say “kinda saw” because I saw what was happening but turned away very quickly. Doc and nurse got smart right away though and put screens around them (well, duh, shouldn’t have they been up already?) The poor baby cried the entire time The little tot has been your roommate since you were admitted in the NICU, and tomorrow, I think he’s going home. I overheard the mom and nurses talking. I think the baby was born at 31 weeks and now he’s 37 weeks. His problem was just like yours — not effectively feeding. On top of that, I think he also has really bad reflux. Yeah, your momma is nosey

Well, I’m going to run. I’ve been up since 5:30 am this morning, no nap in the afternoon, and so now I am pooped. Turn me over, buddy! Stick a fork in me! I am done!

Love,
Mommy

P.S.
Today is your Daddy’s birthday He worked from home today because we had some really bad weather. A Nor’Easter blew through town and we had heavy rain and winds, and some snow.