Dear Bitchface, I hate to say I told you so...but......

It has been a while since I have posted a blog on here. I guess I did not realize that it has literally been months until I looked back at one of my older posts. April does a fantastic job of keeping the pictures updated and filling you in on the little things both the boys do....so who needs me?

In the months since Owen's birth....I have always been cautiously optimistic about his progress. I wanted to be realistic about the things he had gone through so early on in his life and understand that the chances of further complications were pretty good. Why would I not feel this way when the doctors had told us repeatedly that this would be the case? When we took Owen home from the hospital we were told that he was doing well enough to leave the NICU but further appointments and surgeries would be necessary. Dr. Elmo said that there was a 95% chance that a shunt would be necessary to drain the excess fluid and blood in his brain. The only reason they did not do it before he left the hospital was because they wanted the clots to clear up a little bit before inserting the shunt. They did not want to risk it having to be clogged and needing to redo the procedure. He certainly was not healthy by any means but he was well enough to join us in his new home.

When we visited the doctors a couple of months ago...they told us that Owen's tone was a little low but average. Dr. Elmo wanted to see a "social smile" out of him within the next couple of weeks after that appointment. He said it would be a good sign that things were going okay. Gramps Creeper (the neurosurgeon) said that the ventricles in his brain had shrunk a little smaller but they would run a scan again in a couple of months to see how things were going. So once we got him back at home...we stared at Owen obsessively waiting for any hint of a smile. This probably creeped him about a bit...but we wanted so bad for him to be "okay". Well, the smiles came like clockwork, followed by belly laughs every time we changed his clothes. He is incredibly ticklish. As time progressed....Owen settled into his personality. He is incredibly social and generally a very happy baby (wait a minute....is he the mailman's child? I am so surly and cranky at times). When birth to three showed up for their various appointments....they too were impressed with how incredible he was doing. He has met all of his milestones and is actually MORE chatty then most kids his age. When we set him on the floor...he will babble and coo. He doesn't even need constant entertainment because he entertains himself. His scrawny little frame has filled out very well. He has chubby little legs and a little belly. He finally has a butt which he seemed to be missing at birth. Even the cheeks are growing slowly but surely. All of this good news...the other shoe had to drop right? The pessimist in me reared its ugly head at me and I started evaluating Owen's little noggin. Was his head growing? Was his soft spot still soft? At his four month appointment the pediatrician seemed very content with his condition. Owen's behavior was just like your average baby.....so I demanded my skepticism to silence itself...historically it has been proven that we have a pretty durable little son.

Today Owen proved that he is every bit as durable and amazing as everyone thinks he is. We had some pretty important appointments with him today and the outcome of these meetings would really let us know how he was doing inside his head. We kicked off the morning with his first MRI in a couple of months. This was followed by an appointment with Gramps Creeper who sat down at the computer and brought up two scans. One reflecting very large ventricles filled with fluid and the other with much, much smalled ventricles. He asked us which we thought was the most recent scan. Of course we pointed to the better of the two scans and he told us we were correct. Upon evaluation of the scan he found that things were looking very good. He was very pleased with what he saw. The ventricles were small, there was no sign of any new or further trauma. The swelling of his head was not increasing. And the best news yet? He really saw no reason for us to make any further appointments with him. After viewing his current scan results, Gramps Creeper no longer saw any need for or risk of needing surgery. At this point there was very little chance of any further increased swelling and his services were no longer needed. We were elated! It was simply exhilarating to just walk out of the children's hospital without that little seed of doubt in our heads about the next appointment.

Fresh out of Gramps Creepers' office we headed over to Dr. Elmo. When he came in the room I was feeling relatively calm but slightly on edge. My tension was soon relieved when he told us that he too was extremely pleased with the MRI results. The only signs of damage to Owen's brain was the small "quiet" area on the right side of his brain. He felt that the effects of this damage would be minimal if any. He did an exam of Owen and was impressed with how happy and excitable he was. He liked seeing how alert and sturdy he was. Dr. Elmo thought all of his body movements were strong and there were no signs of any deficiency. We were told that things were going great and he would not need to see us again for a year! More good news. April and I practically ran the kids out of the exam room because we didn't want anything to spoil the moment.

Owen turned 5 months old today. When you look at this little pudgy bundle of joy you would never know what he went through upon his entrance into this world. You would be surprised to know that we almost lost him. You could never imagine that all of the doctors and specialists felt that IF he should survive the after shocks of his bleed could have caused severe brain damage. It is nothing short of a miracle that he has and continues to defy the odds....he stayed with us, he slowly but surely grew stronger and managed to be removed from each and every medical device he was hooked up to. When I think about what he has been through...I feel such a sense of pride. I remember the initial few days we spent in the NICU. All of the doctors had really painted a grim picture of his future. I recall standing by his incubator and putting my hand inside and him grabbing my finger. One of the residents was staring at him at the time and when I pointed out that he was reacting to my touch....she said that it was just a reflex...it was not a sign of being alert. Well suck it Bitch Face (the name I so lovingly dubbed this resident)...you were WRONG! He DID know I was there and that little grip was just a prelude to all of the wonderful things he had planned for the months to come. I feel so grateful to Yoko Ono for soothing our fears as we were smacked with each negative outlook delivered to us about Owen's condition.

I am not much for the holiday season....but I must admit that year I am feeling truly blessed by the energies that be. April and I have two absolutely fantastic, HEALTHY little boys. Owen is a little trooper that brightens each of our days. Brendan is so incredibly smart and witty that no matter how rough my day has been...he always manages to bring at back around with his hilarious demeanor. I don't know where he comes up with the things he does but I sure am glad that the laughs never seem to stop coming.

Thank you again for all of the positive energy and prayers that each of you bestowed upon us during the critical moments of Owen's first few weeks. There is not a doubt in my head that it was all of that love and support that encouraged him to fight the fight. How could he resist sticking around when so many people were rooting for him? Thank you, thank you, thank you and Happy Holidays!