12 Month Check Up

Thomas has learned to fear the doctor's office. It was a battle royale for his 12 month check up. Damn he is strong and feisty. The worst is that you are the one who has to pin him down as he get his shots and they check his body. He just looks up at you with such betrayal in his eyes. Well maybe I am exaggerating but you feel so guilty! Thomas was born 3lbs and 15.5 inches. He is now 22lbs 10oz and 30 inches long! He ranks in the 45 percentile for weight and the 55 percentile for height, not adjusted!!! Developmentally he is around a 10 month old. The doctor is amazed at how well Thomas is doing. She thought with all his problems in the NICU we would see many more chronic issues. But his heart is in good shape, he hasn't had respiratory problems and his only illness since we left the hospital was a single ear infection last week! We are on the look out for hydroceles. Which means that there is an opening in his testicular area which allows for swelling of his testicles. We have been watching it for a year and they have not closed. The doctor is giving it until his next visit. If the hydrocele is not closed by then, we will have to take him to a urologist and have then surgically closed. Yikes!

Thomas is qualified for the Missouri First Steps program which means we get a physical therapist and a cognitive specialist to come to the house once a month to evaluate Thomas and suggest various techniques and therapies to help him grow. Socially and cognitively Thomas is right where a 12 month should be. Physically he is delayed but no more than his adjusted 9 month age. Thomas is not crawling yet but he gets around in his own way. He knows what he wants (anything he is not supposed to have, paper, cell phones, pens, wires, laptops etc.) but just not how to get there. We are in big trouble when he finds first gear.

Happy First Birthday!

We made it one year!!! I cannot believe how far Thomas has come. It is hard for me not to cry when I think about what a year it has been. And how truly fortunate and blessed we are for having such an amazing son. To celebrate we threw a little party. We had about 20 friends and family over for a Sunday lunch, the day before his actual birthday. The weather was beautiful and we spent most of day outside. Thomas was a little weary of all the people and noise. He get tired quickly and napped through most of his party. He was not too into his cake. Daddy tried to spoon feed him some but he did not seem too impressed. Later he was able to get a few fingers in the icing and smear it all over his face and hair.

On his actual birthday we took him to the zoo! Tom took the day off and his father, little brother Nick and Svetlana came with as well (they were in town for the week). The zoo was great. It was sunny, 80 degrees and it felt sooo good to be outside. (meanwhile as I type this it is 30 degrees and snowing in STL) The zoo was crowded and Thomas was more interested in the people at the zoo than the animals. Which was fine since I myself felt more like a pack mule than a person. The stroller was overflowing with diaper bags, cameras, cooler for snacks, water bottles, toys, blankets, hats etc. When we got home we spent the rest of the evening outside playing games with Nick and visiting with family. It was a perfect two days of celebrating Thomas's birthday.

Bad Nana?

So Thomas has just begun sounding out consonants. He is very vocal and "sings" and "talks" a lot. This whole time Tom and I say mamama and dadada in hopes of Thomas's first word being either Mama or Dada. However, Thomas's first consonant is nanana. Like he is trying to say Nana, what we call my Mom. While my Mom assures me, promises me she doesn't spend all day trying to get Thomas to say Nana, I am not buying it. Hahaha. So the Nana is on watch and might be let go if Thomas's first word is Nana. Oh wait, we couldn't find more loving and better caretakers for Thomas then the Grandmas and ones that are willing to work for free! Okay Thomas you can say Nana all you want.

Winter Fun

We have had a cold and snowy winter in St. Louis much like the rest of the country. Though not nearly as bad as most. But enough to get me a few days off of school and enjoy the day with Thomas. Thomas was not a huge fan of the snow, especially when his Dad throws his first snow ball at him. Mean Daddy! We did put him in his red wagon with blankets and towed him around the yard like the prince of Egypt! It was very cute. We did try him out on a sled but any movement made him fall over. Next year he will be a sledding pro.

Blog Redemption

Wow has time flown! We are planning Thomas's first birthday party and it hits me that I am not writing enough. I feel like I am going to miss events and start forgetting things. So here is the effort to redeem my journal.
First Christmas- We spent Christmas in Missouri and had lots of company. My brothers both flew in and Charlie's girlfriend Monica came with. Plus both of Tom's sisters were back from college. We hosted Christmas Eve at our house. The first time we ever hosted anything that big. Luckily I managed not to burn dinner and we all had a good time. Christmas day was spent at Annette's. Little Thomas has a tree full of gifts, a sight to see. It was a wonderful time. A week before Christmas Thomas got his first tooth (bottom middle) and started rolling!