Applesauce
Sweet Potatoes
Bananas
Oatmeal
Carrots
Butter
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Dear Syed Brian (vol. 1 iss. 6)
What a long, strange month it’s been! I almost don’t even know where to begin, Syed Brian. At the conclusion of your sixth month, your dad and I are exhausted. On some level, we know that we’re only getting started but yet it feels as if we’ve been doing this forever. And we’re okay with that, but if you want, feel free to slow things down a bit…we won’t complain.
At the beginning of the month, you were immobile and free of foreign-bodies. At the conclusion of the month, you are mobile (a little bit) and you are now the proud owner of a foreign-body (V-P shunt). How did all of this happen, you ask? I have no idea. But I’ll try to answer your questions.
When we left off last month, you were thinking about rolling over. But you really weren’t ready to do it. So you waited another week and did it surreptitiously while your dad was drawing a bath. He left you on your back and when he returned, you were on your tummy! Self-inflicted tummy time! We thought it was great, and you thought it was horrible. Worse than tummy time was the fact that you were stuck and unable to roll back to your preferred position of being on your back. And your father and I, being the loving parents that we are, we left you to figure it out on your own…fostering independence. Now, eventually we rolled you back over because we didn’t want to go through what we went through with Simon when he was learning to go up and down stairs. Simon, for quite some time, was able to go upstairs but then he was stuck as he was terrified of going back down the stairs. You and rolling over were quite reminiscent of Simon and stairs…but within about a week, you figured out how to roll from your tummy to your back, thus becoming somewhat mobile.
As far as the foreign body goes, well, it’s a little more eventful in some respects. At your appointment with the NICU follow up clinic, your head was not only big, but gigantic! I’ve often told you that your head is on the large side, and I wasn’t kidding. To summarize, we decided to take another picture of your brain – your 4th one! And it showed us that you needed to make some new friends in neurosurgery to manage hydrocephalus. You like your new friends in neurosurgery and they gave you a souvenir – a brand new V-P shunt! You will always remember them and get to visit them on occasion. We just hope that you and your shunt do not decide to go visit neurosurgery very often. You were a little superman when it came to surgery – recovering faster than anyone expected! You made your father and I very proud.
Those weren’t your only achievements this month…you also had your first ear infection followed by antibiotics, you managed to end the month with a grand total of 6 MRIs to date, you started to eat solid foods, and you are sitting up! These pale in comparison, somewhat, to another first this month – your first human cousin! Your cousin, Suri, was born at the very beginning of your sixth month. You’ve been a good “big” cousin so far, allowing her to hold your hand (briefly) and rest her head on your shoulder. I told you, it’s been an eventful month, buddy!
This month has been equally a blur and marathon. We love you more than ever, little guy, and we’re thrilled that you’re doing so well in the crazy world in which we exist. You are already wise beyond your months and you spend a fair amount of time telling Simon and Charlie what you think. To their credit, they listen intently, occasionally interjecting. When they don’t pay attention to what they have to say, you quietly grab their collars and pet them to encourage them to listen. And they do. Sometimes. They will benefit from your wisdom, just like we already have. Until next month…
Love,
Mom
At the beginning of the month, you were immobile and free of foreign-bodies. At the conclusion of the month, you are mobile (a little bit) and you are now the proud owner of a foreign-body (V-P shunt). How did all of this happen, you ask? I have no idea. But I’ll try to answer your questions.
When we left off last month, you were thinking about rolling over. But you really weren’t ready to do it. So you waited another week and did it surreptitiously while your dad was drawing a bath. He left you on your back and when he returned, you were on your tummy! Self-inflicted tummy time! We thought it was great, and you thought it was horrible. Worse than tummy time was the fact that you were stuck and unable to roll back to your preferred position of being on your back. And your father and I, being the loving parents that we are, we left you to figure it out on your own…fostering independence. Now, eventually we rolled you back over because we didn’t want to go through what we went through with Simon when he was learning to go up and down stairs. Simon, for quite some time, was able to go upstairs but then he was stuck as he was terrified of going back down the stairs. You and rolling over were quite reminiscent of Simon and stairs…but within about a week, you figured out how to roll from your tummy to your back, thus becoming somewhat mobile.
As far as the foreign body goes, well, it’s a little more eventful in some respects. At your appointment with the NICU follow up clinic, your head was not only big, but gigantic! I’ve often told you that your head is on the large side, and I wasn’t kidding. To summarize, we decided to take another picture of your brain – your 4th one! And it showed us that you needed to make some new friends in neurosurgery to manage hydrocephalus. You like your new friends in neurosurgery and they gave you a souvenir – a brand new V-P shunt! You will always remember them and get to visit them on occasion. We just hope that you and your shunt do not decide to go visit neurosurgery very often. You were a little superman when it came to surgery – recovering faster than anyone expected! You made your father and I very proud.
Those weren’t your only achievements this month…you also had your first ear infection followed by antibiotics, you managed to end the month with a grand total of 6 MRIs to date, you started to eat solid foods, and you are sitting up! These pale in comparison, somewhat, to another first this month – your first human cousin! Your cousin, Suri, was born at the very beginning of your sixth month. You’ve been a good “big” cousin so far, allowing her to hold your hand (briefly) and rest her head on your shoulder. I told you, it’s been an eventful month, buddy!
This month has been equally a blur and marathon. We love you more than ever, little guy, and we’re thrilled that you’re doing so well in the crazy world in which we exist. You are already wise beyond your months and you spend a fair amount of time telling Simon and Charlie what you think. To their credit, they listen intently, occasionally interjecting. When they don’t pay attention to what they have to say, you quietly grab their collars and pet them to encourage them to listen. And they do. Sometimes. They will benefit from your wisdom, just like we already have. Until next month…
Love,
Mom
This Won't Be Pretty
We thought it was awfully quiet. And then we found out why - Charlie was eating a stick of butter with Simon cheering him on. Nothing good can come of this. We might have to buy another rug. We love our life. And our dogs. For the record, we removed the stick of butter from Charlie before he could finish his afternoon treat. To answer the obvious question of how Charlie came upon a stick of butter...things happen when you have two dachshunds and a baby and you can't always explain why. It is what it is.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Ewww...
Warning: If you have a problem reading about bodily fluids, do not continue.
4:35 PM. Simon: I have to poop! Take me outside. NOW. Syed: Hang on - I have to put you on your leash. Simon: DID YOU NOT HEAR ME???? I said 'NOW.'
4:36 PM. Syed: Okay, go outside buddy. Simon: Okay, doormat is far enough outside for me. I'll poop here. Ha.
4:41 PM. Charlie: I'm not feeling so good, guys. I think I ate something...
4:43 PM. Charlie: Must Puke Now. On your carpet.
4:45 PM. Charlie: There's more coming. It's on your wood floor. Really shouldn't have had kibble and string cheese as a snack...
4:47 PM. Syed: Monica - Charlie puked!!! Monica: Okay, I'll clean it up.
4:48 PM. Monica: It's still a little warm - he must have just vomited. Charlie: Yep, a few minutes ago. Syed: I'm going to puke now...
4:53 PM. (Syed done dry-heaving) Monica: Do you want to buy a new rug? Syed: YES.
4:54 PM. Syed Brian: Why are the dogs getting all of the attention??? I can poop and spit up, too! I want in on the action. Syed: Monica, your son just pooped. Monica: Okay, I'll change his diaper.
4:56 PM. Diaper changed. Syed Brian: Look, Mom, I can spit up, too!!!! All over my clothes! Aren't you proud of me - I am just like Charlie!
4:57 PM. Lull in the action.
5:06 PM. Syed Brian: I'm not done yet - it's time for an encore!!! Dad, I'm going to spit up on you and me!
5:09 PM. Syed: When do we go on vacation? Monica: Apparently not soon enough.
4:35 PM. Simon: I have to poop! Take me outside. NOW. Syed: Hang on - I have to put you on your leash. Simon: DID YOU NOT HEAR ME???? I said 'NOW.'
4:36 PM. Syed: Okay, go outside buddy. Simon: Okay, doormat is far enough outside for me. I'll poop here. Ha.
4:41 PM. Charlie: I'm not feeling so good, guys. I think I ate something...
4:43 PM. Charlie: Must Puke Now. On your carpet.
4:45 PM. Charlie: There's more coming. It's on your wood floor. Really shouldn't have had kibble and string cheese as a snack...
4:47 PM. Syed: Monica - Charlie puked!!! Monica: Okay, I'll clean it up.
4:48 PM. Monica: It's still a little warm - he must have just vomited. Charlie: Yep, a few minutes ago. Syed: I'm going to puke now...
4:53 PM. (Syed done dry-heaving) Monica: Do you want to buy a new rug? Syed: YES.
4:54 PM. Syed Brian: Why are the dogs getting all of the attention??? I can poop and spit up, too! I want in on the action. Syed: Monica, your son just pooped. Monica: Okay, I'll change his diaper.
4:56 PM. Diaper changed. Syed Brian: Look, Mom, I can spit up, too!!!! All over my clothes! Aren't you proud of me - I am just like Charlie!
4:57 PM. Lull in the action.
5:06 PM. Syed Brian: I'm not done yet - it's time for an encore!!! Dad, I'm going to spit up on you and me!
5:09 PM. Syed: When do we go on vacation? Monica: Apparently not soon enough.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Happy Anniversary!
Happy Anniversary to Grandma and Grandpa Azhar! While their actual anniversary was the day of Syed Brian's surgery (July 9), I think it was made better by the fact that they were able to see both of their grandchildren earlier today. So, here they are with their two sons, their beautiful granddaugher, Suri, and their handsome grandson, Syed Brian.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Home Again
Syed Brian was discharged from the hospital this morning and is now taking a nap at home. He did extremely well with the surgery and he acts as if nothing happened. He even tried to taunt the neurosurgeons this morning by laughing and blowing raspberries at them, apparently in an effort to say "ha, that's all you got?!? a measly little shunt?"
He did lose a little bit of hair in the process, and soon he will be sporting the combover of all combovers. We'll follow up with neurosurgery in a couple of weeks but for now, it's back to life as usual.
I've had a lot of questions about what his incision looks like, how big it is, where it's at, etc., so I will try to post some pictures on the flickr website in the next day or so. You can find the link on the right side of the blog if you're interested. Disclaimer: there are stitches, and it is a little swollen, so if you have a really, really, really weak stomach, you've been warned. All in all, it looks really good and he has managed to one-up his father who didn't receive his first stitches in his head until he was 9 months old. I think Syed Brian is a bit of a show-off, getting stitches so early in life...perhaps his grounding should go back to 3 weeks.
He did lose a little bit of hair in the process, and soon he will be sporting the combover of all combovers. We'll follow up with neurosurgery in a couple of weeks but for now, it's back to life as usual.
I've had a lot of questions about what his incision looks like, how big it is, where it's at, etc., so I will try to post some pictures on the flickr website in the next day or so. You can find the link on the right side of the blog if you're interested. Disclaimer: there are stitches, and it is a little swollen, so if you have a really, really, really weak stomach, you've been warned. All in all, it looks really good and he has managed to one-up his father who didn't receive his first stitches in his head until he was 9 months old. I think Syed Brian is a bit of a show-off, getting stitches so early in life...perhaps his grounding should go back to 3 weeks.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
All Done!
Surgery went well, and Syed Brian was a trooper! He just finished up another MRI and X-Ray so hopefully we're done with procedures for the day. He is resting comfortably and holding his new best friend - his red monkey that was a gift from the phlebotomist on Monday.
Syed Brian has quickly made friends starting with his pre-op nurses who he impressed by squealing and blowing raspberries. His surgeon realized that there was a possibility that we had not cut his hair yet so he was thoughtful enough to save the shaved hair for us. His post-op nurses were shocked that he was only 5.5 months old and his current nurse has declared him the 'perfect patient!' As parents, we're very proud of his behavior throughout the day and as such, we have decreased his grounding to 2 weeks.
We're hoping he has an uneventful evening and that he will be able to come home soon. He proved once again that he is a tough little cookie and that he is well-deserving of his superman PJ's that he modeled this morning. We're also hoping that his mom and dad get a little more sleep tonight...
Monday, July 6, 2009
He Will Soon Learn to Share.
Syed Brian now has a cousin, Suri, who was born June 19. Thus, he will soon learn the importance of sharing with someone other than his dogs. Syed Brian and Suri got along well, even if both were somewhat indifferent toward the other. They did humor each set of parents by briefly holding hands, making us hopeful that they will get along when they can talk. Both of them did enjoy simultaneous bottles given by their respective dads while watching the Cubs game. In these pictures, Suri is about a week old and Syed Brian is a little over 5 months.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
He's Grounded: Effective January 18, 2015
Reason: Mental Anguish
Duration: 3 weeks
Restrictions: No TV, no video games, no friends. Only allowed to spend time with mom and dad (and Simon and Charlie).
Further Explanation: Syed Brian continues to test our resilience as parents in his young life. So far, we're meeting him at every turn, but we're getting tired. So we decided to ground him. I have often described the size of Syed Brian's head as being quite remarkable. I wasn't lying or exaggerating. It is HUGE. His head is the size of an average 15-month old's head. His head is so ginormous, in fact, that he had to have an MRI last week to determine why it was so big. The MRI revealed that he does have a brain (big sigh of relief), but it also showed that there is fluid collecting in his brain (hydrocephalus). So, it was off to the neurosurgeon. He is scheduled for surgery next week. We are optimistic that he will do well. He has been a tough kid so far, and he is not showing any symptoms of hydrocephalus outside of the size of his head.
We'll keep the blog up to date as he has his surgery and goes through recovery. For now, we're all doing well. If you wouldn't mind sending some positive thoughts to Syed Brian, we would appreciate it.
To answer the inevitable question of why his grounding will go into effect in 2015 - this will be his 6th birthday. We anticipate and hope that he will have some comprehension of what it means to be grounded by the time he is this age and take it VERY seriously. I know we will. When we say he is grounded, we will follow that to the letter. Trust me.
Duration: 3 weeks
Restrictions: No TV, no video games, no friends. Only allowed to spend time with mom and dad (and Simon and Charlie).
Further Explanation: Syed Brian continues to test our resilience as parents in his young life. So far, we're meeting him at every turn, but we're getting tired. So we decided to ground him. I have often described the size of Syed Brian's head as being quite remarkable. I wasn't lying or exaggerating. It is HUGE. His head is the size of an average 15-month old's head. His head is so ginormous, in fact, that he had to have an MRI last week to determine why it was so big. The MRI revealed that he does have a brain (big sigh of relief), but it also showed that there is fluid collecting in his brain (hydrocephalus). So, it was off to the neurosurgeon. He is scheduled for surgery next week. We are optimistic that he will do well. He has been a tough kid so far, and he is not showing any symptoms of hydrocephalus outside of the size of his head.
We'll keep the blog up to date as he has his surgery and goes through recovery. For now, we're all doing well. If you wouldn't mind sending some positive thoughts to Syed Brian, we would appreciate it.
To answer the inevitable question of why his grounding will go into effect in 2015 - this will be his 6th birthday. We anticipate and hope that he will have some comprehension of what it means to be grounded by the time he is this age and take it VERY seriously. I know we will. When we say he is grounded, we will follow that to the letter. Trust me.
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