Ear, There, Everywhere

So, here is the last ear update for a while. WOOFTA!

We met with the ENT Dr. (Ear, Nose, and Throat) last Wednesday, the day after her ABR and the Dr's say there is NOTHING to be concerned about. No nerve damage, no funky curvature in her ear, no fluid, or debris.....just a healthy ear canal, drum and overall structure. They sent us over to the audiologist again to do another quick hearing test and she failed in that left ear......4 times in a row!

So....we don't have any idea what is going on but we're going to give it a few months and go back for another screening. Hopefully, all that leftie ear needs is a little time. We're thrilled there doesn't appear to be anything wrong, disconcerned about the repeated failed test, and hopeful that in a few months we'll bring her back in and that left ear will pass with flying colors!

Hmmm.....what else?

Oh- something that has had me in tears almost everyday for the last week (or more) is that I have to take my very first work trip which means I will be away from Hudson and Harper for the first time. It's a bit crazy to admit this, but I bet the longest stretch I have been away from them has been about 3 hours. (!!!)

And I leave tomorrow evening and don't return until Friday evening. GULP!

I KNOW they are going to be ok......daddy, aunt Karn, aunt Katie, close friends and our neighbors have all pitched in to help Blake. H & H are going to be just fine.

But this mommy.....well that's another story!

I'm going crazy thinking about it....I just have to keep reminding myself of the following:

I will be SOOO busy during the day at meetings and evenings at work dinners.

Three days isn't that long.

I'm blessed to have the job I have so that I can be home (in my home office) working almost every day.

Three days isn't that long.

My job is important to me and they will appreciate the balance that I have being a mommy and a working woman.

Three days isn't that long.

Blake is a truly amazing father and he and the babies will bond during this time.

Three days isn't that long.

So.....wish us ALL luck! Blake is certainly in for an exciting few days and I know I will make it through. There will probably be nights where we all four cry ourselves to sleep, however!

I will update post-trip with details on how we all surivived! Here's a pic of the babies in thier bumbo chairs hanging out together! They LOVE those chairs.....and they have started to recognize and acknowledge each other. More on that in another post! ;-)

Can ya hear me now?

We had the ABR (auditory brainstem response) test today and Harper didn't pass. She is SOOO close to passing, but she's just not there.

She cooperated wonderfully at the test...just like a little angel! We went in, she went to sleep right away in my arms and then she got all hooked up to the machines so they could start the test.

She slept great for 40 minutes while they monitored her hearing and brain response. The right ear hears great.....and the left side is just not cooperating. The audiologist referred us to an ear, nose, throat Dr to go a step further in trying to figure out why that left ear isn't passing. I guess the equiptment they can use to look deep into the ear canal is quite high tech- so they are hoping to discover what is keeping her from passing.

I called and actually got in for an appt tomorrow at 10:30. So, we hope to know more tomorrow!

Thanks for your thoughts, prayers and good luck wishes! We're so lucky to have such wonderful friends and family.

Here's a picture of Miss Cheeks at her appointment today!

And here is a picture of Mr Hudson because he's been left out of the last two posts. This guy is FULL of love lately....chattering, laughing, smiling and coo'ing away! Such fun!

Test anxiety

Well.....Harper failed her hearing test (left ear only) for the 3rd time in a row. Poor thing.
They are looking for her to respond to low and high frequency sounds and she's passing the high frequency, but not the low. She is VERY close to passing, but because she's not meeting all of the criteria, they can't pass her.
What comes next? She's having a test done called a ABR (Auditory Brainstem Response) test on Tuesday, September 7th at 1pm. Here is what that test entails:

An Auditory Brainstem Response Evaluation (ABR) is a type of test, usually performed for infants and young children, that evaluates how well sounds travel along the hearing nerve pathways from the ear to the brainstem. An ABR test, by evaluating the hearing nerve pathways, can identify cases of sensorineural hearing loss. It is a sleep EEG hearing test which shows the softest sounds your child's ears can detect at various pitches. The ABR compares changes in brain activity to the timing of repetitive sounds to determine whether the particular intensity of sound can be heard.
How is it performed?
There will be three or four small stickers/electroids on your child's head, connected to leads going into a computer. Sounds will be presented through an earphone to each ear separately while a computer analyzes the changes in the brain wave pattern in response to sounds.

The audiologist has every confidence that she'll pass this test....and so do we! I am nervous for it, obviously because any testing on my baby girl is nerve-wracking. But I'm also nervous because she needs to be sleeping for the test which is anywhere from 30-45 minutes. This little one has a mind of her own and so it's gonna take lots of prayer to make sure that she cooperates! ;-)

I titled this post "Test Anxiety" because it appears Miss Harper has this already! As stated, the audiologist has every confidence that she's not hearing impaired but that she's just having trouble passing this test in her left ear. If you remember me posting about the weekly tests I had done when I was pregnant to make sure the babies were growing/developing on track....little Miss Harper always kept us on our toes during these tests as well. Little stinker needed to show she could "practice breath" in utero for 30 seconds and she'd do it for 25 seconds and then quit. As I said way before she was born...this little one is a stubbor little cookie!

Thank you for your prayers....keep them coming! We'll know immediately what the results are and if there is any future steps to be taken!

~Ear~

Harper's audiology appointment is tomorrow at 1pm to retest her left ear for the 3rd time!

Please say a quick prayer that she passes and everything looks good in that pesky left ear!

Thank you!

PS- the pic above is actually Harper's ear...left ear at that! And check out this pic below....it's as if she's saying "NO more probing, peeking, and poking in my ear please!"

3 Months Old Today!

Hudson and Harper are already 1/4th of a year old today! Eyeyeye....that's just crazy!

More on the babies wonderful progress later, but wanted to post a few pics that the little pumpkins had taken yesterday while their wonderful Grandma Marit and "honorary" Grandma Diane were here:

Raise your hand if you're sure!

Our big 2 month old pumpkins!

I can not believe Hudson and Harper are 2 months old already! I will probably say that at the beginning of each "month" post but it is the truth.....time is just flying by!

Both babies are doing amazingly well......everyday is a remarkable joy with them!

They are still sleeping like champs- we feel SO blessed! Harper is the sleep champion- pulling in 8-12 hours of consecutive sleep each night. Last night she slept from 8pm-8am which was bizarre.....I kept running in and checking on her all night to make sure she was ok. This girl just REALLY likes to sleep! No complaints here! Can't forget about the big boy, he sleeps great too! Half of the time he will sleep for 5 hours and wake up to eat and goes back down for another 3-5 hour stretch and the other half of the time he'll sleep for 7-9 hours straight. It definitely depends on how he's eaten during the day, how much he's been awake, etc.

We've had a busy 2nd month which has consisted of:

Visiting the Zoo

Visiting Minnihaha Falls

Visiting the Mpls Farmers Market

Katie's law school graduation party where they met lots of Blake's family they hadn't met yet

The Duluth Baby Shower where they met a lot of my family they hadn't met yet

Their first wedding (Congrats Dan & Wendy)

Lots of playdates and walks with friends (Carmichael, Gloria, Charlie, Braeden, Lucy, Greta, Avery)

Lots of "cuz time" with cousins Izaak, Landon and William

Lots and lots of snuggle time with Grandma's, Aunties and "honorary" aunties

2 month check up at the peds (stats below)

Here is a little bit about each baby~

Hudson

You are such a big, strong, happy baby. You smile, laugh and "talk" to us all day long.

You love to hang out in your bouncy chair and look around at the world around you. You will sit content for so long, letting out a little laugh every couple minutes. No idea what is so funny....but we love that you sit and smile/laugh the day away.

You hold your neck up so well on your own.

You love to blow bubbles with your mouth.

You are extremely good at tracking voices and people as they approach or walk by you.

You are SO BIG! You are wearing size 2 diapers (which seem a bit small) and have really big hands and feet (and thighs).

You love to eat...you're very vocal and passionate about that bottle which is too funny!

You're still eating breastmilk during the days and formula (with added rice starch) at night.

You have the longest, black eyelashes and your eye's get darker brown by the day.

You've started to get dimples in each cheek when you smile- just like daddy!

You love bathtime, you get into the tubby and it relaxes you.

You don't really like to be on your tummy.

You are still a very content baby, crying only when hungry, wet or tired.

You have started staying away for most of the day, taking only a few naps. When you're awake, in the car, in the store if we're shopping, or walking.....wherever we are, you're pretty laid back just looking around and taking everything in.

At your 2 month check- up...you were SO strong during your shots. You cried when you got them, and then stopped immediately after. Made mommy feel so much better because I was having a tough time watching you get them.

Stats from your 2 month check-up:

July 29th, 2010 (Mommy and Daddy's 4th wedding anniversary)

Weight: 13lbs 3oz (75-90th percentile)

Height: 23.5 inches (50-75th percentile)

Head: 15.5 inches (50-75th percentile)

We love you SO much baby boy, thank you for being the amazing, strong, beautiful and joyful little man that you are. We can't wait to see what new, fun things next month brings!

Harper

You are growing great, but still are our "tiny, little peanut" because you're so tiny next to your big brother.

You are the happiest, sweetest baby first thing in the morning. You wake up with a great, big smile (and huge dimple) and are so fun to play, cuddle with in the morning.

You sleep so much, we've found that the more sleep that you get, the happier you are.

You absolutely LOVE your swing. You love to lay in it, look around and just hang out.

You are SO strong- you have very strong legs and a very strong neck. You have started lifting your head up when laying flat or at a slight incline.

Your cheeks are outta control chubby.....so precious!

You love to nap in the car with your head flopped forward, we try to put your nogen back in the headrest where it belongs but you lift it up and flop it forward again.

You are wearing size 1-2 diapers.

Eating is still a challenge for you- you love to eat but we've discovered that we think you have a sensitive gastrocolic reflex in your tummy which causes pain for you after you've eaten an ounce or 2. It makes feeding the next few ounces quite a challenge.....but we get through.

You are eating breastmilk bottles during the day and formula (with added rice starch) during the night.

You absolutely LOVE to be outside. If you're fussing, you calm down right away when outside.

You absolutely LOVE tubby time. You splash, kick and laugh away in the bath. It is priceless!

You love to lie on your back and explore around with your eye's while kicking and wiggling around.

You have tiny, tiny, tiny little feet.

When you smile, your eye's light up and you flash that big dimple on your right cheek.

At your 2 month check up, you were quite traumatized. You cried BIG crocodile tears when getting your shots.....and for quite a while afterwards. It broke my heart. All the activity with the shots and crying wore you out and you spent most of the afternoon cuddling with Grandma Marit.....which she didn't mind much :-)

Stats from your 2 month check-up:

July 29th, 2010

Weight: 10.5lbs (25-50th percentile)

Height: 22.25inches (50th percentile)

Head: 14.75inches (25-50th percentile)

Harper, you are our little princess. You melt our hearts with your smile and your keep us on our toes with all of your little needs. You teach us patience and unconditional love every day because you require just a little bit of extra attention with feedings, etc. We feel so blessed to have a beautiful, strong daughter and thank God daily for you.

One last thing......we have a prayer request. Harper was discharged (when she was born) from the hospital without her newborn hearing test. Apparently the machine was down when they tried doing her test.

We brought her in on July 13th for the "newborn screening test" which all babies are given and she passed in her right ear but not in her left. The audiologist thought it was sort of a fluke since she was a c-section baby and sometimes there tends to be more junk (wax, vernex, etc) in ears since c-section babies don't pass through the birth canal. We set up a repeat test for August 9th. Well, this past Monday we went in for the repeat test for her left ear and she didn't pass again. They picked up that she responded to some high frequency sound.....but they couldn't "pass" her. They also discovered she has a very high negative pressure level in her left ear (right ear was normal at -36 and left ear was -227!!!) so they thought she had an ear infection that was brewing which would be the reason she didn't pass in that left ear. Well, she was checked at the ped's office on Tuesday for an ear infection and doesn't have one. So.....we will need to take her in in a few weeks for another hearing test in the left ear.

Please pray that everything turns out ok. We're confident that no matter what, she will be just fine but the unknown is somewhat scary.

We appreciate it! Lots and lots of love from us to you!

Lots to update!

Gummy smiles, Dr appointments, growing babies and SLEEP!

The babies have been VERY busy! The most noteable milestone, they are smiling! Sometime around 6 weeks they started smiling when they were awake (there were tons of sleep smiles before). It's truly the most amazing thing to see their eyes light up and a big gummy smile spread over their face!

We've managed to catch a few of Hudson's smiles on camera, though Harper smiles a lot, it's not when the camera is out. :-(

Here are some pictures of our handsome little man:

Another update, Harper paid a little visit to the pediatrician this week in order to get the Pedi's opinion on her eating habits. Harper loves to eat...you can tell by her cheeks. But she is a very fussy eater. Blake and I have her figured out, after many frustrating feeding sessions. She takes the first 1-1.5 ounces without a problem but after that is when we have to start pulling tricks out of the hat. Walking from room to room, bouncing her, swaddling her tightly all seems to work. Even with all of the hoopla, she still acts as if it's tough to take the remainder of her feeding. So, we brought her in and she was prescribed Zantac for possible reflux issues. The pedi thought maybe she takes the first 1-1.5 ounces fine becuase she's hungry and distracted by the hunger. Then when she's satisfied the immediate hunger, she notices the acid in her tummy and becomes fussy. We're giving her a very small dose of Zantac and hoping it works. She was weighed at the Dr. and at 7 weeks on the dot, she weighed 9lbs4oz......so she's definitely gaining.

Here are a few pics of the princess- we'll get some of her smiling soon even if it means I have the camera in hand all day long! She has the most beautiful smile!

Lastly, the babies are SLEEEEEEEEEEEEEPING for long periods of time at night! Celebrate, celebrate, celebrate! Mommy and daddy feel like new people with a solid chunk of sleep! Honestly, what a blessing! We had just gotten to the point, after 2 really hard nights on Monday and Tuesday night where we sort of threw our hands up in defeat. The babies were waking every 2-3 hours to eat throughout the night and not at the same time so it was 6+ feedings throughout the night and we both were just beat.

Then daddy had a great idea! The babies sleep really well in their carseats so Wednesday night we fed them their bedtime bottle and then put them in the carseats and went for a walk. It was warm outside, the carseats were covered in light blankets to keep the babies covered and all 6 of us went for a little walk (Koko and King are our 5th and 6th family members). We came home, put the babies in their cribs and Harper woke up 5 hours later for a feeding and then went right back to bed. Three hours later, after Hudson had been sleeping for 8 straight hours......the babies woke at 6:30am for a feeding. Last night was an exact repeat, though Harper slept for 6 straight hours last night instead of 5. And the little Mr. had a repeat performance of sleeping 8 solid hours.

We're praying that their little internal clocks are being reset to this new schedule because ours definitely are! :-) The sleep has been heavenly.....and the babies seem much more predictable and happy during the day with this long stretch of sleep at night.

So, that's a little report from the Elliott house. We have been enjoying the beautiful weather, introducing the babies to friends, family and lots of new sights and places. Life is so wonderful right now, every day gets better. I'll sign off with a few new pics of the babies in their "activity gym".