Noah Update

Noah went back to the pediatrician in Waterloo last Monday and his breathing was not any better, so he referred us to Iowa City. We went to see that doctor on Friday. The good news is, he does not have Cystic Fibrosis which was mentioned to us on Monday. He was tested as a newborn and they had those results when we went for our visit. So that was a relief. We still don’t have any idea what is really going on, but we have narrowed it down to a couple of different causes. Most likely it is caused by having been a preemie. When a baby is still in utero, they have cells in their lungs that are usually gone by the time they are born. Since Noah was born early, his body did not have time to get rid of those and he still has too many. So now, he is working extra hard (breathing fast) to get them out. This would be great because he will outgrow it as he gets older. They repeated another chest x-ray and he still has signs of RDS (Respiratory Distress Syndrome), most severe in his upper right lung. He is now on a higher dose of oral steroids for 10 days. He was supposed to take double his old dose, twice a day, but he started having side effects. We were told if those developed to stop the evening dose and give it to him once a day. We didn’t know they were side effects, but he had bright red cheeks and was really cranky again. Well, the cheeks were a side effect, but so is cramping, so we think that’s probably what was happening. If he is not better in 10 days at his next appointment, then we will go to the pediatric cardiologist to see if it is possibly congenital heart disease. We really don’t think it is that, but the doctor wants to be positive he doesn’t miss something. He has a slight murmur, but he believes it is a flow murmur, not a structural one. I had a heart murmur and Austin had a heart murmur and then after it closed, developed a rapid heartbeat and is on medicine for that. So, technically, it could be that, but that is still pretty out there in theory-land for now. And his blood pressure was elevated when we went, also, so that’s another concern. We go back Monday to decide our next step. The babies were baptized yesterday and it was beautiful. Nicole Reynolds sang for us and did a fabulous job. We wanted her to sing “Give You Wings,” which is a hard song to sing, but she nailed it and it was awesome. I got the chills while Pastor John was baptizing them and during the song. You could really feel the presence of the Holy Spirit and that is an amazing thing when it happens. It was just awesome! They were so good, too. Noah cried a little bit as he was being baptized, but not near what I thought he would!We go to tour the Middle School and meet the counselor and teachers tomorrow with Austin. We are doing this tour, then the orientation, then he will ride the bus once or twice, then hopefully another tour during the school day and several during the summer. This will hopefully help Austin’s transition go a little more smoothly. It is already difficult for him and he has been talking himself into it already. It seems weird to think that he is already old enough to be in middle school and I will not have any kids at the elementary next year! Aidan is also starting preschool next year in the afternoons three days a week. I don’t know what I will do with myself! I suppose by then Nathanial, Ethan, and Noah will be keeping me even busier!Nathanial, Ethan, and Noah are all smiling away now and talking a lot. It is so awesome to watch their development and is much faster than I realized. I can’t believe how much they are already growing!