EEG

Maggie had her EEG this afternoon.  In order for the test to be accurate, she must be sleep deprived.  Last night we kept her up until about 11pm, and Robin got her up at 6am this morning when he got up.  She normally sleeps from 7pm to 8am.  The drive to the hospital is about 25 miles, so Robin had to go with me in order to keep her awake.

She did so well during the test.  She didn't even try to touch any of the wires they put on her head, and she fell asleep during the test.  I brought her sleep sack, pacifier and a lovey to help her sleep.  There is a lot of construction at the hospital, so all through the test there was someone just above us banging on a metal pipe.  Nice.  I don't know how it affected the results, but it certainly didn't affect her sleep.

First they mark her head up with a marker.  Then they attach all of these wires to her head using some goop and a small piece of gauze.  They also put two wires on her chest to monitor her heart rate.

Then they wrap her head with gauze.

Once they're ready to start the test, the technician turns off the lights and puts that small light in the picture below in front of her face.  It's a strobe light that goes off several times - maybe 10 times - with the speed increasing each time.  Then they move it away and hope she goes to sleep.  Maggie seemed to like the strobe light.

 After the test, they remove the gauze.

All at once they pull off all the wires.

They know she has an appointment with the neurologist tomorrow, so they're supposed to read the EEG today.  Hopefully that happens.

Happy Thanksgiving

A day to give thanks.  I have so much to be thankful for.  I have a loving husband, wonderful parents and the three most beautiful toddlers in the whole world (ok - so I might be a little biased on that one).  I have a roof over my head and we're all healthy.  What more could a girl ask for?

Normally I cook the turkey dinner, but this year my mom cooked the turkey, stuffing (from scratch), sweet potatoes and pies.  I made the mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce (from scratch) and cookies.  Robin made the gravy.  The meal was so delicious and it was accompanied by a day of football.  For those of you who don't know, I love football - NFL, not college.  There were three great games on today.  I also love fantasy football.  In fact, I'm the commissioner of my league.  Go Broncos!

The adults ate "dinner" while the girls napped.  When the girls got up from their map, we played all afternoon.  The girls had their first ever Thanksgiving meal for dinner.  They all seemed to like it - for the most part.  Katie wasn't a fan of the stuffing, sweet potatoes or the pumpkin pie, and Maggie wasn't a fan of the sweet potatoes.  Izzie-B gobbled it all down.

Robin took a photo-journalistic approach to documenting our day.

Grandpa Jack reading to Katie; Izzie-B playing with my Barbie horse that my mom brought over today.  She held on to it for over an hour.

The girls like to wear capes.

Playing Ring Around the Rosie.

Please ignore the random things on the wall.  It's been 11 months since we moved in, but I haven't really decorated yet.

Thank you for the awesome plates, Kathy.  I just started using them, and the girls love them!

Twenty-One Months

I'm a few days late, but the girls are now 21 months!!  Time is flying by overall, but some days feel like molasses.

There is no well-child appointment for 21 months, so I don't have any height/weight stats for the girls.  Here's what I do know.  The girls' language is starting to take off - slowly but surely.  There are several words that I understand, and they know a lot of signs.

Signs they know - some purposeful, some not so much - eat, drink, water, dada, head, hat, eye, nose, mouth, ear, music, cookie, again, bear, apple, more, baby, mama, dog, fish, milk, shoes, socks, hurt, change diaper, play, sleep, please, thank you, elephant, book, open, sad, bath.

Words they say - some purposeful, some not so much - dada, mama, hat, again, bubble, fish, down, all done, baby, bear, dog, dirty, cracker, fish, water, shoes, cheese, eat, thank you, elephant, banana, sad, bath, uh-oh, stir, dot.

Body parts they can identify - head, hair, ear, eye, nose, mouth, tongue, teeth, fingers, toes, belly button.

I'm also convinced they have their own language.  They say things to one another all the time that seem very meaningful.

Katie - my fashionista (loves hats, shoes and all accessories), a girl who knows what she wants - she responds well to time-outs
Teeth: 16
Clothes: 18mo
Diaper: 4

Maggie - a bull in a china shop, very destructive - she refuses to be disciplined - she just laughs and makes a game out of it
Teeth: 12
Clothes: 18mo
Diaper: 4

Izzie-B - very sweet, sensitive and caring, she's very helpful and makes sure her sisters have what they need/want - throws tantrums when she's told no
Teeth: 9
Clothes: 12-18mo
Diaper: 4

Yesterday was World Prematurity Day - look how far they've come!  Born a little more than 10 weeks early.

Katie - 2lbs 11oz

Maggie - 2lbs 9oz

Izzie-B - 3lbs 1oz

Another Seizure?

I think Maggie just had another seizure.  Her PT was here, so thankfully I'm not the only one to see it this time.  The PT thinks Maggie has a vestibular (inner ear) issue - although after today, she's not so sure.  I should back-up.  Over the last 2-3 weeks, Maggie has had some weird eye movements.  Frequently, her eyes will go off to the left.  Other times they will slightly shake.  And, more frequently, she'll get very intense, mean looks on her face - mainly in her eyes.

This morning, the PT was twirling Maggie around in circles.  Then, we talked about how Maggie had torticollis as a baby.  I've recently learned that this condition can be related to a vestibular issue.  My mom has noticed that Maggie frequently has her left shoulder raised, which can be a residual issue of torticollis.  The PT was stretching Maggie's neck (both sides).  She put her down.  I picked her up, and then she started arching her back, which she hasn't done since she was an infant.  I put her down on the floor and she continued to arch her back.  I commented to the PT about how weird that was and how she hasn't done that in at least 8 months (probably longer).  Then she walked a few steps and fell (her falls have been more frequent over the last week).  She was on the ground on her stomach (just like last time), but this time she kept her palms face up - like she was trying to crawl on the back of her hands, but she wasn't moving anywhere. Her body was contorting in weird ways.  I couldn't see her eyes, but the PT got down and was trying to look at her eyes.  They didn't seem to be doing anything strange like last time.  I started crying.  I'm so glad Maggie has a neuro appointment later this month.  The PT is going to call the neurology department and tell them what she saw.  I tend to think people think I'm crazy and over-analyzing what is going on with Maggie.  This time, though, someone else saw it.  I'm not crazy.

Just to be sure her strange eye movements weren't related to her eyesight, I took her to the eye doctor last week.  Everything looked fine.  He said she's slightly far-sighted, which is not unusual.  Normally, a child her age is +3; she's +3.5.  He said it's not enough to be worried about or to prescribe glasses at this point.  I had a long talk with the eye doctor about what's been going on with Maggie.  In my professional opinion, it's either mini-seizures or a vestibular issue.  His professional opinion is that it's mini-seizures.  I didn't like his answer at the time, but after what has transpired today, I think he might be right.

Her last seizure was officially attributed to fever - febrile seizure.  I have never accepted that diagnosis.  I don't think she had a fever that day.  The neurologist who was there that day said she felt hot.  She didn't feel hot to me.  By the time I got home, almost 2 hours later, her temperature was only 99.

Sometimes a mom just knows that something is wrong.  I know that she didn't have a febrile seizure.  I know there is something going on with her brain.  I hope we can get to the bottom of it soon.

Encounter with T.Rex

It's getting colder and colder here making it harder for us to do any outdoor activities - especially since I hate being cold.  On Saturday morning, we took the girls to the mall to play on the indoor playground.  They had so much fun.  The girls - especially Katie and Izzie-B - really like to watch the older kids play.  They'll follow them around and try to do what they do.  There was a small slide at the playground.  Both Katie and Izzie-B were able to climb up the slide.  Maggie just couldn't make it up.  It makes me sad when she can't quite keep up with her sisters.

Today was a free day at the Museum of Nature and Science.  We took the girls to the T-Rex experience.  I hope they don't have nightmares.  Katie was a little freaked out.  She cried.  It was loud.

Luckily, the lady let us take two photos since Katie turned her head at the last minute.

We wandered all around the museum.  I find it much easier to get the girls around in the double stroller.  Today, we reclined the back seat, which gave Izzie-B much more room it sit.  I'm not sure what the weight capacity of this stroller is (it was given to us by my former co-worker), but I hope it won't break anytime soon.  I love using it this way.  Izzie-B discovered she can look out the back.  I figure it's best to have her in the back because she weighs the least.

The girls played in the Discovery Kids Zone.

We also went to an exhibit about health - I can't remember what it was called.  They give you a card, and you can track your health as you go from station to station.  I learned something very valuable today.  I'm shorter than I thought I was.  There is one station where you stand against a wall (without shoes) and spread your arms out.  The computer measures your height and wing span.  I'm 5'7.5" tall and I have a wingspan of 5'6".  Robin is an even 6' tall.

In the afternoon, Robin took the girls to the park.  It was very cold - no way I was joining them.  The girls' little hands and noses were so cold when they got home.

Update on Maggie's MRI - the results were mixed - not normal, but not abnormal.  It's hard to explain.  The really good news is - there is no scarring from her brain bleed.  There is one area that was bright, but they are attributing it to increased myelination.  The report indicated that the area was brighter than they would have expected for her age - the abnormal part of the results.  After a long conversation with the doctor from the rehab clinic, he referred us to the neurology clinic.  Maggie has an appointment with a resident neurologist at the end of the month.  I also have an appointment to pick up her orthotics later this week.  I'm not convinced she needs them, but we'll see.  More to come on that topic later.