Development update

Hazel and Jude are doing remarkably well and we are so grateful for the many prayers said on their behalf. They are truly miracle babies and we are so thankful for that. Though they appear totally "normal" now, we still need to take some precautions. As we anticipate another flu season, we have to be much more cautious with them. A few weeks from now, we will not take them to church anymore (until next May), not take them to the store, ask people who come over to wash their hands, etc. Basically, we need to stay completely germ free because our pediatrician reminded us that if they get sick, they could not only end up in the hospital, but possibly in the ICU. So, we ask for your continued prayers for good health for them and for us.

They will be evaluated by an OT and a PT next week to see what services they qualify for here. They were receiving both OT and PT in Pasadena, but here in Oak Harbor, they will only get one or the other. We are sure that Jude will qualify for PT, but we're not sure about Hazel. Jude has made remarkable progress in his physical development (especially considering that some of the tissue in the motor development part of his brain was destroyed), but he is still working with some low muscle-tone and overall weakness. That being said, he's still right on track for his adjusted age. Miraculous!

We have a couple of appointments at Seattle Children's Hospital in October, one with pulmonology, one with Neurodevelopment (standard for all preemies), and one that needs to be made with Opthamology. We are hoping that we will only have 1 or 2 visits total with pulmonology since our pulmonologist at UCLA thought they were both doing great and wouldn't need medication much longer. So, our specialist appointments are really diminishing! Good thing since Seattle Children's is 2 hours away!

Both kids are still on reflux medication, but they seem to be over the massive throwing-up stage (thank goodness!). We tried to take them off the medication, but they were fussy and refusing to eat, so it's obvious they are still dealing with a lot of acid. We'll keep trying each month until they are ready. We're praying for full maturity of their digestive systems.

Thanks for journeying with us and supporting us in prayer.