From Charlie’s private Facebook page (yeah, he’s that cool!)
UPDATE JUNE 27:
Hey guys! Long time no update.
Charles has been doing well at home since the last update nearly two months ago. He’s quickly coming up on three months old. The time sure does fly!
Charlie has become the biggest smiley guy and is the chattiest little man I know — no small feat considering how much big brother likes to talk! He’s slowly but surely gaining a bit more neck strength and trunk control, however, when he’s tired he becomes very floppy. We’ve been spending lots of time on our tummy to help Charlie develop all those important muscles, and just last weekend he ROLLED OVER for the first time from his belly to his back. He’s done it several times since then too! This is huge for his development so we’re keeping our fingers crossed for more great things from him.
Charlie did give us a bit of a scare with some repetitive eye movements that were a bit concerning. We ended up back at Sick Kids thinking they could be seizures, so Charlie had an EEG. We saw the neurologist last week and they said that his EEG looked normal (yay! yay! yay!), and there was no signs of seizures during the EEG. However, without catching one of these episodes on the EEG, they cannot say for certain one way or another if the episodes are seizures or just a benign sleep thing. So we’re left to wait and see some more. If they become more frequent, last a long time, or he has issues with breathing during them then we are to call the neurology clinic to be seen ASAP. As it stands we continue on status quo with his medication and monitoring until he’s seen for follow-up in October.
We also got Charle’s neonatal development clinic appointment booked — so he’ll see them in September to track his physical development and milestones. The neurologist we saw last week has recommended getting Charlie into physiotherapy and occupational therapy, as there is stiffness and muscle issues already apparent. We are just waiting for when we see the paediatrician (next week) to get that referral set up for him. Charlie continues to love his baby massages from mama, and we notice marked improvement in overall muscle ‘calmness’ when he gets them on the regular.
Aside from rolling over, Charlie’s a huge fan of looking at himself in the mirror. (Because he’s so handsome, DUH!) He also loves to touch knitted blankets. His baby crinkle paper is his favourite toy — he loves putting it in his mouth and over his face (probably because it’s such a cool sound and sensation.) He’s slowly developing his skills with reaching for and grabbing things. He can’t quite get his body to move the way he wants it to, which causes some frustrated cries, but he keeps trying. He tracks us very well and still loves watching his big brother showing off for him.
Upcoming for Charles is a visit with the paediatrician, where he’ll get the second part of his first set of vaccines. With our doctor’s OK we’re vaccinating on a spaced out schedule so that it doesn’t overload his already fragile system. We start mom and baby music classes next week. Charlie really seems to love music (and it’s great for the brain) so we’re looking forward to it. It will also be nice to do some “normal” mom and baby things and not focus so much on the medical aspect of Charles’ care.
Big City Mama 