The Gregoire 4: March 2009

It's been a busy month! Either Sophia or Ethan was sick during the past 6 weeks and it definitely took its toll on all of us. It was like a see-saw of viruses... one was up and healthy while the other was down and sick.

The last week in February, we were supposed to go to Winter Fun Weekend - an annual family getaway with friends from church. Ethan came down with a cold the day before we were supposed to leave, so I offered to stay home with the kids while Steve got some much-needed R&R with friends. He also visited the New Hampshire-based Meiers and met Andrew, their new baby boy. While we were sad that the kids and I couldn't go, we were glad that Steve had an opportunity to recharge his batteries! :)

Sophia and Ethan had their 15-month appointment and came through it with flying colors. They are both developmentally on track and thriving. Their stats:

Sophia
Height: 32.5 inches (92nd percentile)
Weight: 26 pounds (92nd percentile)
Head circumference: 51.6 cm (off the charts - she still has a big noggin'!)

Ethan
Height: 32.5 inches (75th percentile)
Weight: 22 pounds (20th percentile)
Head circumference: 47.4 cm (35th percentile)

After our healthy-baby appointment, we had a scare with Sophia. She had a fever of 102-degrees for about a week that was accompanied by a rash on her chest and bloodshot eyes. Our pediatrician was worried that it might be Kawasaki Disease (but it wasn't). Kawasaki Disease can cause enlarged arteries in the heart which can cause aneurysms. It's a fairly scary thing with a slightly more than 2 in 200 fatality rate...

So we had bloodwork done and learned that Sophia's immune system was working overtime to cure whatever it was she had. She saw 3 different specialists at Children's Hospital in Boston who evaluated her. She also had an echo cardiogram. Sophia needed to be sedated for the echo, and it took about an hour for her to actually fall asleep. And she didn't go quietly... I kept thinking of my friend Anna and her daughter Summer who has CHD and regularly has echos and other tests. Thinking of Anna and Summer gave me strength and filled me with a sense that we could face whatever came ahead.

The results of the echo cardiogram showed that her heart was fine. All of her arteries were fine. That fact, combined with the fact that she was very personable with the doctors (smiling and flirting away), led the team to decide that she most likely had the adeno virus. They asked me if I'd like to have her admitted for 24 to 48 hours for observation or if I'd like to take her home and follow up with our pediatrician in the morning. As a former NICU-mom, I opted for home. No more hospitals for us if we can help it! That night, Sophia's fever broke, her rash disappeared, her eyes cleared, and she was much better the next day. We followed up with our doctor and did have some follow-up bloodwork done, but the viral diagnosis was correct. Thank goodness! :)

The following week, we had a visit from David Jorgensen, Steve's best friend and best man at our wedding. He's at Princeton working on his PhD in Religion and was in Boston for the week. He made a wonderful house guest. We had fun playing games and catching up. Sophia and Ethan were initially a bit timid with him (we think because of his beard), but did warm up after a day or two.

New developments with Sophia and Ethan include kissing. They like to give kisses to each other and to Steve and me. It's very sweet. They like to drink out of open cups now and are mastering the art of drinking without spilling liquid down the fronts of their shirts! They are also following simple directions like picking up shoes and bringing them to me. They request books for me to read by bringing them to me and planting themselves in my lap. They also leaf through books on their own. They're both starting to run - fast - and love to play catch-me-if-you-can. They're also scribbling with crayons and stacking blocks in towers of 2 to 4. For the past week or so we've been going to the park almost daily to swing on the swings and slide down the slides. It is a lot of fun. I love their toddler-ness and am really enjoying being home to see it every day. It is a very special time.

One of my favorite pics of Ethan and Sophia in their Mr. Silly and Mr. Happy shirts from Kathleen. :)

Part of the gang singing at Winter Fun Weekend...

A message for those of us at home...

The Meiers - Jordan, Jenny, Chris, and Andrew

Ethan playing with a truck at the playground...

Sophia prefers not to get her hands messy in the sand and had fun exploring the playground while Ethan played with the truck...

Typical day - Ethan exploring and Sophia riding the bike that Uncle David gave us for Christmas.

We helped our friends Sophie and Walter celebrate their first birthday. There was a marvelously long hallway to walk down on our way out the door and Sophia and Ethan had a great time stretching their legs...