Howdy Ya'll

Wow, did I really let a month and a half go by without posting?! There have been tons of things that happened. Here is a recap:

Payson started the intensive feeding therapy and is eating all his meals now! Yup, we went from eating nothing to everything. He is still a young eater and has a ways to go, but he is well on his way. Eating all his meals also means NO G-TUBE feeds during the days! Yet, that all might change since has lost some weight, but we will see the nutritionist next week to play around with calories and weight issues.

We officially changed our GI doctor from DuPont to CHOP. Love, love, love the new doctor! He took the bull by the horns and has ordered every tests possible. He also helped with deal with Payson's very angry g-tube stoma. We have gotten the results from every test and the gastric emptying study showed that he was a little slow to empty his stomach. This is not a surprise. It also showed that he had some reflux, which surprised us since he had a Nissen (stomach wrap to prevent reflux). The next test that we did was an upper GI study. This showed that he had very little to no motility in his esophagus where he was repaired. We were aware that this could happened, but shocked that this was the first time it was noticed. I think a year and a half is plenty of time to follow up on the recovery phase of his repair. This is why we switched to CHOP. We will follow up with GI and nutrition next week to get a plan of action concerning the slow motility.

Speaking of doctors I have been at odds with my pulminologist. I disagree with his lack of aggression towards my sons constant repository issues. Now, the doctor is excellent and very aggressive which I appreciate, but he is also just doing the typical treat Payson instead of trying to figure out why. So, I am investigating switching pulminology to CHOP too. I have had several people recommend a certain doctor to me, but he is so good that he has closed his books to new patients. We will see, I am still trying to worm my way in!

Finally, we have begun to transition our nursing to another company. We will remain with the one just to keep one of our nurses, but will try the other company to see how they will proceed to fill shifts. The current company is so unorganized, has left us with many holes and told me that trach/vent cases are not profitable. So, before vacation I decided to call the owner of that company to let them know what was going on. Needless to say we had a meeting with everyone and were left just dumbfounded by the lack of respect towards our case. Our son brings them over $6K a week and we shouldn't have to deal with inconsistency. ARRR. The new company starts tonight so we have our fingers crossed hoping this will be a much better fit!

Now onto other family news:

Walker is now an official 9th grader. CRAZY! It is so hard to explain the raw emotions this milestone brings, but I guess disbelief is what it is. It wasn't too long ago that I was in high school and my mom was in my current position. How did I get that old to have a high schooler? It blows my mind and saddens my heart! It is flying by so quick that I am unable to soak in and enjoy it! Time is just slipping through my finger tips! (Let's not mention that my daughter will be 16 at the end of this month)! So hard to believe!

To end Walker's middle school career my boy went to his 8th grade formal. He looked so handsome and made me one very proud momma! He was just a baby right?! Currently, he is down in Va. for the next month hanging out with his dad. They have many years to catch up on and Walker seems to be craving it! It is good for him to be with his dad helping him do hay and work on a farm.

Zach is also an official 9th grader, but we didn't celebrate b/c his school system keeps them in Jr. High thru 9th grade. Next year we will celebrate his arrival to Sr. high! He has spent the last three weeks with us hanging out and helping with the kids. Poor thing is beside himself with boredom since Walker isn't here to buddy around with. In the begging of August he will return to his mom's house and start his year off.

Margaret Ruth...well she is three and every bit of the determined, hard headed, princess that I ever was! (Thanks mom for praying for someone worse then me for me). She is hysterical with her bottom shaking, dancing and singing! She is every bit a drama queen and keeps the house active! Since being on vacation for 10 days, just us, she has begun to play nicely with Payson and Payson with her, (although he won't take any crap from her and let's her know how it's going to be...Oh, dear, not another one!)

Yes, we just returned back from a family vacation! Just us, NO NURSE! It was hard and challenging at times, but it was soooo worth it! We needed it! On our way down to NC we stopped at my sisters to celebrate, Clayton's 1st Birthday! He is too darn cute! After spending the afternoon celebrating we loaded up again to continue onto our destination! We arrived in Montreat at 12:30 am with kids that were wide awake! It was hours before they finally hit the hay! The next day we celebrated me turning the 33. Wow, really?! Again, wasn't I just 16? My husband made me breakfast and my grandfather gave me a little party! It was so sweet! The next day my sister and her crew traveled down to join us. So, we spent the 4th and the week as sisters, cousins, in laws making precious memories! I am so blessed that were able to start that tradition years ago and hope to keep it going for many years to come! The only bad thing was I felt horrible for the boys because we are limited in doing things because of the two little ones! Despite the limitations they seemed to enjoy themselves!

So, as I sit here and type I am gearing up for another vacation in Ohio! This time we will take a nurse for a couple of days so that we can go and do things...cedar point, Kalahari, boating on the lake, etc...We have to fly her back after 3 days b/c that is all Ohio will allow.

Well, that is it for now! I promise to post pictures soon of all the adventures we have had lately!