Cougars vs Dawgs!!!

Mari also sent me some pictures from the WSU vs. UW game they went to with us.

I have to say this was the anticipated home game of the year for us. Curtis had coached against UW when we were at PSU but it was definitely a different feeling now that we have converted to Cougars. But I have to say the transition hasn't been that difficult. Once you experience the WSU environment overtime you get sucked in. Which I never understood before. Yes I am sorry to all the Husky family and friends reading this but it's true.


It was senior night at Beasley Coliseum and the atmosphere was crazy. I think it was a sold out crowd.

I told Mari (Husky Alumni) if she was going to sit with us she couldn't wear purple and she couldn't cheer for the Huskies or she could get us shot. We sit by some serious WSU fans, including Mr. Trey.
Trey doing the Wash. State cheer song.

Even though the Cougars were not victorious (urrrr..) we had a great time!!!!

Mari & Simon Come to Visit:)

Almost a month ago my cousin Mari and her husband Simon came to Pullman for a visit.She works for the Edgar Martinez Foundation and was meeting with some of their scholarship recipients at WSU. And it worked out perfect because WSU was playing UW that weekend. Simon has never been to Pullman so it was a new adventure for him. She sent me some of her pictures so I thought I would share them.


We had great time during their visit. We got a special treat because Simon is an excellent cook. He made us breakfast and a wonderful dinner. Here is sample of his delicious work.


Simon and Mari are both so wonderful with children and Trey absolutely loved their company. He got to play and show them all the new things he was doing. Trey wrestling Simon.


On their last day here it was a beautiful sunny day so we took them to a nearby park to get some fresh air before their flight home. Trey got to feed the ducks for the first time.

Trey's buddy Simon even went on the swings with Him. Trey was quite impressed.
(Simon don't kill me for posting this, it's just too cute.)

It was a great weekend!!! We are blessed to be in Pullman but I miss having family close.

The Allen Family Zoo Exhibit

Update on the Trey Man :)

Well unfortunately little man has taken a few steps backwards with his eating progress, I am sorry to report. Trey was on such a roll for awhile there. Nothing close to where we could remove the NG tube but significant progress with his willingness to eat.

For some reason the last week we have almost completely stopped eating again with the exception of peach sorbet. Trey will still drink small amounts of rice milk (no dairy or soy due to his allergies), juice and water. On the positive side he is tolerating his tube feedings (no vomiting, knock on wood) and we are about 0.5-1 ounce away from our goal we would like to reach each day.

So of course I go round and round contemplating is his recent protest to eating related to his increase in tolerating the volume of his tube feedings. Meaning is all the calories from the formula decreasing his appetite drive or is the increase in volume making his reflux worse. I feel like it is probably a combination of both. Trey also had episodes of gagging and vomiting earlier in the week with foods he was willing to eat. And once this happens he is usually totally done with that food.

We are trying to slow the rate down of how fast his formula infuses in to see if that will help the reflux. We can't increase the calories in his formula and try and lower the actual volume he gets because if you make the caloric intake too much you run the risk of diarrhea. And then you are in for a whole new set of problems.

Trey did have feeding therapy at Sacred Heart Children's Hospital in Spokane today. He didn't make any new progress at the session but the speech therapist came up with some new ideas as far as food goes to try. So we will give that a shot. Her conclusion also is that once we get the reflux under control (medical part) we can get Trey feeling safe with eating again (behavioral part).

So that is where we are at right now. As I find myself reaching my end point I am encouraged that surgery is approaching and I am hopeful that the change will be for the better. It is also comforting to know that even though Trey is struggling in this area he is having fun in other areas of his life...

Being Silly.

Trey loves pulling all the books off the shelf.


"OK mommy I will put them back"


Getting ready to test out his new crayons.


Sending out his emails.


Catching up on his reading.


Getting ready for school someday.



Just being the BEST little boy ever!!!

Spring is Coming!!!

Before we moved to Pullman we heard how harsh the winters could get here. Of course I was just overjoyed since I love driving in the snow:) But like I said in the first blog we have had a fabulous winter. I think it has snowed maybe 3 or 4 times and didn't last long.

Trey usually sat in his bouncy and watched mommy shovel snow. But our Lily couldn't get enough. She could have stayed out for hours playing in the snow.

The past few weeks we have had some amazing sunny days here in Pullman. Since Trey has mastered walking his new favorite thing to do is play outside.

I took Trey out the other day to try out his remote control car he got as a birthday gift from his cousin Amalia. He loved to watch it go up and down the hill of the garage.

We then took the car down to the sidewalk. Trey was in front of the car and started to press the button independently and of course the car started moving toward him. Trey thought the car was chasing him and he took off. The car continued to follow as he wouldn't stop pressing the button. It was pretty funny.

Another fun activity for Trey is to chase Lily outside. He just laughs hysterically when Lily comes running by him. He loves to throw the ball for her. They are becoming pretty good friends these days.

I can already see his need for independence increasing. Trey never wants you to hold his hand when he is outside. Everything is starting to be all by myself now. But coming inside is never easy for the little man. The end to the outside session usually ends in tears. But I am so excited for spring and summer to come so we can have more outside adventures.

Little Man's 2nd Haircut

While we were up in Tacoma this past week Grandpa and I took Trey to get his haircut for the 2nd time at Fun Cutz. Trey just seemed overjoyed to be going.

But once we got there and he was able to sit in a cool Thomas the Train seat, that smile we all love appeared again.

While Trey got his haircut he got to watch Elmo on TV which kept him very distracted. The lady that was cutting his hair was so quick and sweet to Trey.


Of course mommy was close by making sure it wasn't cut too short.

Once again Trey did a fabulous job. Just laid back and always going with the flow!!!


Here are a few extra pics from our trip...


Playing in the Notre Dame room at Grandma and Grandpa's



Hanging out with Uncle Jay

Wrestling Uncle Vic


Trey playing with his new toy from Grandma Priscilla

We Finally Made It Home!!!

I chose "We Finally Made It Home" as the title of this blog because our flight home to Pullman was almost delayed by 2 hours. I know I shouldn't be complaining because we would still be on the road if we were driving but it has been a long 3 days and I was anxious to get Trey home and settled.

Trey threw his first public tantrum in the airport today. I guess I should state FULL BLOWN tantrum. I knew it would happen at some point but you are never ready for it. I have to say I am pretty proud of how I handled myself. I just took lots of deep breaths and tried to stay calm. Everyone around us was pretty understanding. We all decided he was doing what we all wanted to do at that point but couldn't.

So here is the update and conclusion from our procedures this week and our plan of attack in the near future...

We met with our GI specialist this morning before our flight. Trey's weight was 19lbs 4 ounces a drop from his weight on Saturday of 19lbs 7 ounces. (His average weight gain they say should be approx 6 ounces a month). After looking at his trend since our last visits and how he is growing weight wise the Dr. feels like it is not enough. He basically has plateaued in weight. He is improving for height and head circumference which is a good sign but not enough in weight gain for what they are comfortable with. This is likely due to Trey's lack of ability to tolerate a goal of 29 ounces of formula a day due to his vomiting or severe fussiness while his tube feedings are infusing.

So why is Trey still having issues with vomiting and not able to tolerate his feeds and not greatly improving with his oral aversion is the question. Well for one the gastric emptying test that he had on Monday showed that he doesn't have a delayed response during the time the test was done but it DID show with just 2 ounces in his belly he refluxed 5 times in that short period. So while we normally give 7 ounce boluses is he refluxing more than 20 times? Also with the NG tube in place, the stomach is always slightly open so that could be making his reflux worse too. And even though Trey doesn't act like the tube bothers him how much it is affecting his willingness to eat could also be a factor.

The team feels that in order for Trey to really began to overcome his oral aversion and feel safe with eating we must fully get his reflux under control. The next step to hopefully reach that goal is having a gastrostomy tube (g-tube) placed. I have been dragging my feet with agreeing to this decision but we are not making the progress we would like with our current regime.

So for the non medical people who are reading this blog the g-tube is usually used for children who require tube feedings over extended period. This what is what it usually looks like...


The tube will be inserted through Trey's abdominal wall and into this stomach. And this is where we will continue to feed him formula through. Trey will require surgery for the tube placement and they said plan on being hospitalized for 3 days. Interventional radiology will be placing the tube with the assistance of peds sedation team. Trey's surgery will be taking place on April 6th at 1:00pm. We are thankful that daddy will be able to be with us.

We are hoping that after surgery things will improve with time and his severe reflux will resolve. I am not willing to address worse case scenario at this point because I don't even want to think negatively right now.

As I sit here tonight reflecting on today I of course question myself as a mother and a nurse. How did we get to this point? What did I or didn't I do for my child. What could I have done differently for Trey to prevent this? But I guess I could make myself crazy if I think like that. So I am praying for positive thinking and reassurance that this is a path we are destined to go on right now and things will eventually work out for Trey. I know the Lord will not place more on this family then we can handle. I am blessed and encouraged when I look at little Trey tonight running around laughing like a normal 15 month old. We still have so much to be thankful for.

We will keep you updated as the surgery date gets closer.

Day #2

Please forgive me if I don't make sense with my sentences tonight. I am so tired from the last several days. I can't even imagine how little Trey must feel. It's amazing how much being out of your normal routine plays a toll on your body.

Well to give a quick recap of the day...Trey had his swallow study today. Grandpa accompanied us to this test. We met with a wonderful speech therapist today at Mary Bridge Children's Hospital in the radiology department. The test took place in a regular x-ray room. We were asked to bring several foods Trey likes to eat, foods that are difficult, and things that he will drink. The speech therapist mixed a variety of the things we brought with barium. The radiologist took video X-rays of the mouth and throat. These images show how food passes from the mouth through the throat and into the esophagus. They may also reveal aspiration -- foreign matter entering the lungs -- if barium enters the windpipe.

Trey had to sit in this highchair and then had two x-ray boards right next to him. As you can imagine for a 15 month old this was quite scary and not a normal eating scenario for anyone. He cried and wanted to be held so we gave hugs and tried different distractions. The bubble wand did the trick. I stood in front of him and tried to feed him. The speech therapist assured me that we would not push Trey past his comfort zone to make sure we would not worsen the food aversion. We tried peach sorbet first (the one thing Trey will eat lately). He did very well the first few bites and I continued to add more barium to the spoon per the radiologists request. Well once he realized the barium was in his mouth he freaked out. He just sat there with his mouth wide open with tears running down his face. He continued to get more frantic so as a group we decided it was time to stop. We didn't get very far but enough that the radiologist felt he did not see any aspiration taking place.

Based off this test and the symptoms I described to the therapist she felt that Trey's oral aversion has mainly stemmed from his severe reflux. Soon after the test had stopped the therapist was able to witness Trey refluxing already in her presence.

So we finish up the last couple days with our GI specialist and dietitian tomorrow. It will be interesting to see what our plan of care will be at this point. Daddy will get to listen in via speaker phone.

I feel totally drained tonight but I know that God has this obstacle all figured out. He has comforted me from hand picking the wonderful people who performed the tests these past two days, and supplying amazing supportive husband, parents and friends around Trey and I.

We love you all!!!

Brave Little Boy

Trey and I arrived to Seatac late last night. Little man did very well on the plane. As we got closer to landing he loved looking at all the bright lights below us.

Trey had his gastric emptying study done today. Trey gets four tube feedings a day now, where we offer a meal or snack and replace what he doesn't eat or drink. In discussion with his dietitian we decided to try and space them out by 4 hours to hopefully increase his appetite. But this has been unsuccessful. Trey could go 4-5hours without eating or drinking and have absolutely no desire to do either. He also has had issues tolerating his tube feedings which range from 6-7 ounces during a feed. This next symptom may be too much info for some but we check his NG tube placement by pushing air into his tube and listen with a stethoscope for air to make sure its in his tummy before we start each tube feeding. Afterwards we pull the air back out and hours could pass and he will still have huge amounts of previous tube feedings in his stomach. So it was decided that it would be best for Trey to have this procedure done to see if his stomach is having a delayed response to emptying.

So nuclear medicine placed a radioactive chemical in his formula and we pushed about 2 ounces down his NG tube. These chemicals measure the speed with which food empties the stomach and enters the small intestine. There are no side effects from the study. The radioactive material won't be absorbed by his body and then will be eliminated in his poop.

The difficult aspect of the study was once the radioactive material was pushed down his NG tube, the tube had to be pulled shortly there after because it could alter the test results due to the NG always leaving a small part of the stomach open. So since the little man still doesn't eat or drink enough yet the tube had to be replaced at the end of the procedure.

The study took around an hour to complete but Trey had to hold very still throughout so he had to be strapped down to a board but was able to have his head and arms free. But you can imagine confining a 15 month old is a task in itself. But with the help of his two wonderful grandma's, books, toys and Mr. Raffee the task was a success. There were a few tears in the beginning for him and myself but he did EXTREMELY well. He was so brave!!!

During the study his little body was pushed part way into this CT like scanner machine and there was a small screen attached nearby that showed constant black and white images of his stomach and intestines and a clock that displayed the remaining time left.

As the last minutes and seconds came to an end replacing the tube was the last obstacle for Trey. Mommy replaced the tube with brave Grandma Karen, and the wonderful tech assisting me. Replacing the NG tube is never easy for Trey or I. As a mommy you hate seeing your child scared or in pain and knowing you are the one inflicting that upon your child leaves for a whole lot of mommy guilt. As a peds nurse this is procedure I probably wouldn't think twice about it but doing it on your own child leaves room for lack of confidence and self doubt. I think my biggest fear with each replacement is that Trey wouldn't trust or love me the same. But the innocence of a child amazes me. After the tube was in place Trey was still his cuddly self. His resilience and care-free spirit inspires me everyday.

We will find the results out on Wed. when we meet with his GI specialist. Trey has one more test tomorrow. Please keep the little man in your prayers. It would be much appreciated:)

Mr. Raffee!!!

Trey has absolutely fallen in love over the last couple months with his giraffe blankie that his Grandma Priscilla got for him before he was born. We started to introduce who we call "Mr. Raffee" when Trey stopped breastfeeding and had his NG tube placed as comfort support for him. Now Mr. Raffee is an essential at nap and bedtime. <

I just ordered an extra Mr. Raffee to have as a backup.
The brand is Angel Dear and they have such an adorable variety of all different little animal blankies for little ones.

It will be intersting to see how long Mr. Raffee will be Trey's blankie. But as of right now he is here to stay!!!

COUGS #1 FAN!!!

Trey and I were not able to attend the Cougars appearance at the PAC-10 tournament last night. But boy was little man there in spirit. I couldn't resist getting a few shots of Trey last night cheering the team on.




Trey attended his first basketball games this year once the Cougars started their season. In the beginning I was a little nervous how he would respond to the loud environment around him. But INSTANTLY he was one of the WSU Zzu Crew rooting on his daddy's team. As the season progressed Trey was literally screaming and doing the fight song cheer with his little arm. It was priceless.


Even though the Cougs were not victorious last night we look forward to cheering them on next year!!! We are so proud of your hard work Daddy!!!