Well as many of you know our family has located to Pullman, Washington this past spring. I can't believe we have almost been here a year. Curtis was hired as one of the assistant basketball coaches at Washington State University. Yes, Husky fans we have officially converted to Cougars. We are living in a wonderful neighborhood with lots of families and children. Everyone has been so welcoming and friendly. It has been amazing and an easy transition for all of us. The Pullman winter even went easy on us this year.
Curtis has adjusted well to coaching in the PAC-10. He has been working so hard and traveling constantly. The basketball team is finishing up the season. We did not finish as well as we would have liked but things are looking bright for next season.
I left my job as a pediatric nurse last May. Curtis's job has given me the wonderful opportunity to stay at home with Trey. I plan to go back to work eventually but I am loving this special time with him.
Our little boy is approaching 15 months of age this month. Time has gone by so fast. He amazes us everyday with the new things he is doing. He is the most easy going and good spirited little boy. He is walking and into EVERYTHING!!!
Some of you may or may not know that Trey has been struggling with eating since this past Nov. I thought this blog would be a perfect way to update everyone on how things are going for the little man.
To give you a little background..Trey has always had difficulty with feeding since birth. He had a terrible time breastfeeding in the beginning, never one to take a bottle, was a projectile vomiter and has always had problems with gagging. He also has never been great at taking solids. We knew there was issues with reflux but the severity we where unaware of. We struggled for months with horrible eczema, bloody stools, weight loss issues and upset tummies. We finally found that he is allergic to milk, eggs, peanuts and soy.
After we got his allergies under control his skin started to clear up and he seemed happier. But this past Nov. he started to refuse everything by mouth except breastfeeding. Our pediatrician thought this was possibly normal toddler behavior to refuse food every once in awhile but the protest continued. Mommy intuition I knew something wasn't right. Trey's weight had been declining and we were basically -0 percentile for weight. We were referred to a pediatric GI specialist in Spokane but we were going to have to wait until July to be seen. Obviously that was not going to work so a close friend was able to pull some strings for us at Mary Bridge Children's Hospital in Tacoma. We were so blessed to get in right away and see a specialist there. The team at Mary Bridge believes that Trey has had severe reflux and with his food allergies has created an oral aversion to food.
We did a trial of no breastfeeding to see if he would eat or drink on his own and we were unsuccessful. We did not have the luxury of letting this trial continue due to his significant weight loss and dehydration kicking in. After much conversation it was decided that the best thing for Trey at this point was to have a feeding tube placed. Trey has nasogastric(NG)tube which goes in through his nose and down into his stomach so we are able to assist him with food this way. Trey has had the NG tube since Dec. He has actually done EXTREMELY well with it. He doesn't pull or tug at it too much. We still attempt to offer food like you would any other child and we just replace what he doesn't eat or drink with a special hypoallergenic formula through the tube. He has gained a lot of weight back since the tube has been placed.
Trey has started feeding therapy which helps him learn to start eating and drinking again. We are making slow progress but we are seeing improvement. Trey has also been placed on a reflux medication that has worked incredibly well for him. We are so blessed to be working with an amazing GI specialist who is a great fit for my crazy, over-intense personality, a fabulous dietitian, and amazing speech therapist.
Where are we going from here??? Well Trey will be having two procedures done next week at Mary Bridge to rule out a few things. We will see the team at Mary Bridge and discuss are continued journey to get Trey to eat.
I do find myself getting frustrated and discouraged at times wondering what is going on in that little brain of his. But I am encouraged that things will work out in time. I know with God's strength and continued prayer we will see success. I feel blessed that I have the skills to deal with Trey's obstacle right now. We will keep you updated on how things are going.
Thank you for taking the time to read how our journey has been this past year. We look forward to sharing our new adventures with you:)
