August 28th Kinley had her 15 month check-up with her pediatrician. Kinley's appointment was at 10:00 AM to coordinate with nap time and feedings, which we like to do at home. Anyway, at 11:00 AM we were still sitting in the packed waiting room so I got up and politely said, "I realize you are busy, but if it is going to be much longer could we please just reschedule because it is getting dangerously close to nap time for Kinley and she is getting really fussy". (For those of you who know that I have a little temper and basically have no patience when it comes to waiting for appointments, after all, that is the reason you schedule appointments in the first place, I really did try to stay calm. Normally this doctor's office is pretty good, but they must have had a scheduling debacle this time or something.) I was told that if I wanted to reschedule the next appointment would not be until the end of September, but that Kinley could see the nurse practitioner instead of the doctor and then they could get her in quicker. While I was disappointed, I agreed to see the nurse practitioner so that we could move on with the rest of our day.
We were called back shortly after that and we didn't have to wait in our room long before the nurse practitioner came in to see Kinley. Kinley did concern the nurse practitioner right off the bat though. He must not have looked over her chart before coming into the room, which I get if he was trying to help out and speed things up for us, but he kept asking the regular questions for a 15 month check up and this was basically how the first few minutes of her exam went:
ARNP: Do you have any concerns today?
Kevin and I: No.
ARNP: So how many words does Kinley have now?
Kevin and I: None.
ARNP: None? What about mama or dada?
Kevin and I: No.
ARNP: And how long has this been going on?
Kevin and I: (Not really sure how to answer this question.) Well, since she has not started to say any words yet, I guess since birth.
ARNP: Can she point to different body parts, like her belly, if you ask her to?
Kevin and I: No.
ARNP: Is she walking?
Kevin and I: No.
Kevin and I finally decided to end this and explain everything that Kinely has been through and that she is being followed by an OT, Speech Pathologist, Early Childhood Development Specialist, and Audiologist just to name a few. This made the nurse practitioner feel better and we were able to move on with the exam.
Kinley passed the rest of her exam with flying colors and once again got a comment on how well her vocal cords work. (Kinley usually screams when she is in any doctor's office and the fact that we waited so long made her extra fussy.) Plus she ended up getting FIVE shots, so that was just the icing on the cake for her. Poor Kinley, she really had a rough appointment and I can't say that Kevin or I did much better. It still hurts every time we see her get shots. At least they were able to give her the flu shot so we have that out of the way. I am glad we don't have to came back in a few weeks just for that.
As far as Kinley's measurements go, she weighed 21.9oz (30%) and her length was 30 inches (50%).
With Kinley getting closer and closer to that 22lb mark Kevin and I decided it was time to bite the bullet and get her a new car seat. We went and got her a fancy new chair that we were all excited about. We finally got it installed and let Kinley try it out and she hated it. The one we got can be rear facing for kids up to 35lbs, so we decided to keep her rear facing. I didn't think it would be much of a change for her, but she definitely noticed and was not a fan of the new chair. I am sure as she gets more comfortable with it she will realize how much better it fits her and then start to love it.
Sorry, no pics of Kinley in her new carseat. Maybe next time.
Monday, August 31, 2009
ENT
If you remember, not the last time Kinley was at the Special Care Clinic, but the time before that it was recommended that Kinley see an ENT. The reason for that recommendation was 1) follow-up from being on the vent for the first month of her life and 2) because Kinley was making a noise that sounded kind of like she was gasping for air, but Kevin and I knew it was just a noise she made every once in a while because she was excited and having fun. We were not concerned about the noise at all but thought it might be nice to get a follow-up with an ENT to make sure the vent didn't cause any damage to Kinley's throat.
Well, last week Kinley finally got in to see the ENT. The visit went pretty much like I thought it would. The nurse came in and did her assessment of Kinley, Kinley screamed through the whole assessment, and then the ENT came in and said Kinley looks ( and sounds ) great. The ENT said if we wanted her to scope Kinley she could, but since Kinley is eating and drinking without too much trouble and her vocal cords seem to work well there was really no need to put her through the procedure. The procedure would involve the ENT putting a little camera up Kinley's nose and then down her throat. To Kinley it would feel a lot like getting an NG tube placed and Kevin and I didn't see any reason to put Kinley through that. Especially when the ENT said that even if she found anything they would not consider treatment unless it started affecting Kinley's speech, breathing or eating.
It was a quick and painless appointment although anyone who heard Kinley screaming on our way out might have thought otherwise.
Well, last week Kinley finally got in to see the ENT. The visit went pretty much like I thought it would. The nurse came in and did her assessment of Kinley, Kinley screamed through the whole assessment, and then the ENT came in and said Kinley looks ( and sounds ) great. The ENT said if we wanted her to scope Kinley she could, but since Kinley is eating and drinking without too much trouble and her vocal cords seem to work well there was really no need to put her through the procedure. The procedure would involve the ENT putting a little camera up Kinley's nose and then down her throat. To Kinley it would feel a lot like getting an NG tube placed and Kevin and I didn't see any reason to put Kinley through that. Especially when the ENT said that even if she found anything they would not consider treatment unless it started affecting Kinley's speech, breathing or eating.
It was a quick and painless appointment although anyone who heard Kinley screaming on our way out might have thought otherwise.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
HAPPY HOMECOMING
One year ago today we brought Kinley home for the very first time! Kevin and I were so excited to show her off to family and friends since we were finally able to be with Kinley and have more than 1 person in the room at the same time. (You are only allowed 1 visitor at a time in the NICU.) We planned a small homecoming party for Kinley at our house on the day she came home. What Kevin and I did not plan on was that we stayed up pretty much all night, the night before, in our PCU room at Children's Mercy with Kinley. Then it took longer than we planned to be discharged. By the time we actually got home and settled in Kevin and I were pretty worn out, not to mention that just after we left the hospital Kinley started throwing up after feedings. I guess you could say we were worn out and stressed. Not the best combination, especially for me. Needless to say, we were not very good hosts that night. All the excitement of bringing Kinley home, coupled with all the responsibility that came with it got the best of us.
Tonight, to celebrate the 1 year anniversary of Kinley's homecoming we had the same group over for dinner and it went much better. For starters, Kevin and I stayed awake. Kinley played and ate dinner with everyone and there was no throw-up to clean up afterwards. Yeah! It was awesome to see Kinley having fun and doing so well now. It was also really special to celebrate this milestone with the people who were there 1 year ago.
Now for the pics...
She loves playing in her rocking chair and watching a little Phineas and Ferb.
Somebody stole Daddy's straw right out of his drink.
So close to walking, I really think it will come any day now.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Shawnee County Courthouse
We took Kinley to the Shawnee County Courthouse on Thursday since she was subpoenaed. Not really, but Grandma Seep works at the courthouse and she did ask us to come visit. It was really nice to bring Kinley to the courthouse (finally) because Grandma Seep and her co-workers have done so much for us and for CDH. Kinley did great at the courthouse meeting everyone and the trip to Topeka and back went pretty well also.
Here is Kinley with Grandma outside the courthouse.
Special Care Clinic...Again
I know I said last time that it would be our last visit to the Special Care Clinic, but we ended up going one more time. This time was a little better than the last time we went, but it still takes up most of the day and Kinley screamed the whole time we were there.
Basically we learned that Kinley now weighs 21 lbs (yay!), is still sating 100% (yay!), and we got the go ahead to stop Kinley's thickener (yay!). Before the appointment we had been giving Kinley unthickened whole milk in her sippy cups with meals, but she still got 1 bottle of Pediasure at bedtime that we thickened with half a packet of nectar thickener to 8 oz of the Pediasure, so she was not really on much thickener, but it will be nice to get her totally off thickener now. Other than that, it was a pretty uneventful appointment. I just felt bad that Kinley was so stressed out and screamed the whole time. Poor Kinley. She slept pretty well on the way home though.
I guess it is time to start thinking about a front facing car seat for Kinley. We still have her in her rear facing infant car seat because it goes up to 22 lbs., so there wasn't really a reason to switch to a front facing car seat before now. I am sure Kinley would like to finally be able to see where we are going rather than where we have been. She is growing up so fast.
Basically we learned that Kinley now weighs 21 lbs (yay!), is still sating 100% (yay!), and we got the go ahead to stop Kinley's thickener (yay!). Before the appointment we had been giving Kinley unthickened whole milk in her sippy cups with meals, but she still got 1 bottle of Pediasure at bedtime that we thickened with half a packet of nectar thickener to 8 oz of the Pediasure, so she was not really on much thickener, but it will be nice to get her totally off thickener now. Other than that, it was a pretty uneventful appointment. I just felt bad that Kinley was so stressed out and screamed the whole time. Poor Kinley. She slept pretty well on the way home though.
I guess it is time to start thinking about a front facing car seat for Kinley. We still have her in her rear facing infant car seat because it goes up to 22 lbs., so there wasn't really a reason to switch to a front facing car seat before now. I am sure Kinley would like to finally be able to see where we are going rather than where we have been. She is growing up so fast.
A Big Switch
This past Monday was Kinley's last scheduled OT visit with Infants and Toddlers of Johnson County. Kinley has improved so much with her eating and motor skills that she does not qualify for their OT services anymore. While we are extremely happy with Kinley's progress we will definitely miss Jami. Thanks for all your help with Kinley and her eating!
Next Wednesday Kinley will start her visits with the Early Childhood Development/Speech Therapist from Infants and Toddlers. We will be focusing on Kinley's language skills since she is still not saying any words. We are hopeful that with a little focus and hard work Kinley will start to pick up her language skills just like she did with her eating and motor skills.
We are so thankful for the great staff at Infants and Toddlers of Johnson County. They have been great with Kinley!
Next Wednesday Kinley will start her visits with the Early Childhood Development/Speech Therapist from Infants and Toddlers. We will be focusing on Kinley's language skills since she is still not saying any words. We are hopeful that with a little focus and hard work Kinley will start to pick up her language skills just like she did with her eating and motor skills.
We are so thankful for the great staff at Infants and Toddlers of Johnson County. They have been great with Kinley!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Tan-Tar-A
We left for Tan-Tar-A Resort at Lake of the Ozarks on July 16th and were there for 4 days. (Finally I finished this post, with a few minor complications that will show up towards the end.) We went with Grandma and Grandpa Seep and it was Kinley's VERY FIRST VACATION! Kevin and I were a little worried about how Kinley might react being away from home especially for eating and sleeping, but Kinley surprised us both and did really well. It was such a fun trip! If only we could go every week.
From our house it took us just under 4 hours to get to the resort (I think the GPS took us the long way). Kinley slept for most of the trip and just woke up and got a little fussy towards the end, but that is to be expected. We made it without having to stop more than once, so that was great.
Once we got to our room we settled in and tried to make it as much like home as possible. At home Kinley still eats meals while watching her favorite cartoon, Phineas and Ferb, since we still are trying to make mealtimes fun and enjoyable for her. We set up a portable DVD player and played Phineas and Ferb for most of her meals on vacation. This is what the set-up looked like...
Lucky for us Kinley still fits in her Bumbo, because it worked out well. Kinley ate really good for most meals. Yea!! (That makes vacation a lot less stressful for Mommy and Daddy.) As far as sleeping arrangements go, Kinley sleeps in her own room at home, so we tried to set up a little corner of the room for Kinley to sleep in where she would not be able to see Kevin or I. We thought that if she could see us she would never go to sleep and would just cry until one of us went to rescue her. Here is Kinley's sleeping corner...
Here Kinley is in one of the adult pools with her little water boat.
Grandpa pushing Kinley in her boat.
Just chillin with Daddy at the kiddie pool.
The first day Kinley wore her very own life jacket on the pontoon boat that we rented. Kinley was a little uncomfortable in the life jacket, but eventually was crawling all around the boat having a great time. She even ate dinner on the boat with all the adults.
The second day we rented a speed boat and borrowed a life jacket that Kinley was much more comfortable in since she could move around a little easier with it on. Kinley must have been really relaxed on the boat this time because she actually took a nap in Daddy's arms towards the end. Here are some pics of Kinley at the beginning of the boat ride before she fell asleep.
You will have to bear with me for the next 2 pics. I have them rotated before I upload them to the blog, but for some reason they go back to horizontal in the uploading process. So annoying. But, these pics show Kinley having a blast crawling up and down the hallway outside our room. She saw that long hallway and was off in a flash. She thought it was so funny when Mommy and Daddy as well as Grandma and Grandpa would chase her.
We were able to get a family pic in just before we headed home. 
We also needed a pic of Kinley with Grandma and Grandpa, but just before this pic someone let it slip that we were heading home. Obviously Kinley was not too happy about leaving.
We had such a great time on vacation! The fact that Kinley did so well away from home and had so much fun made it that much better. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for a great trip!!!
From our house it took us just under 4 hours to get to the resort (I think the GPS took us the long way). Kinley slept for most of the trip and just woke up and got a little fussy towards the end, but that is to be expected. We made it without having to stop more than once, so that was great.
Once we got to our room we settled in and tried to make it as much like home as possible. At home Kinley still eats meals while watching her favorite cartoon, Phineas and Ferb, since we still are trying to make mealtimes fun and enjoyable for her. We set up a portable DVD player and played Phineas and Ferb for most of her meals on vacation. This is what the set-up looked like...
Lucky for us Kinley still fits in her Bumbo, because it worked out well. Kinley ate really good for most meals. Yea!! (That makes vacation a lot less stressful for Mommy and Daddy.) As far as sleeping arrangements go, Kinley sleeps in her own room at home, so we tried to set up a little corner of the room for Kinley to sleep in where she would not be able to see Kevin or I. We thought that if she could see us she would never go to sleep and would just cry until one of us went to rescue her. Here is Kinley's sleeping corner...
We brought our pack-n-play from home as well as my "screen" (as it came to be called in it's previous function, which I am sure my co-workers might recognize). Anyway, it is a little hard to tell in this picture, but the screen is actually blocking Kinley's view of the rest of the room, so it was like she had her own little room within our room. That also worked out really well. Kinley slept great while on vacation. I don't know if it was all the fresh air, excitement, or both, but we actually had to wake Kinley up at 10:00 AM on the second day. Normally Kinley is awake between 7:30 AM and 8:00 AM.
There was so much to do at the resort. There was an indoor water park that we didn't make it to, but there was also 1 other indoor pool and 2 outdoor pools, and each of them had a baby pool nearby. One of the outdoor pools even had a water slide. There was a golf course, bowling ally, shops, playground, putt-putt course, picnic areas, marina, restaurants and more. We didn't have nearly enough time to do everything, oh well, I guess we will just have to go back soon. Here are some of the fun things we did get to do...
Kinley loved to splash and play with her new water toys in the baby pool. The water was only about 6 inches deep and there were little fountains all around the pool that Kinley would crawl into. (That is what's obstructing the view of Kinley in the 3rd pic.) She had a lot of fun in this pool, it was just her size.
Here Kinley is in one of the adult pools with her little water boat.
Grandpa pushing Kinley in her boat.Just chillin with Daddy at the kiddie pool.
The first day Kinley wore her very own life jacket on the pontoon boat that we rented. Kinley was a little uncomfortable in the life jacket, but eventually was crawling all around the boat having a great time. She even ate dinner on the boat with all the adults. 
The second day we rented a speed boat and borrowed a life jacket that Kinley was much more comfortable in since she could move around a little easier with it on. Kinley must have been really relaxed on the boat this time because she actually took a nap in Daddy's arms towards the end. Here are some pics of Kinley at the beginning of the boat ride before she fell asleep. 
You will have to bear with me for the next 2 pics. I have them rotated before I upload them to the blog, but for some reason they go back to horizontal in the uploading process. So annoying. But, these pics show Kinley having a blast crawling up and down the hallway outside our room. She saw that long hallway and was off in a flash. She thought it was so funny when Mommy and Daddy as well as Grandma and Grandpa would chase her. 
We were able to get a family pic in just before we headed home.We also needed a pic of Kinley with Grandma and Grandpa, but just before this pic someone let it slip that we were heading home. Obviously Kinley was not too happy about leaving.
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