Baby Steps

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Overdue update

Sorry it has taken so long to write an update. Things have been pretty much the same as always here so I haven't had much to write about. We have been enjoying our time here and exploring the city. Justin finally made it out to visit at the beginning of October. After 7 weeks of being apart, it was so good to finally see him. While he has been here we have been able to explore Denver and just spend time together as a family. He couldn't believe how much my belly had grown while he was away! He will be going back to Knoxville on Tuesday and will be making the official move in November.

 Piper's Nana and Papa came out to visit and we had tons of fun and hated to see them go. We all celebrated my birthday and found some great restaurants in town. We went for a hike in Colorado Springs and toured the Coors brewery. I heard the beer was delicious. We are so lucky to have family that is able to visit. Being so far away from family has been a challenge for all of us but we just keep in mind the reason why we are here and it helps. January will be here in no time and we will get to see the rest of the family then.

We found out last week that the harvest is done and that the CBD oil is being made now. We may be able to pick up her medicine on Thursday!!!! This is what we have been waiting so patiently for and it seems unreal that it is finally here. We will go to a new patient meeting tomorrow to learn more about dosing, etc. We are so excited but it is also a little scary. This treatment could change her life but we also know it may not work as well for her. We are praying so hard that she gets the relief she deserves from these terrible seizures. I am filled with so many emotions (pregnancy enhanced) that have been building up the past few months. I will update more frequently because I know you are all as anxious as us to see what happens with the treatment. Please pray that this is finally the answer to this nightmare.

This week we will also go for an evaluation with the early intervention system here to get Piper started again in therapy services. I have been putting it off because it has been so nice to not worry and stress out about getting her to appointments. Her days are never consistent so it was hard to have a normal schedule. They do all in home services here so hopefully it will be a little easier for both of us. I know she needs to continue therapy but its really hard to see her so upset and unhappy. We also will be applying for a waiver that was not available in TN that provides assistance for families who do not qualify for Medicaid. Under this waiver I could actually get paid to be Piper's caregiver if I obtain my CNA. The waiver also provides financial assistance for respite care, nursing services and modifications to your home for accessibility. 

I have felt really good throughout this pregnancy and I am in my 27th week. I have been exercising and keeping in shape to be able to lift and keep up with Piper. So far I have felt stronger than I did before I got pregnant! Imagine doing squats with 30 lbs at least 50 times a day. It is a workout just taking care of Piper! I am just now starting to enter the uncomfortable phase but I still have a lot of energy. We have been seeing a high risk specialist just to be safe. So far everything has been great and we have had no issues. He is healthy and growing fast. He is kicking and moving constantly and is so strong.  He is actually a lot bigger than average so I will be doing my gestational diabetes test this Friday to see if that has anything to do with his large size. Hopefully his growth will level out over the next few weeks because it may increase my chances of having another c-section if he is large. I really don't want to have surgery again since the recovery was so hard but we won't know more until later. We are just happy he is healthy and will worry about the rest of it later. We have been so preoccupied with Piper we keep forgetting that we will have a new little one in just a few months! We are so excited to meet him!