Update

Paige had her "big" appointment down at the U yesterday. We had to be there by 10:00 am and didn't pull out of the parking ramp until after 4:00pm.

For those of you who don't know her as well as others, she still takes two naps.....this all day appointment was a little problematic in that respect, PLUS, she had a cold with a cough, runny nose and slight fever. Poor lady. :(

We were referred to the U because Paige stopped growing/gaining weight in December. She's gotten a bit taller, but her weight has hovered around 18 lbs for the last 6 months! Babies her age can put on 1/2 ounce a day...Paige has put on....about 5 oz in 180 days.

First, we saw Kris the echo cardiologist. Paige was really unsure about her AND we were officially into morning nap time. Paige did a nice job. I held her on my lap and she faced Mike the whole time (his job was to be entertainment). She pretty much ignored Kris other than the couple of times she reached over and grabbed her hand quick. The process was about twenty or twenty-five minutes long and was just like the ultrasounds you've seen on TV (little wand, goo, fangled machinery). We wrapped Paige in a blanky, turned off the lights, closed the door...after a little crying she did manage to snooze for about 10 minutes. :)

The results were really good. We met with Dr. Gruenstein and he said that structurally her heart looked fine. The murmur was fine. The only thing that was concerning (minimally) was a slightly elevated pressure in the right side of her heart. He told us to come back in November and have it looked at again. The good news is her heart is just great, the bad news was, we still didn't know what was causing her growth problems.*Dr. Gruenstein called us back last night and said he looked over Paige's stuff again and feels she doesn't need to come back in the fall. :)

We woke Paigey up form her 10 minute nap and headed to another room for an EKG. Diane was her nurse and she was really great too. Paige was a little....perplexed....about the stickers that were being put on her, BUT Diane got someone to come in and blow bubbles (worked like a charm). When they were done Paige very politely peeled off the stickers herself and gently handed them to Diane. :) Dr. Gruenstein needed to check Paige's pulse in a few different places, and since she' s pretty accommodating with doctors she allowed him to.

At one point he had his stethoscope and was listening to lots of different things to help her be comfortable (mommy's hand, mommy's knee, Paige's elbow...).

He asked Paige if he could listen to her shoe. WELL, Paige's shoes ARE the way to her heart! She was very excited for him to listen to her shoe! He asked if he could take her shoe off. WELL, she took off her shoe AND sock for him! THEN, she took off her OTHER shoe and sock!

Paige going over the results of her EKG with Mommy.

After this appointment we had time for lunch and a little break. Paige had a good time eating in the cafeteria with all the Med students around. The guys behind us were arguing about whether or not they had a final on Wednesday. The girls next to us we're studying for an upcoming autopsy (eww).

After lunch we went outside to play for a bit. We were now into nap time number two with nap time number one basically a total loss. With our fingers crossed, we layed her down in her stroller and covered to top with a blanket. She was asleep after only one block! We walked, and walked, and walked outside for about 30 minutes before it was time for our next appointment.

Paige's only decent nap of the day. About 30 minutes.

A little refreshed we met with Dr. Sudel. We went over TONS of family history questions (nearly all of them were "no" by the way). He was concerned about her weird growth pattern , but the labs that had already been done and our answers to the family history didn't give him much to go on. SO...

We met with a nutritionist (more on her later) and MORE test were ordered. Not only did we have the joy of another blood draw (three more tubes) but we were also instructed to collect a stool sample this week. I might try to pawn this one off on Linda, our wonderful daycare lady. The sample needs to be put in the freezer before its brought to the lab. I suggest she place it right next to the chocolate ice cream. She added that she could take a picture of it for the blog. :) Toward the end of this appointment, Paige finally melted down. She cried (hard) out of nowhere for about 30 seconds and then...lights out...she fell asleep while I held her. Too bad the blood draw still had to be done....sorry baby :(

Here is the ONLY blog pic you'll see in reference to a stool sample!

Post Meltdown

Anyway, we go back on June first. If any of the labs are remarkable, he'll call us before then. On that day she'll also have a sweat test, which involves wrapping her in plastic ?!! :)

In the mean time, we need to go to the clinic once a week for a weight check.

The nutritionist we saw (her name escapes me) was really helpful....sort of. She looked over Paige's food journal (Linda and I have written down EVERYTHING the kid has had to eat or drink for the last 30 days. Including ketchup). According to her, she's eating the right amount and the right kind of food for a baby her age.

Her suggestions: Butter everything.....wait....shes allergic to milk.....add heavy cream to.....no thats not going to work....well...how about dried fruit....no....choking hazard.....sigh.....OKAY! Add mayonnaise and peanut butter to EVERYTHING! Chicken nuggets dipped in mayonnaise? Okay..... Peanut butter on a banana? We can do that!

She also wants us to replace Paige's soy milk with a milk supplement (like pediasure). The trick is to find one that is Milk free. We tried to get her insurance to cover this...yeah right. There is a brand called "Bright Beginnings Soy Pediatric Drink" but no one seems to have it. Walgreens said they would order it for us.....but they weren't sure they could get it....actually, I'm not sure the product is even "milk free"....sigh....I'm home today (Tuesday) with Paige. My plan is to call every retailer in a 20 mile radius and see who can help us.

Is it bad that the recipes for high calorie foods she gave us sound DELICIOUS to me?

Macaroni and Cheese with extra butter and heavy whipping cream (563 calories in One cup)

Mashed potatoes with heavy cream, butter, corn flakes, & sour cream (495 calories in 1/2 cup) adding cheese, gravy or extra sour cream is optional for more calories...mmmmMMM!)

Cocoa Almond Shake with chocolate Ice cream, whole milk, almond butter, and coconut milk (a staggering 590 calories!)

Hang on. I'm drooling.

That pretty much covers everything from a medical standpoint.

One final note on what an awesome husband/daddy Mike is.

Mike has decided to go back to school (yeah honey!). He's taking three (Three!) classes right now at the Minnesota School of Business, PLUS working 40 hours a week at Medtronic PLUS working Saturdays AND Sundays with The Traveling Photobooth. I tried to pull off a similar schedule about a year ago....with only ONE class at Bethel and it nearly killed me!

Despite the fact that Mike is spread about as thin as the peanut butter that will now be on all of Paige's meals, he's been very supportive with all of Paige's "health stuff." He knows me well enough to know just what to say and when. I wasn't sure he even had time to worry about what a hard day Paige was going to have....

On Sunday night he was coming home late from a photobooth job. At 2am he went to Wal-Mart to find just the right little friend to help Paige feel better at the doctor's office. He looked and looked and finally found him.

Melmo.