Greyson is Sitting Up!

This week we are praising God for Grey's new found strength. After putting the kids to bed, Josh went back in to deliver drinks or something and discovered Greyson SITTING UP and he hasn't stopped since! All he wants to do is practice sitting up. He is even getting more brave and trying to pick up his hands!  We are so proud of him and we can't wait to see him grow stronger! 

Allergist Update

Shortly after I posted about Greyson's possible peanut allergy yesterday, I received a call from the allergist about his referral.  They had a couple openings THIS WEEK. So I scheduled the appointment for this morning at 10 o'clock. 

The appointment went smoothly and I really liked the doctor we saw. He took me (and my concerns) seriously. He explained that the way Greyson is reacting *sounds* like a peanut intolerance not allergy, but it is definitely possible he is allergic. He gave me an order for bloodwork and told me to continue avoiding peanuts until we get some answers.  The bloodwork will tell him if Greyson is allergic though it's negatives are not always correct.  We scheduled a skin test, and if the bloodwork is negative we will go forward with a skin test.

After we left we headed to our church for their Wednesday Noon Service.  We are not usually in town on Wednesdays so it was a blessing to be able to go. Also, Greyson makes some really cute faces when Daddy tickles him. 

After church, we headed to the labs for Greyson's bloodwork. Thankfully, the boys were very refreshed! While we were there, Nana took her lunch break so she could meet us there since she works at the hospital. It was a huge help having her there to watch the older boys (thank you, Nana!). Greyson did as well as expected with his bloodwork, though he only cried for a couple of seconds afterwards, opting instead to cuddle with the person who had just taken his blood. We will have results for this bloodwork in about a week.  Thank you guys for your prayers! 

Possible Peanut Allergy

Back in May or June, I was making baby food for Greyson.  I was stuffing it with calories to make him gain weight and  after we saw the GI, we started adding pediasure and PB2 (which is powdered peanut butter) for extra calories and protein.  Since we do not have a history of peanut allergies, I did not think twice about this.  

This same week, a stomach bug plagued the Corbitt's, going through each and every one of us. But then there was Greyson. It seemed odd that he was continuing to vomit when everyone else was well.  His nutritionist said it was probably the pediasure as some children cannot handle the calories. We stopped adding pediasure but he continued to vomit.  At this point, I knew that the only thing new in that food was the PB2. I was told not to jump to conclusions of an allergy but to hold off on peanut products for a little while until we could test it again.  I waited a few months and then gave him a simple breakfast of peanut butter toast.  After about two hours, he vomited again. After speaking with the pediatrician, we have decided to avoid all peanut products as a family until we can see the allergist and get more clear answers. We have the referral but we are waiting to hear about an appointment. So, at this time Greyson officially, unofficially is allergic to peanuts.

Image:  http://www.peanutallergykids.com/products.html

The Letter L

The second week of school was focused on the letter 'L'.  The boys had a blast making lavender L's and lemonade. As usual, we started the week off with dot-a-dot pages on Monday. We continued reading lessons with Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy lessons, and working on writing with Handwriting Without Tears (affiliated links below) throughout the week. 

On Tuesday, we made Lavender 'L's. I had Josh pick up some real Lavender at one of our favorite stores, The Paris Market, and the next day we stuffed fabric 'L's with it.  This was great motor skills practice and the boys loved playing with and smelling the lavender. 

On Thursday, we made lemonade.  I did most of the prep work earlier in the day, but left something for each boy to do.  They each juiced a lemon half, measured and poured simple syrup, and helped count the cups of water. And of course, they LOVED drinking it. 

The Letter F

The first week of school we studied the letter F.  The first few days were a little bit of trial and error to see what each boy could do but they both did great! Emory and Boaz both loved the Dot-A-Dot markers (affiliated links below)! I found several cool worksheets that use Dot-A-Dot markers and the boys have been going to town with them!  Boaz is learning to use a pencil to make intentional lines and scribbles and Em is using the Handwriting Without Tears worksheets to write his letters.

We kick off each week with some Dot-A-Dot letter sheets and Find a Letter sheets; then we do a craft and (sometimes) a snack that begins with that weeks letter.  This week we made foil fish and paper plate fish, though we did not do a snack. 

We fill in the rest of the time (that isn't at therapy or a doctor's appointment) with coloring sheets, math sheets, books, and learning to read with Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.  

Both boys did really well in their first week of school and we couldn't be more proud of them! 

 

Greyson's Swallow Study

    

    This morning we woke up early and headed to Jacksonville for a Swallow Study for Greyson.  Well actually, we woke up late, but we made it there on time, by God's grace! 

     Greyson wasn't allowed to eat anything 6 hours before this study so we fed him in the wee hours of the night and then held and played with him while we waited for his Swallow Study. I went back with him fed him the sippy full of 'chalk tasting liquid' for the study.  They took X-ray pictures of his stomach and esophagus while he drank it and after it had time to leave his stomach.  After the study, we went to lunch and then headed to the Kid's Walk to kill some time before his GI and Nutrition appointment.  The boys loved the view of the trucks and had a blast playing up there. 

     At his GI/Nutrition appointment we discussed his diet and how to pack more calories in. The results from the Swallow Study were normal and so for now we are just going to continue his high calorie diet. We will see the GI in November again and if Greyson hasn't gained weight by that appointment then we will talk about the next steps for a G-Tube (tests and so forth). Please keep us all in your prayers!  At this point we just want Grey to gain weight and if he needs a g-tube to accomplish that, then that is what we will do but do pray that he will be able to put on weight on his own! 

The Corbitt's Homeschool

    Two weeks ago we started preschool with Boaz and Emory.  So far each week we are studying a letter, working on writing, working on reading, and doing lots of playing!  I am going to be posting about what we study at the end of the week. We are just starting out so come check out the blog and learn along side us as we learn what it looks like to homeschool our two crazy sons, one with only 2 copies of the 21st chromosome and one with three.