| Later updates | Aaron update 119 |
| Subject: Aaron update 119 Date: Monday, June 2, 2003 9:03 AM From: Kevin Quick To: Aaron Update List We had our pulmonologist visit on Thursday. The doctor was pleased at Aaron’s weight gain; he had gained over a pound since our last visit, and now weighs nine pounds. So, for now at least, we’re completely off of the oxygen! We’ll be obtaining an oximeter, so we can check Aaron’s blood oxygenation levels. If his oxygenation falls below 95% (nighttime is the most likely time for this to happen), we’ll have to resume the oxygen; if it stays above 95%, we’ll be able to stay off of the oxygen. Aaron is becoming much more responsive to us. He smiles now almost every time we say “hello” to him. Pattycake is his favorite game; that almost always gets a smile from him. He’s beginning to coo and “talk” a little bit, too. We asked the pulmonologist about going to church. She said that this cold & flu season is dragging on longer than usual, and that there are still a lot of bugs out there that we’ll want to be careful to avoid. She was leery about our bringing Aaron to church, because cold and flu germs are spread by direct contact, and at church it would be nearly impossible to keep everyone from touching him. We know this is true; at the few places that we have brought him, some people just instinctively reach out to touch him, and it’s almost impossible for us to jump in between them and Aaron, and say, “please don’t touch him.” There’s just no way to do this kindly, and there’s no way we can offer adequate explanations for our overprotection in just a few seconds. According to the pulmonologist, we should protect Aaron from direct contact with cold and flu germs as best as we can for the first year of his life (come on, November!). “You have to give his best interests first priority,” she said. Thank you again, everyone, for being patient and understanding with us on this. We really want to be there with you! Kathleen’s sister Denise was up visiting us from southern California this weekend. This was the first time that she’d seen her first nephew, and she enjoyed holding, feeding and burping him. Love, Kevin |
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