Worst Blogger Ever

...that's the title I'm bestowing on myself since I cannot get myself together to write a proper post. I've realized that I'm much more of an instant gratification type and Facebook is my friend. Most of my loved ones get info about Kate and the boys through the social media site. And since Kate is not even close to being medically fragile or even medically interesting anymore, I hesitate to write. Then again, I do like the idea of parents who are in the thick of the medical issues surrounding kids with PRS or trachs, to be able to see that there is light at the end of a very long and sometimes very dark tunnel.

It's been 2 1/2 years since Kate's decann and 18 mos since her stoma was closed. Airway wise, she is doing great. We are down to check ups every 6mos or so but at this stage, it's mainly because she still has ear tubes and probably will for a long time to come. Kids with clefts can take much much longer to grow out of needing a little assistance in the ears. Kate is halfway there. At a check up in May with Dr. Jacobs he noted that the tube in her right ear had fallen behind the ear drum and gotten lodged there. He surgically removed it and opted to let it heal rather than put another tube in. She went until October with no issues - tube in left ear, none in right. I thought maybe, maybe she was starting to grow out of it. She's extremely healthy (which never ceases to amaze me) so no sick visits and if she does have fluid in her ear, she's generally asymptomatic for a long long time. Only if a fever pops up do I have any idea things are awry.

Anyway, I digress.... this November, she developed a hacking cough. No other symptoms - no fever, no runny nose to speak of, appetite fine. The only thing that we noticed was an increase in her snoring. Her lungs sound clear and she's acting fine. We went to see Dr. Jacobs earlier this month. I'm thinking he's going to want to bronch her to check out her tonsils and adenoids. Instead he notes her nose being very congested, puts her on Nasonex once a day and says to come back in 2 months. Alrighty doc.

Cleft palate clinic this year was only notable because the team's collective opinion was that Kate could go to check ups with them every 2 years, instead of every year. I was thrilled, if only because the day is so long and the traffic is ridiculous. I don't miss the trips to CHOP every other month. At all.

Otherwise, Kate is great. She was 4 in Sept, goes to preschool 4 afternoons a week and dance 1 morning. She's loud and opinionated and definitely a force to be reckoned with. And today it is 4 years since her discharge from CHOP. She was 11 weeks old and finally home.