A Quickie

Just a quick update on Lucy and her new enzymes...

Lucy went to see Dr. Grumpy on Tuesday where he checked out her belly button and gave us a few sample bottles of a new pancreatic enzyme called Zenpep. It hasn't been on the market for very long; it came out to the public at the end of 2009.

These different brands and types of enzymes are so very similar but work differently in different people. It is like comparing Pepsi and Coke. They are both a Cola, but they have slightly different formulas that make them taste different, and everyone has one that they prefer over the other. This is the same for all the enzymes. They are all taken from a pig's pancreas and formulated to replace pancreatic enzymes in a human, but they are made slightly different and work differently with every person.

Lucy has been taking Zenpep for 3 days now. There has been a reduction in her stomach's bloating, but her poop has actually gotten worse. They are looser than before and all together, clear the room, FOUL! These are classic showings of not absorbing and digesting properly. I will only wait 2 more days, and give Zenpep the benefit of the doubt, before switching Lucy back to Pancrecarb, and asking Dr. Grumpy what he thinks the next step should be. (I can't wait until her real doctor, Dr. Perez, gets back from maternity leave! I miss her!)

Lucy's belly button is still protruding a little bit but it has not gotten any worse. I will continue to keep my motherly eye on it but not worry too much about it.

Piper's Gettin' New Lungs!!

Piper, the fabulous CFer from New York who has been on the transplant list for a new set of lungs, just got the call this morning! She had inspired me to write this blog on positivity. You can read all about the early morning call she got this morning by clicking here.

EVERYONE should be signed up to be an organ donor. Someday Lucy may need a new set of airbags, so sign up and save a life. It is easy and fast.

Mothering Passed Down

Yesterday, I was at my grandmother's house looking through picture albums and found a photo of my 23 year old mother breastfeeding newborn baby ME in 1981. Healthy nurturing habits must be passed down through the generations, one generation teaching sons and daughters how to peacefully parent their own children. It begins early on in infancy.

My mother, in 1981, was laying the groundwork and foundation to my own parenting styles today. I must say that I learned from the best, and I hope to pass down my own natural ways of parenting to the next generation. This photo is of 26 year old me breastfeeding Lucy while she was in the NICU. The acorn doesn't fall too far from the tree.

Protruding Belly Button

A few days ago, I noticed that Lucy's belly button was sticking out, sort of protruding a little. It was sticking out enough for me to take notice since she normally has a cute little "innie" belly button. It really looks like she has an "outie" now, but still odd enough to be concerned about it, especially with all of her prior GI issues (five rectal prolapses in a year and meconium ileus at birth.)

The small lump is hard to the touch, but there is no pain involved in it. She never complains about it. I was thinking it may be a small hernia, and I made an appointment with her CF doctor to make sure it wasn't too serious. We will be seeing Dr. Grumpy on Tuesday, where we will also discuss changing her pancreatic enzymes once again! She is still having frequent poops that are loose and greasy, and she is still straining to go despite the full cap of Miralax everyday.

I really want Lucy to be referred to a GI specialist to really dig deeper into her bowel issues since they so frequently happen. They have been putting off the referral because we always seem to remedy the problem for a few months before the issues come back again. I think I will be asking and pushing a little harder this time to get to the bottom of things once and for all. Yes, the butt puns were intended!

CrackBerry Stolen!

I was only on day two of my new technology-filled life with a brand new phone, a BlackBerry Curve 8310. I have never before owned a SmartPhone and was incredibly excited to be able to handle all of my networking needs on one portable location.

How terribly sad that it had
1. taken me this long to get a SmartPhone, and
2. I am so upset that someone stole it.

The whole thing is sad to me. I should know better and keep my "things" close to me, but I was in a hurry to go nowhere and wasn't paying attention.

I was on my way to a local Mexican restaurant for dinner with Lucy and my mom. I got out of the car, opened up Lucy's door to remove her from her car seat, set the shiny new phone on top of the car so I could lug her backpack and her out, and then I stopped to check Lucy's diaper before heading in to have dinner. I stupidly and mistakenly left my brand new, shiny, oh-so-special, handheld social lifeline on top of the car.

We went into the restaurant, sat down and hadn't yet ordered. It was maybe ten minutes before I realized what I had done, and I ran out to the parking lot to get the phone. It was gone, never to be seen again.

Of course, I had yet to buy insurance for the phone; there is a 30 day grace period before you have to decide to buy insurance. I reported it stolen and found out that I would not be eligible for another great upgrade deal until November of 2011! My $10 BlackBerry was gone forever and so were the great $10 deals... so I thought. I wanted to cry.

I filed a police report with the Woodland Police Department, but for some reason I think they may have more pressing matters to deal with than my stolen BlackBerry.

My mom was nice enough to let me use her mobile upgrade to get the same $10 deal on a BlackBerry. She likes her phone, and it is in good shape, and she promised me she wouldn't be needing a new one for a while. I am able to get another new phone for the same great deal within a couple of days.

The moral of this story:
Don't be in such a hurry to get somewhere, and don't leave your phone on the top of a car. Get insurance on everything of great monetary and social connecting value just in case! Hooray for mothers who let you use their wireless upgrade because you let your phone of it's leash.

Shame on me. I learned my lesson the hard way.