Cranio-huh?

Craniosynostosis.

Craniosynostosis.

I have practiced saying it and researched its best and worst cases.

Luke was diagnosed with Sagittal Craniosynostosis in early April after his pediatrician noticed that his head was growing very quickly. His weight and length were smack dab in the middle of the size chart, but his head circumference was at the top. Almost off the charts. Our initial fear was Hydrocephalus. After another couple of visits to the doctor we realized that his soft spot was gone and his head was starting to look a little funny... forehead protruding while other areas just weren't filling out. That led us to finally having a CT scan performed. Thankfully hydrocephalus was ruled out.

The scan showed that two of the spaces between the plates of Luke's skull had began fusing together prematurely. This makes it impossible for the brain to grow in the direction of the fused areas causing the skull to grow abnormally in order to compensate. Left untreated, the head will continue to grow incorrectly and could eventually lead to vision problems, debilitating headaches, facial deformity or brain damage.

We were sent to a see a surgeon in Winston Salem who specializes in spring assisted cranio-facial surgeries on infants. Thankfully, Luke was a great candidate for this less invasive procedure. (The alternatives involved complete reconstruction of the skull.)

Surgery was performed this past Tuesday morning.

Josh and I carried our sweet boy down a long corridor to a small pre-op cubicle. They had me take his jammies off and dress him in the tiniest hospital gown I've ever seen. 4 or 5 doctors, nurses and anesthesiologists came and asked me what seemed like the same questions over and over. No, he doesn't have any allergies. No, there are no blood disorders. Yes, this is his first surgery. Yes, his name is Luke. His birth date is 1-12-11. We held him so tightly in our arms and took turns praying. Our tears dripping all over him. I didn't care who walked in the room or who saw. We did what we do. He smiled at us, oblivious to what was about to happen. Questions played over in my mind... Will he be angry at me? Will he think that we are hurting him? Does he know that I love him?

Eduardo, the awesome pediatric anesthesiologist, was the last person to talk to us that morning. He gathered Luke in his arms and headed down the hall to the OR, having a very animated one-way conversation with our little guy as he went. We stood there watching... beside ourselves with anxiety. Then Eduardo stopped and turned around, took Luke's little hand and waved it in the air, "Bye bye Mommy and Daddy, see you soon!"

That darn Eduardo... so much for holding it together.

Almost exactly 90 minutes later the surgeon appeared in the waiting room with a smile on his face. Everything had gone according to plan and Luke was in recovery. The small slivers of fused bone were removed and "springs" put in place to allow things to shift and grow. There were many sighs of relief. One hurdle down.

In a few months Luke will need to have another procedure to have the springs removed. Until then he will wear a helmet any time there are children around or any time we're away from home.

We were sent home late in the evening on Wednesday. I wasn't ready to leave because I wasn't sure if I was capable of taking care of him like he needed. He was so swollen. He wouldn't smile at me. Thursday he woke up swollen beyond recognition. He had little slits for eyes and his poor head and face looked big enough for a 3 year old. But he was smiling. Today (Friday) he has been trying to "stand" in our laps, he's been very alert and the swelling is almost completely gone.

We go back to visit the surgeon on Tuesday. He's a little concerned about the placement of one of the springs because the bone in the area was so thin. (Thin bone is very normal at this age)

A MASSIVE thanks to everyone who has/is praying for us and our nugget man. We aren't out of the woods yet but having this hurdle out of the way is a good feeling. Please continue to remember us in prayer.

~Roseanna

Posted May 27, 2011
 

The Metamorphosis of Mattie

Our dear friend Matt Buckland (Famous for his incredible vocals, guitar playing and song writing for the band This Year's Promise) has had his curls since he was in middle school (and probably earlier). This past weekend he got brave and decided it was time for a change. Here is what ensued.

Special thanks to stylist Taylor Keever. Message her on Facebook for salon and appointment information.

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Posted March 22, 2011
 

Life has been turned upside down!

It's been a long time since I've blogged. I've been busy, to say the least. SO, here are a few updates:

1. I had a baby! Luke Soren Parker was born on January 12 at 5:04 PM. 7lbs, 9oz, 21in long. And gorgeous.

2. I got stretch marks on my belly. The funny thing is, I didn't have them until the morning of the day he was born. They just appeared a mere 12 hours before he was here. Bummer. On the bright side, I don't care as much as I thought I would.

3. I had every intention of nursing as Luke's sole source of nutrition. However, at his first pediatrician appointment, he was jaundiced and was losing more weight than the Doctor felt comfortable with. He was also screaming his head off every hour. So we started supplementing with formula. The result? A much happier and steadily-growing baby.
I won't lie, I was disappointed to have to supplement. But at the same time I can see that he feels better and he's still getting the benefit of Momma's milk too. I refuse to feel guilty.

4. As of right now, Lukey sleeps between 3 and 4 hours at a time during the night. I am super happy with that. I'm amazed at how my body (which has always required a solid 8 hours) has adjusted to be able to function on an infants schedule.

5. We have now gradually started to venture out of the house. It scares me to death! I'm so worried that the little guy is going to get sick. But at the same time, I need to get out occasionally if only for a couple of hours to keep from going crazy. But I will say this, the amount of effort and gear that it takes to leave home with a baby will definitely make you think twice about going anywhere. Sometimes, it's just not worth it.

6. Baby's poop a lot. They also pee a lot. And they spit up on themselves. And they even puke if not burped. The result? A LOT of laundry.

The last 6 weeks have been absolutely amazing. Yes, I'm exhausted, and yes, I'm overwhelmed at times. But I'm also in love with this itty bitty human that I'm now in charge of. I've watched Josh and I change so much since he's been born. It's crazy how we adapt and change our personal schedules and agendas when we become parents.

Today as Luke was sleeping in my arms I held his little hand and studied it. The lines in his palms look exactly like mine only his palms are the size of quarters. His nails are far too long, but I'm afraid to cut them. And as I study the details of his hands I can't help but wonder what those hands will accomplish.

They'll get dirty, scraped, cleaned and kissed. They'll play instruments more skillfully than his Dad or I can play. They'll hold the hands of teenage girls (this already freaks me out). But more than anything I pray that his hands are a blessing to others. I pray that he uses them to serve, minister to and touch lives. I ask God for these things everyday.

Posted February 20, 2011
 

I probably shouldn't be blogging at 3am...

Found out I was pregnant: May 10th, 2010

Found out it was a boy: July 15th, 2010

Due date: January 10th, 2010. 4 days from today.

I've gained 30 lbs, spent 5 days in the hospital, and my maternity clothes don't even fit around my belly anymore.
(Side-note: being 9 months pregnant isn't fun. Your back aches, your muscles ache, you're exhausted, people gawk at you like you're a freak of nature which is appropriate because you kinda are, and sweet heavens the heartburn!)

We've moved into a bigger house, sold both of our cars, bought one very economical car seat-friendly car, lived without television and internet for nearly 3 months and are seriously considering becoming a one-income household.

Needless to say, life has changed. The last couple of years have been one long line of change and I keep thinking, "This is my new normal", only to have that new normal changed again. But I love where I am. I love who I am, even if I'm this person just for today. I keep looking at Josh and just trying to savor every last second of who he is in that moment, who he is today and who we are today. We will soon be parents, and we'll be exhausted, and we'll be occupied with so many new things. But for today, we are just the two of us, hanging out watching the nerdiest movies we can find and keeping things around the house as quiet as possible.

I wonder what the next few days will be like, what our birth story will be. I'm so excited and so incredibly petrified.

Posted January 6, 2011
 

35 Weeks...

It's getting closer... everyday that goes by is another day closer to seeing this little guys face.
 
Updates:
The Braxton Hicks have started. I notice them more on days when I'm really active. Resting seems to help fend them off.
 
The doctor says it's likely that he'll be a week early... but our families both have late babies. And big babies. Pray for me.
 
I thank the Lord every day that goes by that I don't pee my pants. Random, huh? The Doc says that it's inevitable and I will indeed pee myself most likely, at least a little bit, before this baby is born. I'm happy to report: so far, so good.
 
My ankles swell pretty much every day now. So, following docs orders, I've started elevating them at night while I sleep. I always wake up with the prettiest ankle bones... haha. But they're gone by lunch time.
 
Our church threw us a baby shower and we were blessed with lots of love and gifts, I love those folks. Especially my new friend Pam. She may very well be the guard I post at the hospital door while I'm trying to sleep, so beware. She's fierce. (BTW: Huge thanks to Sherry and Sarah for hosting the shower. You guys are awesome!)
 
The baby's room is finally on its way to looking like a nursery. The walls are painted and the trim is primed. I plan to finish painting tonight (don't worry it's No-Voc paint). Then I'll be hanging curtains and getting furniture in the room. I can't wait to share the Before & After pics!
 
A lot of folks have been asking what we're gonna name the Nugget Man. I had every intention of not announcing anything until I finally saw his little face. I know, it's strange but it really was important to me to have a big reveal. However, my sweet hubby gets excited... really excited... and he is over-the-top cute when he gets excited. So... we're announcing the name. (Or at least what his name is right now. I mean, what if comes out and just doesn't look like his name? This is nerve wracking to me.)
 
So here's the story: Josh and I spent a lot of time talking about how important names are. Naming a person takes time and consideration. He's got to live with this forever and it has to suit him at all stages of life. Josh wanted to go super traditional and I wanted something that was a bit more rare (but not weird). Our top contenders were Jack, Jonah and Lucas. So we lived with them for a while. I wrote them over and over like a school girl with a mad crush trying out different first and middle configurations. Josh googled every combination that his initials could make to be sure there wasn't anything strange we could be inadvertently naming him after. Finally, a couple of months ago, we settled on the first name... kind of. See, my parents had a great boy name picked out while I was cooking away some twenty eight years ago. They weren't able to use it because... well, I was not a boy...
 
After much prayer and consideration (and even a bit of biblical research), we settled on Luke/Lucas. But we weren't sure if we wanted to go ahead and name him Lucas but call him Luke. So we went to work on a middle name hoping for some clarity. (The hard thing is that I know of a lot of people named Luke/Lucas. Josh insists this is a good thing and means his name isn't weird.)
 
Choice #1: Lucas Graham Parker - no meaning or purpose behind "Graham" other than the fact that we just like it.
 
Choice #2: Luke Soren Parker - Now I know what you're thinking, "Soren? Where the heck did that come from?"
 
Ask Josh for the full run-down, but here's the short version: Soren Kierkegaard was a Danish theologian and philosopher... he taught a lot about the true meaning of faith in the Christians life. Josh has really enjoyed reading some of his books over the years and has gleaned some really great things from them. That's where we got the idea for the name.
 
So, one day while driving down the road I said to Josh... his name is Luke Soren. Josh said... yeah, I know. And so it was. Simple as that.
 
Luke Soren Parker.
 
Normal, yet different and a bit rare. He could be a musician, an actor, a doctor, a lawyer... he could be the next Aaron Gillespie.
 
More than anything I want him to be healthy, be blessed, love God and love people.
 
So what kind of process have you gone through to name your little humans? Was it a fight between you and your other half or did you just look at one another and know? Did you go with strictly family names? I'd love to hear your stories!
 

Posted December 9, 2010
 

The Nursery. Finally.

We have somewhere around 6 weeks (hopefully) left before baby Chicken Nugget makes his appearance. And don't worry, the nursery is ready! Painted, furniture moved in and set up, and the closet is organized...
 
If only that were true.
 
In reality, we just now (as in last night...) finally got the baby's room cleaned out and ready to paint. It's been a long time coming, and I am so grateful that we even have a dedicated nursery! (And a guest room and a den and a living room and a dining room... etc...) God has seriously blessed us with a great home to raise our little family. Now if we can just get it set up.
 
The good thing about having to wait this long is that I've had the opportunity to take my time choosing colors and decor, and change my mind about those things at least 5 or 6 times. I just want it to be perfect. It's a sickness, I know.
 
See, I've bee perusing (stalking) blogs and websites ever since I found out I was pregnant looking for inspiration for the nursery. I've gone from Grey walls to navy blue walls, and back again. I've thought that I wanted a bright and airy space with lots of white, and then I thought maybe super colorful was the way to go... featuring dinosaurs. And I'm sure any of these things would have been awesome. But after consulting the child's father, I think we've come up with the perfect scheme.
 
See, Josh and I are a bit on the odd side compared to most people. We don't care much for brown or baby blue, and we don't really want to stick with a theme. In fact, we are drawn to things that others might consider weird... or a little wonky. And I'm ok with that. So what did we decide to go with? Well, I guess the final product is yet to be completely decided but there are some big things we know for sure.
 
#1 - We want to feature artwork by people we know.
- We've commissioned a great friend of ours Chip Harbin (of The Painted Saint and The Victor Ministry fame) to design and create a piece of original art for our space. He's sent over some sketches and I couldn't be more excited about what he's planning.
 
#2 - We want to display vintage toys.
- Recently, Josh and his Mom unearthed some of the original Star Wars figurines that belonged to his Dad. They are seriously cool. (These are the kinds of things that will be on an upper shelf, maybe even behind glass and on lock-down from sticky little fingers.)
- We've also been on the lookout for vintage books, games and other toys to display on a wall of shelves (actually Ikea ledges) that we're planning to install.
 
#3 - We want the room to grow with the Nugget. This means nothing too babyish and nothing (other than the crib) that becomes useless after 2 years.So, the walls will be a neutral color (Medium Gray in this case) and the furniture, functional. The changing pad will be installed on top of a full-size dresser and instead of a glider-rocker, we're looking for a nice upholstered armchair that can be used in other areas of the house in years to come. We'll add a super versatile Ikea shelf placed on its side to serve as a bench seat and crawl-up toy access in a few months.
 
#4 - We want the room to flow with the rest of the house as far as color and decor.
 
Just check out a few of the inspiring images we've found. Do you think we're being (gasp!) too weird?
 
(All images found at Ohdeedoh.com)
 

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Posted November 30, 2010
 

Ready or not, he's coming...

In 7 weeks, I will be someone's mother.
 
In 7 weeks, my husband will officially be "daddy" to someone other than our Beagle.
 
I have 7 weeks to wash clothes, blankets, towels and bedding.
 
I have 7 weeks to paint, build furniture and scrub my floors within an inch of their life.
 
In 7 weeks my parents will be called Grammie and Grandpa.
 
In 7 weeks there will be a brand new person living in this world. One that I'm responsible for creating, birthing and raising.
 
In 7 weeks, this kid is coming out somehow. I need Scotty here to beam him out. That sounds like a much better idea than the reality.
 
I am truly scared out of my wits.
 
 

Posted November 22, 2010
 

To heed or not to heed? A few questions for Moms.

I'm a firm believer that what works for me won't necessarily work for everyone else. All of our stories are different. While I've received my fair share (and possibly more than my share) of baby advice over the past 32 weeks, most of it will go probably un-heeded. Because what worked for them isn't gonna work for me. However, the advice has been given in case I need to pull from it. (And that's the intent, right?)
 
Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment, but I have some specific questions for those with experience in the child-birthing area.
 
1. How do you get the kid out of your lungs? I... can't... breathe...
 
2. How important are birthing/Lamaze classes?
 
3. Baths in a baby tub or sink?
 
4. Will walking help him drop? (Because, I... can't... breathe...)
 
5. How soon should I start washing all of his clothes?
 
6. Is it unusual that I haven't had any Braxton Hicks yet?
 
Ok.... sock it to me!!
 
 
(Leave responses as comments on Facebook, or be sure to mention your name if you leave them on Posterous.)

Posted November 15, 2010
 

Dressing my kiddo

I just have to share this today. I'm obsessed (like any new Mom, I'm sure) with how I'm going to dress my little one. I've blabbed before about how much I enjoy The Chidren's place. The first three photos below show just why.
 
 
Oh, and the last photo... that's the little girls line from Zara. Forget kids, I want to dress that good. They have a boys line as well and it's equally amazing.

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Posted November 3, 2010
 

Late have I loved You...

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would have not been at all.
 
You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace.
 
from The Confessions of Saint Augustine
 
 

Posted October 15, 2010