I am sure you are all thinking….finally Melinda has updated us on Noah…I apologize for my silence for so long. It has actually been a blessing that nothing major has happened in the last few months after Noah’s hand surgery and there really was and is nothing new to update on…except that we are super blessed with how wonderful Noah is doing. He is growing into a little toddler…tantrums and all! Noah is super adventurous and fearless just like his brother Ethan. I would say I have two very very active little boys…and I LOVE IT! To think how far Noah has come just blows my mind and reminds me that God is the ultimate healer…that he is the miracle worker! Noah is doing everything a normal 18 month old should be doing right now…we are just so thankful for that! At times it is hard when people and children stare at his hands and ask questions but we try to point out how special Noah is…that he is a miracle…that God made him very special! We are thankful for the opportunity to witness to people when they ask us about Noah.
Noah has been getting occupational therapy at home and also at the local children’s hospital here in Virginia just to get as much therapy as possible as he learns to do things with his hands. At times it can be challenging for him to hold a crayon or pick up a cheerio with his fingers…but it has amazed me to see his progress and how well he has adapted to his hands. There is no doubt that both his hands are growing and getting very big…it seems at times that they are growing right before my eyes…which scares me but this is part of CLOVES and thankfully we will go and see the hand doctor in Philly soon and discuss plans about his next hand surgery with his other hand (the bigger hand) Noah also receives physical therapy once a month. The therapist comes to our house. Noah works on things like going up and down the stairs, jumping and doing different leg exercises. Noah got custom made shoes last month that come with a lift so his legs are now the same size which makes a huge difference when he walks around…he is no longer doing a weird limp when he walks. We are so thankful for the resources and doctors, therapists and nurses we have here in Virginia that have been so helpful to Noah! Along with new shoes, Noah also got compression stockings that he wears during the day to keep his legs from swelling during the day. The last time we met with his therapist at UVA who got us the compression boots and stockings we did measurements which showed that his legs are getting smaller and not swelling as much…so the compression is working! It is very exciting to think that maybe Noah won’t have to have such big body parts if we continue with the therapy and compressions. We are looking into getting Noah compression gloves for his hands to help with the swelling in his fingers.
Our next big doctor appointment is in the beginning of June when we head to Philly for Noah’s 3 month ultrasound and meeting with his oncologist and also meeting with his hand doctor who will check out his hands, do x-rays and talk about what the next step would be for Noah’s hands. Andrew and I are hoping Noah won’t need surgery on his other hand for few more years…but we will wait and see…and trust that God has it all planned out already.
We have been enjoying the warm weather…the boys love to ride their bikes in the driveway and we all enjoy walks in the evenings together. We bought a pop up camper and hope to do some camping this summer. The boys would live outside if they had a choice so camping is definitely the perfect vacation for them. We look forward to that adventure. It is so cool and just amazing to think that we can do all this stuff with Noah and not have to worry about his health. God has been so good and we are just so thankful!
Please continue to pray for Noah…pray for good health and that we will have good doctor appointments in June. Noah will be getting an ultrasound of his neck and kidneys…pray that they don’t find any signs of kidney cancer…and that the lymphangioma in his neck has not grown. Please also pray for Ethan as we have noticed that at times he has a hard time with Noah getting a lot of attention with all the therapy and doctor appointments…we try to do special things with just Ethan but it is hard sometimes.
THANK YOU ALL and we will update you once we have our doctor appointments in June! Now scroll down and check out these super adorable pictures of the boys! They love to play together and enjoy wresting with each other and play tag…which sometimes makes their mama a little nervous but boys will be boys!!!
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