Failure to Thrive?

Oh how time has flown by!  I greatly apologize for the 11 months that have passed since the last post.  Andy has been developing wonderfully!  We love this age!  It has been delightful as we are beginning to experience his personality.  He is now walking, very curious, and adventuresome!  He may be cautious about something at first, but his curiosity always wins out!  He is smart, sweet, and cuddly.  He is a people person, very social!  He really enjoys getting out of the house and waving at EVERYONE he sees.  He is a happy guy even as we enter into the pre toddler years and he is exerting independence and opinions.  :)

He has grown and changed so much this year.  For now I would like to update you on our most urgent prayer requests, and hope to share more as time allows.  For now pray that he would grow, receive nourishment of food, and thrive!

Age: 19 months, 15.5 months adjusted.  He weighs 17#9oz.  and is 28" long.

Several months ago, Andy was diagnosed with failure to thrive.  He has not been gaining weight, and with all of his walking, he is now losing weight.  He was also diagnosed with gastroparesis- which literally mean stomach paralysis, meaning his stomach moves/contracts less than normal, so his stomach stays full of food.  This often causes him to vomit.  He was recently been put on a new medication for this.  Fortunately, this seems to have helped with the vomiting, but his food intake has not increased.

Another reason he is not gaining weight is his oral aversion to  food and drink.  This is due to prematurity and his sensory integration disorder.  He goes to speech/feeding therapy twice a week.  He is improving some, but its very slow.  The improvement is not fast enough for him to start gaining weight, so he is going to be getting a g tube (a tube placed in his stomach, that we access at the abdominal wall to place formula in for extra nourishment).  We have really tried to avoid this route, but it is impossible at this point.  The doctor told us that the brain does the most developing between 15 months and 3 years of age, so it is crucial to have adequate nutrition.  Many kids who get tubes placed, lose the ability/desire to eat.  The doctor reassured me that Andy can be taught to eat.  But you can't regain brain development once its lost.  So with this in mind, we feel its best for Andy to get the tube for some extra help.

He is getting his g tube placed on Friday, the 21st at Children's.  We would appreciate your prayers!  Please pray that Andy would THRIVE and GROW!  Pray that this is just what he needs, and that he doesn't completely lose his eating skills.  Pray for Lawrence and me as we are entering a new season of change.  The doctors have told us to prepare for a rocky road ahead.  Pray that we would be patient with the changes, be good learners, and that God would give us the wisdom we need to care for Andy.

I hope to post again soon, with updates on what else Andy has been up to!