Toothy Monster

A lot of things have happened over the past month, including the arrival of Porter's first two teeth! His two bottom front incisors made a grand entrance on Thursday, April 14. And what a grand entrance it was! We were both at work, and the little man at day care, when I got a call from the Child Development Center. Porter was running a fever (101.8) and was not his usual self - lethargic, not napping, not playing. Of course the first thing I thought about was his heart. I raced back to work (did I mention that I was on a field trip at a wastewater treatment plant? I guess I don't get enough poop-time at home), and picked him up. After a normal feeding, which made us both feel a lot better, I wrapped up stuff at the office and headed back to Swansboro. I am so grateful for my awesome workmates, especially Shawna. I don't know what I would do without them. Thanks again, Shawna!!!

On the drive home I called Mom to pick her brain about teething symptoms. She remembers me drooling a lot, having a rash on my face, and a mild fever. Porter only had one of those symptoms, but I did recall that his poop had been more frequent and different over the previous few days, so I surmised that he'd been swallowing the extra drool. When I got home I stuck my finger in his mouth, and lo and behold, there they were - two little white lines, as sharp as can be. I then resigned myself to the fact that I have a breastfeeding baby with teeth. Ba well, just another motherly duty I will accept with open arms.

The following 3 days were tough - up most of the night, lots of whining, and a 4-hour regimen of Acetaminophen. But there were shining moments. The same day Porter was 'sent home from school' he pointed at his Dad, said "Da Da", and gave him a big hug. Brian couldn't have been more proud! It was a special moment, and I'm so happy I was there to witness it.

After the two buggers broke through the gums, the fever went away and a happy, smiley baby emerged. There's still a lingering cough, but I guess that comes with the daycare territory. Check out the chompers:


Here are a few more milestones Porter has reached over the past month:

He points at most everything now, especially the ceiling fan, Maple, and anything he wants to touch (like our gold door handles around the house). And his point is not a perfect 'index finger forward" point. It's more like an "index finger and thumb forward" point; in other words, the "loser" symbol commonly seen on people's foreheads. This draws quite a few laughs depending on the recipient. Here's a pic of Porter pointing out a vesper sparrow on our walk:


Here he's pointing at the mooseduck hanging from the ceiling:


His language repertoire has increased too. He has added "b's", "ya's" and of course "d's." An occasional "f" has been heard too. "M's" are nonexistent, even with regular (constant) prodding from Mama. He doesn't say much, but knows a bit of sign language (milk especially), and he definitely knows a lot of words. Check out his anatomy word bank:

He claps his hands when he wants to, and evidently enjoys dancing to Toni Basil's "Hey Mickey." Dancing entails rocking back and forth violently, and has only happened a few times, mostly at daycare. Another of his joys is basketball. His buddy Lincoln gave him an awesome basketball set that he plays with daily. Check out his dunking skills:


On the heart front, things are rolling right along. This past Tuesday (April 19) Porter had an ultrasound of his legs, to check to see which one would be better for another heart cath, scheduled for this coming Monday (April 25). The doc's specifically wanted to see if there were any remnants of the blood clot from months ago - nope!! During Monday's procedure they'll measure pressures and flow rates of blood within the heart, and also do a transesophageal echo (TEE). It's a very common procedure for heart patients, and is usually done during heart surgeries. A TEE is a type of echo in which the ultrasound transducer, positioned on an endoscope, is guided down the patient's throat into the esophagus. It provides a close look at the heart's valves and chambers, without interference from the ribs or lungs. This will provide the doc's with even more details before the surgery, which is slated for late May/early June. We'll hopefully know a more definitive date in a couple of weeks. Stay tuned!

A few parting shots and videos:

--Jacqui