Just a quick update on Mr. Peter Bear....what an amazing little boy! He had his first week being at home with John while I was at work. They bonded over physical therapy exercises and feeding times! Peter weighed in at 10lb 12.5oz on Tuesday - a whooping 8oz gain over the prior week. We are sure he will break 11lb before our next appointment tomorrow. Peter is now up to 4.5oz of milk every 4 hours and not yet keeping up with it. While it is great to see him grow, I am still a bit stressed about his feeding skills. He will consume about 50% of his milk orally, and the rest we have to put through the pump. We are trying to get a feeding/speech therapist in on a weekly basis to help Peter. We had a lady come out and do an evaluation. She gave us some exercises and massages to help strengthen his facial/jaw muscles. From what we are told, she is the best of the best - but as a result she is very booked up. We are hoping to hear from her this week and have her help getting Peter through this and ready for solids in a couple of months. Peter continues to work very hard at his physical development. I am so inspired watching my little man. He will prevail on pure perseverance! His head is getting stronger and stronger. He is doing much better on his tummy, and at times will scoot his legs under his tummy working towards a crawling position. He's working on his upper body strength, and is doing great at getting his head midline and keeping it there. Still not so good on tracking toys - but hey - why track toys when there is a whole world out there to explore. Believe it or not, he is teething already. As a result he is bringing his hands to his mouth and munching on his fists. Until Peter I didn't realize what an accomplishment this was....so unlike my other kids who still hear "keep your dirty fingers out of your mouth", Peter hears "Way to go big guy!". Alexandra filed a grievance with the fact that Peter can put his dirty fingers in his mouth and the rest of them can't! :-) If she gives up on her dream to be a doctor - she will no doubt make a great lawyer!! Please continue to pray for Peter's health. We are fighting a cold around the house, so praying for Peter to not get the brunt of it. And, as usual, for his continued recovery and feeding skills. HUGS! catherine
