Pictureless 'Pointment Post

So, I'd mentioned this was a week of appointments of the doctor variety for many of us. But, now we've gone to every single one so I'll fill ya in.

First Trimester Screen: Fin & Mommy
On Tuesday afternoon we headed up to the radiology department in the hospital for the formal ultrasound with the first trimester screen. First some techs do some measurments and check things out and then a perinatologist comes in to discuss. Jason met us there and the boys were feeling a little wild so they didn't stay the whole time but we got to check out Fin for a bit.

Looks great. All 4 limbs are there now, looking like limbs. Baby measured 5 days ahead. I was 12 weeks 1 day, it measured 12 weeks 6 days. Fin's heartrate was 169 this time. The nuchal translucency measurement which can help predict the chances of Down's Syndrome said that we have low chances. I also had blood drawn as part of the first trimester screen which can further help to predict both Trisomy 21 (D.S.) and Trisomy 18 risks. Nothing's perfect and I don't personally get the test to screen for either of those. I get them because somehow the blood levels mean something to my perinatologist in regards to my future preeclampsia risks. Like if I didn't have the history I have, I wouldn't get this test done at all. We didn't with Easton.

The gals doing the scan told me I should be an ultrasound model. One girl was training another and I guess my uterus and fetus were particularly tech-friendly or something. Actually, Fin amused me. Both Easton and Dalton were very active at this age, almost showing off for ultrasounds. Not Fin. Fin seems a little more dramatic and would turn it's back all huffy-like when they'd try to capture certain images, so they'd move the wand and Fin would do it again. Almost made Fin seem like a girl with that 'tude. ;) I have a whole disc full of pictures but I am not going to bother with doing screen captures and putting them up over here because none of the images englarge that great.

12 Week OB Visit: Fin & Mommy
Dalton and I dropped Easton off at school Thursday morning and skipped Roo in favor of having to only juggle one kid at the OB. We drove up there when, 9 minutes before my appointment, my phone rang. My doctor (who was not the one on call, I make sure of that now) apparently still got called out for a delivery and wouldn't be there. I could re-schedule or their nurse would be happy to see me. Seeing as how we'd driven 45 minutes and were already downstairs I said I'd see the nurse.

But how annoying.

I promise I understand the nature of the labor and delivery biz. I do. I remember many a times having to frantically track down another doctor because two women were delivering at once. I also remember when I nearly had to catch a kid myself because no one was around! But anyway, it's just getting super frustrating that this keeps happening to me. At my 6 week visit they had to reschedule me at the last minute only to have me come back and still no one could see me. Instead I got a phone call at 6 p.m. that night to discuss what we would have discussed.

Folks, I'm not just some regular ol' gal breezily walking in to have a baby. I'm high risk. If there is really no point to a 12 week visit, then why did they have me make one?

The nurse weighed me (haven't started gaining--yet--this pregnancy), checked my BP (I was too annoyed to ask what it was and she didn't volunteer), then she said I looked "peaked" and suggested I stop taking my prenatals for a week because that is probably what is making me nauseaus. She listened to Fin's heartbeat (146) and then we were on our way. How stupid.

The part that really frustrated me was I walked out only to see the doctor I should've seen! She was back??? Why couldn't she rush in to my room just to check real quick? Argh!

So, after that I was feeling like leaving their practice (we did leave during E's pregnancy because of all this shiz-nit). Dalton and I wandered over to my old unit to complain and see who the best OB was at another practice. Everyone was happy to see us. Many of them didn't know about Dalton so that was fun. He charmed them all and I gathered the advice to simply speak to the main doctors at my current practice and share my concerns. That the other OBs at the other practice truly don't compare and they wouldn't switch to them, just insist things be different at my current place. We'll see. I'm really bad with confrontation. Really bad.

So far I still plan to go there for my 16 week check and probably I won't have said anything by then. But I should!

ENT Clinic: Easton
Thursday afternoon we headed to the Children's Hospital ENT Clinic for Easton's long-awaited "anosmia" visit. We had to wait a really long time for a doctor to come into our room (like, over half an hour) but once he came it was fine. Easton was sooooooo great for the docs. First it was a pediatric fellow (no, seriously, like doing his fellowship) and he checked E out and listened to why I think he can't smell. Then he was like, "Well, first we think of obvious things like something blocking air getting through his nose" and so he looked at some of that stuff...up E's nose, the tonsils, feeling around his throat, blah blah blah. Then said that his tonsils are only slightly big and that to see his adenoids they'd need to do a little scope thing through his nose but "Most kids do okay". Ack!

Luckily he then said, "Let me go talk to the real doctor I'm working with and see what she thinks". So wait, wait, wait some more and she comes in, does all the same stuff and hears the same stories from me but Easton is still being a super star. She then says the least invasive way to look at his adenoids would be an xray of his head. Much better. We can handle a picture no problem!

So more waiting for xray to come get E. Dalton can't go in the xray room but it's no big deal because neither can the pregnant lady. They said, "Oh, we'll need his jacket off" so he took off his fleece and headed towards the ladies. Then they were all, "Oh...he needs his shirt off too" to which Easton said, "Why do I need my shirt off, guys?" and they were all amused, "Guys! Oh ha ha ha." They said, "Do you want your mom to help?" and he was all, "No, I can do it myself because I'm a big kid." And then off he went. All by himself. They said he did great and he was very excited to see his picture later.

Adenoids weren't too big so then the doctors were all puzzled. The main doctor was like, "Honestly I've never heard of this in a kid so young, I just don't know what to do." Sort of thinking out loud for her fellow and my benefit she was like, "We could do a CT or MRI looking for problems (like tumors!) in that part of his brain but I don't think that's it, I don't really want to expose him to the radiation at this age and we'd have to sedate him. But, I mean...we could." She rambled on about how she doesn't know when kids developmentally start noticing smells (well, I have lots of friends with kids this age--I've asked them. E's not "normal" that way.) She said to do blind smell tests. Lady, I've been thinking about this for over a year. We've done smell tests. "I wonder if he smells gas at a gas station? Or how about scratch and sniff stickers? Kids like smelly stickers." Seriously, lady? So then I was all, "Okay, so say we go home and "teach" him some of these traditional smells you say you test adults with: coffee, lemon, and vanilla and I do more blind smell tests and nothing then what?" And that's when they were like, "I don't know."

Okay, clearly his lack of ability to smell isn't the end of the world, it doesn't sound immediately fixable (like removing adenoids) and it doesn't sound like they care either way. I just want to know...can my kid smell? And if he can't, what do we do? What adaptations need to be made? Clearly one day he can't smell his house burning down around him. Or a natural gas leak. Or spoiled food. Or his future girlfriend and her bad B.O. And I believe pheromones are a large part of seeking out a suitable mate...and he might not have that! :(

Anyway, apparently this doctor has 5 partners and she sounded all excited to talk to them about my little "medical mystery", but not necessarily to call us with a new plan. So we left basically not knowing much more than when we came in. Other than the new info that his adenoids and tonsils are on the larger side, but not problematic.

Frustrating.

I will do the new smell tests and then I will somehow find a way to send her the video. It's not like I want there to be something wrong with my kid, of course I don't. I just want to know. Like hearing tests on babies you could hook up their brain to electrodes to see if the brain registers the sound before the kid is old enough to, say, "Raise your hand when you hear a sound". So, she says, "I'm sure there's something like that for smell but I just wouldn't know where to put the electrodes." Great...I'll call Derek Shepherd. He'll know.

2 Year Well-Child: Dalton
We went to a new doctor...an actual pediatrician this time. We've always gone to family practice but as I discussed back in December or so, we felt like we should switch. We saw the newest doctor of the practice, because as the new guy he's the only one accepting new patients. But, we really liked him.

He was fantastic with the boys right off the bat. I can't say our former FP gal was "bad" with the boys, she just can't compare to how well Dr. J hit it off with both boys this morning. Seriously. He went to them first, high fiving and bumping knuckles and just chatting it up with them before he ever even introduced himself to me. And I liked it that way. So did the kids.

He is sooooooooooo laid back that I know Jason will love him. He just kind of watched Dalton and was like, "Do you have any concerns? He looks good, looks like he's developmentally on track and is clearly very verbal, does he like to color?" He asked a few questions about his eating habits but didn't act like he was concerned in any way...and because D is on the small side weight-wise I was so afraid he would be. It probably helped that they didn't have his old chart to see that he started off big and fell off the chart but I did tell him about it and he was like, "I think he's fine."

I do too!

Diddles was 23 1/2 pounds with his wet diaper (10%) and 33.75 inches (30%). We left with stickers and no shots!

The guy was so easy going but I still felt like if I had a concern he would take it seriously. For instance, even though Dalton wasn't getting a shot I asked him about something I'd recently heard about aborted fetal cells being part of certain vaccines and I really liked how he handled the discussion. Important.

So, I think we'll keep going to him for now. The rare times the boys need a doctor, that is.

And now I think you're all up to date with our doctor-stravaganza this week.