First Steps

We have been ready for this day for so long, and yesterday it happened! Colby took his first steps. He has been so close for a couple of weeks now, and at physical therapy yesterday, he just decided it was time to take off. His physical therapist, Shirley, and I were both in tears. It is just so great to see all of his hard work pay off!

Believe it or not, I captured his first few baby steps on video. I picked up the camera thinking he might possibly walk at some point during the session. I never dreamed he would do it the first time I videoed, though, but he did! By the end of therapy, he had walked several times. One time, he took 10 consecutive steps. Go Colby!! We are so proud of you!

You might have noticed Colby's new big white shoes in the video. His left foot has been rolling in pretty badly, so Shirley had an orthotist come and fit him for his first pair of Sure Steps. These will stabilize his feet and ankles and help correct his alignment. The Sure Steps fit inside his shoes, so he has to wear Extra Wide Shoes. I was worried he would fight us on wearing these, but he hasn't seem bothered at all. These Sure Steps might even be why he was able to take those first steps! We are so glad that Colby has such a great and proactive physical therapist! We are all about fixing small issues before they become big problems.

The Grand Total is...

We are mailing the Bake Sale Donation to the Monroe Carrel Jr Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt today. After additional donations over the last 2 weeks, our grand total is $2,200!! We are so excited to donate this to the CHD Research efforts at the hospital in honor of our sweet little Colby.

Thanks again to everyone who was involved with this Bake Sale and Blood Drive. We really appreciate all of you!

Colby's First Ambulance Ride

Brody is not the only one to have a "first" this weekend. On Friday night, Colby got to take his first ambulance ride to the ER at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. Unfortunately, this one is not exactly a fun first!

Around 10:00 Friday night, Colby woke up and started crying. I went up to his room to check on him, and as soon as I opened the door, I knew something was wrong. He was struggling to get his breath. By the time I got down the stairs to Jason, he was just gasping for breath...unsuccessfully. I cannot even express how scared we were. We knew we had to get him to the hospital as soon as possible, so we quickly called 9-1-1. The fire engine was at our house within 2 minutes, and the ambulance was here only a couple of minutes later.

When we got to the hospital, the doctor checked him out and ordered a chest x-ray and some blood work. We were happy to hear that everything looked good, he didn't have a fever, he had no infections, and his heart was not the cause, but we were worried and frustrated that they weren't exactly sure what did cause the "attack." Their suspicion was that it was caused by acid reflux. He has had two other episodes similar to this (this one being the worst) in the last 2 months. The other times he would cry, grab at his chest, and struggle to breathe. They sent us home about 2 am with instructions to follow up with our pediatrician on Monday.

After seeing the pediatrician today, Colby has been diagnosed with Acid Reflux. Apparently, he has a pretty bad case of it! We are starting him back on some medicine for GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) and we have put an incline in his bed, which is supposed to help as well. Hopefully, this will put an end to these very scary episodes!

In addition to the ER trip on Friday, Colby came down with a little cold on Sunday. He ran a fever all day and was just absolutely pitiful. I think he let me hold him more Sunday than he ever has. I hated seeing him feel so badly, but I have to admit that I enjoyed all of the special cuddle time!

Below are a couple of pictures of Colby from the Emergency Room the other night. I am sure the nurses and doctors thought we were crazy for being there, because in true Colby fashion, he was the life of the party! He was dancing, blowing everybody kisses, and "talking" to anyone who came into the room. He even turned the bed into a slide by climbing up to the top of the inclined part and sliding down. He is such a happy and sweet boy, and he has a way of making everyone around him smile!

Brody's First Soccer Game

On Saturday, Brody had his first soccer game. He has been asking (begging) to play soccer since last summer, so he was more than excited to finally be out there playing! It was a gorgeous day, and we all had a great time. Watching 4 year olds play soccer is very entertaining! Brody provided some of that entertainment by running to the center of the field and falling down every time they blew the whistle to start a new play. He was having a great time coming up with new ways to fall down! Oh my...such a clown!

Warming Up Before the Game

Before the game, the referee had to check all of the kids to make sure that they had on shin guards and were wearing cleats. In this picture, he is asking them to lift up their feet and show him the bottom of their shoes. Brody could not understand why this "stranger" was asking to see his shoes.

Pre-Game Huddle

Brody's coach is great with the team!

Brody's first play in the game.

"Good Game" high fives with the other team