One of Henry’s ear tubes fell out shortly before Christmas and since then he’s had four ear infections in less than six weeks. These infections never seemed to start during normal office hours either so we made one late night run to the emergency room and another trip to an urgent care clinic on a Saturday afternoon.
All this meant, as we were expecting, a second set of tubes. The doctor said he’s only had one or two other kids who have had their tubes fall out in less than five months. Now that Henry is bigger, they can also use a different type of tube so we’re hoping for a year’s worth of ear infection freedom.
We braved the icy Dallas roads at 5:30 in the morning to make it to the surgery center. Our 7am surgery slot was slightly delayed because the anesthesiologist got in an accident on the way to the center. Just like last time, Henry was only away from us for about 10 minutes, though it felt longer. This time they gave him a small dose of sedative before the anestesia so he wouldn’t put up a fuss being taken away. It worked and left him pretty groggy afterwards so he barely cried at all. Once he was home and got a much delayed breakfast he was back playing like nothing happened.
We’re very thankful that he stayed well enough to get the tubes. It’s been a tough week for Henry with an ear infection, wheezing, a snotty nose, fever and stomach problems from a month straight on antibiotics. We think the tubes will give him the fighting chance he needs to get back to normal.
Lastly, Erin and I decided that any time Henry has surgery he gets a new toy, so a trip to Target later in the day yielded a police truck that has lights and makes noises. He loves it.
Henry’s fifteen month check-up was a few weeks ago. The visit included the usual weighing/measuring, as well as 2 shots. Henry was a trooper and didn’t cry or fuss at all. Dr Mathieu said Henry is healthy and doing great. Henry’s current stats are:
Head circumference: 19.5 inches – 95th %ile
Height: 32.25 inches – 75th %ile
Weight: 26 lb 2 oz – 70th %ile
Next doctor’s visit will be when Henry is 2 years old. Surely we’re not going to have a 2 year old anytime soon?!
Here's what 26 pounds and 32 inches looks like in person
All good parents teach their children to swim, or so we’re told. So we’re getting started early. We took Henry to a class entitled, “Water Babies”. Basically it’s just supervised play time in the pool so the kids get used to playing in the pool. As usual, Henry supplied some cute photos from the experience.
Henry thinks bath time is more fun when he's not the only one getting wet.
Bath time has a new twist these days, Henry is sitting up in the tub on his own. He’s still a little unstable so my lifeguarding duties are still required. Henry really enjoys it because he can splash and play with his bath toys.
Henry is practicing standing up more and more. Lately on of his favorite things to do after his bottle is to stand on the couch, with a little help, and peek over the edge.
Henry is six months old now. This first half-year has been a fun adventure that seems to have passed quickly and it’s getting harder to remember our lives pre-Henry. At his six month check up, Henry weighed 18 pounds and 4 ounces and was 27 inches long. This places him in the 75th percentile for height and weight.
At six months he’s accomplished the following milestones:
Rolls from back to front
Eats: Carrots, Bananas, Green Beans, Peas, Apple Sauce, Squash, Pears and Cereal
