Hunter's World...we're just living in it!

It's been a long time since I've wrote in Hunter's blog. I had pneumonia for the good portion of March and have been really sick. Fortunately, I got it and Hunter didn't. He has been moving forward with everything he does and makes me smile and proud every day.

Hunter keeps making strides in his development. He is cruising along furniture and getting braver and more independent. He also gets in to everything and my house is no longer pretty. My rock gardens and glass decorations that were once home on my living room coffee and end tables have been put away. He was trying to eat the rocks, trying to break my glass globes, and both things could hurt him. He wants to eat rocks, but not food. I don’t understand it. But, they are packed up now. I will wait until he gets a little older and have accepted that my house won’t be pretty for a couple years. My living room is baby proof, along with my kitchen cabinets, and the bedroom doors are constantly shut. We can’t forget about the bathroom too. We have to keep that door shut. He discovered that the toilet has water he can play in. The only thing I can't baby proof is the TV. He likes to take his hands and bang on it. So, we constantly have to stop him. He is two and everyone in the house knows it.

He has also learned how to walk forward in his baby walker. This is a huge thing for him. His therapist was thrilled to see this. She has high hopes that he may not need a walker. He is doing so much better than they expected. But, they have a special medical gait trainer on order for him. He has accomplished so much in the last year. He never stops amazing me. They are going to start him in speech therapy. I will update his blog once he starts.

From a lung perspective, Hunter saw his pulmonary doctor recently. His Pulmonary Doctor believes that Hunter is outgrowing the Chronic Lung Disease. His lungs will still be a problem for him for years, if not a life time. But, it won't be the say as when he was a baby. Each day, brings healthier lung tissue. They have decided to move forward and schedule a sleep study. If Hunter passes the sleep study, he will be able to come off oxygen permanently. Please pray that he can do it! His requirement for oxygen requires his lungs to be strong enough, plus his Pulmonary Hypertension has an effect on his oxygen requirement.

With that said, Hunter also had an appointment with his cardiologist. The pressure in Hunter's heart was still slightly high on the right side. The cardiologist believes that Hunter's lungs are getting healthier, which has a direct effect on his Pulmonary Hypertension. As new lung tissue grows, his heart condition will get better. The cardiologist is not concerned. In fact, they are going to try to wean Hunter off his Pulmonary Hypertension medication over the course of a couple months.

Hunter has maintained his weight at 30 pounds. He is normal size and weight for his age. But, we haven't been able to get him off the feeding tube yet. This has been difficult. We are trying everything. We feed him every day. Sometimes we have success. Sometimes we can't get him to take a bite. It's not consistent. Therefore, he still needs the g-tube.

We continue to work with Hunter as we always have. Please pray for him and the upcoming sleep study!