Boston's Coat's Disease Story

In August 2017 we were getting the kids ready to start school,  Kinzlie was going to be in Kindergarten and Boston was going to be in preschool. I decided to take them both into the eye doctor for a routine check up. My mom and sister had both made comments about Boston possibly having a lazy eye, and telling me his left eye wasn't tracking the way it should. I didn't think anything of these comments but thought I would take him in anyway.
When we got to the optometrist he did the normal eye test and noticed that when Boston covered his right eye he couldn't see anything. So, he decided to take some pictures of the inside of Boston's eyes. His right eye looked normal but when he showed me the picture of his left eye it looked like someone had spilt oatmeal all over the screen. It didn't look anything like an eye and it was at this point the doctor told me something was wrong with his left eye. He didn't know exactly what was wrong because he had never seen anything like this before. The doctor set us up with another team of doctors in Ogden. He said they would hopefully know what was happening and told us worse case scenario was cancer.  My heart sunk. I didn't want to believe that my perfect little boy had anything wrong with him, let alone cancer. I was praying constantly until the next day when we went to the next doctor's appointment in Ogden.
The doctor's in Ogden did quite a few more tests with Boston and took more pictures of his eyes. At the end of our appointment they didn't have any answers for us and made us an appointment with some of the best ophthalmologist at Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City. The week between these two appointments was one of the worst weeks of my life. I couldn't stop my mind from jumping to the worst possible scenarios for my sweet boy. 

By the time we got to Primary Children's Hospital I was a wreck. Jordan and I didn't say anything to anyone about this situation, especially the kids. We didn't want them to worry so we were putting on a brave face for them. 
The first doctor we saw at Primary Children's Hospital was Dr. Robert Hoffman who is the Chief of the Division of Pediatric Ophthalmology and Eye Muscle Disorders at Primary Children's Hospital. He and his team did more test and took more pictures and scans of Boston's eye. At the end of the day he said he thought he knew what was wrong but wanted a second opinion before he said anything to us. He then called Dr. Mary Elizabeth Hartnett who is a doctor of ophthalmology and vitreoretinal surgeon at the Moran Eye Center. She took a look at all of the test and was able to confirm that Boston has Coat's Disease which is a rare eye disorder involving abnormal development of blood vessels in the retina. This was such great news for us. We were so relieved that it wasn't cancer and that we finally knew what it was and had a coarse of action to help Boston. 
At this point the doctor's set up a time to do some treatments on Boston's eye while he was under anesthesia. He has had laser treatments, a Vitrectomy (surgical procedure undertaken by a specialist where the vitreous humor gel that fills the eye cavity is removed to provide better access to the retina), and a few other procedures done to help stabilize and preserve his left eye. He will always be blind in his left eye but we are hoping to be able to keep his eye out of pain so that it won't have to be removed and replace with a prosthetic eye. He will also always have to wear non prescription glasses to protect his right eye (which currently has perfect vision). If anything were to happen to his right eye he would be left completely blind so we are taking every precaution to prevent that from happening.
Boston had an appointment with Dr. Hartnett this past week and we were told that his eye is stable and the retina is mostly attached which is a good sign. Boston does have a cataract on his left eye but since he doesn't have vision in that eye they aren't currently worried about having it removed. If it become painful for him or makes it difficult for the doctor's to see into the back of the eye then he might have to have surgery to have it removed. His next appointment will be with Dr. Hoffman in June for another check up.
Boston is such a strong little man. He has never once complained about his eye and has never let it slow him down. He has most likely lived his whole life with vision in only one eye and has never known anything different. He is getting so good and sitting still during his appointments and is a pro. getting eye drops put in his eyes. 
We are so grateful that we caught this when we did and are so blessed to live so close to such great doctor's who can help Boston. 

Jordan is now working as a solar electrician for CR Solar (a branch of CR Lighting and Electric). He has been mostly working in Idaho which makes for really long days. He is currently working on becoming worthy to baptize Kinzlie in November. Jordan is such a hard worker and has also done a full renovation on our kitchen on top of his 4-5 hour daily commute and long work days.
These days I'm just living the Mom dream. I do work at Kohl's a few times a week but mostly I am taking care of the kiddos, with 2 different schools and multiple after school activities this keeps me pretty busy. I also enjoy shopping, crafting, and hanging out with friends (those girls nights are sure good for the soul). Jordan and I are the building lock up specialist for our church and I also design the Relief Society Newsletters once a month.
Kinzlie is really excelling in the first grade Spanish Dual Immersion program at Bridger Elementary School. She gets to learn from an English speaking teacher in the mornings and in the afternoon she has a different teacher that speaks only Spanish. She also enjoys dancing, playing piano, and tumbling each week.
Boston is in his final year of preschool at Wee Friends Preschool. He is starting to blend sounds together and read a little bit on his own. He just finished his first season of basketball and he absolutely loved it. He is such a tender soul and loves helping me.
Creed just turned 2 in October and gets to stay at home with me full time. He is a wild child for sure but he's so cute you can't help but laugh. He definitely keeps us on our toes these days. We have him enrolled in the 'Up to 3' program to help with his speech a little bit. He is catching on to a lot of the things we say and is learning more and more each day.

 

In 2018 we were also able to do a lot of traveling and fun little road trips. We made it to 2 different countries and 10 different states. We also got to go to Disneyland and Disney on Ice. We are hoping to be able to see a few more states this year and go on some more fun adventures together as a family.

Creed Wheeler's Birth Story

On Wednesday, October 12 2016 I had my routine doctor's appointment, the only difference was I would be getting my membranes stripped at this appointment.  This was a big deal because I had my membranes stripped with my otger children and it lead to a fairly quick delivery in both cases so, we had a pretty goo idea that Creed would be born fairly soon after. My membranes were stripped at around 3:45pm and I was sitting at 3.5 cm dialated and 75% effaced. We had everything in place to had a baby that night. Emma was all set to watch the kids, bags were packed, and the car seat was in the car. We headed home, started cleaning and waited for my body to do what it needed to.
Around 9pm my contractions were picking Emma and we were waiting for them to get a little stronger when all of the sudden we get a text from Emma telling us she was at the hospital with galstons. We called up Denise and she rushed right over to watch the kids. By this time my contractions were very regular and getting stronger. We got in the car as soon as Denise arrived and headed to the hospital.
We got to the hospital at 11:30pm, I was checked and at 4cm dialated and 80% effaced so my doctor decided to break my water. After that my contractions got a lot stronger and closer together. I asked for Fentinal for pain relief but that disnt do much, if anything at all, so I asked for the epidural. My epidural was in at 12:50 and after that I was feeling a lot better☺.
I was checked again at 1:07am and had already made it to 6cm, and by 2:00am I was fully dialated and ready to push. My doctor, Kimberly McCullouch, was called in, I pushed for about 2 minutes, and Creed was born at 2:08am on Thursday, October 13th, 2016. He weighed in at 6lbs 7oz and 19 inches long (my smallest baby). He has a fairly bald, perfectly round little head and is a very content little man. He nursed easily right after delivery and seems to be doing great. The nurses, doctor and even the photographer and said that he was perfect and beautiful. They were all very impressed by how good his color was and how well mannered he was for being freshly born.
I am absolutely smitten with my little man and I am so grateful that he made such a smooth entrance into the world. I cant wait until Kinzlie and Boston get to meet their new little brother because I know they will adore him as much as I do.

Side notes: week 36 1.5cm 70% effaced
                     Week 37 3cm 70%
                     Week 38 3.5cm 75%
                      Born at 38w6d (8 days before due date of October 21st)
                     Total weight gain during pregnancy: 16lbs (Yay!)

Baby Boy Allen- Pregnancy Update

Today I had my final ultrasound to track baby boy's growth and development. He is definitely still a boy, weighs about 5lbs 4oz and had a heartbeat of 155bpm. He is in the 34th percentile and right on track. I figured since I'm nearing my due date I might as well fill out a pregnancy questionair so, here it is:
How far along are you: 35 weeks
Total weight gain: 14lbs
Maternity clothes: yes
Food Cravings: peaches and mexican food
Labor signs: pressure in hips but no contractions or braxton hicks
Wedding ring on/off? On :)
Happy or Moody: I say pretty happy but Jordan might disagree
-I have noticed that my 'pregnancy brain' has been a lot worse this go 'round.
-We are pretty set on the name Creed Wheeler Allen
-Nesting hasn't quite set in yet but I think it's because I am in disbelief of how far along I am, and how fast this pregnancy has flown by!
-We still need to set up his nursery and pack our hospital bags

Baby Allen #3

This little one is 18 weeks old today. He/She is due October 21st, 2016 and we all couldn't be more excited!
Unfortunately, today we had a little bit of a scare. I had been bleeding foe about 24 hours so we decided to go to the doctor. We were told that it doesn't look like anything serious but I do need to be extra careful for the next couple of weeks. The blood supposedly came from a blood vessel on my placenta that had burst and was bleeding. We were all very happy to hear that nothing major was wrong. I am glad that my little baby is growing stronger every day!
Next week we get to do a 3d ultra sound and find out the gender. Jordan, Boston and I are wanting a boy. Kinzlie of coarse wants a little baby sister who she can name 'Krystilla'. Either way we are all just excited to meet our new addition in October.

Update

So every so often I get an inch to make a blog post and today is one of those times  :) I have decided to do a little update of our family, life, and what has been going on lately. 

Let's start with the man of the house, Jordan. He is currently working at Weber State doing some electrical work for CR lighting and Electric. He is currently applying for a new job at Herff Jones. His dad told him about the job a few weeks ago, he has turned in his resume and is now just waiting for the interview. I am hoping that he gets the job because it will be closer to home and he will be making more money. 

I am still a stay at home mom and loving it! I also work at Kohls a few days a week which is fun. Lately I have been trying to get all of our new schedules figured out so that we can start the new school year off with a bang!

Kinzlie is now 3 years old (46 months). She will be starting sunbeams, dance, music, and pre school this year. She is so excited and can hardly wait for all of her activities to start. She also loves to drive past her pre school and check it out. She loves performing and is always singing, dancing or attempting to play the piano. It's especially funny when she says ,"and now for the finale!!" She is so full of life and is such a little comedian. Kinzlie loves tellin jokes and playing with her my little pony toys. She is such a great big sister and loves helping momma with baby boston. 

Boston is now 1 1/2 (20 months). He will be starting nursery, and music class this fall. He does really well in nursery which makes my job a lot easier. This will be his second year in music class and he seemed to really enjoy it last year so I'm hoping it will go well this year too. He is such a funny kids and a quick little learner. He did resently get tested for a little speech delay but he tested average or above average in all areas of the test. He loves reading books and playing with his toy cars. He is also really good at throwing balls (and toys). Boston can say book, up, please stop, snack, momma, dadda, sissy, no, go, shoe, and hat. He is learning new words every day and we couldn't be prouder of him. 

Well that's all for out little family update. Hopefully it won't be too long before the next one :) 

P.S. This past month we also had to get rid of our family pet Korona. It was hard and we still miss her every day but I think she is doing better now with a family that has more time for her. 

Boston's First Roll

Today Boston rolled over for the first time!! I laid him on his belly for tummy time and he rolled from his belly to his back. So, when daddy came home I laid him on his belly to see if he would do it again and he did! I was even able to get a video of it :) I couldn't be happier!