ECI and NG

Quite the tape job, but I really don't want that thing pulled out! So far, the crazy tape has been successful! Now, just to see if the extra feedings help him grow!

Initials that not everyone knows the significance of...

Today we finished all the paper work for Beckett to begin receiving Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) services. Beckett tested in roughly the 9 month old range across the board in development- communication slightly lower. This means he is delayed by about 8 months at this point...nearly 50% of his age. He has global developmental delays (GDD). As a child with Failure to Thrive (FTT), he automatically qualifies in our state to receive some services such as a dietitian, and after his comprehensive developmental evaluation, he will be seen once a week for 45 minutes in our home by a developmental specialist. They said that before they start occupational therapy (OT) and physical therapy (PT), he needed to gain some basic skills and attention. Basically, he needs to learn to play with a toy for a period of time, etc. And then we will go from there with another PT/OT evaluation.

He has been in speech therapy for several months now, and we are very pleased that he has moved all the way up to the 8 month level in communication. That is quite a big accomplishment from where he was at one year old. We are proud of his progress. The way ECI works is that if you receive services from another source, such as a private practice, then you cannot receive ECI. So you need to choose what you want to do and then actually "refuse" those particular services. So we did "refuse" the speech therapy that he quickly qualified for so that he can continue with his current speech language pathologist (SLP) at the private practice. He has made so much progress in his communication and oral motor skills and we are very thankful for that. Even ECI suggested that we continue with his private practice as it "better fits his needs at this time." A case manager will contact me next week to get all of this started.

This was a lot to take in, of course. I am thankful that he will be getting the help and support that he needs developmentally, but it is still difficult to hear.

Just as ECI was finishing up, the home health nurse came to check on Beckett. She was so pleased to see he hadn't pulled out his NG tube! Yay, Beckett! He actually doesn't even try. It's as if it is not there and does not bother him one bit, well, until you take his shirt off and he realizes there is a tube against his back. I am so thankful to report that he slept all night and "tolerated" his feed. This basically means that it did not make him sick. He gained .06 lbs from yesterday to today. The nurse will come gain tomorrow and weigh him and check his tube placement etc. After this week of 3 consecutive visits, the nurse will come once a week for at least 4 weeks. I am so thankful to have this support from nurses this go around. It takes A LOT of stress off of me as we learn about caring for the tube. This has made a very big difference for us between our last experience and this experience. I am definitely much calmer about it and feel much more confident.

Between speech therapy, the ECI meeting, and the home health nurse, Brant had a very long day himself! :) He was very ready to get to play and be silly when it was all over. He is quite the trooper of a big brother, and I am proud of him.

Thank you so much for praying for us during this time. It has been a stressful week, and I am so thankful for our heavenly Father who takes care of us all the time--including when we are outside of our comfort zone.

Thanks for checking on us!

~Kaylan