Jake's Update December 31, 2009 8:57pm

Hi to all and my apologies to those of you who have been waiting for an update for such a long time. I sometimes get a bit on over load, and I've been there since we came home from the hospital.

I will first start by saying that Jake is doing awesome! Since we came home from the hospital, his surgery site has healed, and it's like we have a new little boy running around here! This is what we have seen in a little over a month:

Jake has chubby cheeks! He's bulking up :0) and had put on over 2 pounds in a little over a month since he has been home. That's more than he has gained in over a year and a half. His cheeks are pink, he has energy like we have never seen before, and we always thought he was a big talker before, but we were mistaken. He is an utter and complete motor mouth. He never shuts up. His speech clarity has improved dramatically and he is still only wearing one hearing aid. He is a big mouth and the biggest instigator in the house and we love it. (Seems he may have a bit of his Momma in him?)

Jake has been very excited to tell everyone who asks that his big ear is better and the hurt is gone. When he returned to preschool, he greeted every single teacher with a hug and each student-friend the same, one by one. He had his first play in snow EVER! It's nice to have a healthy and pain free Jake.

"The Plan" so to speak has been on the move since we returned home. The only goal we have right now is making sure that Jake stays healthy and infection free until he can get his next surgery. He is on a strong antibiotic again right now to clear up a new sinus infection and we need to keep his head and ears clear so we keep praying so that he can heal on the inside and not have to rush into another operation too quickly.

After Jake's one week follow up with his ENT team at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia we are consulting with expert surgeons in the field of Atresia Repair, as we were before his emergency surgery. There are two that we are considering, one in California that we were quite sure that we would have perform Jake's surgery. The second is in Virginia. I was always under the impression that this doctor was never a clear option for us because I was under the assumption that he only dealt with children older.

I thankfully have had much help and guidance from an angel of a woman who I call friend out in California. She has been a savior to me in making sure that my head stays clear and filled with facts and this has helped me stay on a clear course in getting many questions answered.

The doctor in California has given us some information and would like to have a copy of a new CT scan sent to him which we are scheduling

We are consulting with the doctor in Virginia soon. We leave on the 7th of January and return on the 9th or 10th. Hopefully we will have more clarity to the plan and I will post right away with any new news. What we know now is that Jake's inner ear needs to stay healthy and the only way that can happen is to get that ear canal opened and that needs to be done by a genius in this field. We have to just choose between the two we know. We already love the doctor in California and our "people" out there. Being East Coast dwellers, we have to explore the possibility of surgery in Virginia also. Being a family of 6, six hours by car is more do-able than 2 by car, then 6 by plane but not at all a reason to choose a surgeon. We will get our consultations and get rolling with the plan.

I will be taking this trip to "Virginny" with our beloved Captain Nanny. For those of you not in the loop, Captain Nanny is Paul's Grandmother on the Whitenight side of the family. When she originally found out that I would be traveling solo with Jake, she offered to come along. Now we will take to the road Thelma and Louise style. Not being alone is huge. Getting special time with the Captain is even bigger.

I will end by saying that I am a show me the facts kind of girl. That IS fact, but there is something about the way I was told "you need to bring him to me" that is gnawing at my gut feeling. Virginny, here we come.