Fam Update

I just realized that I haven't posted anything in a long time that has really been going on in our family. A while ago I started noticing that James has been increasingly tired and lethargic. I didn't really think it was anything until it wouldn't go away. He has been agitated, irritable, and chronically fatigued. I thought maybe he had mono or an elusive infection of some kind so I took him to our family practitioner. The doc examined him and couldn't find anything outwardly wrong with him so he ordered a blood draw and then referred us to a pediatric cardiologist after he detected a normal-sounding murmur.
His blood work came back normal according to our family physician.
A few days later James was complaining about a tooth that he has had worked on before and I thought immediately that that must be the root of his problems. I took him to the dentist on Monday and the dentist was very pleased with the way his tooth looked and didn't even charge us for the visit but called it a "follow-up" appointment (best dentist ever!). I left with mixed emotions. I was certainly happy that his tooth was fine and no more work was required but I was also wondering what was wrong with him.
We also met with the cardiologist on Monday and an ultrasound of his heart was conducted. She said the murmur that our family physician had heard was a thickening of his aortic valve that makes a strange sound when his heart pumps. She said that at this time it isn't restricting blood flow but it will need to be checked every two years or so as he grows as it will continue to thicken as stiffen with age. She said the likelihood of it ever restricting blood flow is fairly small which is good. However, she wants to monitor his heart for 24 hours (EKG) this Friday just to make sure his heart impulses are "firing" correctly.
She also said that his thyroid levels on his blood test were borderline low and they will recheck in a month to make sure that he really is a little low on TSH and not just some fluke. This diagnosis makes the most sense to me. Thyroid problems run rampant in my family including myself, my father, and my brother. It would also explain his chronic fatigue and somewhat restless sleep. Although a hypothyroid person my feel fatigued all of the time, it actually inhibits sleep. I can personally testify to that. However, I guess we will see what the second test reveals. Although I would never wish that diagnosis on my child, I'm hoping that's what the problem is-- it's easy to treat, it's not life-threatening, and it would finally explain why my little man is so, so tired all of the time.

As for Ruby, we moved her into James' room which has helped with bedtime immensely. I no longer have to lay down with James while he goes to sleep which I actually didn't mind because it only took about 5-10 minutes. It has also helped with James not getting up in the night to come into our room. I guess he was just lonely and scared and wanted a little company. Ruby has adjusted well to the change and I think it has sort of brought them closer together. They have been playing more together the last few days.
Ruby is growing so fast and has transformed from a baby into a little girl seemingly overnight. She ends many of her sentences with, "right, mom?" or "right, James?" It's pretty adorable. She is like her mom in that she loves to make people laugh. She's always making these crazy faces with her eyes rolled back in her head and then she laughs and laughs. She seems much more carefree than James.
Adam started working nights I think two weeks ago now? Something like that. It's been pretty sucky adjusting to the new schedule. I know the kids miss him and I feel like I never see him. I have felt like a single parent since he started this new shift. I'm grateful he has a job but I really hope it's just temporary until something better comes along.