More Updates!

Well, where were we? Ah, yes...

The laundry: I didn't even have a chance to update you all yet and let you know our machines were finally fixed a week ago Friday when our dryer conked out again last Friday. Unbelievable. Same problem too (smoky smell in the barrel) so I'm assuming the part that makes the heat overloaded again. Our landlords have actually been very proactive during this process, which has been a refreshing change. Maybe they've been reading our blog. ; )

They are sending the guy who installed the dryer as well as hooked up the venting over on Monday to take a look at how things are venting and if there's a problem there. Makes sense since this is the third heating element that's died in a machine that isn't quite 4 years old. In the meantime we are using the dryer downstairs with our landlords' blessing, so no more clandestine trips to the basement after dark. Hopefully this will all be resolved soon, and I'm just so thankful it's summer so we can take advantage of drying things outside too – especially diapers. So far we've made it through this whole ordeal without having to pick up disposables.

Toothwatch 2010: Still waiting, but we are so close. There are some very pointy little bits just waiting to burst through for both Nate and Seth – I can't wait to see that first little flash of white on either. It's been a long wait.

Nate's Plagiocephaly (AKA Baby Flathead): I first wrote about this way back in April after we'd brought it up with our pediatrician. Although some cases are treated with a helmet, her advice to us was that 90% of plagio cases will resolve themselves if left completely untreated. She asked at the time if he was favoring a particular side (called torticollis) because this can actually be a sign of a serious medical problem, but fortunately not in our case. Our pedi gave us some literature at the time which recommended using a rolled up towel or blanket to reposition Nate, and we also bought his a sleep positioner for nighttime, both of which completely corrected the torticollis.

His head on the other hand, while showing some improvement in the past 4 months is still noticeably flat so we decided to follow up with another appointment last week just to make sure we're still on the right track. Our pedi again gave us the stats and said that most babies with a flat spot will have a round head by the time they reach toddlerhood and that a lot of changes happen once babies are sitting up, crawling and just generally moving around while upright more. But, you know, I'm a mama and it's my job to worry at least a little, especially when I hear scary news that severe plagiocephaly can cause problems with vision and hearing.

Nate's doctor was still very reluctant to recommend a visit to the specialist at Sick Kids though, and I got the impression that she finds that babies that go there end up with a helmet regardless of the severity of the problem, which if true is a shame since those helmets are custom made and very expensive – as in thousands of dollars expensive so it's not something you would want to invest in if you didn't absolutely have to. Instead she referred us to an osteopath and we have our first appt. with them on Tuesday. I'm not sure how the process works, but I'm very curious to see what they have to say and hopefully they can put some of my mama worries to rest. I'll keep you all posted.

Well, that was pretty wordy! I have a ton of pics sitting here waiting for me to write the posts that go with them, but I wanted to bring you all up to date on everything else first. I promise some fun stuff featuring the cutest babies EVER* is coming along shortly though! : )

- L.

*EVER in the whole world, at any place or any time EVER. I hope that covers it. *whew*