2005 Journals ~ Long Version

Tuesday, January 4, 2005 7:19 AM CST

Doctor has given clearance for the girls to come off their heart monitors. Also, they can start eating some baby food. They had squash last night. It was so funny watching each of them experience something new. Emily did not really like it, Madison was questioning it, and Alexa ate it, but didn't care whether it was good or not.

Have a great week,

Scott



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Saturday, January 15, 2005 10:42 PM CST

Not much new to talk about. Everyone is doing fine. The girls are still not sure what to think about baby food. They have tried various vegetables and fruits and they don't seem extremely interested yet, but we will keep trying. I think the idea is growing on them.

These are the stats as of the last doctor's visit on 1-3-05:
Emily was 12lbs 0.5oz and was 23 1/2in long.
Madison was 9lbs 11.5oz and was 22 3/8in long.
Alexa was 10lbs 14.0oz and was 22 1/2in long.

That's all for now. Will try to update again soon. Take care!!



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Saturday, February 5, 2005 11:03 PM CST

No big changes lately.

Emily holds her bottle now. All three girls are rolling all over the place. I fear Emily will crawl any day now. I don't have any recent weights to share with you, but when I do I will update.

Hope you enjoy the new pictures!



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Tuesday, February 15, 2005 10:58 PM CST

Not a good week at the Huffman household. Melissa has to have surgery again in March. There has been a lump under the incision from her appendectomy surgery and they have to do surgery again to remove whatever it is. (They think it is a pocket of blood that has hardened.)


As for the girls, the new weights are in....
Emily 12lbs 14oz
Alexa 12lbs 2oz
Madison 10lbs 7oz

This is not good news for Madison. We have been making adjustments to her formula to help her gain weight. It hasn't worked as well as we hoped. The doctor wants her to have tests done (bloodwork and urine) and once those results are back they want her to see a Gastroenterologist at Riley. The nutritionist I have been working with says that if we can't get her to eat better usually the next step is a feeding tube again. --NOT IF WE CAN HELP IT--

Madison does not fight her bottle the way she used to when she needed the feeding tube before...she just doesn't eat very much. We plan to give her some special attention during feedings and really work on increasing her volume.

Other than that, the girls are doing great. Alexa had a really nice weight gain this time and although Emily's weight gain wasn't that great we aren't worried about her for the moment.

We'll keep you posted...



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Thursday, February 24, 2005 1:28 PM CST

New weights as of Monday 2-21-05 are:

Emily 13lbs 3oz
Madison 10lbs 12oz
Alexa 12lbs 5oz

Madison had a real nice weight gain this week so maybe the changes to the formula will do the trick.

Mommy and daddy are trying to baby proof the house since Emily is very mobile now. She isn't crawling yet, but she is rocking back and forth on her knees and she rolls wherever she wants to go.

Nothing much else to report. The girls are doing great!



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Wednesday, March 2, 2005 1:37 PM CST

The girls got weighed again on Monday, but they weren't good. Alexa stayed the same and Madison and Emily both lost 2oz each. We think it was because the time before this, they were weighed after a feeding. (they didn't really gain as good as we thought they did last time. Anyway, we aren't worried about it. We just hope for a better weight next time.

Emily sits up really well now, as you can see in her picture on the next page. She may be crawling by the time I update the website again. Madison and Alexa are rolling around well, but aren't showing signs that they are ready to crawl yet.

Till next time....



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Wednesday, March 16, 2005 9:03 PM CST

The weights as of yesterday are:

Emily 13lbs 5oz
Madison 10lbs 15oz
Alexa 12lbs 13oz

Madison went to the gastroenterologist at Riley on Monday. They did a gastric emptying test on her to see if her food emptys from her stomach at a normal rate. According to the nurse, that test came back fine. Madison also has had various blood work done. All of that has come back fine so far, although they want us to take her back to have more blood drawn because they didn't have enough blood to run all the tests the doctor wanted. *Sigh*

The gastroenterologist said that if all her tests come back okay, he plans to leave her alone and we will assume that she will just be little. --As long as she's healthy, that's fine with us!!--

We were concerned the last few days because she has been showing signs of dehyration, however today she seems fine. Her doctor isn't concerned, but we will keep an eye on it. We don't want her back in the hospital if we can help it.

Emily and Alexa are doing great as always. They are both doing the army crawl. Emily is close to crawling properly, but Alexa just pulls herself around on her elbows.

Mommy had her surgery on Friday to remove the lump under her appendix scar. Surgery went well. They did not have to cut muscle to remove it, just the skin. The doctor wasn't sure what the lump was so they sent it off to be tested. Mommy was back home the same day and back to the same old routine before the night was out.

Daddy started a new job a couple weeks ago. Between home and work he is a busy man, but is doing well.

That's all for now...



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Wednesday, March 30, 2005 6:00 PM CST

New weights as of 3-29-05 are:

Emily 13lbs 12oz
Madison 11lbs 5oz
Alexa 13lbs 1oz

All is okay for the moment. Madison is sitting up on her own now. Emily is pulling up on things and trying to walk. Alexa cut her first tooth.

Things are busy, but we're having fun!



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Tuesday, April 12, 2005 9:41 AM CDT

Madison is responding well to the changes in her formula. We decreased the calories in the formula hoping that she would start drinking more and it is working really well.

Alexa cut another tooth. Emily and Madison still have no signs of teeth yet.

As you can see by the picture on the next page, Emily is standing now. She pulls up on anything she can get her hands on.


That's all for now.



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Tuesday, April 26, 2005 5:27 PM CDT

New weights as of this morning:

Emily 14 lbs 4 oz
Alexa 13 lbs 9 oz
Madison 11 lbs 11 oz

Emily is now walking along the couch and anything else she can get her hands on. Madison has begun trying to crawl. She army crawls when she really wants to, which right now isn't very often. Alexa is busy exploring everything with her hands. She loves to push buttons.

All is okay for the moment, so that's all for now.



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Friday, May 20, 2005 2:49 PM CDT

The girls were last weighed on 5-2-05.

Emily 14 lbs 4 oz
Madison 11 lbs 14 oz
Alexa 13 lbs 15 oz

The nurse won't be coming back to weigh them any more now that they no longer need Synagis shots and now that Madison is eating better. The doctor mentioned that he might want me to bring Madison into the office every couple weeks to be weighed, but I am trying to get insurance to approve the home care company to loan me an infant scale so I can weigh them at home and just report the weights to the doctor. (That would be much easier than me dragging all 3 girls to the doctor and cheaper on the insurance company too)

Emily and Alexa are scheduled for surgery on their eyes August 12th. They both have drainage problems with their eyes and have since birth. Now because of that, they are getting eye infections frequently. (Emily has only gone a few days without an infection since March). The surgery is apparently fairly routine, although I am not looking forward to it. They will put the girls asleep and then probe their tear ducts with small steel wire. If the blockage is bad, then they will put a stent in the tear duct to keep it open. If that happens, they will have to go back some time later to have the stents removed. FUN!!

Madison is crawling around the house much better now. She and Emily still don't have any teeth yet, and Alexa still just has two. Alexa is pulling herself up now and is frequently standing in her crib when I go to get her.

All three girls have been babbling for some time now however it seems 'da da' is the only thing they remember how to say for the moment.

Hope things are well for everyone. Until next time...



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Friday, June 3, 2005 10:44 PM CDT

We got the infant scales from the insurance company, and although it wasn't easy I did manage to weigh them. Their most recent weights as of 5-23-05 are:

Emily 14 lbs 14 oz
Madison 12 lbs 4 oz
Alexa 14 lbs 12 oz

We took them to get their pictures taken a few weeks ago (as you can see by the pictures) and boy is that fun! It isn't easy to try to get all three girls to look at the camera at the same time, and forget about getting them all to smile at the camera at the same time.

Madison has now started clapping. It's so cute. Emily has figured out how to crawl behind the couch, which isn't fun since mommy can't crawl behind the couch and it's far too heavy to move without daddy's help. Alexa has learned to shake her head 'no'. She thinks it's funny, and I would have to agree with her most of the time.

That's all for now...


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Sunday, June 12, 2005 2:25 PM CDT

It's been a long week. The girls have been to see their pediatrician twice this week and were at the hospital last night as well.

They starting running fevers last Sunday. The doctor found no ear infections and no congestion so he said it must be a virus. By Thursday they still had fevers and Emily and Alexa had coughs. Madison had foul smelling urine.

Friday, the doctor didn't find anything wrong with Alexa or Emily, but they tested some of Madison's urine and they think that she has a Urinary Tract Infection. They sent the urine off to the lab for a culture and we should know something on Monday. In the mean time she is on antibiotics. If it is a UTI then she will have to go to Riley for a whole bunch of tests. Apparently a UTI in kids this young is not taken lightly because it can cause permanent kidney damage.

After talking to the on call nurse at our doctors office yesterday, she told us we needed to take Emily and Alexa to the emergency room and get them checked out. Emily was wheezing and was having chest retractions. Alexa had only taken about 8 oz of milk all day long, she was a lot less active, and her eyelids were looking purplish and they feared that she might be dehydrated. The hospital visit proved to be a waste of time because they looked them over and said again that it was just a virus and that we should wait it out another 5-7 days.

Today, our normally bubbly happy Alexa just lays on the floor not moving. She won't play, doesn't want to smile, doesn't want to eat...all she wants to do is sleep or be held. Emily and Alexa still have a yucky cough and runny noses. Other than the cough and occasional wheezing, Emily doesn't seem to be feeling too bad, just more tired than normal. Madison's antibiotics seem to be doing the job. She is acting much better today...better than she has been for quite a while.

We'll update when we can.



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Thursday, June 16, 2005 2:20 PM CDT

The girls are still sick. Madison does have a UTI. Emily and Alexa still have a yucky cough and runny noses. No one is getting much sleep in our house.

The girls go for their 1yr checkup in a couple weeks. By that time Madison will have finished her antibiotics and they will set up whatever tests she will need to have to be sure she does not have kidney damage or other bladder/urinary problems.

On a happier side of things, Alexa cut her 3rd tooth. (Emily and Madison still have none). Emily has begun standing while not holding on to something for a short period of time. (Oh no, walking is just around the corner!) Madison is desperately trying to pull herself up into a standing position and has almost figured it out.

Can you believe that they will be 1 year old in 11 days?!?



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Monday, June 27, 2005 10:43 AM CDT

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! The girls are 1 yr old today.

It doesn't seem possible...they can't be a year old already. Things sure are very different today than they were a year ago.

The girls had a great time at their birthday party on Saturday. They got to enjoy visiting friends and family, get messy with cake and ice cream, and play with lots of new toys. They were so exhausted. They have never slept so good in the van as they did on the way home from the party.

Thank you again to all of the family and friends that celebrated with us. I feel like I didn't get to talk to or see almost anyone at the party except to say hello and goodbye. Things were pretty busy!

It was such a hot weekend that the girls got to try something new...the pool. They love being in the pool. Our only problem now is that they would rather be let loose in the pool instead of being in their floaties.

The girls go to their pediatrician today, so hopefully next time I update I can give some new weights and heights.

Until then...



**UPDATE** Tuesday, June 28, 2005


----------------Weights----------Heights-----------
Emily---------15 lbs 5 oz-----26 1/2 inches
Alexa---------15 lbs 1 oz-----26 1/2 inches
Madison-----12 lbs 14 oz----26 inches

They think Madison still has the UTI. They have to do another culture and we should know something in a couple days. She will still need to go for a renal ultrasound and cystourogram, but those cannot be done until the infection is gone.



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Tuesday, July 5, 2005 10:16 PM CDT


Lots of little updates to give...

Emily took a couple unassisted steps today! Alexa now has 6 teeth. Emily and Madison still have none.

We found out that Alexa is severly allergic to peanuts. She had a little taste off of daddy's finger and almost immediately started vomiting, broke out into hives and her right eye was swelling shut. She went to the allergist last week for testing and she is officially allergic to peanuts. We now have to carry an epi-pen with us and benadryl in case she comes into contact with it again.

Madison is scheduled to go to the hospital Thursday for a kidney ultrasound and a test where they will put a catheter in and push dye through the catheter to check out her urinary system. Her culture last week showed that she no longer has a UTI, however today she started running a fever again so I don't know.

First steps is now getting a nutritionist involved with Madison and Alexa. (Emily didn't qualify for First Steps when she came home from the hospital). According to the nutritionists report, Madison weighs the equivalent of a 3 1/2 month old girl. Alexa weighs the equivalent of a 4 month old girl. (I knew they were small, but WOW!!)

The girls got to see fireworks this past weekend and believe it or not, they liked them. They didn't cry at all...until the fireworks ended.

That's all for now...take care!!



*************UPDATE on Madison**********
Thu 7/7/05 1:30 PM

Madison had her tests today. They wouldn't tell me the results of the kidney ultrasound until a doctor had a chance to look at it. The other test shows that she has kidney reflux. This means that urine flows back up to her kidneys, and it isn't supposed to do that. They haven't given me much information yet, and I doubt they will until the doctor has had a chance to review all the tests. From what I can find on the internet, kids with this problem either grow out of it, or will need surgery. It usually depends on the severity of the reflux.

It's serious stuff because the reflux puts pressure on the kidneys that they are not built to handle, and it provides an opening for bacteria to travel further up into the body. It can produce scarring of the kidneys, high blood pressure, poor growth, and kidney failure.

Will keep you posted as information is received.

Thanks.



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Tuesday, August 2, 2005 9:48 AM CDT

Madison saw the urologist last Friday. Her kidney reflux is only about a grade 3 (which is middle severity on the scale of 1 to 5) therefore the doctor wants to try to let her outgrow it. She will have to take an antibiotic every day to prevent infections until the reflux is gone (usually between 5-7 yrs of age). If she starts getting UTI's again or if further complications arise, then they will talk about surgery to correct the reflux so that kidney damage will not occur. So far, she does not appear to have kidney damage. She will have to repeat the tests in 6 months and then every year after that to monitor the reflux.

The doctor also wants to have Alexa and Emily tested for kidney reflux because there is a 30hance that they could have it also. The testing procedures are not at all fun, so this is not something we are looking forward to. (No date has been set yet for the testing).

The most recent stats (as of 7/19/05) are:
Emily......15 lbs 13 oz......27" long
Alexa......15 lbs 11 oz......27 3/4" long
Madison....13 lbs 6 oz.......26" long


Emily and Alexa are scheduled to have their surgery on their eyes (to probe their tear ducts) on Aug 12th. They will be asleep for the procedure and will get to come home the same day.

That's all for now...



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Monday, August 8, 2005 9:48 AM CDT

This is going to be a busy week. Emily and Alexa are scheduled to have their tests for kidney reflux tomorrow. This will not be a pleasant experience for them. (or Mommy or Daddy for that matter).

If that wasn't enough for one week, Emily and Alexa are also going to have the surgery on their eyes on Friday.

For once, Madison is the one that gets to tag along but won't have any procedures to deal with. Lucky her!

The girls went to their first carnival last night. They enjoyed being strolled around looking at all the people. They went on a carousel ride (see picture on photo page) and although Emily looked scared out of her mind at first, I think they all enjoyed the ride. (Madison was still happily bucking her horse after the ride was over.)

Also, check out JET's website (link below). On his photo page, there are some cute pictures of him and the girls at their last playdate together.

We'll keep you posted how the tests and the surgery goes this week. Have a good one!!


***********UPDATE*************
Tuesday, August 9, 2005
***********UPDATE*************

Emily and Alexa had their tests today. They both have kidney reflux too. Emily has a grade 5 reflux in her left kidney and about a grade 2 or 3 reflux in her right kidney. Alexa has grade 2 or 3 reflux in both kidneys. (Madison also has a grade 2 or 3 reflux in both kidneys.)

We haven't talked to the urologist yet, so we don't know what they will say about Emily's grade 5 reflux, but I assume they will take the same plan of attack with Alexa that they did with Madison. (She would take an antibiotic every day until she outgrows the reflux).

We are trying to prepare ourselves mentally for the doctor to suggest surgery to correct Emily's reflux. The information I found online mentioned that grade 5 reflux is usually successfully treated only with surgery.

We'll keep you posted.



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Saturday, August 20, 2005 10:46 PM CDT

The eye surgery for Emily and Alexa went fine. They did not have to put stents in either of the girls' eyes. Hopefully this took care of their tear duct problem and we won't have to worry about it anymore.

We are scheduled to see the pediatric urologist this Friday to find out what the plan is now that we know that Emily and Alexa have the kidney reflux too.

I'm guessing Emily is just days away from walking. She took 4 unassisted steps yesterday and is getting more courageous by the minute. Alexa is now free standing briefly and has taken one unassisted step, so she won't be far behind. Madison is showing interest, but I haven't seen her free stand or take an unassisted step....yet.

We'll update some more next week when we have more news...



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Monday, August 29, 2005 10:19 AM CDT

The urologist appointment Friday pretty much went as expected. Emily and Alexa have been put on a daily antibiotic like Madison. As we expected, Emily WILL HAVE TO HAVE SURGERY because hers is more severe than her sisters.

Emily has a grade 5 reflux in her left kidney and a grade 2 or 3 in her right. Madison and Alexa have grade 2 or 3 reflux in both kidneys. For a better understanding of their reflux and the grades involved, check out this website:

http://www.pedisurg.com/PtEduc/Vesicoureteral_Reflux.htm

Emily has to go back for a renal scan to see how badly her kidneys have been damaged already. That is scheduled for the 9th. She won't have surgery until she is around 2 yrs old because they want to give time for her bladder to grow more which will give a better chance that the procedure will be successful.

Their most recent weights/heights are:

Emily.........16 lbs 6 oz.........27 3/4 in
Alexa.........16 lbs...............28 in
Madison.....13 lbs 15 oz........27 1/4 in


On a happier note, Emily finally cut her first tooth!


We'll keep you posted on any new info.



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Wednesday, September 14, 2005 10:40 PM CDT

Emily's appointment with the Urologist was draining. The procedure was horrible. They had to tape her to the table, place a catheter and put an IV in her foot. She screamed the entire time. And to make it worse they had to stick her 3 different times to try to get the IV in. Once that was all over with she had to lay there taped to the table for about an hour while the test ran. Luckily she slept for part of it, but I hope we never have to do that again!

The procedure they did was to check for possible damage to the kidneys, and it came back good. They said both kidneys are funtioning well and there doesn't appear to be any major damage at this time. (She will still have to have surgery though). For now, we will keep giving the girls their daily antibiotic and we will take them all back for another ultrasound of their kidneys in January.

Alexa and Emily went back to the eye doctor today for the follow up appointment from their tear duct surgery. He said that Alexa looked pretty good, but Emily may need to have the surgery done again. Her left eye is especially concerning because it keeps matting shut when she sleeps. Both eyes still have more drainage than they should. The doctor wants to wait a few months and see how she does. If things aren't better by her appointment in February, they may want to schedule another surgery and this time they might put the stent tubes in.

The girls have had a busy week. Alexa cut another tooth. She now has 8. Emily cut her 2nd tooth, and Madison cut her 1st tooth! Madison also took her first step yesterday.

Things are pretty good for the moment. We'll keep you posted.



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Tuesday, September 27, 2005 2:35 PM CDT

The girls went to the pediatrician yesterday for their 15 month check up. They got shots - yuck!! Other than the shots, the visit went okay.

The doctor wants Madison to be seen by the gastroenterologist at Riley...AGAIN! She is no where near being on the growth charts for her age (or her adjusted age for that matter) and he wants the gastroenterologist to review her again and make sure there isn't any underlying reason why she isn't gaining weight properly. She just saw the GI doctor in March and he told us then that if all her tests came back okay then he would release her and she would "just be little". Since all of her tests came back okay, and the GI doctor didn't need us to come back for her follow up appointment in May, I assumed we were done with this mess. She will go back to see him again on Oct 10th.


New weights and lengths as of yesterday:

Emily...........17 lbs 12 oz.....27 1/4 inches
Alexa..........17 lbs 6 oz......27 1/4 inches
Madison.....14 lbs 15 oz.....27 inches


It took forever for Madison and Emily to start cutting teeth, but now they are on a roll!! Madison now has 4 teeth and Emily has 3. Alexa still has 8.

No one is officially walking yet, although Emily will take many steps before she falls and Madison is free standing a lot and will take a couple steps. Alexa wants to walk, but for the moment it's mostly only if you hold her hand.

That's all for now...




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Friday, October 14, 2005 10:23 AM CDT

Madison went to the gastroentereologist on Monday. So far so good. He wants us to keep a food diary of everything we feed her for a week and send it to him. He will have it evaluated to see if she is getting enough calories to gain weight properly. If she isn't getting enough calories, then we will figure out new ways to increase her calories. If she is getting enough calories, but still isn't gaining enough weight, then she will have to have more tests to see why.

On a more positive note, I would have to say Emily is officially walking. She's still a little wobbly, but she tends to walk more now than she crawls. Madison isn't far behind either. She will take 3 or 4 steps before she falls and is doing a lot on her own without prodding. Alexa is now taking a few steps as well, however she doesn't do anything at a slow pace. When she stands up to walk, it's more like running so she only gets a couple steps before she hits the floor.

Things are pretty good for the moment. Not much else to say. Have a great day!



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Wednesday, November 2, 2005 1:27 PM CST

What a difference a couple weeks makes! My last journal entry said that Alexa wasn't walking as well as the others, but now she is walking better than Emily or Madison! All 3 girls walk pretty well now.

The girls are a little sick right now, so that's not fun. It's just a little cold (hopefully) and they should be better in a couple days.

The girls went to a Halloween party for triplets a couple weeks ago. I don't think they knew what to think with all the other kids running around. (Ours were pretty much the youngest at the party). They had a good time though.

It's hard to believe that this time last year we were just getting rid of their feeding tubes, and Mommy was having her appendix taken out. Things were a lot more complicated last year.

Holidays are just around the corner! Yea!! Our favorite time of year. That's all for now...




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Monday, December 5, 2005 10:02 AM CST


The girls have been sick off and on for over a month now. Hopefully they will be well soon.

They are learning sign language now. They know "more" and "eat" and "all done".

Madison recently learned to fake sneeze, and she is so cute when she does it. Alexa learns more words every day. Now she knows how to say "what's that?". Emily is cutting another tooth, so all she wants right now is to be held a lot. (Plus she just had an ear infection and pink eye).

Things are okay for the moment. Will try to update again soon with some Christmas pictures.

Happy Holidays!!



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Thursday, December 22, 2005 3:46 PM CST


The girls went to see Santa for the first time. They weren't real sure what to think, and they may have even been a little scared, but no one cried and we got a few cute pictures out of it. (see more on the photo page)

They have learned a few new words recently. Alexa now says "no, no" right before she does something she isn't supposed to do. Madison points to Santa Clause and very dramatically says "ho, ho".

The nutritionist weighed and measured them earlier this week:

Emily.......17 lbs 15 oz.......29 1/4 in
Alexa.......17 lbs 6 oz........29 3/4 in
Madison....15 lbs 4 oz........28 3/4 in

They're still small, but still growing!

Happy Holidays!!