Swallow Study II, glucose test

This morning Natalie had her swallow study. We're disappointed that she still aspirates thin liquids, but it wasn't entirely unexpected. The good news is with just a little thickening, she can drink liquids without aspirating, and she is staying healthy and gaining weight (although she still doesn't take enough liquids by mouth to remove the g-tube yet).

Lukas and Natalie slept in because we had a late night for them last night with some friends from the parenting class we took. Lukas had breakfast in the car (Cheerios out of a zip-loc bag) and Natalie had to be satisfied with a pacy because she didn't get food or drink before the swallow study to make sure she was hungry. She was hungry! Our appointment was at 8:30 but she didn't get seen until 9, so we were all ready for it to be over before it even started. It took about 10 minutes and Sarah told me the news when it was over. As I learned to say when she was having trouble gaining weight (before g-tube), "it is what it is." We all want our kids to do the best possible, but wanting that doesn't make it happen.

To add to our morning, I had to take the glucose screen this morning for my pregnancy since I have no other mornings free this week (the week in my pregnancy I needed to take the test) and afternoons are more difficult with the kids than mornings. My plan was to go to the blood-draw place, drink the dreaded sugar water sample, then feed Natalie while I waited an hour before I could have my blood drawn. But when we got to the lab, they said I didn't have the right test indicated on my paperwork, so we walked across the street to my OB's office and got the right paperwork. I asked the nurse if there was a lab in that building, and she said there was, so I checked it out on the way down, and thankfully the waiting room was much less crowded than the first one we went to, across the street. So it worked out much better...since the test requires that I wait an hour after drinking the liquid, a crowded waiting room is not a great place to be with two kids.

Lukas loves watching me have my blood drawn (he's had it done once for an allergy test and it was not fun). He always says, "I'll hold your hand, Mommy, and keep you safe." He wants to sit on my lap (Natalie is in the stroller) to make sure I'm ok, which is fine, as long as he doesn't bump me while the tech is sticking me! Hopefully I pass this glucose screening so I don't have to do that again! The first time I took the test when I was pregnant with Lukas, the whallop of sugar in that sugar drink gave me a buzz and headache the rest of the day...I was sure I hadn't passed the test, but I did. The next several times I've taken the test, it wasn't been as bad, so it must also be a mental preparation for the sugar rush that helps me survive. I think I calculated the amount of sugar and it's like drinking two Cokes in five minutes.