Beaudrick Update

Last Wednesday we took Beaudrick to his cleft lip/palate meeting with a panel of doctors. We met with an Orthodontist, an ENT, Three Plastic Surgeons, a Dietitian, a RN, a Speech Therapist, and a Periodontist. We were disappointed to find out that Beaudrick will not have his first surgery until he is 3-6 months gestationally corrected, which is 4-7 months old. We were originally told he would have the surgery once he reached 10 lbs. His plastic surgeon said that with recent studies, it is better to wait until the baby is a tad bit older since their skin is so thin and soft. There is a "window of opportunity" in newborns between 3-6 months old where the scaring is almost null. He said if you do the surgery too early, the skin is fragile, it could pull apart and leave a bigger scar. If you do the surgery too late, the scaring tends to become darker and more noticeable. If the surgery is done between 3-6 months, it is possible the scar wont even be noticeable. The surgeon is the best in this field, and came highly recommended by a few doctor and dental friends. He was also highly recommended by a woman who works daily with parents of cleft palate/lip children. She has seen hundreds of lip repairs and said none comes close to the work of our surgeon. She said "he is the best". Because of this, I truly trust his judgment and will patiently wait until the Fall for the surgery.
Every time I go to church, I miss my baby. I will begin taking him to church in June once the RSV and flu season has passed and after he has had his first set of immunizations. Once he gets closer to his big surgery date, we will keep him home again to make double sure he does not get sick.
Beaudrick now weighs 7lbs 15oz. He is still such a tiny little guy. We all LOVE to hold him. Seylum didn't learn to walk until she was 14 months old. This had to do with being held all the time. I wouldn't be surprised if Beaudrick doesn't walk until he is 2. The princesses are so good with him. Seylum loves to rub and kiss his head. She is very gentle with him. But she is sure to get tons of attention herself. She makes sure of it, one way or another. She keeps us in stitches. Her personality has really came out since Beaudrick came home. She will always be our baby girl. I cant wait to watch Beaudrick grow up with these girly girls. :) I will have to post pictures of what happens when daddy falls asleep and the girls want to play "hair salon" LOL. Poor Beaudrick, his baby scar will soon be the least of his worries :)