More than a Tumor: October 2015

Looking back to the fall of 2015, it's nice to recognize that life was normal. Well, whatever that is. ;) Typical "life" things happened...I was able to get away, spend a weekend with friends, and see my first (I know, finally!) hockey and football games in person. They were both worth the wait and the time spent with friends is always well spent. The boys and I were able to spend a day in CT with my family pumpkin picking and general fall activities. Those days don't come around enough and we just try to soak them all in. The boys love being around their Grandma, aunts, and cousins in CT. The boys also went trick-or-treating with Ben being a ninja and Nate being Pete the Cat (again!).

October did bring a slightly scary time for Nate. After having his yearly well-check with the pediatrician, it was observed that his growth on the chart was off from previous measurements. His percentages for height dropped to the 7th percentile and his percentile for weight dropped 30 points (now to the 40th). In simpler terms, he wasn't growing and hadn't gained weight in over a year. Ahh...another thing to be concerned with. So, the doctor ordered some bloodwork which I decided to do the next day because I knew it would be traumatic for him as he had always been sedated for bloodwork.

I brought him in the next afternoon and boy, did he let them know he was there! Haha! He was not a happy camper, despite my attempts at bribing him with the iPad, M&M's, and a trip to the toy store. Nope, I'm not ashamed of bribing. Whatever works! :) Benjamin was with us too and I felt so sad that he had to watch his brother go through another test. But, as always, he was the king of encouragement. They have such a sweet bond.

It took forever for the results to come back (close to 10 days). At first, I got a phone call that the results came back "normal." Come to find out, those "normal" results were for his thyroid level and some other tests. I got a phone call a few days later that what didn't come back normal were his numbers for different immunoglobulin levels as well as his levels for some of the vaccinations that he's had. So, guess what that meant? More blood work for Nate. Yeah! (insert sarcasm)

I took him the next day to finish off the blood work. He did slightly better the second time around which everyone in the office appreciated. Thankfully, all of the nurses there are wonderful with him. So, after a little more waiting, it was found that his IgA level is on the low side. The test results were sent to and reviewed by his team in Boston. We were told that it isn't something too concerning for him and that the blood work will be reviewed on an annual basis now that it was found. (What is IgA deficiency?)