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He will be going mid December to a surgeon in Charlotte, and we are
praying that this surgeon will be the right one to treat Silas's back.
Silas has been through a lot in his little life, and we are earnestly praying
for direction and wisdom to know the best treatment for him. His curve is
approximately 65 degrees, and he is reaching an age where something
will need to be done soon, but there seem to be as many opinions on
what to do as there are doctors. It would be very beneficial for him to gain
weight before having surgery, but for three years we have been trying to
put some weight on him with little success. For every pound he gains he
seems to grow a couple inches to compensate! We were very happy and
thankful to find today that he had gained two pounds since his doctor's
visit three months ago (and grew half an inch). Considering that he has
only gained slightly more than ten pounds in the three years he has been
with us, gaining two pounds in three months is a huge amount! We have
also been experimenting with some changes in his diet which might just
be working.
praying that this surgeon will be the right one to treat Silas's back.
Silas has been through a lot in his little life, and we are earnestly praying
for direction and wisdom to know the best treatment for him. His curve is
approximately 65 degrees, and he is reaching an age where something
will need to be done soon, but there seem to be as many opinions on
what to do as there are doctors. It would be very beneficial for him to gain
weight before having surgery, but for three years we have been trying to
put some weight on him with little success. For every pound he gains he
seems to grow a couple inches to compensate! We were very happy and
thankful to find today that he had gained two pounds since his doctor's
visit three months ago (and grew half an inch). Considering that he has
only gained slightly more than ten pounds in the three years he has been
with us, gaining two pounds in three months is a huge amount! We have
also been experimenting with some changes in his diet which might just
be working.
Silas loves: - Maggie - Legos - his bottle cap collection - swimming - riding his bike - spaghetti - sitting by the fire - watching movies - to ask a lot of questions - Spiderman - cars - music - memorizing lyrics - collecting things - gummies - dancing - Silas does not like: - to eat - to be messy - change - new things - being too cold or hot - bright sun - |
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Silas faces some other challenges too. After he had been home
with us for a year or so, we began to suspect there might be some
behavioral issues beyond just the normal bonding and
institutional delays. He was finally given a preliminary diagnosis
of Asperger's syndrome, which is on the Autistic spectrum, and he
has been accepted into the University of NC's TEACCH program
to assess him further, which unfortunately has a very long wait list.
But we have learned a lot about our little guy over the past years
he has been with us, and simply understanding him better, and
what situations cause him to have problems, has been
invaluable. He is really doing very well, and participates in various
social situations such as gymnastics, Sunday School, and Awana
Sparks program. He has learned many better ways of handling
difficult situations.
Silas is an absolutely delightful little boy! Every day we are
learning more things that are endearing about his unique
personality. I often think he reminds me of Simon the Chipmunk.
He has a great vocabulary and impressive memory, and often
says things that seem precocious. He has a great sense of
humor, which often surprises me. He asks a lot of questions, and
loves music. He only needs to hear a song once or twice, and
we'll hear him singing it word for word while he is playing. He is a
great dancer, and likes to try to break dance. He likes swimming
and riding his bike. He loves all his brothers and sisters, but has
a special bond with Maggie. When we brought home Isaac this
past May, Silas adjusted to his new brother seamlessly. He loves
Legos and his bottle cap collection, and has a large collection of
all sorts of special things that he keeps in his room. He has the
softest skin of anyone I have ever felt. He loves to be tickled, and
is quite affectionate. He is not very fond of eating, but when he
does eat, spaghetti is his favorite thing. He has been pretty fragile
over the time we have known him, but over the past few months
he has really been making great strides, getting braver and
stronger. He is an amazing, funny, sweet, and endearing little
boy who is loved very much!!
with us for a year or so, we began to suspect there might be some
behavioral issues beyond just the normal bonding and
institutional delays. He was finally given a preliminary diagnosis
of Asperger's syndrome, which is on the Autistic spectrum, and he
has been accepted into the University of NC's TEACCH program
to assess him further, which unfortunately has a very long wait list.
But we have learned a lot about our little guy over the past years
he has been with us, and simply understanding him better, and
what situations cause him to have problems, has been
invaluable. He is really doing very well, and participates in various
social situations such as gymnastics, Sunday School, and Awana
Sparks program. He has learned many better ways of handling
difficult situations.
Silas is an absolutely delightful little boy! Every day we are
learning more things that are endearing about his unique
personality. I often think he reminds me of Simon the Chipmunk.
He has a great vocabulary and impressive memory, and often
says things that seem precocious. He has a great sense of
humor, which often surprises me. He asks a lot of questions, and
loves music. He only needs to hear a song once or twice, and
we'll hear him singing it word for word while he is playing. He is a
great dancer, and likes to try to break dance. He likes swimming
and riding his bike. He loves all his brothers and sisters, but has
a special bond with Maggie. When we brought home Isaac this
past May, Silas adjusted to his new brother seamlessly. He loves
Legos and his bottle cap collection, and has a large collection of
all sorts of special things that he keeps in his room. He has the
softest skin of anyone I have ever felt. He loves to be tickled, and
is quite affectionate. He is not very fond of eating, but when he
does eat, spaghetti is his favorite thing. He has been pretty fragile
over the time we have known him, but over the past few months
he has really been making great strides, getting braver and
stronger. He is an amazing, funny, sweet, and endearing little
boy who is loved very much!!
Older pictures of
Sweet Si...
Sweet Si...
Silas is five years old, and three months
younger than Maggie. To read about how
Silas joined our family, click on the "Our
Journey to Silas" link to the left.
Silas has scoliosis, and missing ribs.
Silas was being considered for a new
procedure to correct scoliosis in children
called the Shilla procedure, which is only
done at the Little Rock Children's Hospital
in Arkansas. We were pursuing this, but
for various reasons we have decided to
have Silas seen by another surgeon for a
second opinion.
younger than Maggie. To read about how
Silas joined our family, click on the "Our
Journey to Silas" link to the left.
Silas has scoliosis, and missing ribs.
Silas was being considered for a new
procedure to correct scoliosis in children
called the Shilla procedure, which is only
done at the Little Rock Children's Hospital
in Arkansas. We were pursuing this, but
for various reasons we have decided to
have Silas seen by another surgeon for a
second opinion.
