Cutter Update! :)

Just a little Cutter update! Things have been busy around the Greene household! Cutter is in preschool five days a week all day long. He is doing great. His teachers are very happy with how much he has progressed since June! He loves preschool! He is starting to write a couple of letters and is counting and sorting and matching.....all things that he has not been able to do before! We are amazed at the conversations that we are able to have with Cutter now. He makes jokes and can answer questions. He truly is growing up before our eyes!!! Every week he does something new. He loves his new little brother, Ryder and loves to play pretend with Maverick. He recently started horseback riding again with the students at his school. He absolutely loves horseback riding and the fun activities they do there. We are so thankful that he has this opportunity! Cutter has been seizure free for one year, six months, 1 week and 2 days! Praise the Lord!!! We are continually in awe of all He has done for us and for Cutter. Again, we thank you for your prayers and support!!!

Cutter had a wonderful summer! We were able to get most of his therapy building completed. He loves it! Maverick does, too!

He started preschool last Thursday and had a wonderful first day. We are so excited about what all he will learn this year. He will be going every day all day. We know he will make incredible progress!

Cutter became a big brother again last Tuesday to a sweet little boy named Ryder. He is in love with him and is such a big help!

Lastly, today was Cutter's last dose of Dilantin!!!! The weaning process is complete! This is a huge Milestone for Cutter! He is still seizure free, and we are so thankful for this blessing! Thank you all for your continued prayers and support!

It's Here!!! One Year!!!

Praising God today for His many blessings! 365 days of seizure freedom for my little bug. He has no idea what today is or what it means. He has no idea he had two major brain surgeries. And I am totally okay with that. When he is old enough to understand we will make sure he knows how important this was in his life and who we all give credit to. I absolutely can't wait to call his doctors today! They are going to be thrilled! Through the past four years I have not always been able to stay on the mountain and rejoice, but if weren't for the times in the valley I couldn't rejoice as loudly as I can today! Again I thank you for your support. If you see me crying today they are happy tears! (And I'm four months pregnant so my emotions are all over the places!) Have a great Friday!

March 20, 2013 (a look back)

Whew. When I think about where I was and what I was doing this time last year I am overwhelmed with feelings of blessing, grace and relief. This time last year Cutter was in recovery from his 2nd surgery. He had 8 seizures before going into surgery, and the surgeons couldn't tell us anything definite about his situation. They hoped his seizures would be reduced. They hoped he would be the same little boy that went into surgery that morning. They hoped that the mapping showed them all they needed to know. But they couldn't give us any definite answers. Chris and I were so sad when Cutter went back to the operating room. Our hearts were broken because it was hard to see that little guy go somewhere that we couldn't and let people do things for them that we could not. But when we walked out we were filled with grace and peace and were very calm. That strength can only be given by God! I even went downstairs to eat breakfast with my mom and sister and didn't cry the whole time. As the hours ticked by we were anxious to put our arms around him and hear the doctor say that he was all done. When he woke up from surgery he wanted "Pepi" (Pepsi) and to watch "Lawman" (Gunsmoke). That's when we knew that he was just the same as he was before. He hadn't been in recovery too long when he started singing Jesus Loves Me. The best sound we have ever heard. Can't wait to celebrate tomorrow. March 21, 2013 was the first day of Cutter's seizure-free life. Thank you, Lord, for your many blessings, and thank you, friends, for being there for me! Love you all!

Almost There!!!

Today is the 1 year anniversary of Cutter's first brain surgery. Wow. We can't believe that it has already been a year. There has been lots of research, just in the past year, about doing brain mapping (or gridding) on the brain before epilepsy surgery. Some doctors are really for it and others are not. The decision to do the gridding on Cutter's brain before the resection was the best decision that could have been made. It really helped the doctors see exactly what they were dealing with. They were able to make a plan before the second surgery. We are so thankful for the doctors that God put in Cutter's path. We really couldn't have had better care for him. Thank you for being on this journey with us. We are very excited about next Friday, the 21st. ONE YEAR OF SEIZURE FREEDOM. Praise God from Whom ALL blessings flow!

Chapel Hill Update

Cutter's visit went very well. Started out rough with him crying and not wanting to be there. He weighs 36 pounds now! Dr. Elkay wants to wean him off Dilantin. At first she said it would take 16 months. Then 8 months. We're thinking with the way it is written it will only take 8 months. Is not touching any other medicines. No MRI or EEG right now. She is not ready to put him to sleep again yet. She called him "delicate" and said when we take him for his vaccinations that he does not need to get More than one in one day. We need to be cautious if he were to get sick and run a fever. This causes his threshold to be lowered. Keep Him healthy as we can to reduce chances of having a seizure. Dr. Elkay is leaving Chapel Hill in June. Said it was confidential so we don't know why. We will see her one more time before then, in April. We were upset about this. We definitely don't want to change doctors, especially in the middle of medication changes. One of the current doctors will take her patients. So, that is all for now! On our way home! (With three new ninja turtle shirts, a plastic horse and two hot wheels cars....they spoiled both boys at the hospital!) Thank you for the prayers!!!

CIDD Results

We finally got the results back from the Neuropsychological Developmental testing Cutter had done in October. He did very well and has grown a lot! The tests completed were the same tests that were completed 17 months prior in May of 2012. They measure everything in "months" so if this seems confusing then just think about it in terms of his age in months! Gross Motor Skills: He went from performing at a 20 month age to performing at a 27 month level. He gained 7 months! Fine Motor Skills: He went from performing at an 18th month old level to performing at a 28 month old level. A 10 month gain! Expressive Language: He went from a 23 month to 29 month old level. 6 month gain! Receptive Language: He went from a 23 month level to a 24 month level. Only a 1 month gain, but we were not surprised by this. This is a HUGE part of his sensory issues. Visual Perception: He made a huge gain from 16 months to 31 months! A 15 month gain! We are very proud of him! He has a long way to go, but is gaining ground!!! We are excited!