Apple Juice or Hydrocephalus?

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I wanted to actually have some posts that might help people in slightly crappy situations. The internet is full of treasures and crap. But there is no shortage of people sharing their stories to help others feel better because 1. your life doesn't suck as badly as you thought 2. someone else is going through the same crap you are going through. And I have found especially with pregnancy and having kids, lots of weird stuff happens, and you want to know how other people are dealing with the same weird stuff.

So here's a crazy experience that I managed to not blog about a few months ago. It was kind of a big deal at the time, but it happened right before I went to Toronto, which is probably why I never got around to writing about the whole random event.

Anyway, Topher has a really big head. It's a Watson thing I guess. Lily's head has always been in the 90th percentile, and Topher's has maxed out over 100. But, when Topher would go to his doctor's appointments and his head would be ginormous, the doctor just attributed it to genes. As did I. Then at his 1 year well-check, they noticed his soft spot was still very open. And that his head was still in the 100th percentile. So they told us to go get him checked out at the hospital by way of an ultrasound. Super.

So we went and did that, and Topher was so great. They put the gel stuff on his hair, then they started waving their magic wand around, and he just took it like a champ. Of course, I had no idea what I was looking at, but my doctor's office was incredible and they called me a few short hours after our visit to the new Phoenix Children's Hospital in Gilbert (so great to have it so close!) Apparently they had found some fluid and they couldn't tell where it was coming from, so they wanted us to schedule an MRI as soon as possible. Great.

We were back at the hospital about a week later, and I would not recommend getting an MRI for an infant to anyone. I am not a big cryer, but I saw the giant machine they were going to put my baby in and I almost lost it. But I stayed strong for the Tophmeister. I brought his favorite Monkey that he only gets to hang out with when sleeping, or being stuck in an MRI machine. They swaddled him up supertight (Topher, not Monkey), and got the show on the road. Word to the wise- if you have to take your child to get an MRI, and their favorite toy has any metal in it- it will be a no-go. Monkey's gold chains had to stay in the locker. Topher cried a bunch, but the doctor of course said that he did 'great' because he has seen much worse. Thanks a lot.

So then I went home and waited and waited for the results, which took till the next day. And I knew it couldn't be anything, cause Topher has really been developing right on par. But we did just go to the hospital twice in one week for some pretty scary looking tests. The main thing they were looking for was Hydrocephalus. What is that you ask? Basically it is an abnormal buildup of the brain's normal water-like fluid known as cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The only ways to correct this involve surgery. Thanks, but no thanks. Babies belong in hospitals to be born, and that's it! Fortunately for us all, Topher just has a very big head. The mystery fluid they found in the ultrasound is still a mystery. In my unprofessional, undoctorly opinion, I am going with apple juice.