Ethan is doing great after his surgery in October. I was holding my breath, waiting for it to fail. The surgeon didn't give me great hope, telling me that most fistulas reopen and it still could in the months ahead. But so far it is holding, his palate healed well, is completely sealed and every week Ethan is mastering new sounds. He speaks in sentences and the speech therapist is working on his N's (as in Nyla) and L's (as in Liam). He still has a long way to go and his recent IEP will increase his speech therapy sessions to 3 days a week for September 2010.
If Ethan's palate remains intact and he continues to do well, then we may be able to go several years without further surgery. Dr. Meara has said that the next step would be plastic surgery to his nose and lip around kindergarten or first grade. Later, he will also need a bone graft and lots of dental work. Ethan has been described by my friends as "always smiling". I hope his wonderful outlook on life never diminishes, it has carried him through his medical and emotional challenges thus far.
Happy holidays from our family to yours. I am thankful for those who have followed Ethan's progress over the last couple of years. We appreciate the support, especially during some of the difficult times (which have been many). I am going to stop posting to the blog, it is my hope that there will not be any news to post about, just the normal every day activities of a family of 5. That is my hope at least, we will see what the next decade brings us.....
