Biggest Smile in the world! :D: My baby is growing up fast!

Blake's Journey

Blake Tyler James Fenton born on the 17th June 2011

''This blog is about a journey through pregnancy, finding out that our child would be born with a Cleft lip & Palate, and also coping with a rare pregnancy condition. Dealing with the everything that comes our way, as a family. Caring and supporting our beautiful son Blake... and his amazing big sister Tia, this blog has been written by me, Jemma Kathleen Fenton (was Paley) in the hope that it touches many peoples hearts as Blake has touched ours. My goal is to help raise awareness and money, I hope to helps other parents going through the same situation.''

I am happy to support any parents out there you can contact me through email: brassbuttons@hotmail.co.uk

Thursday 2 February 2012

My baby is growing up fast!

Things have been very exciting in the Fenton household, Blake has come leaps and bounds in the last few weeks! he has mastered the art of crawling down to a T! and well he isn't like what Tia was if he see's something he wants he goes and gets it lol and when you tell him 'NO' you get the cheekiest grin in the world never mind the biggest! today he has also finally cut his first tooth after months of teething!!! Tia was very excited but Blake wasn't very happy bless him, he is so adorable but I would say this im his mummy.

Our Cleft nurse Nicola came to see me recently and was pleased with how Blake was getting on and she showed me how to massage his scar as she said it was a little raised he let her do it but then again he was more interested in squeezing her boobs typical male! It was rather amusing though! Nicola suggested Bio oil but as its expensive she did recommend other products but I am a big fan so decided to use bio oil. We have to massage his lip twice a day for a couple of minutes ... but it seems he would rather Nicola do it as he wont let me :( but I keep trying

I cant believe how much Blake has changed since he was born when I look back at the pictures its like looking at a different baby, the next stage will be his hard palate repair, and although im anxious I have every confidence putting the care of my boy in Mr Cadier's arms he is amazing. you all may have noticed I have put some links onto my blog, for charities that help raise awareness for Cleft lip and Palate! these two other charities help children in countries that don't get the wonderful care that we get, so if you find it in your hearts to donate im sure there will be a small child will gain so much from your genourosity !

I got a phone call from That's Life magazine they read out the article again for me to check everything was OK, I am so pleased they are printing Blakes story, raising awareness in any way makes me happy. they told me the article will be out on the 16th Feb I feel a little nervous about it! I have also recently set up a group on Facebook, to help children make friends whom are in similar situations it is called cleft lip and palate community be my cleft buddy! it is basically a pen pal system were mums and children can write letters for there babies or children so they will grow up and hopefully end up with a long term buddy.. as we all know its unlikely for there to be another child in there school that has a cleft lip or palate, its gone down well and we have over 50 members!

Yesterday we had our post op review at Salisbury Hospital, It was lovely to see the team again Mr Cadier was very happy with Blake and we signed the consent form for the next op which could be in April this month has been very busy, I start back at work on the 15th Feb so im hoping to get the letter soon so I can book time off at work if need be, this is one on the worst bits the waiting. I have three Cleft buddy letters to write.... so I will update you all soon Thank You for all your support :) God Bless

3 comments:

Kasia28 February 2012 at 15:45
Hi,
Thank you. Blake's story is so uplifting for me. My son was born with cleft lip and pallet last November and now we are waiting for operation in Salisbury.
Kasia
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Mummypig3 March 2012 at 07:59
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What is a Cleft?

A cleft is a separation or split in either the upper lip or the roof of the mouth (palate) or sometimes both. It occurs when separate areas of the face do not join together properly when a baby is developing in the womb.
The development of the face and the upper lip takes place during the fifth to ninth week of pregnancy.
Cleft lips and palates can occur on their own (non-syndromic) or are sometimes part of a wider series of birth defects (syndromic).
A cleft lip and palate is the most common facial birth defect in the UK. One in every 700 babies is born with a cleft. The type of cleft and how severe it is varies between children.

About Smile Train

Unlike many charities that do many different things, Smile Train's mission is focused on solving a single problem: cleft lip and cleft palate.

Clefts are a major problem in developing countries where there are millions of children who are suffering with unrepaired clefts. Most cannot eat or speak properly. Aren't allowed to attend school or hold a job. And face very difficult lives filled with shame and isolation, pain and heartache. Their clefts usually go untreated because they are poor – too poor to pay for a simple surgery that has been around for decades.

About Operation Smile

Founded in 1982 by Dr William Magee a leading plastic and craniofacial surgeon and his wife Kathleen Magee, a former nurse and clinical social worker, Operation .Smile’s team is driven by our universal compassion to care for children and give the gift of a smile. As an international children’s medical charity, the global partnerships we create in our work to provide free cleft palate and cleft lip surgery is long-lasting. The knowledge we share, the medical and professional infrastructure we build, all leaves a legacy that lives well beyond our medical projects and makes a lasting difference around the world

About my OC condition

Obstetric cholestasis (OC) is a liver disorder that occurs in around one in 200 pregnancies in the UK¹. Also referred to as intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP), it is a condition in which the normal flow of bile out of the liver is reduced. Chemicals in the bile called bile salts (also often referred to as bile acids) can then build up and ‘leak’ into the bloodstream. This causes affected women to have increased levels of bile salts in their blood.

OC is also characterised by itching, known as pruritus. The itching generally appears in the last three months of pregnancy but can appear sooner². It is of variable severity and can be extremely distressing for the mother. Both the raised bile salts and pruritus completely disappear soon after the birth and do not appear to cause
long-term health problems for mothers.

Several fetal complications have been reported in OC pregnancies. There is an increased risk of preterm delivery (both spontaneous and induced) and fetal distress. Some case studies have also reported stillbirth occurring near the end of pregnancy in women with OC². Therefore it is essential that the condition is recognised and treated in time.

At present, most obstetricians in the UK managing OC pregnancies deliver babies early, at around 37 or 38 weeks. This is done because it is thought that it may help prevent the possibility of stillbirth.

I have to say a massive thank you to everyone on the OC Support group on Facebook and i give out lots of LOVE to Jenny Chambers! Thank you all.