Jacob was a fullterm plus baby, born on August 23,2000. My pregnancy was asymptomatic and quite textbook like. He was our first baby. It took us almost a year to get pregnant due to hormonal imbalances. We had a level 2 ultrasound at 18 weeks which showed no abnormalities whatsoever. Jacob was 6lbs. 13 oz. 20in. at birth. Labor and delivery went very fast and there were no complications. Upon delivery we were told that Jacob had a cleft lip/palate. We were shocked and grieved but hopeful because we knew that repairs would "fix" the defect. Soon after his birth we found out that there were pituitary problems and we began administering DDAVP for DI. Jacob never slept well and was quite fussy for the first 4 mos. We thought he had colic. Jacob began developing normally and was reaching all the "normal" milestones that babies his age are supposed to reach. At 6 mos. he landed in the hospital because we couldn't get the DI regulated and he stopped eating and gaining weight. We soon found out through MRI that the has HPE and are currently still in the hospital grieving.

June 2001:  Jacob is 9 mos. old.  He receives OT and PT 3x a week.  He is currently 15 lbs and change.  He is a very happy and healthy baby.  He loves people and laughs whenever he is tickled.  Jacob is gaining a lot of strength with his head.  He is showing much more head control and is working on sitting skills.  He is also trying very hard to crawl.  We think that he will be army crawling by his first birthday.  Jacob also babbles A LOT!  He has a lot to say.  We are still encouraging consonant sounds but he is taking his time with that.  Jacob also has a g-tube, but still loves his bottle.  It is amazing how much he can get out of the bottle even with his wide cleft.  He also eats baby food now.  About two meals a day.  Jacob is a true inspiration in our lives.  We have been blessed with him.