Hello! We had a very special day recently...we just celebrated ONE YEAR since Jack's NICU discharge. He came home May 28th, 2003. It's so amazing how much Jack has grown since then! We're very proud of our little man. Jack was evaluated for vision therapy last week. The vision team was very helpful -- they spent about two and a half hours with Jack and feel he's doing EXCELLENT!! They said his CVI is very mild and he's using his vision VERY well. They were totally impressed by Jack's ability to locate and pick up tiny pieces of white rice off of his white high chair tray. They plan on working with him once a month to improve his vision on his right side. All in all it was a productive meeting. About a week and a half ago I was feeding Jack in his high chair when he started acting 'funny' and scared me a little. I thought he may have been having a shunt malfunction so I called Hershey and they said it could have been a small seizure and felt it was NOT a problem with his shunt. They did not feel he needed emergency care...just a trip to the pediatrician. His pediatrician ordered an EEG scheduled for June 15th. We pray it shows normal results. He's been perfectly fine ever since and pray it continues that way! We're enjoying a nice long holiday weekend -- I hope everyone else is as well!

How's everyone enjoying this summer-like weather? I can't believe how warm it's been. This morning we went for a nice walk lathered in sunscreen and adorned with hats and sunglasses -- you would have thought we were in the witness protection program -- ha ha. It sure beats the cold winter weather, so I am not complaining!

Jack has an evaluation for vision therapy in about two weeks. His Early Intervention coordinator called to set up the appointment and started reading from Jack's Ophthalmologist report. I was extremely upset to learn Jack was diagnosed with CVI (Cortical Visual Impairment). His ophthalmologist said NOTHING about it at Jack's appointment in April. I called Jack's pediatrician and had them make a copy of the report from the ophthalmologist. I let my mom watch Jack while I ran to pick it up. There it was in print...lots of big huge words, several paragraphs, then the Impression Statement: Optic Nerve Atrophy, possible field cut to the right secondary to his brain injury, Cortical Visual Impairment. Cortical Visual Impairment basically means that his eyes are fine. The problem lies in his brain. In plain English, his eyes for the most part can see but his Visual Cortex (a part in his brain that affects sight) may not fully register in his brain what he sees. This is a condition that can be temporary; vision can come and go as it is related more to brain processing rather than the eyes. We really don't know what this means for Jack. The only thing we were told about how he processes vision, is we'll know when he can read the eye chart (uuuugh, I know, it's more 'wait and see'). What we do know is that he CAN see. Right now Jack is using his vision well. I hope to learn more from the vision therapist. I called the Medical Center and requested copies of his entire hospital stay plus visits to specialists. Who knows what else doctors may have not told us! Jack is amazing and getting diagnosed with something does not change the perfect little man that he is, but it is important that we know all there is to know. It may open up new avenues of treatment or therapy. Please keep Jack in your thoughts and let's hope he continues to do well with his vision. Please let me know if you have any questions. You can e-mail me at ang_wilhelm@verizon.net

I know several of you are having problems with the video feature of Jack's new website. I have e-mailed the owners of babababies.com and hope to get an answer SOON! Being able to easily share video with everyone was a huge factor in why we chose to do business with bababaies! I will keep everyone posted on the status of playing videos. I will be adding some more pictures in the next few days! Thanks for reading.

Jack had his very first playdate this week! He had so much fun with the two other babies! This was Jack's first road trip. He did very well for the 1.5 hour drive...He loves his new friends! This was a special trip for me as well. I grew up with the other moms and this is the first time we were all together with our children. It was a very special day!

We also celebrated Jack's daddy's birthday this week with a nice party at Grandpa Bob's. Jack had a great time! He had his second taste of birthday cake and loved it as much as the first!!

Poor Jack is teething pretty bad at the moment...he's got teeth coming in every which way! At least he'll get a lot of them at once...poor guy.