Two

Caiden is two months old as of Tuesday!! I can't believe it. Time has gone by so fast. He had his two month shots yesterday and because I've been sick my husband took him. Well, he's 7lbs even now, exactly double his birth weight and 21 inches long! He's come such a long way. I keep thinking about how little he was when he was born. He was light as a feather and now he's getting so chubby (:

When I was pregnant I used to think about if he'd hit milestones early or on time and now that's out the window. He's two months and still only smiles and laughs in his sleep. Its hard to adjust to "adjusted" age. He might not smile for another two months. I just can't wait for him to catch up. Being the mom of a preemie takes everything out of you. Its so easy to go from thrilled that he's sleeping four hours to upset because he won't pick his head up during tummy time. I find myself torn between telling people he's a few days old, the way he looks or telling them his actual age and explaining that he came early.

I found out more about the clotting disorder that forced his early arrival. I am compound heterozygous for c677t and a1298c for the MTHFR mutation. Basically this means that I got a mutated gene from my mom and a mutated gene from my dad. My body doesn't metabolize folic acid or vitamin b the way its supposed to because these genes are mutated. Unfortunately I have the second worst form of the mutation. Research shows it causes repeated miscarriages so we were extremely lucky that my first pregnancy was a successful one. I'm at high risk for blood clots and high blood pressure, but whats worse is because children get half their genes from each parent, Caiden definitely has some form of MTHFR.

The good thing about it though is it causes a hodgepodge of different things. From migraines to cancer to schizophrenia. Because I have this form of MTHFR my mom must have some form. Which means other members of my family likely have some form as well. It could potentially explain why my family tree has been filled with diabetes, chronic migraines and depression among other things. Its a wonderful feeling to finally have some answers. I no longer have to blame myself for Caiden's early arrival. I don't have to feel like my body failed me, my DNA did ;)