Out of difficulties grows miracles

Happy 3rd Birthday, Ava!

2011-10-10T07:37:00.000-07:00

A lot of time has passed since I last updated this blog. For anyone still following us, we are all alive and well! I started this blog to keep an Auntie who was away on deployment updated. Now the kids have another Aunt who is far away, Aunt Claire moved to Chicago. So I will do my best to try to update this again so she can keep up with us. I'll try to update again soon. but until then here is a little video of Ava's 3rd Birthday.

Andrew's G.I. follow up

2010-08-09T15:01:00.000-07:00

Andrew had an appointment with the G.I doctor to follow up and talk about starting solids. Even though Andrew is nearly 8 months old and tpyicall. Peds give the okay to start rice cereal at 4 months (even to some preemies who look ready) we've had to wait until Andrews digestive track was more mature. The appointment went great! Drew is doing so well on Elecare! Andrew is deceivingly small, a lot of people, when asking his age say, "Wow, he's so big for 8 months!" I find a lot of people have no clue how big a baby is at a certain age. So normally I would brush that off, but Andrew is a big looking boy! He is very solid, and looks like he is going to pass Ava up in weight in the next few months. Regardless of how big he seems, the numbers have him coming in the 1st %, meaning 99% of babies his age are bigger than him. I mentioned to the doctor how I think he is growing better with Elecare. Dr. Kramer said that Breast Milk colitis occurs in the intestines, not the stomach. So Andrew’s nutrient and calorie absorption was never compromised but now that his tummy doesn't hurt he is probably eating more, there for growing better. He has gained 2 lbs in the short time he has been on formula and weighs in at 16 lbs and 26 1/2 inches. (still under 5% but that’s a great growth!)

He also said that Breast Milk Colitis, along with dairy and soy allergies start to diminish in the second half of the first year. So, if we wanted we could try him on a less specialized formula. Elecare is has hypoallergenic as they come. Our next step would be something along the lines of Nutramigen or Alimentum. If we went this route we would need to delay starting solids even further to make sure Andrew tolerated it okay before bombarding his system with a lot of new things. Babies can stay on Elecare for their entire first year; there is no harm in doing so. The reason to switch would be to save on cost since it is very expensive. (My co-pay, with insurance paying 80% is 160 dollars for a little less than a one month supply. Thank God insurance was kind enough to help!) It also lets you see how they do with very small amounts of dairy and soy. I decided to stay with Elecare for a little longer and proceed with solid foods. Andrew has just started to become a pleasant and happy baby and I don't want to mess with that right now. His happiness and my sanity is worth the extra expense.

They did a Hemoccult on Drew stool and it came back up negative for blood!! This is HUGE! It's the very first negative he's had since being in NICU, possibly his whole life. So we got the okay to start solids. I was instructed to start with green veggies first, then orange, then yellows. Then after all the veggies, we could start fruits. Most babies start a new food every 4 days. Dr. Kramer wants us to wait a full week before trying something new. If we see a reaction (no matter how small) we need to stop and come back in. He said to read labels well. Dairy is hidden in everything. Even in some baby foods. I made all Ava’s baby food and plan on doing the same for Andrew, so no worries there. If all goes smoothly we go back in a few months.

In the mean time, if I want I can try to move Andrew to the step down formulas sometime between now and a year and see how it goes. If he does not take it well we just move back to Elecare. At a year Dr. Kramer’s plan is to move Andrew to a different soy formula. Carnation Good start Soy was one that he mentioned. That is as far into the future as we spoke. I forgot to ask if he thinks we can get back to a regular diet and add Dairy back in but we are a ways away from that. So I guess we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.

Overall good appointment! Hopefully we are on the flip side of all Andrew’s tummy trouble!

Baby Babbles

2010-07-30T07:37:00.000-07:00

Baby swapping

2010-07-24T21:30:00.000-07:00

Three weeks ago we got a new addition into the family. Graham's cousin, Katie had her first child, a little girl born 5 weeks early. This weekend they came over so we could meet the new addition. Little Lexi was born at 4 lbs 1 oz and 18 1/2 inches long. Just slightly bigger than Andrew was when he was born. It was amazing to see how much Andrew has grown! He is such a solid little guy now it's hard to believe he was so tiny.

Once they arrived we promptly swapped babies for cuddles.

We had a great time visiting with them and sent them away with a ton of Ava's outgrown clothes. . I'm glad my babies will have another little one to grow up and play with and I'm glad I have someone to pass my baby items to. My basement will thank me.

The Doctor is in.

2010-07-12T13:37:00.000-07:00

Dr. Ava Elizabeth, DVM.

This little lady is going to save us a ton!

Happy 4th of July!

2010-07-04T07:10:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all the service men and women who have fought so we can be free! I am very proud to have such selfless people in my family who have served our country.

We had a fun weekend filled with baseball games,

BBQ's, and Fireworks!

The best picture of the weekend is this one of the babies reaction to the fireworks! Thankfully after the first few BOOM's they relaxed a little.

The NICU Experience

2010-06-23T16:42:00.000-07:00

My blog went private for a while because I was having a hard time dealing with the emotions that I was feeling when it comes to having a preemie and coping with a long NICU stay. I wrote this letter to the NICU manager shortly after Drew's discharge because I wanted to be heard. I wanted my emotions validated and a change to be made so someone else's NICU stay can be improved. Today I got my validation.

The NICU manager just called me and said a team is working on my suggestions. She asked me to not only come and meet with this team of nurses so they can hear first hand how terrifying a NICU stay is, but she wants me to lead a support group for NICU parents as well. I'm so relieved to be heard and so scared to go and have to re-live all these emotions I've been working so hard to overcome.

I've decided I didn't want to censor my blog. There were a lot of people that I didn't want to know that I was struggling but the fact is NICU sucks, and it's okay to feel upset about that. So I decided to put this back up because it is true that one person can make a difference, you just need to speak up.

Hi Heather,

I’m sorry I haven’t gotten back to you on when we can meet up to talk. Honestly, it is not something I am looking forward to and I keep put it off. I knew NICU parents must feel a lot of emotion, but I never imagined I would feel like I do. When my OB told me it was time to deliver 9 weeks early I thought that the NICU experience would be a small hurdle. I was not prepared for how difficult and life altering it actually is.

I’ve been thinking about what I’m feeling, and felt very alone in my thoughts. So I turned to doing some research on online message boards. Turns out almost all NICU parents feel this way, even those whose baby was only in NICU for a few days. That helped a lot to hear to validate my feelings. I also found that I’m not ready to talk. I though I was, but I'm not. Marcia gave me some numbers for employee help line and I fully plan to utilize that resource to help me move on, but right now I’m not ready. But I do think that I need to let you know what kind of changes would help so hopefully another family will benefit from it. I feel like I’m in a unique position to foster a positive change since we’ve (thankfully) haven’t had a staff member have their baby in our NICU for a long time. I need to preference this by saying I have no doubt that Andrew received excellent care while we were there. The quality of care was never in question.

Things that I feel would help a NICU parent is:

1. An orientation to NICU. A true welcome to NICU here is your handbook, what to expect today, tomorrow, and over the next few weeks orientation. We were never told what to expect, by anyone. I wouldn’t even have known to ask if I didn’t work there and even then I didn’t know what to ask. Obviously, every family’s NICU experience is going to be different since babies are in there at different gestations and for different reasons. But if there was a handout or book (like the purple book we use on PP) with generic information stating: your cares are scheduled for this time, we do weights, blood pressures at this time, the NNP and doctor check your baby over once a day, the NNP is always here for questions, maybe what an NNP is. A unit orientation such as- you can store you milk in this fridge, here is the freezer, here’s where you can pump, here is where the restrooms are, this is our phone number, visiting hours, visiting restrictions, etc…it would be so helpful. Those first few days are very scary and even if someone does tell you what to expect it is easy to forget. (This was not the case for me, truly no one told me anything). I think just like a discharge check off sheet there should be an orientation check of sheet to be absolutely sure something does not get missed. I also think PP should be somewhat in the loop to help support the moms. At the very least they should know the times a NICU baby is getting their cares done to help encourage Moms to go up for feedings.

2. A communication book/email. We were in NICU for 7 weeks, and only a handful of times did nurses openly offer information. The first few weeks we weren’t sure what to ask and if we didn’t ask questions nothing was said. I really felt that communication was lacking. I think that if there was some sort of communication book that could stay at the bedside or better yet, an email that could be sent out. Something simple that says, “Good Morning! Andrew had a great night. He was too sleepy to nipple, but he did well with all his feedings and had no residuals. He also has gone the whole shift with no Brady’s! His weight is ___ , which his up/down ___ gms. He is running low on breast milk so if you have more to bring in please do. He also has some blankets and clothes that can go home to be laundered. Call if you have any questions!”

I found a lot of NICU’s do send a short email at the end of every shift. The families said it made their stay so much better and gave them peace of mind when they couldn’t be with their child. Almost all of them printed out and saved those email as well. If you could get an account set up that was outgoing message only I think it would help a lot. Parents could call in if they had additional questions. A communication book would work too, maybe something with fill in the blanks so the nurses didn’t have too much additional work. Some of the things we wanted to know every time we came in were: weight, nippling amounts, aspirate amounts, any A’s and B’s and any changes. I’m sure there are other things parents would like to know as well.

3. A Primary staff team. I think communication and satisfaction would greatly increase if there were just a few nurses who took care of the babies. It would be so helpful as a parent to build that relationship with the nurses. I cannot tell you how many times we came in to have a different nurse, even though the nurse who had taken care of our baby the day before was there too. It honestly felt like a rejection. I know from working there that was not the case, but I would find myself thinking, “Did Pam not like us? Why doesn’t she have us today? Did we do something to make Cyndi mad? Does Megan not like our baby? Maybe she requested not to have us again.” Even today the emotional side of me wonders these things.

It would also help to reduce questions and make the nurses’ job easier when she knew what the parents wanted. I feel this is really important, maybe one of the most important things. From my online research it seems most NICUs do this so I’m not too sure why we don’t. Along these lines, it was very busy while we were in NICU and my baby was given to float nurses a lot. Logically I knew it was because we were in our last few weeks and he was doing well so they wanted to give the float nurses an easier assignment. I felt rejected that the staff nurses didn’t want to take care of us since it was every time. I know that is not the case from working there, but that is how it felt. If I still cannot shake those thoughts from my mind I’m sure other parents feel the same way.

So those are the things I think would greatly improve a NICU stay at our hospital. Now…to some things I struggled with and think every NICU nurse should know…

- Don’t ever assume a parent already knows. My baby was 5 weeks old before someone told us he had a heart murmur. I know that a murmur is not too uncommon, especially with a preemie. But my husband, who was there when someone listening to our baby’s heart and said, “That heart murmur is still around.” Did not. Nor does he care that other babies have them too. All he heard was there was something wrong with his son’s heart and no one told him about it. He is still quite angry about this. My guess is everyone thought someone else already brought it up. Please stress the importance of giving parents all the information even if you think they already know. I would rather be told a million times than not at all.

Along those lines…

- Please give me all the info. The hardest part of NICU is that I have carried this baby around all this time and now he is out and I don’t know him and can’t take care of him. I remember would sit in NICU and think, 'this nurse, who has never taken care of my baby before, has now spend more time with him than I have.’ When we finally got home I found my baby was super fussy. Was he like this in NICU too? I don’t know and that kills me! I didn’t know my son for 7 weeks. I did learn from a PP nurse who floated in and took care of my son that he was indeed cranky for her too. If he had a rough night and is a fussy baby I want to know. Don’t sugar coat it. I think a lot of Nurses are too scared to worry a parent by saying there baby was fussy. But we want to know. If our baby is a little higher maintenance please, tell us! We want to learn as much about him as we can. Please, don’t hold back, even if you think it’s not what we want to hear.

The importance of hands on care. My son was born at 31 weeks. He was in NICU 7 weeks and not once did anyone offer for me to do kangaroo care. Not once. We spend the first week afraid to even touch him because nurses scared us of how he can’t be moved due to his UVC and CPAP. It never even occurred for me to ask for it. Now because we missed out on this important time I think our bonding has been affected. Now it feels weird to even think about doing any skin to skin contact with him. It feels weird for me to even breastfeed him, so I still pump and bottle feed. This is my child. My child that I feel I have yet to form a connection with. Missing out on this make me feel like I am a caregiver, not a parent. Skin-to-skin contact should be a protocol and offered every day. I have lost out on that with my son. I know with time our bonding will improve but I have lost months of his life not feeling like a parent to him. Having a baby in NICU is such an unnatural path into parenthood. Please help give us the tools to feel like a Mother and not a bystander.

A lot of nurses would also do his cares even though we would arrived early to do them ourselves. Some would say, “You will get to change hundreds of diapers so I got this one.” That fine for a well baby, but for the first several weeks that was the only contact I got with my child. We would wake up looking forward to that and would be crushed to come in a find it was already done. As a NICU parent you get so few chances to take care of your own child, please don’t take that away from us unless we ask you to.

-Don’t ever tell a parent to give more. One day our baby had yet another new nurse. That particular morning I had an appointment with a Lactation specialist to help us with breastfeeding. We arrived 20 minutes early only to find the nurse sitting there, bottle feeding our son. It was very clearly written on his board that lactation was coming in. Because of how our child care works out with our other child the 9am feeding was the only one where I could work on Breastfeeding. Again, the communication could have been improved to prevent that. I was hurt, but felt it was somewhat of an honest mistake. What was most upsetting is that this nurse blamed me for her mistake. She said, “You need to get here earlier so this won’t happen.” This was said several weeks into our NICU stay. I was already giving everything I had. I cannot even tell you how hurtful that comment was. PLUS, we were there early! I know to some of the nurses this is just a job. Feeding my baby is something that they can check off their list so they can move on with their work. They need to understand my whole life is in that crib and it is killing me not to spend every second at his side. To have a nurse tell me I’m not there enough when I cannot possibly give more is horrible. I just cannot even describe how horrible that feels. Don’t ever say that. You have no idea what the parents are going through and have going on outside the hospital.

-Don’t be afraid to call me at home. Not long after I was discharged we came in for a morning feeding. My son was already being gavaged, but his milk looked a little weird. Then it hit me, it was not breast milk at all. It was formula. Something I did NOT okay. The sight of that formula going into my child’s tummy made me cry. Turns out they ran out of breast milk for this feeding and no one told me. I didn’t even occur to me to keep an eye on the freeze to makes sure it was well stocked. (Another thing that would be handy to add to an orientation packet) If that nurse had just made a simple phone call and told me it could have saved me a lot of heartache. Providing breast milk was the only thing I could do for my son and it felt as though it was ripped away from me. Please, call me at home. I want to be involved in my baby’s care. Even for simple questions, never assume. Including me helps me feel like mom.

-Do NOT make changes without knowing the baby well. Around week 6 a nurse we hadn’t had since the first few days of our son’s life was taking care of him. Based off how he did with one feeding she decided he was ready to move to ad lib feedings and changed up his whole schedule. This was not in the best interest of him. He was working though some tummy issues, not feeding and gaining weight as well as his doctor wanted. But this nurse took it upon herself to approach the NNP and make the change. For me it felt like she just ran me over with a truck. After 6 weeks I was already drained. But now that meant I could no longer be there for feedings. My husband was back at work and I only had child care for my other child at the old feeding schedules. I wasn’t brave enough to stand up to her, but I wish I would have. When the next shift came on, it was a nurse who had taken care of my son frequently. She immediately recognized this change was not for the best and switched it back. I will always be a little resentful to that one nurse who thought she knew-it-all.

-Teach, teach, teach! One night, while I was still a patient. Deb B. told my husband about all these different positions, methods of touch and different ways to interact with a preemie to engage his mind and encourage development. How cool is that? I would have thought it would have been even cooler if I had known about it while we were there. My husband didn’t tell me about it until weeks later. And no one else offered any information like that. As a NICU parent we want to learn. Tell us everything you know so we can better understand our baby. I know so many of the NICU nurses have a passion for what they do. As a parent I want to see that. I want to learn what you know. The night nurses seemed so much better at expressing their passion and compassion than the day nurses do and that was greatly appreciated.

Lastly, I have concerns about your new unit. Before I was in NICU I always thought the private rooms would be so nice, and we did have one and it was nice, but it was also VERY lonely. NICU is such an isolating experience. I loved being in the open room, opposed to the isolation rooms. It made it more apparent that we were not the only ones going through this scary experience. We were not alone. I worry with how the new unit is going to be set up that is going to encourage that isolated feeling even more. That is an awful feeling. I think that it would be really nice to turn one of the many rooms you are going to have into a sitting area with coffee and water and a table to eat a lunch on for the families. Even if you don’t talk to the other parents just knowing they are there is so therapeutic. I also think while you are decorating, it would be nice to see NICU success pictures on the walls. Pictures of a baby while in NICU, hooked up to a machine and a side by side of them as a smiling healthy toddler. It would give a lot of hope and would help to see tasteful pictures of events similar to what we are experiencing, just a thought.

I also wonder why we do not have a NICU support group? We have survival for new Moms, Daddy Boot camp why not a NICU group? I think a lot of people would like to know it was there. I know I would attend. It would be great for people like me who are struggling with how they are feeling, because even though I’m not ready to talk out loud I am ready to listen to other peoples experience so it can help me heal. Swedish offers a support group and I have already contacted people to see if I can attend their meetings, But I would much rather do it at out hospital.

Thank you for allowing me to offer ideas for improvement. Hopefully some of them look doable because I do think they would help. If you have any questions or want further explanation of anything please let me know.

Amber

Why Raising a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party

2010-06-18T22:51:00.001-07:00

10. There are half-full, brightly-colored plastic cups on the floor in every room. Three are in the bathtub.

9. There's always that one girl, bawling her eyes out in a corner.

8. It's best not to assume that the person closest to you has any control over their digestive function.

7. You sneak off to the bathroom knowing that as soon as you sit down, someone's going to start banging on the door.

6. Probably 80% of the stains on the furniture contain DNA.

5. You've got someone in your face at 3 a.m. looking for a drink.

4. There's definitely going to be a fight.

3. You're not sure whether anything you're doing is right, you just hope it won't get you arrested.

2. There are crumpled-up underpants everywhere.

1. You wake up wondering exactly how and when the person in bed with you got there.

How Preemie Moms are Chosen

2010-06-17T20:10:00.000-07:00

Conversations with Ava

2010-06-04T15:11:00.000-07:00

(Ava taking my car keys out to her Cozy Coupe)

Me: Bye Girlie, drive safe!

Ava: (waving) Bye bye Dadda!

Guess she's not use to saying "Bye Momma!"

Tummy time bootcamp

2010-05-01T20:40:00.000-07:00

Andrew has been warned that he needs to shape up (literally) or be sent to P.T. He really favors looking to his right side. Since he doesn't want to go left the whole right side of his head is getting smooshed out. I didn't notice it until Dr. Barb pointed it out and now I can REALLY see it. He is so asymmetrical his eye is starting to be pushed out as well. We've been told to get aggressive with tummy time, massage and stretches to get him to stop favoring that side otherwise we are on the road to a helmet.

Graham is so funny about it since he is not hear often. Come the weekends he approaches Tummy and Stretch Time like he's a marathon coach, clocking it and coaxing little Andrew through it. And he drills me at the end of the day..."How much Tummy Time did he have today?" I'm scared of what would happen if I answered "none." Dude means business.

Going Private for a while

2010-04-29T22:34:00.000-07:00

If you want to keep up with us send me your email and I'll add you to the list. I just want to get some things off my chest that I'm not completely ready for the whole word to know yet. Once I'm ready, I'll go public again. So I won't be gone forever.

Just a fun picture post!

2010-04-17T12:38:00.000-07:00

Vocabulay explosion!

2010-04-02T12:14:00.000-07:00

We've been working with Ava on Signing to help her communicate until she can do it verbally. The last few weeks her Signs have taken off! She can now sign:

Cat
dog
bear
bird
horse
duck
dinosaur
fish
mouse
bunny
chicken
elephant
more
milk
shoes
eat
go
car
book
Momma
Dadda
baby
cereal
drink
water
play
ball
friend
all done
help
night night
sleep
bath
blanket
please
tree
boat
thank you

37 Signs! I may be biased but I think that is pretty impressive!

Blessed

2010-03-30T08:26:00.000-07:00

I have been reminded so much these past couple weeks of just how blessed we are. These hurdles we have been through have taught me to embrace change as an opportunity to see what I am capable of. I have truly seen that out of difficulties grows miracles. I am a mom to two amazing children. I am very lucky.

Welcome to Holland

2010-03-26T18:11:00.000-07:00

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a preemie to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It’s just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

Emily Perl Kingsley

Happy Birthday Andrew!

2010-02-04T09:49:00.000-08:00

Had you not come early today would have been your birthday. We had a repeat c-section planned for this morning. It would have been a great day for a birthday. I'm sorry we couldn't give it to you, but we are glad you are home with us now.

How to:

2010-02-03T10:46:00.000-08:00

Stay on top of your blogging with a toddler and a newborn at home...

Child labor.

Day 48- All dressed up...

2010-01-30T10:07:00.000-08:00

...And heading home!!

After 7 weeks in NICU Andrew got the all clear to head home. Dr. Barb and I had a talk, and although Andrew's stool is not totally in the clear, there is nothing they are doing at the hospital that we can't do at home. Dr. B said that if Andrew presented to her office with blood in his stool she wouldn't admit him to the hospital so why keep him there now? I couldn't agree more!

Before anyone could change their mind we packed him up and took him home!

Day 47-Hello Handsome!

2010-01-29T09:39:00.000-08:00

The next step in Operation Getting Andrew Home is a car seat challenge. That is when Andrew is hooked up to the pulse Ox in his car seat and proves he can maintain his Oxygen Sats sitting in it for 40 minutes. So this morning I took in his car seat and hooked him up. He of course did fantastic!

Day 46- Bribin' our way out of NICU

2010-01-28T09:30:00.000-08:00

Andrew is doing awesome. He is nippling all his feedings and in my opinion is about ready to move on from NICU life. Since begging hasn't worked to get Andrew home we moved onto bribes...
Further proof Andrew is getting to be a "big boy" and needs to come home... he is noticing the world around him more and more everyday.

Hi Friend!

One step closer

2010-01-27T09:07:00.000-08:00

Letting Andrew determine the volume of his feedings seems to be agreeing with him. He is doing excellent. Dr. Barb would like to see him eat a little more so we are working on getting him to nipple at least 50 cc's. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't but they are no longer gavaging the extra formula. So his feeding tube came out and we can finally see his sweet naked face.

One of the nurses seemed to think Andrew would do better on a 4 hour schedule and had his feedings changed to every 3-4 hours. For me that was the point when I had enough of NICU. I only have baby sitting for Ava at a certain time in the mornings. Although feeding Andrew was not the reason I came to visit, it is nice participating in his care. When I was told that he may no longer be eating on his scheduled times I decided it was time to get him home so Andrew could eat on his own schedule and I didn't have to miss anything.

Even though Andrew is not yet ready for a discharge I decided to get some things out of the way so when we got the okay to go home nothing was holding us back. Working in the hospital you baby is living at has it's perks since I know how to use the equipment. So I grabbed the hearing screen machine and went to work.

Of course he passed with fliying colors!

On the road to recovery

2010-01-26T08:55:00.000-08:00

Andrew is doing well today. His weight is up to 6 lbs 11oz and his stools are looking better with no obvious blood. The new formula seems to be agreeing with him. Prior to his bloody stools they were gavaging whatever he didn't nipple. Now the plan for today is to let him determine the volume he wants and nipple all the feedings. He will keep his IV in little longer until he can prove himself but so far so good.

Day 43- Million dollar diet

2010-01-25T21:18:00.000-08:00

Andrew remained NPO all night and into the afternoon. He was not happy about it and cried when not being held and comforted. thankfully the NICU staffed extra help for specifically cuddling fussy babies.

In the afternoon Dr. Barb brought in another formula from her office. This new formula is the most hypo allergic formula you can get. Andrew's going to start with about 1/2 his normal volume so we don't overload his system.

This formula is specially ordered from abroad. I can't wait to see what it costs a can!

On better news, Andrews Oxygen Sats have been reading great so I asked the nurse to try him on room air yesterday and he is still off of the O2, despite the tummy issues. yay!

Day 42- NPO

2010-01-24T21:06:00.000-08:00

Andrew had a rough night. He is not digesting the pre-digested formula. It's just sitting in his belly and he's having these huge residuals. Since he does digest breast milk completely I asked at Andrews 9 am feeding about trying it again. Dr. Barb agreed, hoping that one diaper was a fluke since Andrew is not at all symptomatic of a tummy ache.

At 6pm we returned for Andrews feeding and once again found blood in his diaper. The NNP ordered an x-ray to check for any loops or other funny issues.

The x-ray came back with some areas that the NNP found suspicious, but the Radiologist declared to be clean. The new plan is to make poor Andrew NPO (nothing by mouth) and give his belly a rest. Unfortunately this means he has to have an IV placed again.

we're praying this is nothing serious.

How to: Entertain yourself, get rid of a roommate and earn yourself more NICU time in one shot

2010-01-23T20:51:00.000-08:00

Step 1- Graciously offer to share your "suite" with a homeward bound baby for the day.

Step 2- Acquire said roomie.

Step 3- Poop a diaper full of bloody stool and watch the nurse scramble to find 'Roomie' another place to hang, just in case you're infectious.

Andrew had been doing well. But today while changing his diaper I noticed blood. Thankfully Dr. Barb was in the NICU at the time. The plan is blood work (to be sure the HCT we've worked so hard to build up has not all been literally shitted out), to culture the stool to see if anything is growing, lab work and... the worst of all... to take Andrew off of breast milk and onto a pre-digested formula in case it's a protein allergy.

I hate that he has been moved off Breast milk. Hate it. I feel like the only thing I alone could do for my child has been taken away. I really hope it's short term.

Day 37- New Digs

2010-01-19T11:22:00.000-08:00

Our NICU had an unfortunate baby boom. Bad for those parents and babies, but good for Andrew because he got moved into his own room. It's good to know people in high places! It's nice and quiet and it means he's doing well enough where he doesn't have to be watched so closely anymore.

Our old "cubical"The new "suite"

The only downside is now I can't eavesdrop on other parents conversations and learn all about their drama. On second thought, maybe our move has nothing to do with knowing the right people and more with me being a busybody!

Day 35- We're out for the Winter Olympics

2010-01-17T06:50:00.000-08:00

See that number right there? That is Andrews HCT, or hematocrit. A Hematocrit is the percentage of Red Blood Cells in the blood stream. A normal newborn has a HCT in the 50's. Andrew's dropped this week to about 1/2 of what it should be. Our Ped says this is partly because of my abruption, since the placenta was detaching it didn't give Andrew everything he needed. And it's partly because Andrew is a preemie. His bone marrow, where Red blood cells are made, is still thinking that it has another few weeks before it really has to get to work.

Generally when a HCT goes this low your options are a blood transfusion or medication. Dr. Barb decided to do a medication called EPO (Erythropoietin) which is going to remind the bone marrow to make more RBC's. Andrew will get daily injections for 10 days. Hopefully as his HCT comes up he will start to eat better and maybe even get to come off the Oxygen. It will take a few days before we start to see it working.

Epo is also what some shady athletes use for blood doping to give them more energy. Looks like we are going to have to put our Olympic dreams on hold this year. There's always 2014.

Doggie or...

2010-01-16T12:06:00.000-08:00

Is this a dog....
...or a table. You decide.

Andrew's 5th week in review

2010-01-15T00:39:00.000-08:00

Time has not been my friend this last week. Not only have I been juggling a toddler, a baby in NICU, 2 dogs, a horse, a house, laundry etc....I've been doing it alone since Graham had to start traveling again and was back in Chicago. Well, not totally alone. My family has been a HUGE help! Thank God for them. If not for my Mom, Dad and sisters I would probably be curled in a fetal position, sucking my thumb and crying on the floor. So instead of single posts I'm grouping Andrew's 5 week of life (36 weeks gestation) in one post.

He did a LOT of sleeping...

Was held for the first time by his awesome and ever so helpful Grandma. (My Momma)

Decided Oxygen was best delivered orally. (Side note- Don't you think his eyes are going to be blue based off this picture?)

Did some more sleeping...

Had a visit for the first time from his Uncle Peter and Aunt Alissa. (Aunt Alissa has a niece who is a 24 week preemie so I'm sure she is well versed in how difficult it is to be a NICU family.)

Did even more sleeping... (Instead of eating. For shame Andrew. We're told a lot of NICU babies are going home around 36 weeks, don't you want to be one of them?)

Was held for the first time by Grandpa. (while sleeping through another feeding. Tsk, tsk!)

Practiced breastfeeding. (Wow, I look like I need a week of sleep. Pardon the side boob!)

Decrease his Oxygen need. (It's hard to see but he is at 40cc's and 40% on the blender. Which is really just whiff of O2. Woo hoo!)

Practiced nippling with Nurse Megan. (Fact- there are 3 babies in this picture.)

(sorry Megan, you were part of Andrew's week so I had to post it!)

Hit 6 lbs! (That's 2 lbs weight gain in 5 weeks for those keeping track.)

He also had his HCT hit 28. Not so good. A normal newborns HCT is 50ish, according to Dr. Barb. So poor Andrew is really anemic. He has already been on Iron for a few weeks to combat his anemia. No wonder he is SOOO sleepy!

If my life were scratch and sniff...

2010-01-14T11:22:00.000-08:00

It would smell like breast milk and coffee.

Happy Birthday Andrew!

2010-01-13T11:47:00.000-08:00

You are 1 month old today!!
Tomorrow you will be 36 weeks.
Which means it's time to get this eating thing down,
so you can celebrate your 2 month birthday at home!

Day-24 Dr. Disapointment

2010-01-07T12:57:00.000-08:00

The last couple days Andrew has been not wanting his bottles for us. He had been nursing well and then grimacing and making faces and gagging when we would try his usual bottle after Bfing. A few days ago one of his nurses asked Dr. Barb if we could just let him eat what he wanted and not have to gavage the rest since he seemed to be eating well and was getting his fill while Bfing. She agreed. He was going to be gavaged the rest of his feedings still.

Well the last 3 days Andrew has only had a 30 gm weight change. They want him to do an average 30 gms a day. Dr. Barb came by while I was trying to nurse him and told Andrew she was very disappointed in him. She wasn't sure if the faces he was making was because he was full or because he was just too tired to eat anymore. So she decided to go back to gavaging whatever he doesn't nipple. She also increased his calories from 22 to 24 and his volume to 45cc's every 3 hours.

If that doesn't get him gaining again she threatened him with butter gavages. Hopefully he come out of his sleepy stage and starts packing on the pounds.

Day 23- A whale of a good time!

2010-01-05T11:08:00.000-08:00

This morning I asked Andrews nurse if we could give him a bath since his hair was looking a little greasy and he hadn't had one since he was born. When we came in before his feeding his nurse had everything all set up for us. I was expecting do do a sponge bath but she had a real baby tub all set up and ready for us. So we filled it up and got to work.

At first Andrew wasn't too sure about it, but soon he was looking like he really enjoyed the warm water. Graham was a little nervous washing such a small baby so he became the photographer and let me do it all.

Shampoo time!

Getting his hair dry.

Afterwards he breast feed. The nurse warned us that baths can make the babies really sleepy so he might not want to eat well. He did nurse well, but afterwards while Graham was feeding him his bottle he wanted no part of it. He ate 12 cc's but made awful faces every time Graham tried to get him to eat more. So I gave it a try and got the same response. We thought maybe he got his fill. So the nurse said we can call it good. Turns out Andrew did get enough just breastfeeding. He had an aspirate at his next feeding. Yay for productive breastfeeding!

Day 22- Big sister/ Big trouble

2010-01-04T13:58:00.000-08:00

Andrew is doing great! He is gaining weight well and doing well on his feedings.

I feel like so much is going on with him I leave out what's going on with Ava. Her whole little world has been rocked since Andrew has been born (and a few days before hand) but she has been handling it so well. She is such a little trooper!

We go to the hospital every day a 9am, which is right at Ava's morning nap time. She goes to my Mom's who lives just a few minutes away from the hospital and gets to play. it has been such a HUGE help having my Mom watch her everyday. Thankfully my Mom doesn't have to work until the afternoons so she is able offer help a lot. For that we are super grateful! it;s the only way Graham and I had to see Andrew together.

At 6pm sometimes my sister is free to watch Ava, but mostly we take her to the hospital with us. She is only allowed in NICU one day a week so most days Graham and I busy ourselves between the two of them.

Ava busies herself by....

rearranging the waiting room.Pushes around her stroller....Sneaking behind the nurses station...Checks out the vending machine for loose change...the soda machines too....we do have NICU bills to pay!

She manages to stay busy!

Day 22- Sailing into a feeder/grower

2010-01-03T21:41:00.000-08:00

Andrew is doing well. He has officially been termed as a "feeder/grower". So providing he is safe on room air, he just has to get the eating thing down and he'll get to come home. Apparently this process can take a while. So far he is doing well on his feedings. He is feed 42 cc's of breastmilk with a fortifier that turns the breastmilk from 20 calories an ounce to 22 calories. He eats every 3 hours, so 8 times a day. Right now he is nippling 2 feedings a day and he is able to try breastfeeding before those bottles. As soon as he has these two feedings down they'll start moving some of his other feedings from gavages to nippling. So we're on our way!

It was also Ava's day to come in to see Andrew so we snuck in a family picture while my Dad was there to be our photographer.

Andrew's little head looks so tiny next to Ava's! (and she is a little girl!)

Day 20- Andrew articles

2010-01-02T13:09:00.001-08:00

Andrew's weight is now 4 lbs 13 oz! Hard to believe he has gained almost 25 percent of his own weight in just a short time.

I went to visit Andrew for his morning feeding, but by the afternoon I hit a wall. I think all the back and forth and lack of sleep right after surgery caught up with me. By the time it was time to go to the hospital I was feeling pretty terrible. So Ava and I stayed home and slept while Graham went to the hospital to have Andrew all to himself.

While there he found a letter from Andrew (written with a little help from Dr. Barb).

It reads:

Dear Mom & Dad:

HAPPY NEW YEAR! You should have seen the party we had here last night. Most of us were up at Midnight chugging everything in sight! I'm pooped today! Hope you guys celebrated a bit too! By the way, you're welcome for the tax deduction!

I'm doing just super. This feeding thing is a little bit tricky; I'll keep trying but I hope you can be patient with me. I grew again so Dr. Barb is going to have to increase my milk volume again. How's a guy supposed to get good at this anyway? Most guys my age can't nipple much at all, so I guess I'm doing just fine for my age.

Is my room ready yet? What color is it?

Well, 2010 is going to be the BEST YEAR EVER and I can't wait to get home.

Love,
Andrew

Day 21-

2010-01-02T12:54:00.001-08:00

Andrew has some visitors today. The in-laws stopped by to see how he was doing after I got done feeding him. This was the second time that my Mother and Father-in-law have seen Andrew. The last time was when he was still on CPAP. He certainly has changed and grown a lot in those few weeks. It was the first time that my sister in law, Claire meet Andrew too. I didn't get to hear her impressions since I was hanging out with Ava and busy chugging all Claire's Hot Chocolate while they were in NICU. Graham forgot to get pictures so they'll have to come back for a photo op another time.

Andrew is doing well today. He has been breastfeeding well so Dr. Barb said we could increase his nursing to 10 minutes on one side and 5 on the other. So far I've been just doing 5 minutes on each side. I have tons of milk this time around (knock on wood). I've been afraid of letting Andrew nurse longer since he still would get his 40 cc's that he is required to eat regardless of how he did breastfeeding. I didn't want him getting too much and start having large aspirates again.

So this morning we tried out the 10 and 5 minute feeding, which he did awesome! The nurse and I didn't ask Dr. Barb what to do with the bottle if he didn't eat it all after a good nursing session. Usually whatever he doesn't nipple gets gavaged. So we talked to the NNP and she decided to let Andrew take as much of his bottle as he wanted (he took 19cc's) and see how he did with no gavage. I called after his last feeding and he did great! He didn't wake up hungry before his next feeding time and he had a small aspirate of 1cc. So he probably got plenty to eat. Hopefully with that info they'll let me start breastfeeding more. It is so much easier than bottle feeding.

Monkeying around

2009-12-31T22:05:00.000-08:00

Day 17

2009-12-30T22:09:00.000-08:00

When something is going on at the barn with the horses that requires a phone call to us the first thing we hear when we pick up the phone is, "Everything is fine. It's Diane at the barn..." It's nice that they do that because when you see that number come up on the caller ID it makes your heart jump a bit. Today while Ava and I were napping our phone rang. The hospital showing up on caller ID is not a huge surprise since I work there, but when you have a baby in NICU it makes your stomach drop.

Graham picked up the phone and hears, "This is Dr. Susan So-and-So from the hospital. I'm the Neonatologist taking care of Andrew." Sure, she only said a few sentences but to Graham it took forever to get that part out before she threw in an "Everything is fine." She was calling to tell us our Pediatrician cornered her today and said, "So, when are you going to give me my baby?" At my hospital only Neo doctors can take care of the preemies under a certain gestation. Once they reach a certain level they can then move to a ped who is experienced with Preemies. Apparently our Ped, who has been peeking in on Andrew everyday, thought that time was now. I love how forward she is. Makes me laugh! So Andrew's Neo doctor was calling to say she was transferring care to our Pediatrician. Thank makes me happy for several reasons. Mostly because that means Andrew is doing better and ready to move away from the Neo doctors and also because our pediatrician is awesome. She was just voted one of the best Peds in Colorado and she is super good at what she does. That's why we picked her. I think I will sleep much better now knowing he is under her care.

Andrew had a great night. He only had one Brady in the last 48 hours. His O2 has been holding steady and he has had no aspirates despite being at 40 cc's a feeding. This morning he did great, breastfeeding for 5 minutes on each side and then followed that with nippling 1/2 his feeding.

Tonight he impressed us all by nippling 35 of his 40cc's. He was exhausted after that and did have some desats and one small brady afterwards while I was holding him but for him to eat that well was very encouraging at his age!

I also asked the NNP today based off how Andrew was currently doing how long she thought his hospital stay would be. She said another 2-4 weeks, or somewhere between 36-38 weeks gestation. That's exactly what we were thinking so it's good that we are all on the same page.

Day 15

2009-12-28T11:34:00.000-08:00

Andrew had a good night last night. The night nurse didn't try to bottle feed him at all so he got all his feedings through a gavage. He only had one Brady and maintained his Oxygen through the night.

When we got there his Day nurse had already completed all his care and said Andrew was awake and ready for me to try to breastfeed. So we got settled and tried to get him to eat. Today he had other ideas. He was super sleepy. It's the first time he attempted to breastfeed and was too sleepy to do anything. SO Graham and I decided to let him spend a few minutes at the breast to get familiar with it and then gave him his feeding with a bottle. Since he was so sleepy he only nippled about 15 of his 33cc's before completely passing out. So his nurse set him up to be gavaged for the rest. Andrew started desatting again while getting his gavage. Even after having his O2 turned up his sats continued to drop so we put him back in his crib to finish his feeding. We sat with him until it was complete and then went to pick up Ava and let him rest.

My Mom is off today so she is going to watch Ava for Andrew's 6pm feeding so we'll try to get him to breastfeed at that visit.

Day 14

2009-12-27T19:57:00.000-08:00

AM visit- Andrews weight stayed the same today. He is resting at 4-6 but that is not too surprising since he had gained 4 oz over the last 2 days. He had a good night with very few Brady's and no aspirates. When we came in he was bright eyed so we decide to let him try nursing again. This time I didn't have to pump before hand. Graham did his hands on care and passed him over to me.

Andrew did well breast feeding. He kept his Oxygen sats up and nursed almost continuously. I limited him to 5 minutes on each side since he was still going to be getting his gavaged feeding and I didn't want him to have too much and have a large aspirate. After Graham held him while he had his feeding. Andrew is still struggling to keep his Oxygen up while getting gavaged so we ended up having to turn up his O2 and put him back down.

PM visit- Andrew had no aspirates all day! Yay! Since I seem to have a lot of milk and didn't pump before breastfeeding I thought he might have something left over in his belly but he digested it all. I took Ava while Graham went in first. Then we switched and I gave Andrew his dinner with a bottle. He did well for about 1/2 of it and then the desatting started. His nurse turned his O2 up but Andrew was getting sleepy so we decided it was best to gavage the rest of it while he was back in his crib. So I got him tucked back in and we let him rest.

Day 13

2009-12-26T20:26:00.000-08:00

AM- Andrew had a good night. Just a few Brady's and no desats. His Oxygen was actually turned down a little. He was at 30cc and 60%. The NNP arrived to check him over right as we got there and though he was doing well enough for him to try a real nursing session. She wanted me to pump for just a few minutes so if Andrew did nurse he would be getting more hind milk since it has more fat in it. They were still going to chart it as a Non-nutritive nursing but thought he might feel more encouraged if he got a little something out. So I went off to pump while Graham did Andrews temp and diaper change. Andrew ended up nursing well. He even maintained his o2 sats while at the breast. After 10 minutes we called it good and Andrew got passed off to Graham to hold while his gavage went in. He is up to 24cc's now. Within a short time though Andrew started desatting. His nurse turned his O2 up but his sats kept going down so we put him back in his crib. His o2 seems to do better in there. It's not fun watching him desat, but it is all part of a preemie. It helps that they told us it was likely that his O2 needs would increase as his feedings increase and with him nippling. Preemies use their energy eating so they sometimes use less energy for breathing. Our nurse yesterday said it is pretty rare for a NICU baby to go home without o2. Especially in our high altitudes.

The Night Before Christmas... in the NICU

2009-12-24T18:51:00.000-08:00

Twas the night before Christmas, and in each isolette

Little creatures were squirming and getting all set;

Machinery sat by their bedsides with care,

In hopes that good breathing skills soon would be there.

Day shifters were home all snug in their beds,

As visions of overtime danced in their heads;

While preemies on ventilators, and some on CPAP,

Had just settled down for a long winter's nap...

When out in the hall there arose such a clatter,

The residents woke up to see what was the matter.

Away from the sink I flew like a jet

To make sure all was well at my baby's isolette.

Some bilirubin lights with their powerful glow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to babies below,

When, there before my wondering eyes, it would seem,

Was an oversized stroller and a medical team.

With a handful of needles with which they could stick you,

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nicu.

More rapid than eagles his specialists came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:

"Now, Nurses! Now, Residents! Now, Neonatologists!

On, Social Workers! On, Respiratory and Occupational Therapists!

From the front of the unit! To the end of the hall!

Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"

Up to each baby's cribside they flew,

With the stroller full of toys, and St. Nicu too.

And then, in a twinkling, they stopped at each bed

And tucked in the babies and got them all fed.

As I looked at my baby, and was turning around,

Down our aisle St. Nicu came with a bound.

He was dressed in red scrubs, and I could instantly tell

That his clothes had an obvious hospital smell;

A bag of stuffed animals was flung on his back,

And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

A little red pen he held tight in his teeth,

And a stethoscope encircled his neck like a wreath.

He was chubby and plump, with a few extra pounds,

And I laughed when I saw him there doing his rounds.

A turn of his clipboard and a twist of his head

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke few words, but came straight to my side,

And running down his face was a tear he had cried.

And laying his hand on the back of my head,

He gave me a nod, and slowly he said:

"Each night you come here you're aware of the danger,

But your baby is loved by the One in the manger."

Then the medical team gave a thumbs-up and smiled

And St. Nicu placed an animal next to my child.

But I heard him exclaim, as they rolled out of sight,

"Merry Christmas, tiny baby, and have a wonderful night!"

Day 10- Nippling 101

2009-12-24T13:47:00.000-08:00

Andrew has been doing well the last few days so they decided to try to feed him. Overnight he has had a few gavaged feedings of 6 cc's. During the day he also stayed around 6 cc's and had no aspirates. His day nurse felt like he looked ready for a little something more so we got to pull out a bottle and see how he did.

He did great! He only took about 1/2 of the feeding but the fact he took anything at all being around 33 weeks in gestation AND after several days of feeling lousy is amazing. Good job son!

Day 9- Holding pattern

2009-12-22T13:41:00.000-08:00

Andrew seems to be doing better. He is back up to his birth weight (+2 gms!) and seems comfortable. His belly is soft again and the loops that were once visible are gone.

Hopefully we continue on the path of progress.

Day 8- waiting...

2009-12-21T13:27:00.000-08:00

Dr. H, who has been taking care of Andrew is out of town for a funeral so Dr. N is covering for him. She came in and introduced herself and then checked Andrew over. She said she was a bit concerned how he was going to be this morning after hearing about his rough day. We were pleased to hear her say after checking Andrew over she felt reassured. She said he doesn't look like he is not feeling well. Which is true. He is still acting like his normal self.So the plan is to continue with the previous plan of keeping him off food and keeping the IV nutrition going. We were allowed to still hold him which is nice.He does still get to stay in his crib and not have to move to a warmer or isolate since he is maintaining his temperature well. He also doesn't seem to mind his new IV placed right smack dab in the middle of his head.

Day 7- Three steps back

2009-12-20T13:09:00.000-08:00

Andrew is having a rough day today. He has hit some hurdles that the NICU staff has been warning us could happen.

It all started out with some large aspirates through the night. Andrew was not digesting his feedings. He started having more Brady's (drop in heart rate) a scary 11 a shift. Some that needed the nurses to come rub him to stimulate him back out of them. And he developed an Oxygen need.

He also has a hard distended belly with loops in them. When we arrived the x-ray tech was not far behind us to take scans of Andrews belly and lungs to see what was going on.

His scans showed that his lungs were still very cloudy (the NNP said usually they look a lot more clear at a week old) his belly had some concerning areas. The saw several loops in his intestines and an area that looked "off". They said that this all could be caused from gas, from maybe feeding him too much too quickly or from something more scary that they didn't even want to talk about unless it became an issue.

We talked to the NNP for a long time and she answered all our questions. The plan was to restart an IV, put Andrew back on the TPN (total IV nourishment) and Lipids (a fatty acid) and keep Andrew NPO for a few days to see if resting his belly helped him feel better.

The plan right now is just to watch and wait and pray.

Day 6- Two steps forward

2009-12-19T12:37:00.000-08:00

We came in today to find Andrews night nurse dressed him in his first article of clothing. Sure it's just a shirt, but it's a start! (One of the NICU nurses makes these tops with openings for all sorts of tubes) Andrew is doing well. His weight is up again to 3lbs 13 oz and he is still holding his own on room air.

Graham got to take his turn holding his son. It's only fair that I share. Sometimes.Then he got all tucked back into bed with a custom swaddling job that leaves Andrews UVC and cords accessible.

We came back for Andrew's 6pm feeding to some great news!

Andrew's UVC (belly button IV) gets to come out! They need changed out every week or so but since Andrew has been doing so well they are just going to leave it out. No more TPN, no more lipids. Andrew is now getting all his nutrition the old fashion way. The other perk is now we can hold him more. Yay!

Day 5- Out of the lights...

2009-12-18T12:24:00.000-08:00

Dr. H, Andrews Neo doc came in today while we were visiting (I was discharged from the hospital yesterday). He checked Andrew over and announced that his Bili was now down to 8 so he gets to come out of the lights...

..and into our arms! We are still only able to hold Andrew once a day due to his UVC (IV through his belly button) but we love every second of it!His is still gaining weight and he is up to 21 cc's of gavaged (feed through a tube) breastmilk every 3 hours. I think that's pretty impressive! That's close to what a term baby eats!

Glow little glow worm

2009-12-17T12:00:00.000-08:00

Day 4- My future's so bright....

2009-12-16T11:57:00.000-08:00

Andrew's Bili level has gone up a bit today. (What makes him jaundice) Enough to warrant the need for lights. So he gets to sport some cool shades and tan under the lights. All he needs now is a drink with an umbrella to accompany his Lipids and TPN.

Otherwise he is doing well. His weight is up a bit, he is still going strong on room air and he is digesting his feeding and having little to no aspirates. So far so good.

Day 3

2009-12-15T15:53:00.000-08:00

Since we can only hold Andrew once a day we find ourselves doing a lot of sitting and watching...

...a lof of hand holding....

and some picture taking just for fun.We also do a lot of eating. It helps to BYOB (bring your own bagel) Hospital food cannot always be trusted.

Day 2

2009-12-14T15:20:00.000-08:00

Andrew is doing well today. Nothing to exciting to report which is just the way we want it. He is maintaining his Oxygen well. on room air. His blood pressure and heart rate is good and he is resting and comfortable.

His weight did go down again today to 3lbs 12oz, but that is typical of all newborns. Like a full term baby they only get concerned about his weight when he starts getting close to a 10% weight loss.

He is still just getting 4cc's of breast milk that the nurses are slowly pushing. Notice the syringe hooked up to his feeding tube near his head. Most of his nutrition is coming from Lipids (a fatty acid) and TPN (an IV nourishment)He did get his first shampoo early in the morning.and a visit from his big sister. Ava was much more excited to see Andrew the second time around.The first time she was a bit concerned. I wasn't able to go up with her the first time she saw her little brother since I was fresh out of my c-section. She seemed very unsure of all the tubes and monitors.

Thankfully right before I delivered my hospital lifted their visitor restrictions. For the last few months we did not allow anyone under 18 in the hospital and every visitor was screened at the door by a nurse to make sure they were not sick. the NICU allows siblings to visit once a week so Ava actually got to meet her little brother. Makes it a lot easier on us that we get to bring her in. We also have great family who has been trading off staying at home with Ava all through my hospital stay so Graham can stay at the hospital with me. We are so blessed to have such wonderful, helpful family!!

NICU day 1

2009-12-14T14:48:00.000-08:00

In the NICU they schedule the baby's care for every 3 hours. Andrews schedule happens to be 9,12,3,6. They ask that you only visit at these times so the babies can rest in between. So at 2:30am the day after he was born I woke up to pump and we headed up to NICU for a visit.

We found Andrew sleeping very peacefully on his belly. He also had a surprise for us- his CPAP got to come off!
Andrew was doing so well he got to move to 2l of forced air. But still is not on Oxygen! (They asked us not to use a flash for pictures the first few days so some of these pictures are kinda dark)

With the CPAP coming off we got to hold Andrew for the first time. He has a UVC, or an IV that goes in his umbilical cord up to his heart, so we are only allowed to hold him once a day. Since I spent 4 days contacting before having a c-section Graham was kind enough to let me hold him first.

We were only able to spend a short time up there before heading back to my postpartum room. When we came back at 6am Andrew had his very first Christmas tree on his board.
Each day they weigh him and use the board to update his care. The top part is his weight gain or loss. Then his weight in grams, followed by his weight in lbs. Next is his times for his hands on care and last is how much feedings he is getting. Right now Andrew is just being fed through a tube. The nurses said once he gets closer to 34 weeks in gestation they will let him try nippling. Graham also got to get his turn holding Andrew for the first time.

At Noon we came back and Andrew had his second surprise of the day for us! Apparently he decided he was sick of having something up his nose so he took off his nasal cannula. He was doing so well on just plain room air they left it off of him!

What an amazing feat for a 31 weeker! It seems the Betamethasone really helped mature his lungs! Way to go Andrew!

An addition of excitement

2009-12-13T19:22:00.000-08:00

Wednesday December 9th started out pretty normal. Graham was in Chicago for the 9th week in a row. Ava and I were doing our daily chores of going to the barn and getting some things done around town. We came home around 3pm and I started to feel a bit crampy. Nothing too exciting just dull cramping. I wrote it off to normal pregnancy aches and pains. But decided to put Ava down for a nap and rest for a bit myself.

Fast forward to 10pm... Ava is in bed and I'm laying on the couch talking to Graham. My cramping has been consistent all day. Nothing strong, concerning or rhythmic, just dull consistent low cramping. I mention it to Graham and tell him I've been thinking about calling my OB since it has been so consistent and out of the ordinary. I didn't want to call because I was sure that they would tell me it was normal and send me on my way and Ava was already in bed. Right as I'm saying this I feel a huge gush! My first thought was Crap, my water broke! I went into the bathroom and found blood. Lots of blood. Poor Graham was still on the phone and freaked out. I hung up with him and called my OB and Mom. My Mom came and took Ava and me to the hospital.

We got to the hospital and they immediately checked me over, started 2 IV's, gave me a catheter and got me on the monitor. Baby was doing just fine. I was contracting every 2 minutes. With Ava I never felt a contraction- not even a Braxton Hicks. So I had no idea that the cramping I had been feeling was contractions. My Mother-in-law came and took Ava back home.

My OB came in and said they thought I might have a Placenta Abruption, where the Placenta detaches from the uterus. She started me on Mag Sulfate and Procardia to stop the contractions and brought in an ultrasound machine to see how my placenta looked.

Apparently it had attached in a bad location. I've mentioned before that I have a bicornated Uterus. My uterus shape is pretty abnormal. Instead of being a big open space mine is V shaped. My placenta had moved to the top of my left horn (side of the uterus) which just happens to be the smaller of the two sides. It was in a C shape and it appeared part of one side of the placenta was detached.

So the plan was to have me on the Mag for 48 hours. Long enough to get Betamethasone, a steroid to help mature the baby's lungs. the Betamethasone is series of two shots that need to be given 24 hours apart and needs 24 hours after the last shot to be the most effective. The Mag makes most people feel pretty terrible. I was a bit worried when they told me they were going to start it and got even more worried when they told me they were starting me on 6 mg. The highest loading dose they give. the loading does goes in over 30 minutes after that you get a continues dose. Mine happened to be 3 mg, which was pretty high as well. I am a puker. Especially while pregnant. But surprisingly I felt totally fine. I felt fairly decent the whole time I was on the Mag. I had a little trouble with my vision and could only keep one eye open at a time, but otherwise felt okay. The contractions seemed to slow very slightly. Graham was able to get a flight our first thing the next morning.

Once the Mag turned off and my contractions slowed down with the help of the Procardia that I was taking every 4 hours I was able to get up and take a shower. Then I was moved out of Labor and Delivery to an Antepartum room. I lasted as an Antepartum for 8 hours before the contractions picked up again. At 4am on Saturday Dec. 12th right after getting my Procardia I started contracting again. My contractions were every 2-3 minutes apart and showed no signs of slowing.

My OB came in and told me she was willing to let me continue contracting as long as the baby seemed to be tolerating them and I did not have any increased bleeding. She said that she did not believe I was in labor since I was not having any cervical changes, but she thought the blood from the abruption was irritating my uterus and causing the contractions. Since I needed to be on the monitor round the clock again I got moved back to L&D Saturday afternoon. I contracted all day and finally after 4 days of 2-3 minute contractions I caved and asked for something for pain. I was given some Morphine and was able to get a little sleep but the contractions continued on. My OB came in Sunday morning and said it was time to deliver and the OR was booked for me in an hour.

On Sunday December 13, 2009 at 7:53am Andrew Thomas was born at 31 weeks. He weighed a whopping 4lbs (great for a 31 weeker) and is 17 inches long. He dose need a little breathing assistance with the help of a CPAP but no need for actual Oxygen. For being 9 weeks early he is doing very well!

Please ignore how terrible I look. This was taken after 4 days of contracting.

Ultrasounds!

2009-11-14T18:09:00.000-08:00

My good friend Tessie was kind enough to fit me into her lunch break and do an ultrasound so I could see our baby baking inside. Sorry, still no gender scans...Tessie took a look so she knows the gender. As does her hubby, Travis who also works at the hospital and stopped by during my scan, but they both are keeping it a secret.

I'm now 27 weeks and some change. Tessie says the baby is doing perfectly! She/He weights about 2 lbs 5 oz and is growing right on track!

Thanks so much Tessie for scanning me! :)

A chip of advise

2009-11-04T09:17:00.000-08:00

Never turn your back on a 1 yr old when there is a full, opened bag of chips sitting on the coffee table.

Welcome Home Bentley!

2009-11-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

A few months ago we thought we found my horse, Bentley a great new home. Unfortunately it didn't work out and he came home very thin with sore feet from being ridden too hard on rocky ground. I've spend the time he's been back getting his feet feeling better, stocking him up with extra groceries and being a whole lot more picky about his next potential home.

Thankfully we found it! Today we took a 2 1/2 hour drive to take Bentley to hopefully his last new home.

This home comes complete with 1100 acres right along the Colorado River, a pond, several great pasture mates.....and a wonderful new family who will let me come visit anytime I want to.

Enjoy your new relaxing ranch life Bentley!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T08:50:00.000-07:00

You know your husband travels too much...

2009-10-28T10:11:00.000-07:00

....when your baby hands you the cell phone and says, Dada?

Showed up!

2009-10-27T20:46:00.001-07:00

Not too long ago I taught my friend Courtney how to make baby hats and I passed on a pattern for soft soled baby shoes. A few weeks ago we got these adorable shoes hand made by Courtney with my pattern! Always paying attention to detail Courtney even gave Ava's Jack-O-Lantern shoes 2 teeth, to match the two that Ava has! I think it's safe to say my sewing skills have been totally showed up!

LIttle Pumpkins

2009-10-22T13:47:00.000-07:00

We took Ava to the Pumpkin Festival over the weekend where we meet up with her friend Tanner and his Mom and Dad. Despite it being super warm (8o degrees) for an October day we all had a great time.

Ignoring the weather I made Ava wear her pumpkin hat I made her as well as a cute sweater my sister got her just so my pictures would look fallish. Thankfully she didn't ming too much.Tanner even humored me and wore his.. For a little bit at least!

A step up

2009-10-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

Lola's favorite place to lay down is right next to the coffee table. Ava's favorite new place to stand is ON Lola, much to her Mama's displeasure! Eek! Good thing Daddy was right there to catch her if she fell!

The Guessing Game!

2009-10-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

While Ava was napping I was surfing the internet and came across a baby guessing game! Click on the link on the Right to guess the stats for our second baby.

Just to remind everyone Ava was born at 39 weeks at 11:16am weighing 6 lbs 14 oz and 19 1/2 in long.

New Neighbors

2009-10-10T18:56:00.000-07:00

Right down the road from us they have built a huge new fire station and training center. Today they had a open house so people could see where our tax dollars went. We had plans to bring my nephews, but the boys caught the Flu so we set out on our own on a balmy 18 degree day.
Ava meet a couple new friends. Some she liked..Some she was unsure of...She even got to meet the Fire Chief!
We were excited to welcome our new neighbors to the 'hood. Even if they are a little loud every now and then.

The Children's Museum

2009-10-09T09:24:00.000-07:00

Ava and I had plans to go to the Children's Museum with Daddy for Ava's actual birthday, but at the last minute Graham had to fly out to Chicago for the week so we invited our friends Logan and his Mom, Courtney instead.

It was so much fun! I thought the Children's Museum was for older kids and didn't even think of taking Ava there until she was older, but another friend told me they had a great room for cruisers and crawlers. Turns out Logan and Ava were able to use almost the whole museum!

I was a little worried about germs since we are heading into cold and Flu season, but the museum was very clean and had lots of buckets to put toys that kids gummed into to take them out of circulation. I think just about everything Ava touched when in to her mouth and into the bucket.

There are a lot of pictures in no sort of order since I am being too lazy to organize them but we had a blast! I see a seasons pass for the museum in our future!

Happy 1st Birthday sweet girl!

2009-10-08T02:24:00.000-07:00

October 8, 2008 October 8, 2009

What a difference a year makes!

Piper

2009-10-06T02:04:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I was ~~working~~ looking around on craigslist and I came across an ad for a free horse. Anyone who knows even a little bit about horses knows there is no such thing as a free horse. Buying them is the cheap part! But my friend Jen had been keeping an eye out for a young horse to start ever since she took a class with her trainer on young horse starting. So I sent her the link and whadda ya know, she went out and got her!

I have a little experience with babies after buying my gelding, Joey as a 4 month old. But I'm not an expert by any means (which is why at 6 Joey is still barely under saddle). Jen wanted me to come take a look anyways so Ava and I made the trip up the mountains to see the new baby.

This is Piper. They aren't super sure of her age but the vet is guessing she is between 6 months to a year. She is just a little thing, a pony mix of some sort and should stay a perfect height for a kid or small adult. She is very sweet and very willing. A perfect first horse to start.

While Jen and I played with Piper, Ava busied herself with stripping off her shoes and socks, despite it being COLD out.

Knitting 201

2009-10-05T01:52:00.000-07:00

My knitting project is coming along pretty well. I progressed enough to move on to lesson 2, Knitting with 2 colors and 4 needles!! I was a bit nervous at first and hopeful that Susan would just take over from here, but it turned out easier than I thought. Granted I probably couldn't figure out how start the second color myself but at the time Susan made it very easy.

Here she is getting me going. She looks like she is concentrating here, but really she is yelling at me for taking pictures.Here ya go Susan- no face shots! ;)

We actually were able to finish it! I made a few mistakes, but not bad for my first knitting project.

Here is Ava modeling it for me. I had to hold her with my legs to get her to be still.

Now I'm trying it again to see if I can finish a second one!

1st Birthday Party!

2009-10-04T01:17:00.000-07:00

We were so blessed to have lots of family and friends join us in celebrating Ava's first birthday with a big party! Thank goodness the weather was nice because we had more guest than our house was able to hold (a nice problem to have that so many people wanted to celebrate with us!)
How cute is Ava's dress? My Mom made it! I picked out the fabric, told her what I wanted and it came out perfectly! Thanks Mom!

My little sister took he liberty of ordering a cake for us.Which came with this super cute smash cake for Ava! Thanks Katie!!She started out slow, but soon dug in!Although, when she was done....She was done!After a little break for milk and cleaning up she came back happy and ready to join her part again.Some of our guests.

My good friends Tessie, baby Tanner, Travis and Amanda

My surprise guests. An old family friend, Kathy and her daughter, Sheena. I hadn't seen either of them in years! They were a wonderful surprise!
Even my oldest friends from middle school, Allison and Amanda, who have since moved out of state came!

Me and Ava with Allison and Amanda. You can see my 21 week baby belly here, and my double chin (ugh!)My Aunt with Ava and my Goddaughter, Adrianne.

It was such a nice party! Thank you everyone who came to celebrate with us!

Candid Camera

2009-10-03T00:28:00.000-07:00

I just love when people grab my camera and I get to sort through pictures from another person's prospective.

We had Ava's 1st Birthday party today and I came across this gem of my brother-in-law while looking through my pictures.It seems to bare a strong resemblance to the pictures of his sister I found on my camera last time it was stolen away.

Follow- Up

2009-09-30T05:21:00.000-07:00

We went back to our pediatrician today for a follow up after Ava's adventure to urgent care. Nothing showed up or grew in her stool sample so an infection or parasite was ruled out. Her blood work came back fine and her stools have no more visible blood in them after Saturday night.

The Urgent care doctors gave us a dairy free formula that smells (and I'm sure tastes) like crap. We struggled to get Ava to drink any of it. After nearly 16 hours without her drinking I finally started mixing it with her normal milk but if there was any more than 1/4 of an ounce in her bottle of the new formula she would refuse it. So our ped said to put her back on Similac and to cut out all other dairy. We go back again on the 13th for Ava's one year appointment. At that visit they will draw more blood and look for allergies.

So life is now back to normal. We'll see how the next appointment goes...

Wedding Woes

2009-09-26T20:29:00.000-07:00

Our Saturday started out well. We went to the wedding of Graham's cousin, Evan and his beautiful bride, Nicole. But it ended rough, with Ava taking her first visit to Urgent care. The wedding was wonderful, as I think all wedding are. Evan and Nicole were married in a lovely church and had their reception at a gorgeous garden. So while we were waiting for the bride and groom to take their pictures we decided to venture off and take some of our own.

But shortly after dinner was served Ava needed a diaper change. So off Graham, Ava and I went to clean her up. She had a dirty diaper and while changing it I noticed it looked a little 'off'. Nothing worrisome, but different. We got her all freshened up and returned to the reception. A few minutes later Ava needed another diaper change. So she and I went off again to change her. This time there was blood in her stool. I got a little nervous, but she had been trying a lot of new foods that day and was acting fine so I decided it was most likely an irritation to a new food and decided to watch her. Another 20 minutes and she needed another change. This time with even more blood. We decide to call it a day and head home. By the time we get home she needs yet another diaper change. This last diaper was almost all bloody mucus. So we take out the thermometer and put a call into Ava's doctor. The doctor tells us generally with this much blood in a baby's stool it is an indication of an infection and advises us to take Ava in to Urgent care. We take her out of bed and head off to the hospital.

One x-ray, one blood draw, one scrapped and collected stool for culturing, a lot of tears and 3 hours later we leave with a tentative diagnosis from the on-call Pediatrician of a milk allergy. We had been introducing whole milk a little at a time for the last few weeks, but Ava showed not signs of a problem. My ped seemed skeptical on the phone that an allergen was causing this much blood without any other symptoms, but we have a follow up in a few days so we'll see what the cultures shows.

Thankfully Ava shows no signs of being bothered by her condition. No fever, no pain, no nothing. Even the nurses in the urgent Care commented how Ava was the happiest sick baby they had ever seen (prior to the blood draws and x-rays). Hopefully she stays the happy cheerful girl she normally is and this all needs up being nothing.

Playdate with Logan

2009-09-25T22:10:00.000-07:00

Ava and I set off today to our friend Courtney and Logans house. Courtney wanted me to show her how to make a fleece baby hat for a friend and the kiddos got a chance to hang out and play while we sewed.

Logan is now very interested in balls. Courtney said anything that is round and able to be picked up becomes a ball...anything!

Games

2009-09-24T21:58:00.000-07:00

Ava found a fun new game. She gets into her drawers and pulls out an article of clothing, one at a time....

And hurls it to the ground! She keeps going until the drawer is empty.Apparently it's great fun with books too.

Anatomy Scan, round two!

2009-09-23T21:27:00.000-07:00

We went back to the OB today for my actual ultrasound. The baby is looking great! It is measuring right on track (which is nice, Ava always measured a week behind). Everything was normal and healthy!

We still decided not to find out the gender, but we want the option of finding out later if we choose to. So the sonographer placed the gender scans in an envelope for us. I'm still leaning towards it being a boy. Only because this pregnancy is so different from Ava's, which of course means nothing! Time will tell!Don't go on thinking we are really strong willed. As soon as we were in the hall we started holding the envelope up to the light to try to sneak a peak, but no luck. The sonographer placed the pictures facing each other so we can't see. I find it really funny I was disappointed she made it so hard to look, it's not like anyone is forcing us not to know! We'll see how long we hold out!

Back from the OB and it' a.....

2009-09-21T18:43:00.001-07:00

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Surprise! Still! Turns out who ever scheduled my appointment in the OB's office forgot to schedule my ultrasound. So we'll go back on Wednesday for an actual ultrasound and another OB appointment. At least now we have a few more days to decide if we want to know.

Knitting 101

2009-09-21T00:12:00.000-07:00

I came across this pattern for a knitted hat and wanted nothing more than for Ava to have one in orange to wear to the pumpkin patch this Fall. Luckily for us one of the Charge Nurses at work is a knitting expert. So I emailed that link to her in hopes she would just offer to make it for us since knitting is not on my resume.

Instead she said "Cute. I'll come teach you how to make it." Um. Not exactly what I had in mind. It's taken me 8 years to crochet half a blanket but Susan was of the "If you teach a man to fish" mentality and came over today and taught me how.

Turns out knitting is right up my alley! It is a lot of fun and perfect for keeping my hands busy while we watch TV. Hopefully I finish this project while there are still pumpkins around! Thanks Susan!

Tomorrows the BIG day!

2009-09-20T18:03:00.001-07:00

We have our anatomy scan tomorrow for our second baby! I'm very excited to see him (I just know it's a boy!) and make sure everything is okay since we've had a few scares and a few lousy appointments with this pregnancy.

Now we need to decide if we want to find out the gender or not.....

Picnic at the park

2009-09-17T16:53:00.000-07:00

Ava and I meet up today with our NICU work friends for a picnic and a walk.

There was Angela, and her twin boys Jeremiah and Ben.

And Jen and her little guy, Connor.Ava spent most of her time cruising around finding rocks.......and trying to eat them. I'm pretty sure she ate enough sand to make an entire sand castle. Being a giver, she also spent some time trying to get Ben to eat some sand as well. It was a great day to spend the afternoon.

Wish List Wednesday

2009-09-16T08:41:00.000-07:00

With Ava's 1st birthday looming not too far in the distance I'm getting lots of calls from family and friends asking what she wants. Please, do not feel obligated to get her anything. But if you are one of the people who aren't accepting that response and keep asking here is a little wish list for the big day.

Warm Clothes- What is more fun than shopping for little girl clothes? Ava is currently in 12 month size for tops and bottoms. Shoes- Sadly my sewing skills end with fleece bottom shoes. And now that Ava is wanting to be on her feet more something with a more substantial sole will protect her little feet and prevent her from slipping. Ava currently wears a size 3 shoe.Books- Ava doesn't love to read. She doesn't even like to read. Yet. Everyday I chase her around the house reading a book to her, while she squirms and wiggles away. I have high hopes soon she'll become a book lover like I am and be one of those kids who crawls into our lap and wants us to read the same book over and over to her. So any books would be appreciated in hopes that they grow on her.
Toys- Graham calls Ava "toy poor". She will happily play with anything from toys to mixing spoons to tissue boxes. But if you feel so compelled to buy toys anything in the 12-24 month range would be lots of fun for her.

Hopefully this will give you a little direction. Please remember Ava does not need anything! You being part of her first year is gift enough!

Toy Poor

2009-09-15T13:45:00.001-07:00

Poor Ava has been deprived of cool new toys. I don't think she minds too much, she thinks that the dogs, cardboard boxes and paper are great fun. But I've been feeling guilty that she is lacking age appropriate, educational toys so Saturday we all set off to a big consignment sale hoping to find something good. It was a HUGE bust. Everything was old and gross. Not wanting to go home empty handed we set off for Toys R' Us and Ava got her first big girl toy as an early birthday present.

Ava had to inspect inside the box to be sure Daddy got all the parts out.Next she had to supervise to be sure Daddy did got all the screws tight enough.And...She's off! Right now she is a cruising machine so she loves the independence this toy gives her.She an also turn this toy into a car and ride on it! So far she's only figured out how to go backwards.Which sometimes can get you into trouble!

So big!

2009-09-12T18:25:00.000-07:00

How big is Ava?

So big!

How big?

SO BIG!!

I can never seem to upload videos with Blogger so here is a link

9.81 m/s^2

2009-09-12T18:08:00.000-07:00

Ava had been having a lot of fun with gravity lately. She picks up a toy, throws it and watches it fall. We pick it back up for her to do all over again so she can learn cause and effect. We never really say anything when it falls, just hand it back. Last week my Dad stayed the night with Ava while I was at work and Graham was out of town and Ava included him in her learning.

Ava: (tosses toy)
Grandpa: Uh-oh! (picks up toy and hands it back)
3...2...
Ava: (tosses toy)
Grandpa: Uh-oh! (picks up toy and hands it back)

Repeat for the rest of the night.

Today I was laying in bed when Graham and Ava came to wake me up. Ava was holding on to her pacifier and dropped it. She looked down and clear as day said "Uh-oh!"

So cute! I can't believe she picked up a new word a week after hearing it just a few times.

Holding on to summer

2009-09-11T09:01:00.000-07:00

Labor day has passed, the days are getting shorter and our pool has closed for the season.

But Ava still found a way to go swimming.

2009-09-10T13:22:00.000-07:00

One of the girls I work with showed up to the hospital with a great gift for Ava... a hand-made hooded towel. I love it and Ava does too.Cuddley towels after a warm bath must be relaxing because the eye rubbing started and Ava went off to bed.
Thanks so much Kelly for the towel!

Ava has an announcment!

2009-09-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

(Don't mind Dorian being in the way.)

Ava is going to be a big sister! I am currently 17 weeks pregnant. After several years, thousands of dollars, numerous failed IF treatments and lots of heart ache to get Ava we feel very blessed to have baby #2 come along so easily. Ava and her little brother or sister will be 16 months apart

My due date is February 11th but because of my bicornuate uterus and how close together my pregnancies are I will have a repeat c/s around Feb. 5th.

Dinner at the in-laws

2009-08-28T08:32:00.000-07:00

We set off for the mountains for dinner with the in-laws who we haven't seen in a while. Shortly after getting there Graham and I took off to try out a motorcycle that the in-laws have for sale. Uncle Peter came along. Apparently Aunt Claire got bored waiting for us to come back because we found lots of random pictures on my camera...

the cars....

The motorcycles that were left behind..Peter's wife, Alissa getting some studying done...Alissa's mother, Cheryl playing with Avaand some lovely self portraits of the photographer, Auntie ClaireMaybe someone needs to take that wine away!After a mildly scary ride around the neighborhood we returned.

And found Ava waiting for us.

Ava showed us a new trick she figured out. Stair climbing!We don't have any stairs in our house (except for the basement) but Ava climbed them like an ol' pro.

Next time we'll have t be sure we actually get some pictures of Ava with her grandparents.

Double date

2009-08-27T14:48:00.000-07:00

Ava and I set off today for a play date with my friend Angela from work and her 4.5 month twin boys.

Here is Jeremiah.And here is Ben.These are twins I can actually tell apart because Ben is a lot bigger than his brother. In fact he weighs just a few ounces less than Ava.

Ava was a big fan of being on a play date with two handsome boys. She was so excited this is the only picture I was able to take of the three of them because Ava turned into a wild child and I spend the rest of the time wrestling her off the babies.

You can really see him, but there is a baby seeking refugee from Ava in his Mommy's lap.Ava also got to spend a little time on the swings. She seemed to like it.But spend most of her swinging looking at the ground, making me worried she was going to topple out so I cut her fun short.

It was a great day to spend time catching up!

Bye Bye Bentley

2009-08-24T08:34:00.000-07:00

We've had some changes in our lives recently that unfortunately requires me to down size my horsey herd. This weekend my lovely Thoroughbred, Bentley has found a wonderful new home. As difficult as it is to rehome an animal you love I feel really good about Bentley's new owners. They have 35 amazing acres in Steamboat (which is breath takingly beautiful!) They have 3 other Thoroughbreds and they just adore Bentley and they don't mind me being a pest and emailing everyday to see how he's doing. It's the right move all around for our family and for Bentley.

Right now he is just on a 10 day trial period, but I don't imagine he will be coming back.

Bye Bentley. You are a great horse and we will miss you!

Pool Party!

2009-08-22T08:23:00.000-07:00

Last summer, when I was hugely pregnant and the air conditioner just wasn't cutting it I went out and bought a inflatable kiddy pool to soak my hugely pregnant self in. I can just imagine what our neighbors thought...me in a bikini with my giant pregnant belly and Graham beer in one hand cigar in the other hanging out in a inflatable pool. But it really is awesome!

So awesome in fact our good friends Amanda and Dave called us up on Saturday and invited themselves over for a little pool party. I'm so glad they did. It was a hot day and Ava had yet to have a chance to try out our pool. So the air compressor and garden hose came out and Amanda, Dave and Bella came over.The water was pretty cold at first but Ava didn't seem to mind. We stuck her in her floaty and she cruised around from one side of the pool to the other trying to get the attention of Bella. Afterwards I had a craving for Beef Wellington so we all had a fancy dinner after our red neck pool party. Fun day!

PLay Date with Logan

2009-08-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

I was asked by my manager at work to teach the new RN's order Entry at work. Of course the class took place in the middle of the day, when my family is working. So Ava got to spend some time my coworker and good friend Courtney and her little boy, Logan who just turned 1.
When I came back I found these cute pictures on my camera.Ava has her eyes closed in this picture, but how cute is Logan? He looks so grown up! Hard to believe Ava is only 2 months behind him!

Fun at the Fair

2009-08-17T13:10:00.000-07:00

My Dad used to own a record store where he sold well, records. As well as a lot of homemade jewerly, incents and things of that sorts. Now he has taken his store on the road. His plan is in the next few year to travel around the US from fair to fair seeing the world and selling. But for now he does Festivals around our neck of the woods. Most of the time we have stuff going on so we aren't able to go, but this weekend the stars aligned and we went to a festival celebrating one of our towns 40th birthday.

We walked around trying to find my Dad's booth. We failed finding my family but did find a Fire truck that was just Ava's size.

Apparently this is a real, working fire truck! We checked out the rides.And finally we found Grandpa, who showed Ava around his booth.Next was fireworks time! These were Ava's first fireworks since the three of us slept through them on the 4th of July.And they didn't disapoint! Ava cheered them on with Aunt Kimmy.

A PSA from Ava and ADA

2009-08-17T13:08:00.000-07:00

Just a friendly reminder to brush twice a day.

Even if you only have two teeth!

Block Party

2009-08-17T11:59:00.001-07:00

We got Ava some new blocks this weekend so we took them out to the front yard to play.

Can you spot the baby?

But alas, blocks get boring when you can't really do anything with them but chew on them. So Ava moves on to more adventure, Rottie climbing.What's that Lola? A chain? Lame!

Here, I'll free you!

Darn, busted!

No rest for the weary

2009-08-12T08:02:00.000-07:00

The other day Graham came home from work after Ava was in bed. He heard her stirring so he went in to say hello. Imagine our surprise to find her like this! This was the first time she pulled up and stood in her crib! She was beyond delighted with herself and we were beyond proud! A while ago we had two different friends who had babies take a spill out of their cribs. Learning from their lessons we wanted to take no chances so a quick lowering of the mattress took place. Much better! There's no escaping now!

Although, this milestone didn't come without it's price. Now that she knows she can stand in her crib we can't keep her laying down!

Ava- Stands. Hangs out enjoying the view. Feels her little legs getting tired. Wants down. Can't figure out how to get back down. Cries.

Or scene 2- Ava- Stands. Hangs out enjoying the view. Feels her little legs grow tired. Falls. Gets scared. Cries hysterically.

Amber- Goes in. Helps show her how to sit and lay down. Comforts. Replace pacifier. Walks out.

Lather, rinse, repeat every 4 minutes.

Gone are the days of my good napper. Yesterday neither of us got a wink of sleep. Not good when I depend on her naps to make it through my 12 hour night shifts.
Hopefully she picks up how to get down without falling soon!

Vocabulary Lesson

2009-08-11T19:07:00.000-07:00

Ava may be "behind physically" but mentally she is exceptional!

Here are some words Ava says:
-Mama
-Dada
-Ba Ba (bottle)
-Hi
-Bye Bye
-Milk
-Clap
-Bella (Amanda's dog. She won't say our dogs names, but Bella she has down!)
-Ball

Ava also knows these words in Sign Language:
-Milk
-More
-All Done

Ava caught on to Signing so quickly. I found this website and we are now working on "Diaper Change" and "Food."

It's amazing how fast she picks things up! She really is a brilliant little girl!

9 (+1) Month Appt

2009-08-10T18:40:00.000-07:00

Ava had her 9 month appointment, a month late last week. She is doing perfect in our eyes. The PA on the other hand kept telling me Ava is was behind since she is not:

-crawling with her belly off the floor
-cruising
-did not get her top teeth right after getting her bottom two
-nor is she drinking well from a sippy cup.

According to the PA, "A lot of 9-10 month olds are off a bottle at this age." "Get their top teeth with a few days of getting their bottom teeth." and, "Are cruising all over the place." I just kept calmly telling her babies do things in their own time and it's not a competition.

I'm really glad I know better. Ava is not behind. It's normal for a 5 month old to have several teeth and normal for a 10 month old to have none. It's also normal for some babies to never crawl at all, some experts will argue crawling isn't even considered a milestone anymore. Every baby does things in their own time. I work with the Pediatrician in the office and really like her, but it is like pulling teeth to get in to see her. So after going through 2 PA's (and waiting a month so I didn't have to see the first PA, who annoys me) I think I'm going to find another office that is closer to home and is more current in their literature. I also plan on talking to my current Ped to let her know why I'm leaving and tell her that the PA's in her office are giving misguided information. I can imagine how freaked out a parent who has done no research on her own or had babies within a similar age would be if a PA told them their baby was behind.

Ava's stats at this visit are:

Weight: 17 lbs 6oz- (25% at 9 months) (*15% for 10 months)
Length- 26 3/4 in -(25% at 9 months) and (*10% for 10 months)
Head Circ- 18 1/4in -(96% at 9 months and (*90% for 10 months)

*The Peds office counted her stats for her being 9 months, but since we were in a month late I wanted to remember what it was for 10 months too.

Sleeping Beauties

2009-08-09T10:53:00.001-07:00

While Aunt Kimmy was watching Ava last week she caught Ava and her dog, Champ taking a snooze.