Here's the first installment:
Unfortunately, there weren't any photos to be found of me in this dress, but hopefully some of the future posts will have a little comparison, too.
I'm so thankful to have this little girl! A dream come true!
January 15, 2012
Mama Wore That: Yellow Dress
A couple of weekends ago we did some major cleaning out and my mom and I finally went through two big tubs of clothes that she had saved from my own childhood. Oh boy, I wish we'd gotten around to it sooner. There were a few sweet little baby dresses that Clara was already too big for. But I started with the smallest things that she could even sort of fit into and Clara and I played dress up one morning this week. Here's evidence of our little fashion show/photo shoot. Many, many more to come in this series, "Mama Wore That."
Here's the first installment:
Unfortunately, there weren't any photos to be found of me in this dress, but hopefully some of the future posts will have a little comparison, too.
I'm so thankful to have this little girl! A dream come true!
Here's the first installment:
Unfortunately, there weren't any photos to be found of me in this dress, but hopefully some of the future posts will have a little comparison, too.
I'm so thankful to have this little girl! A dream come true!
January 14, 2012
January 12, 2012
Teeth
That's right. There are two teeth that have poked right through the bottom gum this week. At nine and a half months, our gummy grin is starting to fade. And the good news is, that Clara has been as happy as ever and still sleeping eleven to twelve hours at night. So every time for the past six months that she's seemed the slightest bit "off" and I've said, "Maybe she's teething?" The answer is no. She was not. Teething hasn't phased her.
I tried to capture these tiny nubs of teeth, but you might have to look extra careful to see them.
I tried to capture these tiny nubs of teeth, but you might have to look extra careful to see them.
 |
| popping a puff |
And here's a closeup:
January 11, 2012
New Year
Well it's now January 11. While the rest of the blogosphere was jammering on about New Years' Resolutions, I was still posting Christmas photos. So, now that we're soundly in 2012 and many of us are probably already breaking those New Years' Resolutions, I thought I'd reflect just a bit on 2012.
While I've never really been one to make tons of resolutions, per se, I am an extremely goal driven person (have you picked up on that yet?) And while I don't think that January 1 is the only time of year one should be setting goals, it's as good as any for reflecting on life a bit, seeing what might need to change (or not) and taking intentional steps towards that end. So, I do often find myself thinking and writing about goals for the year when January rolls around.
Like everyone else out there, I'd love to eat healthier, save money and be more organized. I have ambitions of starting to run again (more on that another time) and I desperately need to clean out every closet and cupboard in this house. But those are all kind of exterior goals. They're things I'll work on, tangible items that can be checked off a to-do list, but not things that will change my heart.
What I really want to do in 2012? Worry less. I worried so much in 2011. I'm not saying it wasn't justified - I think a lot of it really was. I mean what can make you worry more than your dying baby, really? But even after Clara came home from the hospital and we've been slowly helping her get stronger and healthier day by day, I have been consumed by worry. Some of it may be typical new mom worry and some of it may be typical mom-of-a-sick-baby worry, and quite frankly some of it is probably in my genes. But I think there's been too much of it. Worry, like many things, can become a habit and I think that's where I am now. I've allowed worry to really dominate my days and take over in ways it should not be allowed to.
I'm committed to worrying less in 2012. There will still be health concerns for Clara for some time, but I can see that she really is going to be okay. And you know what? Me worrying about how many ounces she consumes doesn't really change much about how many ounces she consumes. I know this in my head. I need to start putting it into practice.
The main reason I want to worry less in 2012 is not for my own emotional well-being (although that'll be a nice side effect) but because I feel very convicted than my worrying is sinful. When I worry it's as if I am saying to God, "You can't handle this." Or that I don't trust that He will take care of me, take care of Clara. I believe that my worry is pushing Him away from me and I don't want that.
When I shared with a friend recently that I wanted to worry less in 2012 she asked me how. I don't think there's an easy answer to that. Worry creeps up on you and it's easy to be in a full-fledged worry attack before you've even realized it. It's not like "cooking a healthy dinner" or "running 20 minutes." It's not something I can put on a to-do list each morning and cross off by lunchtime. I'm just starting each day asking God to free me from worry. And when I feel it start to creep up again, I'm trying to shake it off, breathe a deep breath, and trust in God's abundant blessings.
We'll see how it goes. 2011 was rich with worry. What I want to pursue in 2012, more than anything, is peace. And kicking worry to the curb is the first step in that direction.
While I've never really been one to make tons of resolutions, per se, I am an extremely goal driven person (have you picked up on that yet?) And while I don't think that January 1 is the only time of year one should be setting goals, it's as good as any for reflecting on life a bit, seeing what might need to change (or not) and taking intentional steps towards that end. So, I do often find myself thinking and writing about goals for the year when January rolls around.
Like everyone else out there, I'd love to eat healthier, save money and be more organized. I have ambitions of starting to run again (more on that another time) and I desperately need to clean out every closet and cupboard in this house. But those are all kind of exterior goals. They're things I'll work on, tangible items that can be checked off a to-do list, but not things that will change my heart.
What I really want to do in 2012? Worry less. I worried so much in 2011. I'm not saying it wasn't justified - I think a lot of it really was. I mean what can make you worry more than your dying baby, really? But even after Clara came home from the hospital and we've been slowly helping her get stronger and healthier day by day, I have been consumed by worry. Some of it may be typical new mom worry and some of it may be typical mom-of-a-sick-baby worry, and quite frankly some of it is probably in my genes. But I think there's been too much of it. Worry, like many things, can become a habit and I think that's where I am now. I've allowed worry to really dominate my days and take over in ways it should not be allowed to.
I'm committed to worrying less in 2012. There will still be health concerns for Clara for some time, but I can see that she really is going to be okay. And you know what? Me worrying about how many ounces she consumes doesn't really change much about how many ounces she consumes. I know this in my head. I need to start putting it into practice.
The main reason I want to worry less in 2012 is not for my own emotional well-being (although that'll be a nice side effect) but because I feel very convicted than my worrying is sinful. When I worry it's as if I am saying to God, "You can't handle this." Or that I don't trust that He will take care of me, take care of Clara. I believe that my worry is pushing Him away from me and I don't want that.
When I shared with a friend recently that I wanted to worry less in 2012 she asked me how. I don't think there's an easy answer to that. Worry creeps up on you and it's easy to be in a full-fledged worry attack before you've even realized it. It's not like "cooking a healthy dinner" or "running 20 minutes." It's not something I can put on a to-do list each morning and cross off by lunchtime. I'm just starting each day asking God to free me from worry. And when I feel it start to creep up again, I'm trying to shake it off, breathe a deep breath, and trust in God's abundant blessings.
We'll see how it goes. 2011 was rich with worry. What I want to pursue in 2012, more than anything, is peace. And kicking worry to the curb is the first step in that direction.
January 9, 2012
Clara Eats Puffs
Clara's eating has taken off in absolutely incredible ways the past week or two. We're all of a sudden eating bowl fulls of cereal, gnawing on chunks of fruit, and eating solids three times a day. We have been so proud of her! More details later, but today she figured out how to self-feed puffs! This is a big deal because about a month ago I have her tiny little crushed up crumbs of a puff and she promptly gagged and threw up. Now, she's self feeding them by the fistful! She's chewing them! She's swallowing them! Quite frankly, it's nothing short of another miracle.
To all you other CDH mamas out there who are frustrated with this feeding game: take heart. There's hope. Maybe someday, with lots and lots and lots of hard work, patience, persistence, and determination.... it'll just click and they'll really start to figure it out. I can't tell you how exciting it is to see some normal on the horizon.
(Please forgive the horrible videography . I think I'll stick with still photography.)
To all you other CDH mamas out there who are frustrated with this feeding game: take heart. There's hope. Maybe someday, with lots and lots and lots of hard work, patience, persistence, and determination.... it'll just click and they'll really start to figure it out. I can't tell you how exciting it is to see some normal on the horizon.
(Please forgive the horrible videography . I think I'll stick with still photography.)
January 5, 2012
Nine Months - Medical Update
Now that the holidays are behind us, our appointment schedule is picking back up again. Clara had physical therapy yesterday and her nine month check up this morning. Clara seemed to have a little growth spurt the week before Christmas and the combination of that along with lots of attention during our week at Beech Mountain seems to have translated into a huge burst of gross motor development. She has not only fully mastered crawling, but is pulling up on any and every thing in sight. She’s cruising along furniture, standing with just one hand and reaching in all directions, going from standing to sitting with great control and even standing completely on her own for a second or two. Her core strength, control and coordination have just improved dramatically.
I knew that Cindy (our PT) would be surprised at all of Clara’s progress in such a short time. She was thrilled! It’s been six months since we started PT now and so she re-administered the AIMS (Alberta Infant Motor Scale) assessment to determine where Clara is with her gross motor skills at this point. No surprise, she’s at 50th percentile for her age! Anything above 10th percentile would have been considered great, but we’re so thrilled that she is where she is. We’re mighty proud of this hard worker. So, she no longer has a developmental delay and no longer has torticollis. We still want to increase her core strength and her neck some, but she will likely be exited from PT very soon!
This morning we went for our monthly synegis shot (RSV vaccine) and her nine month checkup. She weighed in at 18 pounds, up 12 ounces in a month. That’s the 36th percentile for weight, and about where Clara has been the past couple of months. Her length is 28 inches (67th percentile) and head is 18cm (91st percentile). The doctor was very pleased with this growth. I know that the continued weight gain (albeit with enormous effort on my part) is a big part of the gross motor success, too. They’re certainly closely related. But it’s motivating to keep working hard on both feeding and her core strength exercises when we have such a positive office visit.
We have been feeding Clara during the night some (once at 11PM before we go to bed and once in the early morning before she wakes up). I just dropped the early morning feed last week and the doctor has told us to go ahead and try dropping the night time feed, too. Hopefully Clara will eat/drink enough the rest of the day to make up for those feedings and we’ll all get a little more sleep at night! Most of all, the doctor was incredibly affirming of the hard work that we’ve put into both feeding and protecting Clara from germs during the winter thus far. She and I will both be relieved when March rolls around and we’re through the cold and flu season and Clara is also old enough to begin transitioning away from breast milk.
We head back to feeding therapy on Monday. I’m pleased with our progress there, too. I hope the speech pathologist will agree!
Thanks for your continued prayers for Clara’s health and growth and for being concerned about her development. We’re thankful for you!
I knew that Cindy (our PT) would be surprised at all of Clara’s progress in such a short time. She was thrilled! It’s been six months since we started PT now and so she re-administered the AIMS (Alberta Infant Motor Scale) assessment to determine where Clara is with her gross motor skills at this point. No surprise, she’s at 50th percentile for her age! Anything above 10th percentile would have been considered great, but we’re so thrilled that she is where she is. We’re mighty proud of this hard worker. So, she no longer has a developmental delay and no longer has torticollis. We still want to increase her core strength and her neck some, but she will likely be exited from PT very soon!
This morning we went for our monthly synegis shot (RSV vaccine) and her nine month checkup. She weighed in at 18 pounds, up 12 ounces in a month. That’s the 36th percentile for weight, and about where Clara has been the past couple of months. Her length is 28 inches (67th percentile) and head is 18cm (91st percentile). The doctor was very pleased with this growth. I know that the continued weight gain (albeit with enormous effort on my part) is a big part of the gross motor success, too. They’re certainly closely related. But it’s motivating to keep working hard on both feeding and her core strength exercises when we have such a positive office visit.
We have been feeding Clara during the night some (once at 11PM before we go to bed and once in the early morning before she wakes up). I just dropped the early morning feed last week and the doctor has told us to go ahead and try dropping the night time feed, too. Hopefully Clara will eat/drink enough the rest of the day to make up for those feedings and we’ll all get a little more sleep at night! Most of all, the doctor was incredibly affirming of the hard work that we’ve put into both feeding and protecting Clara from germs during the winter thus far. She and I will both be relieved when March rolls around and we’re through the cold and flu season and Clara is also old enough to begin transitioning away from breast milk.
We head back to feeding therapy on Monday. I’m pleased with our progress there, too. I hope the speech pathologist will agree!
Thanks for your continued prayers for Clara’s health and growth and for being concerned about her development. We’re thankful for you!
Christmas Continues: Dashing Through The Snow
Dashing through the snow
On a brand new Christmas sleigh
O'er the hills we go
Laughing all the way.
What a special thing,
Making spirits bright
What fun it is to ride and sing
A sleighing song tonight!
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