Our Girls....

Annemarie at about 10 weeks

Mia at 5 months

I had been meaning to do this for a few days. There is no doubt that these two are sisters!!

Time for an update......

which I know is long overdue!! So the first question is always the weight...as of March 9th (the last time she was weighed)....8 lbs., 11 0zs!! In 11 days she gained 1 lb. 3 ozs!! Not too much less than what she weighed at birth!! She is growing so fast! On March 9th, she had (hopefully) that last of ther liver function blood work done. We haven't received the results yet. Tomorrow is another visit from the physical therapist and I think Mia's doing great in that department! She's getting better about tummy time and is really doing well holding her head up and bringing it to the center of her body. She's finally sleeping flat on her back (she was on her side) and that seems to be helping with her toaster head. She has another eye exam this Thursday. Please keep that appointment in prayer-someday we hope to not have to go at all! The first picture is Mia in an actual newborn outfit! It makes her look so big and grown up. Yes, those are her feet-very big! It's not just the slippers, either. Her feet fill up a good amount of those things!! The next two pictures are Mia in a pram that Grammy and Grampy bought her (thanks Dad and Diane!). She was able to wear it the last couple of times it snowed. It's starting to warm up, now, but I keep it handy--you never can tell what the weather will do here!! The last picture is Annemarie reading her sister a story. Annemarie looks so grown up. And she's acting all grown up, too! But, not just in the attitude department. She's such a great helper! She's been waiting for a sibling as long as we've been waiting to give her one! She loves to hold Mia and is very careful wtih her. Mia loves her sissy, too. There are many times when Mia is fussy and Annemarie will take her and Mia will stop fussing. Annie can't wait until Mia is able to crawl and walk and talk....I can. One, because I'd like her to stay little as long as possible, but two, because then we'll be hearing, "She touched my stuff! Mom, make her stop!", etc, etc, etc......

Bath Time!

This is Mia after a recent bath. I was trying to figure out how to take a picture of her to show off her rolls that she has on her arms and legs (very exciting!!). But the only way to do that is to take a picture of her in the buff....so, this is as close as I could get! (I LOVE baby rolls!!)

And this is the last Preemie outfit that she was able to wear-and this just barely fit! So, now she is in newborn clothes and has quickly grown out of some of those and into 0-3 months! She's growing so fast--just like any other baby!

This is as close to a smile as I can conjour out of Mia right now. This is the first dress Annemarie wore and I remember taking a picture of Annie on this same blanket when she was just a week old. I guess I should have tried this dress on Mia a while ago...it's a little short!! It was about 20 degrees this day so I just cranked up the heater!! These pictures were taken on March 15th-the day Mia turned 5 months!!

Annie Fannie Doo-Dah

I finally got around to scanning Annemarie's school pictures. This is Kindergarten......

This is First Grade.......

and this is Second Grade. She's definitely lost her baby face. And I think she has decided to grow her hair long, finally. We'll see how long that lasts! She's doing great in school. Her Parent/Teacher conference is this week so we'll see what her teacher says! I have a feeling it will be the usual: "She's an excellent student, HOWEVER.....she's very social." :-) That's really teacher-talk for "She's a talker!"

Note the progression.....

from, "OK, I can pose for Mommy for a while..."

to, "Hmmmm, I think I'm done..."

to, "Hey, I'm not happy!!"......

to "I'm REALLY REALLY done, now Mom!!"

(I promise that I dont' let her cry for longer than it takes to get the picture...she just gets sooo mad--alot like her sissy did when she posed for me!!)

This is Mia last week in her first newborn outfit! (And as a side note, this outfit is dedicated my sister, Aunt Cathy-lover of all things that are Sock Monkey!) She's actually growing out of her Preemie outfits! She was weighed on Monday and is now a whopping 7 lbs., 8 oz.! She had her third RSV vaccination on Monday and did fine. Last week, she had another appointment with the eye doctor and she has to go back in 4 weeks--but both eyes are a bit better-not greatly, but at least they are better! The physical therapist vistited today and she said that Mia's development is where she would expect it to be. They calculate her progress based on her corrected age (the age from her due date) which is 5 weeks, not her actual age, which is 4 1/2 months. So, her physical development is right in line with any other 5 week old. She's really working hard at keeping her head up and we learned some new ways to play on her tummy-something she's not a huge fan of, but that needs to be done so we can try to be sure she doesn't end up with toaster head forever!

Chicago

Tonight Annemarie had another family dance at her school. I stayed home with Mia and Scott and Annie went on a date. She was very excited and it gave her an opportunity to wear her American Girl outfit that she got in Chicago. Speaking of Chicago.......

For Christmas this year, my mom and dad paid for the girls (Christina and Samantha, my nieces, and Annemarie) to spend the day at the American Girl Place in Chicago. It was a really cool place and the girls went crazy!! It was fun being in, as Annie kept saying, "The Big City". It is a big city, especially compared to where she now lives!!

Christina, Annie and Samantha in Front if the American Girl Place. They were really good about this picture because it was REALLY COLD and WINDY!

As part of the package, the girls were able to have their pictures taken with their dolls. Annie was able to buy a matching outfit for herself with some Christmas money from Nana and Papa. The picture was then turned into a magazine cover and given to the girls. This is Annie with her doll, Nikki.

Christmas Hats in February

Mia in her reindeer hat from Auny Cathy on December 3, 2006

Mia in her reindeer hat today-and it's tight!!

Hopefully there won't be too many typos-I've got Mia on my left shoulder while I'm trying to type this. I had posted an update last week and then accidentally deleted it. I knew I would be blogging today, so, I figured I would just put everything in at once. Mia is 4 months old today. She had her check-up today and....(wait for it)........ 6 lbs., 13 ozs!!!!!! Wa-hoo! And 20 1/2 inches long! She is just about the same size Annemarie was when we brought her home from the hospital-Mia's actually a little bit bigger! Last Friday, Mia had some labwork done to check on her liver function and everything came back normal! Thank you God!! She will have to have (hopefully) just one more round of labwork in a month, just to check. If that comes back normal, then we're done with that!! She's still taking medication for her reflux and liver (just for 2 more weeks). We have a home visit with the county health nurse next week as part of the Birth to Three program and another eye appointment. So, things, for Mia at least, are slowing down. Scott has started his Spring classes and I am trying to finish fall classes and have enrolled in Spring classes--not that Ive necessarily done any work!! Scott and I have also been busy with the teen program at church. We started out the year with 2 teens and now average 9 every week! That is such a blessing and we love our kids very much. Please hold them up in prayer-for regular teen issues, but more importantly that they would all come to know Christ as their Saviour. I would also like to ask for prayer for a baby that is still in the NICU at Meriter. Her name is Khia. She was born a few weeks before Mia and is still in the hospital. She has had some major issues and has just recently gotten off her vent and stepped down. I have been praying for Khia for a long time but have failed to mention her on the blog and I feel horrible! Her mom's name is Beth and I know Beth could use alot of prayers, too! Aubrey is off her monitor and only needs oxygen at night! Thank you for praying for her. She's doing great!

SOMEONE PLEASE STOP MY MOMMY FROM TAKING ANYMORE PICTURES OF ME!!!!!!

I'M TIRED!!!!

This post was stared on 1-31, but was not finished until 2-5....surprising, huh?

The first BIG snow we had a couple of weeks ago. This is looking down our street from our front porch....

Annie on her way out the door to school in her vest that Nana made her (which she LOVES to wear).

Annie wanted me to post and blog her in her new princess jammies

She looks so sweet and innocent ;-)

Mia in her Moses basket that her Aunt Cathy got for her. This comes in VERY handy on doctor days. Mia is still too small for her infant carrier car seat so she is in a car bed (which doen't come out of the car). So, we bundle her up in her basket, take it to the car, put her in her car bed and then bundle her up to take her into the doctor's office. Our doctor days can sometimes be long so this is nice to have because it gives her a place to sleep and a nice place to hide from all the germs floating around the doctor's office! Well, as usual I'm about a week behind! We went for Mia's weigh-in last Monday and she was 5 lbs., 2 oz. Todays' weigh-in......5 lbs., 15 oz! I guess I don't need to worry about her gaining right now!! She had her second RSV vaccination last week and I think she is just now getting over the effects of that (a slight temp, upset tummy...). It's been FRIGID here with temps at -15 with a wind chill of -30. They even cancelled school today because of the cold. So needless to say, she still is not venturing ANYWHERE, except to the doctor's. This week is relatively quiet-Mia and I will stay at the Ronald McDonald House in Madison on Thursday night because we have to be at UW Hospital at about 7am for labwork before her appointment with the Pediatric GI doctor. We have stopped waking Mia to eat-we are letting her wake on her own. I was very nervous about this at first because I was afraid she would want to sleep more than eat--not so. Her eye exam was last week. Each eye got a little bit better with the left eye being worse than the right. The good thing is that we don't have to go back for 3 weeks now! Hopefully, it's just a matter of her growing and the rest of us trying to adjust to her world! As always, thank you for your prayers. I've been in touch with Aubrey's parents and please keep them in your prayers. Aubrey is beautiful and growing but is still on oxygen and a heart monitor. She will go back to the doctor next week and we're really praying that she will no longer need the oxygen and monitor. Thank you again!! God is Good!

Look who's getting bigger....FINALLY!!!

I love my thumb more every day!!JAZZ HANDS!!Well, I realize this is a bit late, but....Mia gained 6 ounces last weekend!!! The new formula seems to be working for now. All week, I have been talking with insurance companies, doctors, nurses, social workers, pharmacists and Enfamil formula company to find the best way to finance Mia's new formula. Walgreens charges $376 for a box of 100 packets of formula (about a 12 day supply). Yes, that's three hundred and seventy six dollars. It's called Human Milk Fortifier and is used for premature infants to give the breast milk more calories (which Mia REALLY needs). But, God worked it out-as HE always does. This morning the charge nurse from the NICU at Meriter called and was able to talk with the nursery's rep from Enfamil. Enfamil has a program called Helping Hands that donates formula to needy families--which we are.... :-) SO, Enfamil will be suppliying Mia's formula FOR FREE!!!! Thank you God! What am awesome God--we should never worry.

OK, OK, Here they are......

THIS POST WAS WRITTEN LAST NIGHT-SUNDAY----OK. so I had these great intentions to blog from Christmas to now in chronological order, blah, blah, blah....I think that I had just better get some pictures on here before I get disowned from my families! Mia is doing well. Much better this weekend than the entire time she has been home. She has been weighed at least once a week since she came home. She came home at 4 lbs., 1 oz and as of Thursday is only up to 4 lbs., 4 oz. Her doctor changed the type of formula we add to the breastmilk and also put her on Zantac-he thinks she has reflux. And I think he is right! Almost immediately (and I am not kidding!) we noticed a difference in Mia's sleeping. Before she would grunt and groan so much I wasn't getting much sleep and I know that she wasn't either. After her very first dose of Zantac, she slept so soundly I actually checked her a couple of times to be sure she was breathing! Her spit-up (which was projectile and often) has also gotten sooooo much better! The hope is that now that she can sleep and keep her food down better SHE'LL GROW!!! She has to sleep to grow.....we've had one eye exam since she has been home--her eyes have stayed the same, which is good--not any better, but not any worse! She'll have to have eye exams every two weeks until either they get better or they get worse and require treatment. I think the Retinopathy will heal on its own, though, as she matures. We're also seeing a Pediatric Gastrointestinal specialist in Madison to follow Mia's liver function. Her most recent blood work showed a much lower direct bilirubin (3.3) but elevated liver enzymes (I don't remember the exact names). She had an ultrasound of her liver also and that looked fine. We go back to see that doctor in about two weeks for more blood work. We have a physical therapist coming to the house on Tuesday just to evaluate Mia. Because she was born so early, she is automatically enrolled in Wisconsin's Zero to Three program. It is a state program that provides services for special needs children from birth to 3 years old. They'll follow Mia's progress and help us locate any resources she may need. Annie is doing quite well with everything. I notice some tendencies to act out a little more, but Scott and I are trying to make some time to do special things with her. Friday night, Annie and Scott went on a date-dinner and a movie--and today Annie and I went out to lunch after church (Scott stayed home with Mia). Mia only leaves the house for doctor's appointments right now. Anything else would really tire her out and we don't want to expose her to anything that might land her back in the hospital. Thank you for all the love and prayers, as always! I will try to blog much more often to let you know how we are all doing. God is great and I thank Him for everything!!

Mia had to pass a car seat test before she could leave the hospital. She had to sit in her car seat for 1 hour and not have any spells. She passed with flying colors. She was (is) too small to be in her car seat, but the hospital policy is to test them in a seat. Next is Mia in an open crib. This was the day before she left the hospital--luckily I took a picture of her because she was only in an open crib for about 36 hours before she left. And this is "Graduation Day" and Mia is in her going home outfit.....

Here we are in front of the Christmas tree in the hospital lobby on our way out the door....

and in front of the Meriter (the name of the hospital) sign in the lobby......

before heading out and putting Mia in her car bed. And yes, I sat next to her the whole way!!! She loved being in the car and still does...as long as the car is moving. After awhile she will fuss if I just deccelerate. Hopefully she can get in her big girl car seat, soon. A few more ounces and inches to go......

And this is what happens when Mia is done in her swing. (And just for those aunts and granmas out there...I didn't let her cry for longer thatn it took to take this picture, OK?) The doctor doesn't believe me that she will really CRY. Whenever he sees her she's half-asleep from throwing a fit because she hates being weighed. Well, here's proof that she is just like any other baby--able to reach a fever pitch in less than 2 seconds! And this is Mia in her bouncy seat....an explosion of pink! :-)