Tuesday, October 27, 2009

8 Months a Day Late



Here is Andrea sleeping in her swing. The red mark on her face is from the TegaDerm, which we have to use to hold the nasal cannula on over night. Unfortunately, Andrea likes to pull it off, which leaves these nasty marks!

Another milestone has come, and I almost missed it in the insanity that is our day to day lives. Yesterday, at 5:29 p.m., Andrea celebrated her 8th month of life! We have now been home almost as long as we were in the NICU. Each individual day is so busy, sometimes time passes without even realizing. Andrea continues to progress and is getting bigger and stronger every day. She seems to be mostly recovered from her illness, and we are once again able to take her off the oxygen during the day.

In the good news/bad news department, Andrea has learned to roll from her back to her stomach. She does it mostly when she's frustrated, but she has also done it over night. As a result, we now need to swaddle her tightly in a blanket when she's sleeping, to help keep her from tangling in her cannula. Still, she seems to sleep better when she's swaddled, and for some reason, we don't get false alarms from the PulseOx.

In the purely "good news" area, Andrea has learned to laugh. She is only slightly ticklish (unlike her mom, who is violently ticklish!) but will laugh if we make certain faces or sounds. It is a joy to hear!

We go back to the pediatrician tomorrow for Andrea's flu shot booster, although we're still waiting for the injectible "swine flu" vaccine to be available. Our biggest concern right now is trying to keep her healthy through the winter. Her doctor gives us the first appointment of the day, so we can avoid germs in the office. We don't go many places, to minimize her exposure to infection. It's hard, because it can be very isolating. We have even had to avoid seeing family and friends, because we can't risk other children passing things on to Andrea.

So, thank you all for the prayers and good wishes that have gotten us this far. While every day is a miracle to us, we still try to commemorate the "big" days and the little accomplishments.

Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines, but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes. Buddha

3 comments:

  1. She is, as always, beautiful! Happy 8 months old!

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  2. awww still likes to be swaddled when she sleeps, as well as being on her belly... some things havent changed!
    kerri

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  3. I'll bet every time she laughs, you laugh with her. Such a beautiful sweet angel.

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