Thursday, December 3, 2009

One Labor-Intensive Baby!

Poor Andrea has had skin rashes on and off for several weeks. When she's on the oral steroids (Orapred) for her asthma, the rash clears up. Once she's off the medication, it flares up again. At every doctor's visit, we were given another "solution" to try. For the really bad areas, we were told to use an over-the-counter cortisone cream. The rest of her, we just slathered in lotion. First, Johnson's Baby Lotion, then CetaPhil, then AquaPhor. Nothing worked very well, or for very long. So, at her last well-baby visit, the doctor suggested we take her to a dermatologist. Andrea and I had THAT appointment earlier this week.

Basically, the poor thing has eczema over most of her body. The treatment is a major time commitment! We have prescription cortisone ointment for most of her body. (Not on the face or hands) This gets applied twice a day. We have a prescription foam for her hair, used every night in the bath. In between, we have to lotion her up with AquaPhor "as often as possible". While in the bath, we have to use soap without alcohol - not easy to find in a liquid. Also, no wash cloths, loofahs or sponges.

On top of the skin regime, Andrea is taking Orapred and Flovent twice a day and breathing treatments every 4 to 6 hours. She's still very congested from her illness, so we have to suction her out often. We use a disgusting contraption called a "Nose Freida", (Google it up if you want details) which works well, but Andrea truly hates.

Despite all the procedures, Andrea has retained her usual disposition. Meaning that one minute she's happy as a clam, and the next instant she's a demon child. The NICU nurses told us that she survived because of her forceful personality. We're trying to convince her that she can lighten up a little, now that she's home!

Andrea is making great progress with her strength. She can pull herself up to a standing position if we hold her hands. She rolls ALL OVER THE PLACE, meaning we can no longer leave her on the couch or bed. Even if we're right there, she's too fast to be safe. She's working on the balance needed to sit up. You can see in today's picture that she's getting there. We actually propped her in the corner of our couch, which provided enough support that she could hold herself up for a bit.



Andrea has a wonderful family. Her outfit in this picture was an early Christmas gift from her Aunt Teeny and Uncle Stephen. Aunt Teeny has a 12-year old daughter, a son, and 6 nephews, so it's been a LONG time since she was able to buy things for a baby girl. Those of you with children know that girls' clothes are WAY more fun than boys' clothes. So, for the next few pictures, you'll see Andrea's fashion show, courtesy of Aunt Teeny and Uncle Stephen.

"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...it's about learning how to dance in the rain." Anonymous

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