Catch Up

Good thing I don't blog for a living. I think I'd make a sad living! Let's play catch up today!

 Big Sister Maren turned 4 about 3 weeks ago. She had a Rainbows and Butterflies party with close friends and classmates attending. It was a busy two hours, but I think she really enjoyed it.

 Now that she is four, she talks about being five (and six, and eight, and ten...) and requires four books before bed (because she's four). All that agreement to not ask to be carried and carry Grandma and Grandpa K instead when she was four did not hold true. She still asks to be carried. In school, we are seeing her writing improve, she knows many numbers and can count to 29 (then comes twenty-ten), she knows all her letters and their sounds, and after much practice, can recite her address. Maren loves to be outside now that the weather is nice and continues to spend most of her play time imagining or creating.

 Cora is now 11 months old. At 11 mos, we discovered a third tooth and have since discovered two more in 10 days! This leaves her without a front middle tooth for now, but I see it coming in too.

 Cora is gaining a lot of core strength now. In the past month, her sitting has improved immensely and she sits well on her own with a boppy behind her. She is also straightening herself when she stands with us. Yesterday, she pulled on a laundry basket I had anchored and managed to engage her legs and mostly pull to standing. She has started weekly physical therapy to support her rib and hip movement, which are locked in place from her immoble months and surgery.  We are also trying some "rotation therapy" within these sessions and at home to help her movement systems develop. Yes, this means that we hold Cora and spin her around. We are at 3 rotations each way (a total of 12 totations, twice a day) and yes, we get dizzy already!

 Cora took her first wagon ride and loved it! She is eating well and drinking ok, just not enough. She will head to the University to remove the tube that is in place right now and have it replaced with a less annoying one. Hopefully she will be done with it by summer's end, but since it is a surgical placement, we will be leaving it in place until we are sure she doesn't need it.

Next up - Cora turns one, dance recital, Cora's grand birthday celebration, and summer vacations! Maybe a Mother's Day picture later, too.

10 Months

Cora is now 10 months! She has 2 bottom teeth and is working on a top, side tooth. She babbles away! Screams and shouts, too! Cora is making progress with her eating and is starting to show a preference for crunchy things. But we keep offering others, too! She is starting to take some liquids from a cup, but not enough...yet!

 Trying out the swing set. Thank you, lovely days!

 Freezing, morning egg hunt. 

Practicing standing and watching the egg dying extravaganza.

Easter

Another holiday to remind us how truly blessed we are! 

Happy First Easter, Cora!

9 Months!

Three-quarters of a year...is it possible??? 

You roll back to tummy (when you want to), showed us you can roll tummy to back today (but only when you want to), sit pretty well (when you feel like it), eat rice husks, puffs, arrowroot cookies, sweet potato chunks, cooked carrots on your own, love all flavors you've tried except bananas (especially when you feed yourself), talk up a storm, and love playing peek a boo. You are one independent girl!

I love a weekend where, when you think back, you just have an overall content feeling. They all go too fast, don't they?

 Cora has been playing peek a boo a lot and is mimicking Maren's raspberries. She doesn't like to be left behind and will let you know it.

She's still practicing her rolling. Tummy is not where she prefers to be, but she will put up with it for a while. She is a very content girl. There is no "second child syndrome" here where the younger tries to keep up with the older. She's happy to entertain herself or play with you on the floor, in one general area. 

Here's our blonde beauty, hair blowing in the wi...heater vent. She wanted to see her hair blowing. Eyes still blue, blue, blue.

 Cora's eyes are gray, green, hazel....they change and I know they aren't the color they will be for life. 

Practicing sitting. So many skills, so little time. The stinky thing about sleeping for two + months is that the skills wait for you and then you are supposed to learn them faster because you are older! Skills not lacking - social development. You've gotta love that smile and her laughter is contagious. She was laughing at Maren bouncing on a big ball tonight. It seemed like the funniest thing that has ever happened, anywhere!

We hope you had a great weekend, too!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I get to spend it with two of the sweetest Valentine's around!

Cora posed solo this morning after (or during, depending on how you look at it!) breakfast.

Februrary 7-12th - CHD Awareness

This is Cora. She was born 6/3/11 and was diagnosed at 2.5 months of age with a Complete Atrioventricular Septal Defect, or AVSD. Cora was to be repaired at 4.5 months, but became critically ill around the same time. She needed to undergo a cardiac catheterization procedure before repair, but this couldn't happen until her general health improved. Cora's echos seemed to show an unbalanced defect and the surgeon was unclear what repair would be best. Cora was finally repaired on 12/9/11 and is now home with us, catching up on her developmental milestones and learning to eat again.

February is Heart Month. February 7-12th is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week. Cora is 1 in every 100. She is a Heart Warrior.

Visit: The Faces of CHD   http://pinterest.com/ruth_h/the-faces-of-chd-congenital-heart-awareness-week-f/