This morning...

This morning I got up, got Aiden's bottle together and grabbed a cup of coffee. Then I heard this strange noise coming from the bedroom. So I grabbed the camera and headed in to see what was going on...

Yep, Aiden was cracking up at nothing. The ceiling, maybe? Even Sophie had a very confused look on her face. This went on for about 15 minutes, something was very funny :)

Apple Hill

We took Aiden on his first trip to apple hill today. I wanted all 3 of us to go before it got really busy up there and we really wanted to get out of the house and enjoy the nice weather today. We stopped and got sandwiches and picnic supplies on the way up the hill, so our first stop was lunch at one of the apple ranch's picnic area. It was really nice, we set up our blankets under a tree by a little waterfall and stream. Aiden laid down and smiled up at the trees and sky, he talked to them a little, too.

After lunch we went directly for dessert - apple cider donuts from Rainbow Orchards, I remember going there with my mom and dad for donuts and hot cider when I was little. Then we went on a search for some apples and other goodies. We stopped at a couple more places and bought 2 different kinds of apples and some peaches - we already had a ton of pears from "Walshaw Orchards" ha ha. I plan on making Aiden some food this week with fresh apple hill fruit!

I can't wait until the day we can take Aiden on the train, ride on the ponies, and get his face painted but, until then, it was really nice for us to get out of the house and spend some time together. It was a great way to spend labor day!

9 Months Old

Aiden turned 9 months old yesterday (5 months and 3 weeks corrected), so we celebrated by giving him his first real food. We decided to skip the whole rice cereal thing - I read alot about rice cereal being a filler food without alot of taste and not alot of nutritional value. So, Aiden's first food was home-made organic sweet potatoes - packed with nutrients and just sweet enough to get him interested in food. He LOVED them! He ate every bit that was in the bowl - about 2 tablespoons (this was after taking his full bottle first).

Messy Face!

Aiden wasn't so sure about the spoon, so I used my finger - a texture he is familiar with since he loves trying to put my hands in his mouth! We tried the spoon again tonight and he did much better :)

Me making his sweet potatoes using my babycook - it is a great little gadget, steams and purees super smoothly, I LOVE it!

Yup, this is what it is going to be like feeding Aiden :)

Please note: there is no oxygen tube on his face!

In addition to his first food, he also finally got down how to roll over from his back to his tummy. He had been trying for the last few weeks and getting so mad when he couldn't get all the way over - he would just start screaming. Well, last night he finally figured out and now he rolls over everytime we put him on the floor :) We are so proud of his latest milestones.

Last weigh in was Friday and he was 12 lbs. 3 oz. We have been able to take him off oxygen for a few hours during the day and his oxygen saturation stays between 95-100%, but once he falls asleep it drops down into the high 80's and we put him back on the oxygen. He is getting closer to coming off it everyday! I can't believe he is already 9 months old!

Lounging in the chair, watching some TV...

I think he is giving me attitude in this picture :)

The blog is updated :)

I know it's been a while since the last blog update. We are still trying to figure out our routine now that I am back at work, and to be honest, when I get home and on my days off I would rather play or snuggle with Aiden than update the blog! He has been doing really good, he has been eating more and last week weighed in at 11 lbs 3 oz. His nurse comes tomorrow so hopefully he continues his good weight gain.

I am thinking of starting him on "big boy" food in a couple weeks when he is 6 months corrected age. He is really starting to watch me eat - follows the spoon from my plate to my mouth and looks curious. He is also waking up more at night to eat - I'm thinking maybe he needs something that sits in his tummy a little longer at night. He has such good head control when he is sitting and now that he has figured out that he can sit up (with help), he doesn't like to lay down that much anymore - except when he is sleepy.

Chillin' on his surfboard mat, smiling at daddy. He is such a happy baby. He smiles all day long, especially when momma and daddy come home from work and in the morning. Sometimes he wakes up at 4am smiling, talking and kicking in his bed. It is so cute, I have no choice but to play with him, even though I know I should be ignoring it so he goes back to sleep :)

He likes looking at us upside down, it usually makes him smile, he thinks it is funny. He usually gets really serious when he sees the camera though.

He is trying to be a little thumb sucker. He gets his little thumb in his mouth and chews on it, but he hasn't quite gotten the suction part down yet. The other day he had one thumb in his mouth and the other thumb in his eye.

He has really been interested in playing with his toys lately. The cow above is one of his favorites, it's the one he laughed so hard at a few weeks ago. He fell asleep yesterday with it gripped tightly in his hands. He also loves his mirror, ball and crinkly little sun toy that we take everywhere with us. He loves putting them all in his mouth!

He still sees his occupational therapist once a week and a child development specialist every other week. They are both very happy with his progress, his OT says he gets stronger every week. He likes to see them, for him it is just playtime! He always smiles alot when he sees his therapists and his nurse, they are his friends :)

So, thats about it. He is just so darn cute, Jeremy and I just sit around making funny faces and noises at him and watching him smile back at us. We love him so much and are so excited at every new thing he does!

Aiden's week

Here are some pictures of Aiden's week. He has been doing good, last week he weighed 10 lbs. 6 oz. He gets weighed again tomorrow and has been eating pretty good this week, so hopefully we will have another good weight gain! Of course, he also has been very active and yelling like a crazy boy.

We bought him a bumbo chair so he can practice sitting up like a big boy! He does pretty good for about 5-10 minutes and then starts to lean over. He likes sitting up.

He has always hated "tummy time" but, he's liking it more with this little surfboard mat - there are little fishys in water for him to play with. He now lasts about 15 minutes on his tummy instead of 15 seconds :)

He had another good laugh at his daddy tonight. Every time he laughs he gets the hiccups - which is why is eyes are all watery in this picture! He thinks his dad is funny!

So, that's it...lots of playing, sleeping, eating and cuddling!

welcome home daddy!

Well, I had a pretty rough day at work, the day turned around pretty quickly after this happened :)

Guess I should update the blog :)

It's been a few weeks since the last update. Which is probably a good thing - it means that there isn't anything new going on, just playing with the little man and doing normal baby things :)

We celebrated Jeremy's first father's day...

And I went back to work and had to adjust to some time away from Aiden...

But, Jeremy and Aiden now have "man time" on Monday, Tuesday and every other Wednesday...

He laughed out loud for the first time (at his daddy) and rolled over for the first time from his tummy to his back. All that work doing new things tired him out...

He has found his voice and likes to hear it. He yells at us all day long...

He is becoming quite the little man and definitely has a mind of his own!

P.S. Aiden weighed in at 9 lbs. 15 oz. during his weekly visit with the nurse last Tuesday...almost to 10 lbs!

A trip to Tahoe

Family portraits...

outside on the deck at the cabin

I was 10 days old the first time I went to the cabin in Tahoe with my parents and grandparents. We decided it was time to try taking Aiden up and continue on the family tradition. We were apprehensive because of the lower oxygen in the air at high altitudes, but after talking with Aiden's pulminologist, pediatrician, home nurse, and basically anyone else that would reassure us we decided to give it a try. Besides I needed a mini vacation before I go back to work in a couple weeks. So, we loaded the car to the brim with Aiden's "supplies" and headed up to Tahoe with an O2 monitor strapped to Aiden's foot to monitor him. We had to up his oxygen from 1/4 liter to 1/2 liter on the way up and he stayed there, comfortably, the whole trip. I was worried he would have to go up higher, but at 1/2 liter he was breathing unlabored and just fine.

It was good to be able to get Aiden out of the house for something other than a doctors appointment. Lake Tahoe is full of outdoor activites and that is the one thing we can do out of the house with Aiden since we can't be indoors with alot of people around. My parents and grandma Marlys were waiting for us when we got there. My parents cleaned the entire cabin, cleaned mattresses and washed all the bedding, even got rid of the old, dusty curtains for Aiden's arrival.

We had a great time. I didn't cook or wash a single dish the whole trip. There was no shortage of people wanting to hold Aiden, so except at night, he didn't get put down the entire trip. When my parents would hear Aiden in the morning they came running in our room to take him so that we could sleep in. We took Aiden to walk the trail and see the stream profile and took him to see the lake for the first time (very shortly, it was really windy that day)! It was neat to see his reaction to the outdoors - which was a look of "OK, can we go back inside please???"

I got to get out of the house with my mom and grandma to do some shopping and Jeremy got to bond with my dad going to fabulous places like the hardware store and the dump. Jeremy and I even got to go have a beer at the brewery with my dad and grandma while nana Robyn babysat. We basically got spoiled for 2 days, including the dog who scored a new collar and toy out of the trip. I can't wait until Aiden is older and we can take him to the park and the beach and ride bikes all over the place like I did when I was little :)

On the trail...

My mom, dad and Jeremy checking out nature...

Aiden outside in the woods!

Rest time

Maybe he likes the outdoors :)

At the lake - he was all bundled up because it was chilly

Great mama (grandma Marlys) would talk to him and he would just smile away at her!

A couple weeks later...

We went to Shriners today for Aiden's follow up appointment. The harness did not work and his right hip is still out of the socket. At least his left hip looks "beautiful" though, they say that the outcomes are much better when just one hip is out rather than both. We talked to the doctor about surgery and she recommended, and we agree, to wait until after he is a year old. She said that hip dislocations are not life threatening and the anesthesiologists want Aiden to be over 10 kilos (22 pounds) and be at a better place health-wise (off 02) before going under anesthetic. She said it would be better for him to grow, develop and be a normal baby for a while first. So, we have our next appointment with Shriners in December to plan the surgery and weeks of casting that will follow it. The cast is usually on for 12 weeks with a cast change at 6 weeks.

We think this is the best for him. We went back and forth between getting it over with while he was little and waiting. The doctor said that waiting won't change the severity of the surgery, with the dislocation he has they will most likely need to open him up and do some maneuvering to get it in the socket. The harness had such an impact on his oxygen requirements, we know casting him now will just delay him coming off oxygen and we also still need to watch his belly from the intestinal surgery and we can't do that if there is a cast over it. Timing wise we also think it will be more comfortable for him to have a cast during the winter instead of the hot summer months and since we won't be able to take him out and have alot of visitors during the winter (a.k.a RSV/cold/flu season) it seems like a good time.

We also asked her to look at his feet again and make sure she did not want to do any further casting, she said the left foot looks totally normal and that the left looked good and just needs movement and stretching - casting won't do anything further. So that was good news.

So, Aiden has been enjoying the last few days without the harness on. He has been kicking and working on rolling over. It has been fun the last few weeks watching him discover new things. He has learned that if he moves in his bouncy chair that he can make it bounce and has learned that he can bat at his toys that hang and they move and make noise. He puts his hands together at his chest and interlocks his fingers and holds his hands together when he is hungry and during feedings (he still holds his bottle during feedings also). He smiles so much more at us now instead of just at his gas :) He suddenly has eyebrows and really long, dark eyelashes that I swear were not there 2 weeks ago.

Today he weighed 9 lbs. 7 oz. and he has FINALLY outgrown newborn sized clothes! He is still small even for his corrected age (3 mo. & 1 week), but he is gaining and growing. His doctors are happy as long as he keeps gaining at least 1/2 oz per day. We know Aiden is going to be on his own growth curve and developmental curve - he will do EVERYTHING, but he will do it on his schedule :)

Playing in the bouncy chair - he loves to bat around the toys

Playtime with momma on the floor

I'm trying to take a pic while he was smiling and laughing at me, but in typical boy fashion, this was what I got ;)

Hanging out with daddy on the computer

Back in the harness again...

Aiden was fitted back into the harness for his hip on Friday at Shriners. He will be wearing it for 24 hours a day until June 9th when we will go back for an ultrasound. If his hip is in the socket then he will continue wearing the harness 24 hours a day for another 6 weeks or so, if it is out of the socket then we will take the harness off and he will probably have to have surgery and casting when he is about 6 months corrected age. We are really hoping this works so that he doesn't have to go through all that.

The harness isn't that bad, he shrunk about 5 inches since it pushes his legs up! His knees are up to about his belly button to keep his hip in place. He was not a happy camper for a couple of days and nights (momma got about 6 hours of sleep in 2 days - daddy was lucky to be back at work!) but, he has gotten used to it again and his smile has returned, he even laughed for the first time at momma on Sunday :) He can only wear onsies that are a size bigger than he normally wears - but it is hot outside anyway! There are also certain ways we have to hold him and feed him now since his right leg cannot be pushed inward and he can't lay on that side. It is also interesting to change diapers - we have to kind of thread the diaper through the straps of the harness.

Aiden in the harness in his favorite position

So, in the middle of all that (with a bad couple feeding days) Aiden managed to gain good weight and is up to 8 lbs. 14 oz. I think he has finally found a milk based formula that he likes and doesn't hurt his little tummy. He has been on soy formula for the last month or so and I had read that it wasn't so good for preemies to be on soy so getting him back to cows milk makes me happy. Agh...I wish I could have been able to breastfeed!!!

Aiden got to meet his new cousin Sydney on Sunday. She is Jeremy's sister Kim's first baby. She was born on May 14th, so she is almost 2 weeks old. They are pretty much the same size :) They were sitting near each other on our couch and when she cried Aiden would look at her and then get his worried look on his face - he wasn't sure what to think having another baby around! It was cute to see Jeremy and his sister together with their babies and I am glad that Aiden will have a cousin his age to play with :)

Kim and Sydney, Jeremy and Aiden

So cute!

That's it for now. We have Aiden's 6 month pediatrician appointment on Wednesday and he is scheduled to get his immunizations, i'm not sure if they will be able to give them with the harness on - we'll see! He sees his pulmonologist for a check-up on Thursday, hopefully, except for those appointments it will be a quiet week!

Naked Baby

Just had to post this pic of Aiden "au natural"....just him, no oxygen, no nothin' (OK, I had an O2 monitor on his foot)! I can't wait till the cannula is permanently off him :)

6 weeks is not long enough

Almost 6 months old!

Well, we survived Jeremy's first week back at work! I think Aiden and I did pretty well...ok I did have one breakdown day in the middle of a tough feeding spell where I got no sleep one night staying up with Aiden for hours trying to get him to finish his bottles. Luckily, my mom came down that day and sent me out of the house and then to my room to take a nap, she took all the tough feedings that day and even cooked dinner for Jeremy and I - she rescued us :) It was hard to adjust to doing all the night-time feedings and not having a partner to pass "Aiden Duty" off to. 6 weeks off work for baby bonding time is just not long enough!

Like I said, feedings have been tough the last couple weeks. He went from taking 2 oz. every 2 hours to having to fight him to take 1 oz. each feeding. I was terrified that he wouldn't gain any weight and we would have to put the feeding tube back in. It's hard because people always say that babies will eat what they need and know when they need more or less food, but in the case of a micro-preemie that had intestinal surgery and is on oxygen, that just isn't case. We have to track every feeding he takes and watch how he spends his calories - when Aiden cries we pretty much pick him up immediately so he doesn't burn them up on something as useless as crying :)

Luckily, he has been doing better the last few days, we talked to his doctor and started giving him reflux medication twice a day and have tried just about every formula type and brand on the market, including adding rice cereal to thicken it and add some extra calories. Aiden is very picky and some formulas he just hated the taste of and refused to eat it. He did like the rice cereal in his milk, but it made him sleep all night without getting hungry...which sounds great, except that he missed out on feedings that he still needs to have in order to get enough to eat each day, so no more rice cereal! The good news is even with all that, he is still gaining weight - not quite enough, but at least he is not losing. He weighed in at 8 lbs. 5 oz. on Tuesday.

After a couple weeks of researching I spoke with the doctor at Shriners about the treatment for his hip. I mentioned to her that I didn't feel we gave the harness a good enough shot. After doing my research I found out that we were not told the correct way to use the harness and the harness was never properly fit to Aiden. We were told to take the harness off a couple hours a day and to take it off for baths, clothing and diaper changes. As it turns out, it is not supposed to come off EVER until the hip is confirmed in place by an ultrasound (which he never did have until we went to Shriners). The doctor said that she talked with her colleagues and none of them had ever done surgery and casting on a baby as small as Aiden and don't recommend it. She said she would like to fit him back into the harness and keep it on 24/7 for 2 weeks, at 2 weeks she will evaluate him and do an ultrasound. If his hip is in place than we would keep the harness on for another 6-12 weeks. If his hip is not in place we would take the harness off and she would want to do the surgery when he is older - around 6 months corrected age (about 3 months from now). So, we are going to get him fitted back in the harness, but I am still pursuing my referral to another doctor to get a second opinion.

Lets see...how about some good news??? He is free and clear from eye doctor visits! He got released showing no signs of ROP. The doctor says his eyes are perfect :) We have also been able to lower his oxygen to 1/8 liter during the day, he is still on 1/4 at night - but mostly just for our peace of mind, I think he would probably be fine on 1/8 but he breathes so shallow at night and we don't want to risk him having low oxygen saturation. I have also been taking him off the oxygen during the day for about a 1/2 hour occasionally. He actually does pretty well when he is awake. On 1/8 liter his oxygen saturation is 97-100%, with no oxygen it is around 90-95% - until he falls asleep and then it drops down into the 80's. We can't leave him off too long, we don't want him to work too hard to breathe - calorie wasting again! It's gives me hope that he will be off the oxygen in the next couple months :)

He was also evaluated by a physical therapist, occupational therapist and child life specialist from Easter Seals. They wrote up a report on where he is currently at and gave recommendations for his treatment. His gross motor skills (range of motion in limbs, head control, rolling over) and fine motor skills (grasping toys, bringing hands to his mouth, visual skills) are at a 3-6 month old range and the child development (social skills, playing with toys) is at a 0-3 month old range. This was good news - he is at or above his range for his corrected age (which is 2 months, 3 weeks old right now). They recommended he see the physical therapist and child development specialist bi-weekly and the occupational therapist once a week.

So, that was our week. Aiden has been smiling alot more lately and I think I even heard him laugh once. He is still a pretty serious baby - he's not into silly noises or peekabo, I don't think he likes people treating him like he is a baby :) He has started to be a little more interested in toys, but mom and dad are still his favorite things to play with! He is soooo close to rolling over and scoots himself across the floor when I FORCE him to do tummy time (let's just say he isn't a fan). He has been sleeping good (still in bed with us of course) and getting into a routine, he has certain times he likes to sleep, eat, poo and play. I have even caught him REALLY watching the NBA playoffs with daddy :)

watching basketball with daddy

He LOVES his bear rug - he sleeps on it and plays on..thanks Aunt Lisa :)

"Milk drunk"...staring at the ceiling fan after a feeding

A home-made outfit...not by me of course :) Knit socks by my mom's friend Kandi, owl onsie by Aunt Sara and knit blankie (that we LOVE) by Shelley

My First Mother's Day

After many, many years I finally got to celebrate my first mothers day yesterday. We went up to my grandma's house, my dad BBQ'd and we sat out on my grandma's back deck on a hill that overlooks a golf course. It was the first time we have been out of the house with Aiden for something other than a doctors appointment - so no medical updates in this post, it was just nice to have a day not thinking about it all!

We had to pose for some pictures - my sister took alot, I will post more when she sends them to me (hint, hint)

Relaxin' on the deck, watching the big boys play in the sprinklers

Aiden got to meet some of his cousins for the first time and I got to see my 3 nephews for the first time since September - we have been so worried about getting sick for the last 6 months or so that we had to stay away...but, everyone was well and the kids looked but didn't touch. We missed them, they have all grown so much! I can't wait until the day that Aiden is running in the sprinklers in my grandma's lawn acting all crazy with them :) Until then, he sat on the deck watching them with his mommy and daddy. He wasn't crazy about the bright light - he was indoors for the first 4 months of his life!

My boys

Looking pretty cool in his sunglasses and "I love mommy" shirt

He loves daddy, too

Jeremy had some beautiful flowers delivered to me with with the sweetest card attached and got me a digital picture frame to fill with pictures of Aiden (OK, and I added a few pictures of the dog in there, too).

Flowers from Jeremy

We had a good day out of the house, not a bad way to spend a Sunday afternoon!