A note from Miss Addison...

Dear Family and Friends,

I know my Mommy has been busy so I thought I would send a brief note letting everyone know that Mommy has officially adopted me as of Friday, September 12th! Mommy's attorney called her at work today with the great news! She called me right away to tell me because she was SO excited. I was really excited as well! I will be getting a new birth certificate with Mommy's name on it and everything! Well, I'm off to play! Just wanted to share the great news!

XOXO,

Addy

Baths Are For Babies

Addy had a fantastic week last week. The big news is Addy took rice cereal - from a spoon! The Speech Therapist said Addison did fantastic. She doesn't take a whole lot but it's something new so it's to be expected. She taught us how to open her mouth by placing our finger on her chin, put the spoon in and then close her mouth with the same finger on her chin. Addy does lots of smacking as she's getting used to the texture of the cereal. She did such a great job during Speech Therapy that Gail gave us the okay to do it once a day with Addy! We've been doing it since Thursday and Addy is doing awesome. The most she has taken via mouth was about 15 cc's which we're assuming is pretty dang good. We're so proud of her. It definitely makes Dee Dee and I a bit nervous while we're doing it because the last thing we want is for her to choke but she's doing great. This Wednesday we get to try out carrots! I'm hoping each week we get to introduce something new. Not sure if I mentioned in previous posts however Dee Dee and I have decided to make Addison's baby food. We knew from the start that we wanted to have Addy's food be organic however we were just going to use the Gerber Organic premade food. After reading that the shelf life of baby food is about 2-4 years, we decided the healthiest option for Addison was to make our own organic baby food. We bought a book of recipes and we are actually really looking forward to it! We figured we'd make the week's worth of food (when she gets to that point) on Saturday or Sunday of each week.

The other cool news is April, the Physical Therapist for the study Addy is in, came on Friday for her 6 month (adjusted) examination of Addy. She was thrilled with how far Addy has come. She said although Addy isn't holding her head up completely quite yet, she can definitely tell the difference from the last time she was here. She also said Addison was a lot more active with this examination and incredibly responsive to auditory prompts. Addy's regular Physical Therapist, Delores, came to check out the examination as she hadn't heard of it and wanted to see it first hand. All of us noticed that Addy is using her left leg a lot more than her right so we will be working a lot more with her right side. We won't see April again until Addy is 10 months adjusted so it'll be REALLY interesting to see how Addy is doing then!

As I mentioned in the previous post, Addy had her CT scan done and we got in to see Dr. Bowman (Addy's Neurosurgeon) on Thursday. For those that have been following our story - Dr. Bowman isn't the most personable of all of Addy's physicians. Don't get me wrong - we wouldn't want any other doctor - Dr. Bowman prides herself on being amazing - and she is. However, the fact that Dr. Bowman isn't that personable made pretty much the first thing out of her mouth more meaningful... One of the first things Dr. Bowman does is checks Addy for muscle tone. One of the main signs of Cerebral Palsy is increased muscle tone (almost stiffening) or decreased muscle tone (almost limp). Addy's Physical and Occupational Therapist (as well as previous visits with Dr. Bowman) have revealed increased tone in Addy's hamstrings. When Dr. Bowman finished her tone evaluation she turned to us and said, "You guys, she has like no increased muscle tone!" To hear that from her made us so happy. She went on to say that Addy looks fantastic and she's very pleased with her progress. She showed us Addison's CT scan which showed her ventricles are a bit smaller than last time. She decided to dial up her shunt setting a bit to allow a little more fluid into the ventricles to get them back to the size she likes. Addy has tolerated the new shunt setting as if nothing has even changed. We will see Dr. Bowman again in about 2-3 months and this time will be getting an MRV (Magnetic Resonance Venograph) instead of a CT scan. Reason being is that Addy will need brain scans every 2-4 months to keep an eye on her ventricles and shunt. The MRV uses no radiation which is obviously a lot healthier for her. Definitely a successful visit to the Neurosurgeon!

Oh! Before I forget, Addy is now 14 1/2 pounds and 24 1/2 inches! Such a big girl! :o)

We've finally come to a solution for Addy hating her baths. We decided to try holding her in the shower. She LOVES it. She just looks around and actually opens up her hands to feel the water. Maybe she will like baths more once she can sit up - until then - baths are for babies not big girls like Miss Addy.

We've got a pretty busy month this September. Garage sale on the 6th, Granny Nan's birthday is the 7th, Dee Dee's tonsillectomy on the 11th and a trip to Minnesota for Cousin Sarah's wedding on the 27th. The biggest news for me is my adoption of Addison will be official on September 12th. Please keep your fingers crossed the final judgement goes through without any delays! :o)

Love to All!

Bring On The Good Stuff!

YIKES! I never updated last week! Sorry everyone! Luckily, it's been a pretty non-eventful couple of weeks so not a whole bunch to report!

Therapies are going wonderful as usual! PT and OT have let us know that the work we do with Addison shows each week they come to see her. It's a nice compliment to hear however Addy is the one doing all of the work. I'm so happy that she's so receptive to the exercises we do with her. She's still not holding her head up however we are trying to do as much tummy time as we can to help her out. PT seems to think she'll be crawling before we know it! Speech is going quite well. Addison was able to have some watered down apple juice last week and seemed to like it. We give her 'tastes' via a medicine pacifier. Instead of dipping there is a little attachment on the end that hold up to two cc's of liquid. It's a nice controlled way of giving her a bit more than a dip of the pacifier. At the end of her last Speech appointment, Gail told me that we should mix up some rice cereal for Addy and do some dips this past Saturday. She wants Addy to try it out because this coming Wednesday she'll be giving her some rice cereal - WITH A SPOON! We're thrilled. We did the tastes on Saturday and Addy really seemed to enjoy them! Keep your fingers crossed that she does well!

Addy actually had a follow up with Dr. Yoon today so he could see how she's doing with her new glasses. He examined her eyes and said that her prescription is a bit weaker than he wanted however not enough that he's going to change it quite yet. He let us know he's going to be following Addison very closely so he can stay on top of her prescription. He let us know that Addy's vision could actually get better! He did say that he can't guarantee 20/20 vision however her vision troubles are able to improve! She definitely won't have peripheral vision from her two previous laser surgeries which we already knew. Dr. Yoon did tell us that he's noticing a little bit of eye crossing that he wants to keep an eye on as well. He said it could correct itself as she continues getting used to her new specs. Downside is if it doesn't correct itself, Addy would need to have another eye surgery. Let's hope we don't have to go down that road! Addy also had blood work done to check her electrolytes since she is still on diuretics for her Chronic Lung Disease. She had a CT scan done as well because we'll be going to see Dr. Bowman (Neurosurgeon) in a couple weeks here. We stopped up to the NICU to say hello. Dr. Farrow was there who was one of Addy's first Attendings when she was transferred to Children's. She seemed very happy with how Addison is doing. It was awesome to see her and some of our old nurses! After we were finished with Addy's appointments, we met Lindsay (Addy's Primary Nurse) and Lindsay (Addy's favorite Respiratory Therapist) for dinner. It's always so much fun to get together with people from the NICU. RT Lindsay hadn't seen Addy since we left. Addy snuggled up to her right away. She even let RT Lindsay hold her on her tummy which she only allows me to do! Of course she snuggled in with Nurse Lindsay right away as well - they always had lots of cuddle time when Addison was in the hospital. We definitely had a good dinner with the two Lindsays and look forward to doing many more!

So - the big news of the past week was Dee Dee turned the big 3-0 on the 22nd! She's handling it a lot better than I expected. Addy sent Mama flowers on Thursday at work since Dee Dee was working from home on Friday. She picked out a pretty bouquet of mixed flowers from a florist that we like. Mama was very surprised and brought them home to enjoy over the weekend. They smell awesome. Friday - my Dad and stepmom, Jill, came down and took Dee Dee, Addy and I to dinner at Weber Grill. We all had steak and all thoroughly enjoyed it! Addy slept through the entire meal which she tends to do at restaurants. Saturday I took Dee Dee to the city for dinner at Cafe Ba Ba Reeba. Britton, Matthew, Kevin, Trish, Matt, Kim, Kim's kids and Pam all came to have some delicious Tapas and Sangria! It was SO much fun. We'll definitely be going back there. Sunday - Dee Dee's parents - Wally and Rose came out to celebrate Dee Dee's birthday. Rose made an awesome dinner of breaded pork tenderloin with mashed potatoes and peas. Later on, Shelly and I decided to go see The House Bunny (hysterical!) while Grandma Rose cuddled with Addy and chatted with Dee Dee while Wally slept on the couch from the delicious dinner.

I THINK that's all there is for this week! Granny Nan is coming home next week from Florida! We've missed her!

Addy - sleeping in the car and catching flies

Nurse Lindsay and Addy

Respiratory Therapist Lindsay and Addy

Kim and Blake

Dee Dee and Trish

Kevin and Matthew

Dee Dee - Hmmm wonder what she wished for?

Grandma Rose and Addison

Whatcha talkin bout Willis?

I can see clearly now...

So, so sorry for the delay in post this week! We kept forgetting to bring the camera upstairs and I know everyone loves to get their weekly Addy fix! Especially now that our girl has her specs! We all had a great week last week.

All of Addison's therapies are going insanely well. The therapists seem so happy with how Addy is doing. Her new nickname is "Rockstar" from her Occupational Therapist, Robin. Our goal is still to get Addy more excited with tummy time as it continues to be one of her least favorite things. When she sleeps, I try to get her onto her tummy on my chest so she gets some. Addy's Speech Therapist, Gail, seems pretty confident that Addy will be testing out the waters with a bottle some point in the near future.

On Thursday last week, Dee Dee, Shelly, Addy and Kevin went to the March for Babies Award Breakfast. March of Dimes was presenting The Addy Mac Pack with a 'platinum' award for raising over $12,000 earlier this year. The award is really nice, it's a glass plaque with our team name engraved on it. Our team name was also shown at the breakfast and will also be in next year's March for Babies brochure! One of the women that works for March of Dimes is trying to recruit Dee Dee into being on the committee. Dee Dee is seriously considering it.

After the breakfast, Addy went to pick up her glasses! She looks SO cute with them. Kind of a mini Harry Potter. Everyone says she looks very intellectual. We agree of course because we know she's a smart cookie. She loves her glasses though! She gets really upset when she wakes up and doesn't have them on! She's a lot more interactive and alert. It's super cute. We go back to Dr. Yoon in a couple of weeks to get his thoughts.

This past weekend was pretty fun. On Saturday, we took Addy to Rainforest Cafe for her 9 month birthday. Yes folks - she is 9 months old. It's hard to believe! She's getting so big. Anyway - she LOVED Rainforest Cafe. She was totally mesmerised by the aquariums all over the place. Good thing we don't mind the food there because I think we'll be going back from time to time! Sunday we drove up to Madison for my cousin Sarah's bridal shower. We had a great time with all the ladies. My cousin Tara's baby was there too who is 7 weeks. Nicholas is pretty much the same size as Addison. They were checking each other out. It was really cute. After the shower we went to Janesville and hung out with my Dad and Jill. They snuggled with Addy for a bit before we headed home.

That's about it for this update all. Things are going great for all of us. Talk to you next week!

Adventures in Cheeseland

Addy's appointments at Children's this past Monday went very well. We went to see Dr. Yoon first and he was VERY pleased with the result of Addy's eye surgeries. He let us know that he is not surprised however Addy needs glasses. He did an exam and determined her prescription that she needs. He also gave us the name of an office that specializes in children's eye wear. We went there after Addy's appointments and there was only one pair we could pick from. She'll be getting them this week. I can't wait for her to have them so she can focus on things better. Should be an interesting change! She looks INSANELY cute with them on. They are little tiny glasses with wire frames. No worries - I'll make sure to post a photo next week!

The appointment with the Pulmonologist went very well. He seemed pretty pleased with how well Addison is doing after all she has been through. He doesn't want to change anything right yet with her oxygen as she is doing what she should be doing right now - getting bigger. Addy's lung damage will continue to get smaller as she gets larger so with it being summer and she's able to be out and about - he wants to leave her alone. He warned us that this winter will most likely be a tough one for Addy and to pretty much expect a few visits to the ER with colds and such. Keep your fingers crossed that she remains as healthy as she has been! To make a long story short - she's staying on the oxygen for a bit.

The rest of the week went well for Addy. She had her OT, PT and SLP. ALL were very impressed with how well Addy is doing. She continues doing better and better. Her physical therapist that gave us hamstring exercises has already noticed a decrease of tone in her legs! I'm so happy that all the time we spend with Addy, keeping her active, is helping!

Finally, we went to Wisconsin Dells for a little trip with Addy, Auntie Shelly, Auntie Anne and our friends Matthew and Kevin. We had a GREAT time. Addy slept the entire way (2.5 hours) AND back! Addison went on her first boat ride on Saturday. She seemed to enjoy it! She also had her first swimming adventure! She didn't seem to know what to think about it. She was okay in the water as long as Mama was holding her however when her arm would fall into the water unexpectedly, she would get fussy. She did awesome the entire weekend. She's such a well behaved baby. It was a nice and relaxing time - and definitely needed. Enjoy the pictures below!

Just Swingin' Around

Hope everyone had a good week last week! Ours was pretty uneventful until the weekend. Addy had Physical Therapy again and did really well. Her physical therapist noticed some tone in her hamstrings so our new task is to start working on her hamstrings every diaper change to get them to loosen up a bit. Muscle tone is very common in premature babies however if the tone does not resolve - it can be later found to be the early signs of Cerebral Palsy. It's definitely important that we keep her active which we are trying our best to do.

Addy's weekend was pretty fun-filled! We took our first trip to Janesville. We went up on Friday night and checked into a hotel with Granny Nan. We then went to the 4-H Fair. Addy LOVED it. She was checking out all of the lights on the rides and listening to the music. We bumped into some old friends which was pretty cool. We were there a little over two hours and Addy was bright eyed the whole time.

Saturday we got up early and got Addy ready. We went to go see Great Aunt Hubbie, Great Uncle Wayne and Great Uncle Terry. Addy had a great time cuddling up with Great Aunt Hubbie. Afterwards, we went to Great Grandma's apartment for our belated baby shower that my Dad and Jill threw for us. We had such an awesome time. We had lots of good food, opened lots of gifts and spent time with lots of great family. Addy really took a liking to her Great Aunt Joan. She was smiling up a storm for her. Grandma and Grandpa gave Addy a swing. I put it together when we got home and swung away for a good 40 minutes. She fell asleep in it!

Today we did some errand running. I think that's Addy's favorite as she gets to be walked around in the Baby Bjorn.

Tomorrow Addy has her appointment with Dr. Yoon (Opthamologist) and Dr. Lestrud (Pulmonologist). Keep your fingers crossed that everything is heading in the right direction!

Next weekend will be Addy's first weekend 'away.' We are going to Wisconsin Dells!