Today is Pregnancy & Infant Loss Remembrance Day. A day to remember all the angel babies. Losing Natalie was horrible. I honestly don't think there could possibly be anything worse in the world than losing your child. But, we have been so lucky to have such great support from all of our family & friends. There are other couples that have lost a pregnancy or pregnancies & no one knows. No one is there for them during the worst time in their lives. I can't imagine going through that without the love & support we have received. Born or unborn, they were someone's child. Someone's baby. Please take a moment to say a prayer for all the angel babies & their parents.
Natalie's headstone has finally been placed. It is nice to have a proper headstone instead of just a marker. Please feel free to go & visit her. We visit her regularly & appreciate all the flowers, etc. that are left for her.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Eyes, Ears, & Squash!
Yesterday, we went back to Wichita. Marleigh had her eyes & ears checked. Her ear test was at 11:00. We were done by 11:01. Seriously. The entire test took a total of 30 seconds. Her ears are perfect! We went to the NICU & saw some of Marleigh's old doctors nurses. Then we went to Baby's R Us. They were having a HUGE sale on clothes. Although Marleigh has more clothes than I do, I couldn't resists a few outfits. I even picked up her Christmas outfit, which is ADORABLE! Can't wait to see her in it. We then met Eva for lunch. It is always good to see her. Eva is thinking about going back to school to be a Nurse Practitioner. Go for it, Eva! You'd be great!!! At 3:15 we went to get Marleigh's eyes checked. Just like we thought, they were perfect, too. We are thrilled both appointments went so well.
Tonight, Marleigh tried squash for the first time. I was telling Marc to be patient. I was worried that since it was new, she would throw a fit & spit out most of it. Marleigh just had to prove me wrong. She didn't spit out any of it. She ate about an ounce, opening up wide for every bite! I am so proud of her. So far, it doesn't seem to bother her tummy, but we'll see how the night goes. I'm hoping her little tummy will handle it just fine. The last few nights Marleigh has gotten up 2-4 times instead of her normal once. Maybe some solid foods will cure that!
Tonight, Marleigh tried squash for the first time. I was telling Marc to be patient. I was worried that since it was new, she would throw a fit & spit out most of it. Marleigh just had to prove me wrong. She didn't spit out any of it. She ate about an ounce, opening up wide for every bite! I am so proud of her. So far, it doesn't seem to bother her tummy, but we'll see how the night goes. I'm hoping her little tummy will handle it just fine. The last few nights Marleigh has gotten up 2-4 times instead of her normal once. Maybe some solid foods will cure that!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Gastroenterologist appointment yesterday
Today we have been home for 6 months. That seems crazy. Home, sweet, home.
We took Marleigh to her gastroenterologist yesterday. She still hadn't had a good bowel movement. The doctor was very nice. She isn't too concerned with Marleigh's reflux since she's growing well & her spit up doesn't seem to hurt her. The doctor was slightly concerned that Marleigh's tummy is so sensitive. She suggested trying some vegetables & fruits instead of rice. She said sometimes babies don't do well with rice. It is kind of frustrating because when Marleigh couldn't handle rice, I asked her pediatrician if we should try some vegetables. They said, no. They told us rice was about the easiest thing to handle. So here in a day or two, we'll try some veggies. Marleigh's bowels sounded good & her tummy was still soft, but Marleigh has still been having problems with her bowel movements. The doctor prescribed a very mild laxative. She said it would help draw water to the bowels to soften Marleigh's stools. If Marleigh doesn't handle the veggies well or if she still is constipated after a couple of days of the laxative, the doctor will scope Marleigh from both ends.
Well, the laxative worked! Jenni texted me that Marleigh had 2 good dirty diapers. I was so excited. Then Jenni called & I could hear Marleigh screaming in the background. She had a very large, hard stool that she just couldn't get out. I rushed out to help. Again, I don't want to be too graphic, but I was trying to help Marleigh & she was pushing so hard. Once she finally got the really hard stuff, there was some really loose stuff. As Holli, one of our favorite NICU nurses, would say, "Marleigh shot crap across the room." It was all over! My hand & arm, DJ's bed (so sorry DJ!!!), the floor. As soon as it was out, you could tell Marleigh felt so much better. Jenni had said she hadn't ate hardly anything all day. Poor little girl, her tummy hurt. She has had 1 more dirty diaper for a total of 4 today! She's had more today than total in the last 2 weeks! Marleigh just seemed so relaxed this evening.
Monday we head back to Wichita to check Marleigh's eyes & ears. I'm sure they're fine, but we'll check them out just to be safe.
~~
Stay warm this weekend! We had to put a new fan motor on our furnace. It was just a little bit cold this morning! I think I might have even heard there's a chance for snow this weekend?!? That is just insane!
We took Marleigh to her gastroenterologist yesterday. She still hadn't had a good bowel movement. The doctor was very nice. She isn't too concerned with Marleigh's reflux since she's growing well & her spit up doesn't seem to hurt her. The doctor was slightly concerned that Marleigh's tummy is so sensitive. She suggested trying some vegetables & fruits instead of rice. She said sometimes babies don't do well with rice. It is kind of frustrating because when Marleigh couldn't handle rice, I asked her pediatrician if we should try some vegetables. They said, no. They told us rice was about the easiest thing to handle. So here in a day or two, we'll try some veggies. Marleigh's bowels sounded good & her tummy was still soft, but Marleigh has still been having problems with her bowel movements. The doctor prescribed a very mild laxative. She said it would help draw water to the bowels to soften Marleigh's stools. If Marleigh doesn't handle the veggies well or if she still is constipated after a couple of days of the laxative, the doctor will scope Marleigh from both ends.
Well, the laxative worked! Jenni texted me that Marleigh had 2 good dirty diapers. I was so excited. Then Jenni called & I could hear Marleigh screaming in the background. She had a very large, hard stool that she just couldn't get out. I rushed out to help. Again, I don't want to be too graphic, but I was trying to help Marleigh & she was pushing so hard. Once she finally got the really hard stuff, there was some really loose stuff. As Holli, one of our favorite NICU nurses, would say, "Marleigh shot crap across the room." It was all over! My hand & arm, DJ's bed (so sorry DJ!!!), the floor. As soon as it was out, you could tell Marleigh felt so much better. Jenni had said she hadn't ate hardly anything all day. Poor little girl, her tummy hurt. She has had 1 more dirty diaper for a total of 4 today! She's had more today than total in the last 2 weeks! Marleigh just seemed so relaxed this evening.
Monday we head back to Wichita to check Marleigh's eyes & ears. I'm sure they're fine, but we'll check them out just to be safe.
~~
Stay warm this weekend! We had to put a new fan motor on our furnace. It was just a little bit cold this morning! I think I might have even heard there's a chance for snow this weekend?!? That is just insane!
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Daddy's home!!!
Marc got home this afternoon, after basically being gone for 10 days! It is so good to have him home! I have so much respect for single parents. I don't know how they do it day in, day out.
~~
The other day someone asked me if Marleigh was sitting up on her own or was crawling. When I said she was sitting up on her own for a few seconds, & wasn't crawling yet, they looked at me like I had three heads. This person then commented, "isn't she 8 months old?" Yes she is. Marleigh is doing incredibly well, but please remember, she isn't a typical 8 month old. Her first 3 months of life, she was basically fighting just to live. She didn't get the benefit of being in the womb to grow & develop the last 3 months. Her "adjusted" age is 5 months, which is about where she is developmentally. She's actually a little ahead of where she should be & is rapidly closing the gap. Also, remember the last 8 months haven't been easy on any of us. If we get excited over small things, celebrate with us!
~~
The other day someone asked me if Marleigh was sitting up on her own or was crawling. When I said she was sitting up on her own for a few seconds, & wasn't crawling yet, they looked at me like I had three heads. This person then commented, "isn't she 8 months old?" Yes she is. Marleigh is doing incredibly well, but please remember, she isn't a typical 8 month old. Her first 3 months of life, she was basically fighting just to live. She didn't get the benefit of being in the womb to grow & develop the last 3 months. Her "adjusted" age is 5 months, which is about where she is developmentally. She's actually a little ahead of where she should be & is rapidly closing the gap. Also, remember the last 8 months haven't been easy on any of us. If we get excited over small things, celebrate with us!
Friday, October 2, 2009
I totally jinxed myself.
I was so proud of Marleigh. She slept through the night both Monday & Tuesday night. She wasn't spitting up & her reflux wasn't bothering her. That came to an end in a big way Wednesday night. Her reflux was really bothering her. She was refusing to go to sleep. As if that wasn't bad enough, I had a horrible headache. Marleigh was exhausted, but kept fighting me to go to sleep. My headache kept getting worse. I finally threw up. By this point, I needed some help. I called Grandma & she came right in. We finally got Marleigh to bed at 1:00am. Normally, she goes to sleep around 8:30 or so. Thursday night was about the same minus my headache. I came to the conclusion that it was probably the pear juice. The juice has some acid in it. I think it was upsetting her tummy. I don't think it was helping anyway.
Today when I got home from work (oh yeah... I'll get to that in a minute), Marleigh was trying to have a bowel movement. I gave her a suppository. Nada. She pushed & cried & screamed. Nada. Without going into too many details, Grandma & I helped her get some relief. It just breaks my heart when I know she is in pain. Once again, I called the pediatrician. The told me to bring her in at 3:30.
We got to the office right at 3:30. We sat in the waiting room until 4:45! I fully understand they are busy, & I was trying to be patient, but SERIOUSLY!!! Waiting with a baby for an hour and fifteen minutes?!? I ended up feeding her a bottle in the waiting room. Dr. Williams wants us to try a little Caro syrup for a few days. If that doesn't work by Tuesday, then he said he will have to put her on some meds. He's not sure that the Caro syrup won't upset her tummy, so that may be an added bonus! (do you sense the sarcasm?)
Marleigh did NOT have any juice today. I had her asleep by 8:15. She hasn't made a peep (knock on wood) & it is now 10:00. Thank you, God, for letting her have a peaceful night! At least so far.
~~
Did I mention that I am working again?!? I was very torn about whether or not I wanted to go back to work. I love being a financial advisor, but love spending time with Marleigh. I am so thankful to have been home with Marleigh the last few months. I am also excited to go back to work. I like to work. I am very social & like adult interaction. What sealed the deal is that my cousin, Jenni, will be watching Marleigh. No daycare! Just Jenni, Mason (her little boy), & Marleigh! How incredibly lucky are we?!? Starting Monday, we'll take Marleigh out to her. Yesterday & today, Grandma watched her. I am now working at VonFeldt, Bauer, & VonFeldt as an accountant. For right now, I'm working part time. The past couple of days have been great! I've worked with them all before & love it there! I'm also going to opening my own investment business in the future. I am so excited about that! Marc has been so supportive. He told me to do what makes me happy. If I want to work, fine. If I want to stay home, fine. Marc & Marleigh sent me flowers on my first day. :) What a great husband!
Okay... now that this is a book, I'm going to bed! Congrats if you made it this far!
Today when I got home from work (oh yeah... I'll get to that in a minute), Marleigh was trying to have a bowel movement. I gave her a suppository. Nada. She pushed & cried & screamed. Nada. Without going into too many details, Grandma & I helped her get some relief. It just breaks my heart when I know she is in pain. Once again, I called the pediatrician. The told me to bring her in at 3:30.
We got to the office right at 3:30. We sat in the waiting room until 4:45! I fully understand they are busy, & I was trying to be patient, but SERIOUSLY!!! Waiting with a baby for an hour and fifteen minutes?!? I ended up feeding her a bottle in the waiting room. Dr. Williams wants us to try a little Caro syrup for a few days. If that doesn't work by Tuesday, then he said he will have to put her on some meds. He's not sure that the Caro syrup won't upset her tummy, so that may be an added bonus! (do you sense the sarcasm?)
Marleigh did NOT have any juice today. I had her asleep by 8:15. She hasn't made a peep (knock on wood) & it is now 10:00. Thank you, God, for letting her have a peaceful night! At least so far.
~~
Did I mention that I am working again?!? I was very torn about whether or not I wanted to go back to work. I love being a financial advisor, but love spending time with Marleigh. I am so thankful to have been home with Marleigh the last few months. I am also excited to go back to work. I like to work. I am very social & like adult interaction. What sealed the deal is that my cousin, Jenni, will be watching Marleigh. No daycare! Just Jenni, Mason (her little boy), & Marleigh! How incredibly lucky are we?!? Starting Monday, we'll take Marleigh out to her. Yesterday & today, Grandma watched her. I am now working at VonFeldt, Bauer, & VonFeldt as an accountant. For right now, I'm working part time. The past couple of days have been great! I've worked with them all before & love it there! I'm also going to opening my own investment business in the future. I am so excited about that! Marc has been so supportive. He told me to do what makes me happy. If I want to work, fine. If I want to stay home, fine. Marc & Marleigh sent me flowers on my first day. :) What a great husband!
Okay... now that this is a book, I'm going to bed! Congrats if you made it this far!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Completely med free!
I posted last week that we took Marleigh off her Prevacid. She was still on her Zantac. Well, it seemed to be upsetting her tummy, too. Her last dose was on Sunday morning. She has basically been spit up free ever since! Who would have thought the stuff that was supposed to help her tummy was actually hurting it. For the first time in her life, she is completely medicine free! :)
She has been such a good girl the last few days. All smiles & giggles. Crazy how much you can love such a little person!
She has been such a good girl the last few days. All smiles & giggles. Crazy how much you can love such a little person!
Monday, September 28, 2009
First Trip to Mound City
Marleigh had her first long road trip this past weekend. We headed back to Mound City for Matt's Memorial softball tournament. It was so good to see all of our family & friends. Marleigh finally got to meet her two younger cousins! They are adorable! We have some great pictures. We had such a great time playing ball. Just wish we were getting together for a different reason. Matt is greatly missed.
Since the Johnson clan is expanding quickly, we were able to stay at Jerry & Mary Ann Roy's lake house. Marc is good friends with their son. They have a beautiful house! Thank you so much!!!
Marc's sisters organized a little shower for Marleigh at the tournament. It was very sweet of them. Once again, everyone was too generous! We are so appreciative!
Marleigh road really well for the five and a half hour drive back to Mound City. She didn't fuss at all! She was so good Saturday at the tournament. Saturday night Marleigh was very constipated. We're still battling that. Poor little thing cries & screams when she tries to have a bowel movement. The doctor said to try some pear juice, so we'll give that a whirl. Sunday morning we had our big family pictures taken. Marleigh did really well. All the little ones were good! Can't wait to see how they turned out! She road pretty well the first couple of hours on Sunday, but then was just so tired she fussed a bit. Overall, couldn't have asked for her to be any better!
Grandma & Grandpa Cline met us in Wichita Sunday with Marc's pickup. He has meetings all week in Texas. It saved him like 4-5 hours of driving by them meeting us. It was so incredibly nice of them! Marc will get home late Thursday night & leave again on Friday for Kansas City. Bayer CropScience is a big sponsor of the KSU game at Arrowhead this weekend. He is taking a bunch of customers. He'll finally be home on Sunday after basically 10 days on the road! He's going to be exhausted.
Since the Johnson clan is expanding quickly, we were able to stay at Jerry & Mary Ann Roy's lake house. Marc is good friends with their son. They have a beautiful house! Thank you so much!!!
Marc's sisters organized a little shower for Marleigh at the tournament. It was very sweet of them. Once again, everyone was too generous! We are so appreciative!
Marleigh road really well for the five and a half hour drive back to Mound City. She didn't fuss at all! She was so good Saturday at the tournament. Saturday night Marleigh was very constipated. We're still battling that. Poor little thing cries & screams when she tries to have a bowel movement. The doctor said to try some pear juice, so we'll give that a whirl. Sunday morning we had our big family pictures taken. Marleigh did really well. All the little ones were good! Can't wait to see how they turned out! She road pretty well the first couple of hours on Sunday, but then was just so tired she fussed a bit. Overall, couldn't have asked for her to be any better!
Grandma & Grandpa Cline met us in Wichita Sunday with Marc's pickup. He has meetings all week in Texas. It saved him like 4-5 hours of driving by them meeting us. It was so incredibly nice of them! Marc will get home late Thursday night & leave again on Friday for Kansas City. Bayer CropScience is a big sponsor of the KSU game at Arrowhead this weekend. He is taking a bunch of customers. He'll finally be home on Sunday after basically 10 days on the road! He's going to be exhausted.
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