World Prematurity Awareness Day

When you are a NICU parent, soon-to-be, current or former, you pay attention to the weird holidays, like World Prematurity Awareness Day, because to you, these are not weird at all.  These are days we get to celebrate the challenges we have been through in our lives.  These are days we get to take a few extra minutes and remember. 

We remember where we were when we first learned we were pregnant. We remember the day like it was yesterday because for many of us this was something that we had worked for and waited for and was finally given to us in a glowing moment of joy.

That glowing moment was followed up by an amazing ultrasound to confirm the pregnancy. We all remember waiting in anticipation to hear the one thing we pray for in the first trimester.... the heartbeat. We all remember welling up with pride and joy because we had hit the first milestone of a pregnancy. We had brought a viable life form forward.

Then we all remember the day that our world came crashing down!

For some, this day came with progressive testing, ultrasounds, doctors visits and long hours waiting. For others, like myself, this day was sudden and unexpected. It was thrust upon us like a cruel joke that someone refused to take back. Many call this deliver day, some call it the day their bodies failed them.

I don't see it either way. I see it as the day medicine really proved itself. I see it as the day my family grew by hundreds and thousands, not only by one. Because on my delivery days, I joined the ranks of NICU mom. I learned what it was like to be a nurse, a caregiver and a mother. I learned how to lean on other parents for support. Parents who were experiencing the same feelings and waiting for the same milestones as me. Parents who used terms like inchstones, intubation, ventilator, kangaroo care, transfusions.... parents who measured successes by ounces gained and mm grown. These parents become your family. In addition, you soon learn to love the other NICU moms you were blessed with when your world supposedly came crashing down. We find solace in the nurses who helped us every day to keep these tiny figures alive. They cheered with us, cried with us, and slapped us upside the head when we needed it. And we trusted them because they had been there before and they would be there again! 

So on this amazing holiday that not many recognize but all of my fellow NICU parents share, be proud of your experiences. They have made us who we are! They have brought us together. They have bonded us like no other experience can.

Being a NICU mom is something I am proud of. I am proud that medicine is so advanced that even when my body fails me, medicine did not. And because of that I have two healthy thriving beautiful girls!

 

First Day of Preschool

Thanks mostly in part to the extreme amount of instability we have had in our lives the last few months, we had decided that we were not going to enroll Elizabeth in Preschool this year.  It was a hard decision but one that we felt comfortable with.  I have been working with her at home and she was advancing nicely on what Early Intervention and I thought was appropriate.

Then we found this great place in Riverton.  A small townhome that is just perfect for our growing family.  We settled in and began unpacking.  Evaluations came and went for the girls and it was determined that Elizabeth was good to start at a traditional preschool next year.  We were excited.  I text my Aunt Kelly and let her know that I would likely be enrolling both girls in her classes next year if she still had room.  That is when she informed me that they had receiving a moving notification for a student and a spot would be open in her preschool class beginning the first of November if we wanted to start her now. 

The decision was left in our court.  Our daughter was already suffering from anxiety from the move, she was very vocal about not liking the new place and she had begun acting out, but maybe if I started her on a school regiment she would settle in and find some good friends.  So we decided to give it a whirl.

In the days leading up to the first day, Elizabeth was very verbal about not wanting to go.  She even resorted to refusing to use the potty when I once stated that "now that she was going potty on the big girl potty she could go to preschool with the other kids."  Her acting out even got aggressive at times and she was adamant that she didn't want to go. 

I text Kelly and let her know about what was happening and we talked through it a little.  She recommended that I give it a try and if it doesn't work we could always try again in a couple of months.  However, I was concerned that Elizabeth would fall too far behind her peers in regards to social and psychosocial development.  So I agreed to start her the first of November and see how it went. 

The first day came... we ran errands in the morning before preschool started.  Elizabeth would ask "is this my school" every time we passed a school while running errands.   She kept saying that she didn't want to go to preschool and she would run away.  LOL.  I proceeded to get her ready, under duress, but she eventually calmed down when I pulled out her backpack.  I reminded her that big girls take a back pack to school and so she needed to get hers ready.  She opened it up and asked where her lunch was.  I reminded her that she already ate lunch.  She asked three or four more times for a lunch for her book bag.

When we finally got loaded in the car and ready to go, we proceeded to Kelly's house.  Elizabeth, knowing the route, asked why we were going to Auntie Kel's.  I reminded her that Kelly's is where preschool is held and so we had to go there in order to go to school .  She looked really surprised.  By the time we pulled in the driveway she was excited.  I snapped a couple of pictures outside the house and then walked her around to the back. We met her teacher, I filled out the paperwork, and Elizabeth got settled in.  It was a HUGE help that Chelsey had her sons there that day.  Elizabeth took to Hudson like a fish to water.  He took her under his wing and showed her how to play the computer and that is where Mommy was no longer necessary.  I finished up my paperwork and snuck upstairs to say Hi to Kelly and Chelsey before leaving. 

When I picked Elizabeth up, she couldn't tell me a single thing she had done or learned, but she did say she would go back on Thursday.  So all in all it was a success.  The only story I got from her about preschool was about Auntie Kel's visit to the preschool.  She enjoyed seeing Kelly in her class.  She also informed me that Uncle Jon couldn't visit because he was in the car on his phone and "his mommy" wouldn't let him out.  So she would have to visit Uncle Jon another day.  LOL!!

Preschool?  Success!!

Kennedy's Hat

Those of you who celebrated Elizabeth's birthday with us last year will remember the infamous hat that Kennedy got for her.  Elizabeth was scared of it.  LOL.  Well now.... we can't get her to take it off!! 

State Fair with the Animals

Mom and I took the girls to the Utah State Fair in September to see the animals.  It was a super fun evening.  The girls had an amazing time and they both ran Grandma ragged!  LOL.  I love these girls and their love of the outdoors. 

 

At the Fair, they had this children's section that they could go through.  They carried buckets, wore aprons and did all these different farm things in order to purchase a prize at the end.  So the girls milked a cow (And collected a carton of milk for their basket), sheered a sheep (and collected wool for their basket), gathered eggs (And collected an egg for their basket), harvested an orchard (and put an apple in their basket), planted seeds in the garden (and collected a vegetable), fueled their tractors and plowed the field.  Then they "sold" what they collected at the store and received $1 with which they got to buy a treat from the snack shack!  It was pretty cool.  The treats were nice too!  The girls had an awesome time. 

Then Grandma took Elizabeth on a pony ride.  Annie is still a bit small but maybe next year.  All in all it was a great trip!

Annaliece's Second Birthday

 

We celebrated Annie’s party a little late this year due to so much going on in our world!  However, it didn’t matter when we did it.  She was still the happiest little girl.  She loved the cupcakes and especially loved the Minnie Mouse theme.  Friends and Family showed up to celebrate with us and it was a really nice low key event!

 

 

 

 

Early Intervention

Early Intervention is an educational program ran through the Jordan School District that is geared toward children with developmental disabilities.  Teachers and therapists of all styles work with children on a variety of developmental delays to try and get them back on track before they reach school age so that we can hopefully prevent them from needing remedial programs once they reach mainstream schooling.  Most of the time this program completely works and a child is totally on track by the time they reach first grade.  Is some cases, the child still needs minor assistance when they reach school , but in ALL cases, at least teachers know exactly where the child is and what is needed when they get to school and their educations can be built to their needs so if they need to be sent to a specialty school or program we can do that from day one.  

The program is designed to teach siblings and parents how to cater a child’s play and home environment around key theories so that a child can maximize their learning.  In Annaliece’s case, she is incredibly behind in her social and emotional oral communication and development.  So after meeting with her therapist, whom Elizabeth fondly calls Dr Sue, we have set the following goals for the next six months:

• Use 20-25 words or signs to describe her personal day to day needs.
• Use a fork and spoon to be able to cleanly self feed all meals.
• Be able to accurately play with 10 daily objects in an appropriate manner. (example: feed a baby, bounce a ball, build with blocks, etc)
• Express appropriate emotions at appropriate times, especially when interacting with other children.

So once a week for the next several months Miss Sue will be coming to spend time at our house and work with Annie.  She will be teaching Elizabeth, Jason and I how to use our daily tasks to incorporate additional skills so that we can encourage steps toward these goals.  Here’s hoping that is works.  I have total faith that is will, but if it doesn’t, we set another few goals and we keep going.  

The other good news is, this program also has music classes and other great things that we can participate in together while we are doing these therapies.  So I get to start taking the girls to play groups and music classes starting next week.  I am super excited for that.  They will have so much fun and they will never know that it is educational therapy.  Elizabeth is excited that she gets to participate as well. 

I QUIT!!

 I quit!
So I did it.... or I should probably say WE did it... quitting your job is never a one sided decision.  It is always a decision made up of a million tiny decisions that compress together to form the much larger decision.  And man was this one big!!  HUGE!  I mean, how do you decide to down size your income?  How do you decide when you are going to take that jump?
Jason and I did it though.  After weeks, if not months, of talking about where we were headed with my jewelry company and the pros and cons in life associated with my working at Walmart, we finally did it.
I gave notice earlier this week.  It turns out my two week notice will be much shorter than intended.  You see, due to jewelry events, I had requested time off next week so I wasn't on the schedule for several days.  Because of that, my last day of work will actually be this upcoming Sunday.  I am a little apprehensive and a little excited.  It marks a whole new experience for me.  I am very much looking forward to this new adventure.
I am very sad to be leaving my position at Walmart, but I am very excited for the opportunities and doors this opens for me.  This will open up my schedule to so many new things with Paparazzi and that is what I need.  Paparazzi has been such a huge blessing and is growing so fast.  I am amazed by how productive it has been for my little family and I have only been able to give it a smidgeon of my time.  If I am able to triple that time and energy, just imagine what can happen!  The possibilities are endless.
So here, we are!  Two shifts left!  I am so excited!