2 Year NICU Follow Up

This morning I brought Addison back to Children's Hospital for her 2 year NICU follow up appointment. The doctors put her through a series of tests using the Bayley Scale of Infant Development. The purpose of this test is to identify any struggles Addison may have as a result of her preemie status. The goal is to hopefully correct any of these problems before she enters kindergarten.

It ended up being a long test because Addison was doing so well. If she does well on a particular question, they ask additional questions. If not, they move on to the next section. It is in an interesting test & fun to watch how Addison reacts.

Here are her results:

Cognitive: 25 months - right on target

Motor Score
    Fine Motor: 25 months - right on target
    Gross Motor: 19 months - 5 months below target

Addison has always been a bit delayed on this section. Last year she struggled with transitions from laying to sitting & sitting to standing - partly because she skipped crawling. This time it was more related to fear. She was afraid to step up & down using the stepping stool without holding my hand & didn't want to do any of the stuff without my help. This part of the test was also at the end of the testing session - at this point she already had 90 minutes of testing so the doctor wasn't too concerned. We just have to make sure she has extra time each day to work on physical activities.

   
 
Language Score:
    Expressive: 35 months - 11 months above target
    Receptive: 35 months - 11 months above target

Of course we knew she would do well on this section. She LOVES to talk!  She had a lot to say & was very excited to look at all the pictures in their book & wanted to comment on everything. The testing included a lot of her favorite things like balls & babies. Addison insisted that the doll sit next to her & answer the questions as well. So sweet!

We also saw the cardiologist last week for a follow up. Her PDA is so miniscule they won't do anything about it. The doctor believes it will continue to diminish over time & eventually disappear. She still has a murmur but again, he wasn't concerned. She doesn't have to go back  again until she is 5!!!


I am so thankful every day for this little girl but every time she has this test, I am reminded again how lucky we are that she is so healthy & doing so well. We are so blessed that she has / is receiving such excellent medical care. Again, I can't say enough of the staff at Children's & all of the doctors that are involved in her care.. They are just incredible!

Updates

I knew I would be terrible at blogging! The past few months have been crazy & an incredibly busy time. I seem to have no problem keeping up with Facebook but I guess I am just not good at putting my thoughts down on paper (er blog).

There are only a few days left of school for Ethan & I am excited about the summer for him. He's at that age where he can just hang out with his friends every day & doesn't necessarily need "structured" activities (although we have some planned for him anyways). Ah, the lazy days of summer!

Bryant is spending his first summer in Daytona. I miss him like crazy but I am happy that he is doing what he wants & making his dreams come true. I am so impressed with him & couldn't be more proud.

Amanda just moved into her own apartment in St. Cloud. She is pretty excited about it - as she should be. I haven't been up there to see it yet but plan to in the next few weeks. It was nice to be able to spend some time with her when she was home the past few weeks. It amazes me what a good head she has on her shoulders. 

This weekend we are celebrating Addison's 2nd birthday. It's hard to believe she is two already! The time really has flown by. We are celebrating in true Princess form & I am so excited. Some may think that we have gone overboard but honestly, I am okay with that. She is our little miracle & having her in our lives has been such a blessing. She makes me laugh every single day & so no celebration is too big in my eyes. I can't wait to celebrate with our family & friends.

And after reading everything I just wrote it made me think of a Christmas letter. Since it's over 100 degrees outside, the last think I want to think about is Christmas so I think I will stop while I am ahead.

Saying Goodbye

This week has been a tough week for me.  A friend of mine passed away unexpectedly from a brain aneurysm at the age of 46. Stacy & I worked together for 5 years before I left to stay home with Addison. She was truly a nice person & had such a vibrant personality.  It's hard to believe she is gone. I can't stop thinking about her husband & 4 year old son.  I keep thinking back to all of the memories I have of her - meetings, projects, the first time she showed us pictures of her son, her singing, all the silly pirate jokes she told. But mostly I think of her son & how he will now grow up without his mom. It is just so unfair! I do believe in God & the fact that He has a plan for everyone but at times like this, it can be so hard to understand & I struggle to make sense of it.

The next couple of days will be tough as I  gather with friends & my former work family to say goodbye but I hope feeling the love everyone had for her will bring us all of sense of peace.

And to Stacy, know whenever I see a box of wine I will think of you & silently toast you.

Happy Valentine's Day

Okay....so I am really bad at this whole blogging thing. I guess I just feel like I don't have anything interesting to write about or that people would be interested in reading about on a regular basis.  But I will keep trying & maybe, just maybe I will improve.

We just got back from 8 days in Florida & I am EXHAUSTED! Brian took an extra day off work today & love him, he took Addison to the grocery store so I could take a nap.

Florida was a lot of fun! We went with my awesome MIL & FIL (mother in law / father in law), my sister & Brian's brother & his family. The first night we stayed in a condo that was horrible! There were ants all over the kitchen, stained furniture & carpet - Just GROSS! The next morning we moved over to the Fountains Resort just down the road from Sea World. It was amazing!!!! So much better! I definitely want to go back to that resort!

We spent 2 days at Disney, visiting Animal Kingdom & Magic Kingdom. We spent 2 days at Sea World, which was my favorite! I just love it there!!! The shows are amazing! We also got to spend a lot of time with Bryant, which meant a lot to me. He went to Sea World with us & stayed at the condo with us for part of the week.

 We drove up to Daytona for a day, took him to lunch & shopping for food ( I always fear he isn't eating enough). Then when he went to class Brian & I cleaned his kitchen & bathroom. It was needed. Enough said. We went to the ocean but it was super windy so we didn't stay long. Too much blowing sand!

It was a wonderful vacation. We spent a lot of quality time with family & created a lot of memories that we will treasure forever.

Happy New Year!

Another year gone by & of course, now is time people start planning their resolutions. I never have been good at making a resolution, much less sticking to one except for this past year. But promising myself I won't drop Ethan off at school while still in my pajamas can hardly be considered a legitimate resolution.  But I did it! Yay me!

This year I want to be more organized. It's what everyone strives for, right? Getting there is the hard part. I have decided not to be too hard on myself or disappointed in myself or whatever. I am just going to do my best. Try to keep up with the laundry, keep the kids' toys organized, plan meals so I am not stressing at the last minute about what to make for dinner, etc. It's good in theory, right? I have tried this before & it seems to go well for a week or two & then one day of slacking leads to two & then pretty soon the laundry is piled up, the house is a mess & there's nothing in the house to eat. 
This year I feel like I am off to a good start, though. We got some baskets & shelving from Ikea to help with the toys, I have ideas for dinners this week & am ahead on laundry. It's only been a couple of days...let's see how I am doing in a few weeks! Any tips are appreciated!

Bryant's Birthday

Today is Bryant's 20th birthday. It has me reflecting on the past. I remember going into labor, I remember holding him in my arms for the first time, I remember the feeling of immense love only a mother knows. I have loved watching him grow - remembering how he has made me laugh through the years with his silly antics, how he has brought so much happiness to my life & how I feel so blessed to have him for a son. I know I haven't always been the best mom but I have tried to do my best & I hope he realizes how much I truly love him. It is hard to believe 20 years has gone by so fast but I continue to look forward to watching him grow into his adult life & achieve his dreams. I love you, Bryant! Happy Birthday!!!!

Starting this blog...

I was at lunch today with some of my mommy friends & they started discussing their blogs. I had seen their blogs before & never really thought it was for me. After today, I thought I might as well give it a shot. Since Brian's family lives in the Chicago area I think this will be a great way for them to stay up to date on what happens in our life.