First Tooth

Audra's first tooth finally broke through today! It is so exciting - although Audra is a bit more cranky than excited ;) The second one is close behind.

Our week went well. We like our new pediatrician and had a good first appointment. We filed our appeal to try to get our insurance to cover the feeding program - they would cover a $37,000+ surgery to get a G-tube with no questions asked but not a feeding program that is a few thousand and has a success rate of nearly 100% for cardiac patients. Craziness! Anyway, we submitted our 100 page appeal and will hear back in 20 days. I do not have high hopes but stranger things have happened.

Until next time...

6 Months Old

Happy 1/2 Year Birthday to our little baby, Audra! She is getting bigger and bigger every day and continues to do well. We are so very thankful. Audra is interacting more with her older sister and it is such a joy to see. They are going to have such great fun together and we are so blessed to have them :)

All the best!

Firsts :)

Audra continues to do well. She is eating a lot and growing like an awesome weed. We love it. She has had some fun firsts recently.

Audra had her first visit to the zoo. Since it is close and we have a membership, we made a quick family visit on Saturday. The weather was perfect and it wasn't too crowded. We made a half loop that included the tigers, lions, monkeys, apes and chimps - all of our older daughter's favorites :)

Audra also had her first cereal this weekend. She did so well. This is only possible because we were able to wean her from her feeding tube. So happy she has done so well!

Finally, Audra got to go to her first parenting group meeting. Most of you know it - it is the group we have met with who all have kids born around the same time as our older daughter. It is such a great group of people and Audra enjoyed meeting and smiling at everyone. Although we were missing a few friends!

Anyway, no news is good news and hopefully as things settle into our new normal, there won't be a lot going on.

Please remember to keep Audra's heart buddy, Wyatt, in your prayers. He is still recovering from some rough patches after his Hemi last week. He is making progress and we want it to continue!

Good News!

Audra does not need blood thinner any more! Such great news because the blood draws go away along with the blood thinner. Our appointments today were very nice. We were at the vascular surgery center at the main hospital. It was very nice but you can tell they do not deal with the little ones often.

And more good news - Audra's heart buddy, Wyatt, is out of surgery and doing well. Keep him in your thoughts and prayers please :)

Breaking New Records!

Audra is eating more and more! Yesterday she ate the most she has EVER eaten - more than when she had the feeding tube. This is so exciting! She continues to do well and feeding time is a much shorter and less painful process.

We would appreciate a lot of thoughts and prayers tomorrow for both Audra and her heart buddy, Wyatt. Wyatt is the little guy who was born a bit after Audra. He is having his second surgery (the same as the one Audra had in June) tomorrow morning. We will also be at UofM tomorrow for a follow-up appointment. We will decide if Audra has to be in blood thinner for three more months or not. We are hoping and praying that she is well enough for the or not.

Thanks for your support!

Finishing Bottles!

Audra is doing well and eating like a champ. It is no longer a struggle to get her to take a small amount. She eats what she wants, when she wants. She started to actually finish her bottles occasionally! By finish I mean leave just a small amount behind. We have increased the amount we put in each bottle. Exciting stuff :)

Each day Audra is drinking more and more. She has gained weight for the past few days and we couldn't be happier! She is also rolling over like a star.

Go Blue!

Tube Weaning - A Week Tube Free

It has been a week since Audra had her last tube feed. We couldn't be more proud of this little girl. She is such a champ. She is really coming on strong and eating well. She is eating every two hours during the day and 5-6 hours at night. We will take it :)

Audra is also close to getting her first two front teeth. I didn't know teething was contagious ;)

Thank you for all of your support throughout this process. It has meant a lot to us. Also a HUGE thank you to our nanny who has been so very awesome and supportive through this (and everything else too). We couldn't do this without you!!!!!

Tube Weaning - Day 9

Today was a good day for all. Audra continues to do well without her feeding tube. And her older sister seems to be on the mend as well. We hope to have a quiet and productive Labor Day.

Tube Weaning - Day 8

Should it still be called tube weaning if we are now just working on oral intake? Yes, it is still dealing with the issues from the tube dependency. Today was another great day for Audra eating wise. Her sister and UofM football are another story. Audra again took more today orally that she ever has. She continues to do great and we should see her weight stabilize here shortly. She is such a champ.

Her older sister is getting in the rest of her two year molars and is not doing well. She is grumpy and has a stuffy nose. To top it off she took a spill outside this morning and bumped her head. She was not in a good mood and has already been awake more times than
Audra tonight.

It was also not a great night for UofM football. Unfortunately my boss was at the game and is a huge Bama fan. It is all good fun. Good to have the boss happy, I guess.