Things I've Learned

Okay, so with Valentine's Day and being on a diet, I figured out that it could have been really really bad! It is all my fault since I was the one who bought the candy, but I did really good! Some of you know that I started Weight Watchers to lose some weight. I started two weeks ago and tried really hard not to eat anything sweet the first week. That didn't work or I was not motivated, but week two came around and I got busy. I kept track of all the points and did really well until Valentine's day. I bought the girls some sugar cookies with the hearts on them. That is a weakness for me especially when they are hot, but I kept looking the other way. I did really good until Valentine's night and decided to see how many points they were. I looked at the box and for 2 cookies it was only 3 points! I was so excited. Here is where hopefully you can tell I am determined to lose the weight. So I had two cookies and instead of keep eating more, I decided it was time to see how many total points the rest of the cookies would be. (some of you may be saying that is the math teacher in me, but oh well!) How many points do you think it was for 18 cookies?




Keep Thinking......




Higher or lower.......



27 points!!!! Right then, I decided to walk away!!



So my lesson was that those cookies were not worth the points but I could still have a few if I really wanted them. I know I can eat anything with weight watchers and that is the nice thing, but now I decide if I want to give my points up for junk or save up for something special!

We're home...again!

Hey everyone! We got dismissed from the hospital. Yea!!!! They are still not sure what was causing the machine to keep going off and the weird breathing, but at least they watched her. The monitor company downloaded the material so hopefully we will get the report when we go to the doctor on Monday. The doctor ran a bunch of test and all came back negative. They also did a chest x-ray. That showed that she might have a little respiratory virus and that is a possibility for our night.

The only other things included that Gracie is anemic and has to be put on a vitamin, but he said that it is not uncommon in preemies, and that her theophyllin level was a little low, so her pedi will decide what to do with that. We have follow up appointments within the next couple of weeks so I will keep you updated.

Thanks to everyone for your support and prayers. I know that I am probably overly cautious with Gracie, but I feel like it is so much different with her than Callie and Kadee!

I hope everyone has a great valentine's day!!!!!

Back at the hospital :(

Most of you know by now, but we are back at the hospital. Last night about 8 pm Gracie's monitor started going off and showing that her heart rate was low. I really didn't think much about it and just woke her up. Well after I fed her and put her to bed about 9:30, it started going off at least once an hour, sometimes more. She also started breathing really heavy like a panting dog and wheezing a little. That's when it really started getting my attention. She finally stopped about 3:30 and didn't have any more alarms, but I thought I would call the cardiologist anyway. After getting to the cardiologist and telling him, he was not sure what was going on since she was not symptomatic in the office. He said he would feel better putting her in the hospital for observation for a couple of days. He also noticed during the echo cardiogram that the valve does not look like it is functioning like it should but doesn't know if this is related. He said it is a possibility for surgery when she is older to repair that. So right now, I don't have a straight answer on what is going on. I just know we are going to be here for a day or so.

Please keep Gracie in your prayers and that we may be able to see if this is all connected and what the next steps are going to be.

2 months old and a week's worth of doctor visits

Gracie is 2 months old! Can you believe it? I am still thinking she should only be a couple of weeks old since that is how long she has been home. She is doing great. We had a well check on Monday with the pediatrician.

Pedi--

weight: 4 pounds, 9 ounces

length: 17 1/2 inches long

Percentiles: Not on the charts because she is not supposed to be here yet!

She said that she looked great and couldn't believe how well she was doing. We have to go back in a couple of weeks for a weight check since she lost a little weight since the week after she came home. I think and am pretty sure that it is just because they weighed her with her clothes on but we will double check for sure. She got three shots and an oral vaccine but she did great. She was a little fussy but not too bad. Tuesday she was back to her normal self.

Thursday: We had appointments with the cardiologist and eye doctors.

Cardiologist--

I took Gracie last week and he was concerned about a valve that had a high blood flow through it. He didn't see it in the NICU so it bothered him. Today we went back and the PDA is closed (that was the problem in NICU) but the valve had a higher blood flow. He said that the valve was not damaged and since it is not causing Gracie to have any problems, he just wants to keep a close eye on it. With this, we just have to watch her breathing patterns and let him know if she has a hard time or starts huffing and puffing. He said that doesn't have a good answer on why this is going on and was sorry for that, but the main thing is he is going to keep watching it. He said that it was bothering him more than it was her and to come back in three weeks! A pretty good visit overall.

Eye doctor--

This was a follow up to 2 weeks ago. Last time we were there, Gracie's retina's were not developed all the way. The eye doctor visit was probably the best of today. Gracie's retina's are now fully developed and there shouldn't be any effects later on, so we go back in a year, Yeah!!!

A conversation that makes you think about what you really know and don't know

The other day on the way to Kourtney's soccer game, Callie started asking me questions about Jesus. Here is how the conversation went.

Callie: Momma, why did Jesus die?
Me: He died so that someday we would know how to live and be able to go to Heaven
Callie: Did you know they put him in a "boon" (tomb)?
Me: Yes and do you know what happened when his mom went to see him?
Callie: Yeah! He wasn't there!
Me: That's right. Do you know where he went?
Callie: Did he go to Heaven?
Me: No not yet. He rose and went and saw his apostles
Callie: Who were his Popsicles?
Me (laughing): I don't remember all their names, so before bed tonight we will read the story about Jesus dying
Callie: Ok. I know where my Bible is and I will find it!!

After that, I realized that I couldn't answer a question that seemed to be so simple and that I should know. It also made me think about how I need to spend more time in study so that I can give the girls, or myself more answers. I want to be the best Godly woman, wife, and mother that I can be and to do that, I am going to need a lot of help. Just the little conversations in life mean so much more now and to a three year old, she was just asking questions.

The World from a 3 year old's perspective

As you all know by now, Callie loves to take pictures. The other day she got the camera and just took pictures around the house. Here are a few of the ones that were not of the walls or pictures on the walls! Enjoy.