Eating Cereal

Wow! Caroline is 6 months now and making believers out of all of us!!! Her little smile brightens up my day. We are starting with 1 tsp. of rice cereal. She seems excited and laughs while she eats from a spoon. I am delighted to see her reaching these developmental markers. She seems to be digesting and swallowing fine. We rejoice in all of God's miracles and gifts in our lives.

Showing Progress

Caroline had her RSV shot today. Her ear infection seems to be getting better too. She also has picked back up to her normal eating and no vomit ting. She is 9.13. So we are a bit behind we were expected to be around 10.5 so we will have to plump up again! Caroline's physical therapy was quite encouraging yesterday as she steadily holds her head up and reaches for objects continuously. She even manges to get rattles and toys in her mouth. Chrism our therapist was able to trick her into rolling over. She said to keep setting her up for accidental rolling until she gets it. She is a delight and a joy to have in my life!Carley has been back at school this week and seems to be happy. I got my haircut and try to get out with friends while my mom is here visiting. It sure is nice to have help and relax when we are not keeping appt. Caroline seems to be doing fine - I am adjusting to all of the new changes that lie ahead. I am finding new projects to do concerning finding new doctors, early intervention services for Caroline and faxing, and copying medical records as we prepare to move. Thank you friends for your love and friendship.

Trip to Jacksonville

Cam has already started work. Today was his second day. I think he is enjoying it, but adapting to a new position I am sure is challenging. Caroline has had difficulty the past week with nighttime tube feedings. She is throwing up milk and we are not sure why. She has cut her intake in half of her daily ounces. We went ahead to the Dr. today and found out she has an ear infection. We are now taking our first antibiotic ever. Another health issue that some babies have with mosaic triploidy is chronic ear infections, so we hope this is no indication of things to come. Last week she was in her car seat a lot as we traveled down to Florida to check out houses, floor plans, and the exact area we would like to be in in Florida. There are many choices, finding the right place will be tough. the houses are more expensive and have no yards. I know we will really miss the quaintness and quietness of Charlotte. We will have plenty of hospitals to choose from and Numors is supposedly the best. We have not had any lookers this week and no offers as of yet. I hope the house sells quickly, but we do have a lot of things to take care of here with Caroline. Please pray for our insurance transition to be smooth. Pray for Caroline to gain weight and in crease her appetite. Pray for her ear infection to go away and not return. Caro line's ears are set lower than the typical baby. This is a reason for chronic ear infections in mosaic triploidy babies. Thank you for your constant thoughts, prayers and encouragement. We are trying to find the right house for us while trying to decide between two counties. It is like Union versus Mecklenburg. And of course, everyone has their opinion too!

Mickey Button

Caroline did great with her procedure today. She is asleep with a new feeding attachment and is still happy. She does not seem to have much pain, but does have a sore throat. She weighs 9.13 today. Almost 10 pounds. We are reaching double digits. Tomorrow we will get the apnea monitor down loaded. We may not have to keep that too much longer. Praise the Lord for another successful surgery.

Surgery Day

We will be off for CMC hospital at 6:30 am. Caroline's surgery is at 9am. Please pray for a safe surgery and a smooth recovery. I am always anxious when she is put to sleep with so many unknowns. She is so pleasant to hold and talk to with her expressive sunny disposition. I have enjoyed our holidays and am looking forward to being home after surgery. We are not expected to stay overnight. Thank you for your messages and notes on the blog. I appreciate your constant encouragement and prayers. Please add the sale of our home to your requests so we can move forward together as a family. We will post an update after surgery for the new mickey button. Happy New Year!

Big changes in 2008

We are moving to Jacksonville, Florida. We will really live in St. Augustine. Cameron has accepted a new job position as recruiting manger for a company called AmeriForce. He is excited about all the new opportunities that lie ahead. We will miss Traveler's and all the friends we have met along the way of our travels. This is obviously a stressful and very busy time for us with the house on the market, Christmas and Caroline's upcoming surgery. Cam starts his new job on Jan.7. There is never a dull moment literally on the Abbott household. We are always up to something. The girls and I will remain in Charlotte until the house sells and continue with Dr. appt. and Physical Therapy for Caroline. Caroline weighed 9.8 today and will have surgery now on Dec 27. It has been re scheduled per the hospital to have a full crew that day. So we will have everyone we need on board for all to go well. Her procedure is to change her g -tube to a mickey button. It will be easier to change out the feeding tube and button. It is less obvious to the public eye and less likely to be pulled out. I will have to learn a few more tricks, but it will primarily operate the same way.
I fully intended to send out a holiday letter, but this will have to suffice. Carley gave her Binky away to the Binky Fairy last week and it has gone better than expected. You know what is one more source of stress when you are thrown a million curve balls at once? Mommy and Carley have done well with the transition. Naps have been sparse due to the Binky disappearing though. She is three and really looking forward to Christmas. She asked me last week,"What is the trued meaning of Christmas?" I replied, "Jesus." I could not think of a better simpler way to tell her. She is a joy and I wonder what she really understands about all of this manger business. She told me Jesus was born in a manger and the angel told Mary she was going to have a baby. She also told me Jesus was born in "Becklaham." It sis precious. It reminds me of the child like faith we are to have in our lives.
Caroline is so responsive and chatty these days. We are hopeful and blessed. She belly laughs when you sneeze at her and she copies all of your mouth movements. her eyes follow all that goes on around her. She finished three bottles last week all on her own in 25 min record time. She is trying to put pressure on her hands and feet and really wants to push her head toward you when you talk to her. She pulls back form a tummy position at shoulder height. We are working on more tummy time and raising her head from a tummy position on a flat surface. She has reached all social/language milestones at this point for a 5 month old. She is delayed in rolling, sitting, and raising her head from a tummy position.
We do not have new doctor appt, but will see an orthopedist in the future in Florida. We will have to set up therapies as well for Caroline to continue. We are thrilled at her progress and continue to thank God for His faithfulness. Thank you to all our family and friends who pray for our daily strength. Happy New Year to each of you!!!!!

Merry Christmas

Happy Holidays to all of you. We have been very busy. We are getting all of our gifts wrapped and our lights are all set for outside. Carley is so excited this year too. She is now three today! We had a great time at her Backyardigans birthday party. Two earth angels gave Carley's party. It was great fun to see her smile and have all of our friends and family near. Caroline and Carley both go to the doctor today. It will be a long morning and very exhausting for me. Caroline will get her second RSV - synagis shot. Out home health nurse also weighed her today and surveyed her developmental and physical milestones. She is really responsive and on track for most things - we are thrilled! She can not roll over yet and she is still struggling to hold her head up from a tummy position. I sent out pictures yesterday for Christmas and hope all of you will receive them soon. I have not posted in a while, but we are having some progress. Caroline now takes 70 cc for volume per feeding. She is still gaining at a steady rate too! She weighed 9.6 today! It is nice to see those numbers reversed. I am physically tired and worn out, but things have been running smoothly thus far. Our appointments have slowed some. We will have PT Dec 19 and surgery for our mickey button on Dec. 24 at 9am. I would love to hear from you all too!