Good evening All! I was asked to pass along this survey to any and all of Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia parents. It is a very brief survey that will help in a big way.
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB22A7LW6FTP2
Thanks in advance.
Ava is doing Awesome. I realized yesterday that her and I carried on a complete discussion. I am LOVING that she can finally verbalize her thoughts, wants and wishes!
Terri
Ava got into the band aids today and my what an artist she became. I had to catch it in video so you all could see her at work!
Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com
All is well with Ava. She is growing into quite the little lady. I took her to an appointment last Tuesday in St. Louis to check on her arm. There are a few things we can do to help the appearance of her burn. While we were there I became very ill and we ended up leaving before her appointment was fully over. My Mother took me to the ER because I couldn’t get a handle on the pain in my lower right side and back. Long story short I had a kidney stone. I thought the pain was worse than being in labor. So glad that is over. I had to learn lots of patience that day…:) Bless my Mother’s heart for being put in that unpleasant situation. God showed Himself that day, in the fact that as soon as we left Ava’s appointment she fell fast asleep. She never saw me suffer and she was much less likely to have gotten any germs in the ER as my Mom held her the entire time. She then called my brother and he came and took her out of there. Thank God for Morphine! It helped me through that day.
We also went to a baby shower while visiting my sister in St. Louis. Ava had fun time. Here are a few pictures of her at the shower.
Thanks to my sister Amanda for taking this next picture of Ava and I!
And one of my favorites is this next one.
I also took some pictures of my brother’s girlfriend, Amber. I hope she doesn’t mind I post a few. I’m so excited my brother will experience parenthood. It is a wonderful thing!
They are naming him Christian. So of course I had to spell out his beautiful name in blocks!
This one is so precious.
So often we take our health and family for granted. Those are the two most important things in our life, besides our relationship with God, that matter so deeply. Tonight believe that God has a plan and ask Him to cleanse your heart so you can enjoy life to the fullest. He holds the future. Be strong enough to share with Him your deepest desires and your hard aches for He cares.
Thanks for supporting our family!
~Terri
As the title reads, life has been moving along great for us. It is Amazing how it falls back into a normal routine as though she was never stricken with Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia and all it’s problems. Ava is striving more and more to talk. She now repeats everything we say. Oh and does she ever ask questions. Her favorite thought is, “Why Mommy?” She is trying to learn her colors and how to count. So far she counts like this…. “One Two Eight Nine!!” She loves to run and jump. She waits patiently for her sisters to get home from schools so she can tag along with what they are doing. She meets her Daddy at the back door and greets him with a warm “Hi Daddy!” and a HUG. She is so loving. I couldn’t ask for her to be doing better. Weight seems to be a issue and probably always will be with Ava. She has been stuck on 30 pounds for a good several months now. We pray that she will hit a growth spurt and she’ll gain a few pounds. She does eat pretty good for a three year old. We continue to do her nightly g-tube feeds. We are up to almost 700 calories a night time feed. She tolerates it well and most days she gets up and wants an egg first thing. (Which is a good thing!)
As most of you know I have a love for photography. It is my true passion. I love how taking pictures makes me feel. I am now finally being able to put my name on my work. Pictures capture a moment in time that otherwise passes by without another thought. Here is one I did of our hands. (Ava and I)I will cherish these picture forever. I can honestly say I have held a Miracle. We love that she is strong and is now healthy. We’ll take what we are given, as we know life is a blessing.
I want you to see for yourself how big she is getting. She is growing so tall. I trimmed her hair last night and she could barely hold still long enough for me to finish. She kept saying, “Done Mommy?” Then a few seconds later she would ask again. Today was ALL about reading Dora books. Yes we have taken “Dora” on. We now have Dora everything!
She makes this face A LOT!
I spiced this one up with my artist flare!
Simple and very elegant…. Lady Ava.
Miss, I Love Books enjoys a good read!
And no angle left missing…..
I need to schedule a surgery follow-up appointment for Ava but I’m putting it off a bit. She is enjoying everyday and who could ask for anything more?
Thanks for your commitment to Ava’s blog. I don’t write much anymore as normal things tend to be boring. I try to use my writings to inspire those who have been affected by pain and hard ache. There is life at the end of the tunnel. Ava is living proof! I pray that Ava continues her healing path…..she is a very courageous little lady.
~Terri
Hello to all Ava’s fans. She is getting over a cold….well it is the lightest easiest cold I’ve ever seen. It started with Emeline then the next day she had it. The cold started with a runny nose…but not, then it went to a dry cough that was also not very bad. I did have to stop her nightly feeds for about 4 days due to night time coughing and gagging. She is still too little to know that you can just cough and not have to throw up to get the junk out of your lungs…;) This all happened the day after Thanksgiving. I was worried because I know with Ava her weight is a big concern. SO far no weight loss.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I just kept thanking God for all the Miracles He has sent our way. It is unbelievable when think where Ava was just 6 months ago. And now how well she is doing. Her brain is just blossoming. New words pour out of her mouth each day.
I have to share her recent “words”. If you ask her to please pick up her toys she replies with the saddest face, “I TIRED!” If only it was that easy, eh?
I’ve been especially careful not to take Ava out in public too much. BUT tonight we went to the Mall to see SANTA! We have been decorating the house and about talking about Christmas lately. If you point to Santa and ask who he is she says, “HO HO HO!” I laugh every time. We dropped Lexis and Emeline off at Tai Kwando then Ava and I headed to the Mall. When we got there he was on break so we walked around. I have sheltered this little girl SO much that I guess finally my eyes were open tonight. Normally she rides in the stroller. (Yes I get stares but I don’t even think twice about them!) She asked me if she could walk and I decided since we were only going to be there for a minute we would be okay. Oh I was wrong! Ava was touching everything. We went into Younkers and the trees were all decorated. Her eyes were HUGE. She touched SO many ornaments. I know this is just what kids do right? Well not my Ava….however tonight I put all fears aside so that she could enjoy being a three year old little girl. (AND I’m praying God protected every touch!) Plus we had antibacterial gel along…;)
SO finally Santa was in his chair. There was no one around so we got closer. (All my kids have been petrified of Santa.) Ava was almost drawn to him. It was the strangest thing. She was not scared…she did not smile but her eyes lit up. He was the most gentle person. His voice was captivating! He asked if he could read Ava a book. She politely shook her head yes. He started reading, “The Night Before Christmas.”
She got a little closer. Santa paused about halfway through the book and asked Ava if she would like to sit next to him in his big chair, without hesitation she climbed up all by her. I fought back happy tears….this was a Miracle.
“Precious, Precious, Precious!” I was so proud of her. My baby is not afraid of “Ho Ho Ho!” When we were leaving I told Santa about Ava and her many fights with life. He looked down and said these words, I will never forget, “God Bless this little one who is a Miracle.” How neat is that? He was the best Santa ever. He read the ENTIRE book to Ava…
Life is good. I can’t wait for Christmas. Ava is just going to LOVE this year. It started to snow this morning. (First snow fall of the year. It was huge “snow globe” flakes.) She was trying to catch each and every snow flake that fell. It was inspirational to see….kind of puts her life in perspective, things come at her and she doesn’t shy away she grabs for them. I am truly blessed. So much Joy is in my heart!
Thanks for the prayers and for your caring thoughts. We feel them daily.
~Terri
