Cute pictures I thought I would share.

Getting ready to walk the girls to school.

Ava in Mazzio's pizza box!




Ava and Freddy







Ava reading her book before bed.

Weekend Fun!

This last weekend we went to my sister's house in St. Louis. We had so much fun. We went to Grants Farm on Saturday. Ava came down with a fever on Saturday night. She was very grouchy. I decided that it was best that her and I not go to Six Flags on Sunday. So we had a quiet day, while all the rest of the gang had a great time on all the rides. We bought a new vehicle while we were in St. Louis our family is just not very comfortable in a car anymore. So now we have room to move. This will help when we go to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia for Ava's CDH followup in June. As soon as we got home I took Ava to the doctor. I was very concerned since her fever never let up. The doctor didn't find much but did let me start her on antibodics. Ava is one of those kids that when she gets sick it is very bad. She can't afford to lose any weight. She is now at 19 pounds! She is feeling much better today. I was just not used to a crying and weining kid. Can anyone say, "headache?" That was me and not to mention I didn't get much sleep for the four days she ran a temperature. I'm praying she sleeps better tonight. She is napping now. I just want to thank my sister Amanda and her husband Jason for always making us feel so welcome in their home. We always have so much fun while we are there. It's like a mini-vacation!

Mother's Day!

Well I had the best day. I am so blessed to have three beautiful daughters. The day I became a mother was the day I knew how much work my own mother went through ALL those years. Lexis and Emeline made me clay sculptures and pretty cards they made themselves. I try to get a picture of me and the girls every Mother's Day. My how they grow so fast. Before I know it they will be in high school. Oh my! Here is a few of our pictures today. We spent the morning at my Mom's. The girls played Monopoly with my Mother. I can't imagine my life without my children. I am one of seven children in my family. I think of MY Mother as my hero. I hope I can be as good of a Mom as My Mother.

To all you Mothers out there I hope your day was filled with Love. Mine definately was this year!

And to my Mother, "I love you Mom. You are the best!"

~Terri

"My Name is Ava and I'm a Miracle."

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I thought I would add another one of Ava's videos. This one is a little different because it is her explaining CDH. Imagine if these newborns could talk. What would they say? I have one little miracle girl on my hands!

~Terri

My Day- Palmolive and Ava

Well today Ava decided that while I was giving Belle, our bichon frise, a hair cut that she would drink some Palmolive dish soap. I jumped up because I heard her gagging, as I got to her I saw what she had done. I rushed her to the sink and started to rinse her mouth out. I didn't really know how much she had ingested so I called the Poison Control office. The guy explained that this kind of soap is not that harmful. He told me that she would probably feel sick to her stomach. I sat down with her and I knew she was not herself. She was very fussy, that is unlike her. I went to start nursing her and she started gagging. I immediately looked to see what was in her mouth. I saw something shiny and clear. Very fast I turned her over and down as I was taught at CHOP (I have used this technique many times) and tried to get her to spit it out. Well she cried and swallowed it. The good thing was she could breath fine. I nursed her to sleep thinking I would keep an extra ear on her because of what she had taken. Fourty-five minutes later she wakes and is very grouchy. I tried to feed her but she pushed the food away. She wanted to drink again but started coughing and began throwing up. This made her very afraid. I ran her bath and put a warm towel on her back. She started to feel better. It was a good three hours before she was smiling again. My poor sweet baby.

I have to ask myself is there going to be a day that I don't worry about this child? She does like to scare me. The good news is this was only the third time she has thrown up since she has been home from the nicu. I'm just glad she is fine. I have put up the gate and she can no longer get into the kitchen. I had the gate up but then decided to "trust" her. We all know where that leads.

~Terri

Beautiful Day.

Yesterday was beautiful. I took advantage of it by taking the girls to the park and getting a few pictures. They are growing up so fast.

Snake Alley is beautiful this time of the year. For those of you that don't know this is the crookedest street in the world. Yes in Burlington, Iowa. It is about 5 minutes from our house!
"Okay Ava give me a little bit better smile! That's better!" She is loves to be outside. At one point I couldn't get her to put her shirt down. This will be the first year outside that she'll be able to display her scar proudly!



My girls love to climb trees, so this picture was very fun! There is that cute smile I know! Wow I wish the weather was like this all the time. We had a great photo session. I'm so lucky to have them.