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7/11/11

Surgery Day


Today Ailyn had her adenoids out and tubes put in her ears.


She did very well coming out of anesthesia this time. As soon as she woke, she reached for her babies and fell back to sleep.


The doctor was able to take out a large pocket of thick mucus behind one ear and some on the other. She said the adenoids were very large. So hopefully this will  help her!




We were told to expect to stay the night but since Ailyn did so well we went home. She will need to have her tonsils out in the next two years.

It's 7:00PM and Ailyn is crawling around happily playing with her brother and cousins. We took a great nap together. Thank you to Nana and Becky for watching Camden!


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6/29/11

To GMILF


Just for our GMILF.
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6/27/11

Camden's happy place



Ailyn's therapy was canceled today. So instead of sitting in front of the Casey Anthony trial, I asked Camden if he wanted to go to his most favorite place ever.


A few years ago I took Camden to the shelter for the first time. Ever since, he asks to go back all the time. There are two huge cat rooms. They allow you to hang out with the cats. Camden likes to bring food and toys for them. We take money out of his piggy bank and go to the store.


Camden is so proud to get his very own cart. He picks out the food all by himself.


The smile on his face is priceless. Today he said "This is the BEST summer EVER"


At the check out Camden counted his money on his own and handed it to the cashier. On the way to the car he said "I feel like a 10 year old!!"


Camden is very sweet to all the kitties that are shy. He makes sure they want to be petted before he makes his move. Most of the cats are very friendly and love the attention. The scared ones just stare you down.


This pretty girl "Ellie" is 14 years old. She jumped up on my lap and wanted to snuggle.


"Ronnie" our fav of the day, was very curious of Ailyn....and her bottle.


I think we were Ronnie's favorite too! He climbed right into the stroller and hung out.


This shelter is the best. So clean...they have many beds for the cats. There are cats of all ages. I was shocked to see so many old cats! Not as many kittens this time.


After a long visit, I had to drag Camden away. He wanted to keep going back to say goodbye.


Ailyn wanted to hug this kitten to death.... and tried.

It was a great visit and I am sure we will be back soon. A perfect rainy day outing! AND FREE!
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6/24/11

Dream come true



For 23 years Kim and I went on a family vacation every year to Cape May NJ. My Dad would rent a Victorian house and we would have 30 friends and family stay the week.  We have SO many awesome memories from those years. MANY pictures to look through to recall those fun times. Sadly, we have not been back to Cape May for many years now (hint, hint everyone) but I am still holding some hope we can one year start back up the tradition.


Until then, Kim and I have started our own family tradition. We used to talk about our family trips LONG LONG before we had a family to take! We used to day dream about our children playing at the beach and riding the rides at the amusement park. And, now our dream has come true.


For 2 years now, we have spent a week at the beach. We have made some new traditions as well as kept some old. We all have a great time. I look forward to many more years....... Love you, Kimmy!
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6/21/11

Dear Daddy

To Our Daddy,
We miss you a lot! We took these pictures just for you! We love you! OXOXOXOX




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6/12/11

Strawberry's Strawberry

This is how the photo shoot started.....

she then started chucking strawberries at me.....

until I made her take a bite.....


then she sat and ate her one strawberry for 5 whole minutes!








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Sleep Study


Ailyn is scheduled to get her adenoids out and put tubes in next month. There is also a chance she will have to get her very large tonsils out. The ENT wanted to rule out sleep apnea before the surgery. Apnea is very common in micropreemies. So we did an all night sleep study.

All went well.... It took a few hours to get Ailyn fully hooked up to all the wires. Once she was hooked up she slept OK. Woke a few times crying but that is her normal. The study ended at 5am, Ailyn had woke up crying and they said they got enough data to end the study.

I posted a video of her snoring....she has always snored...LOUD. She has also been a mouth breather, so she will stop snoring and make a choking sound. Her ENT is all about removing everything that is not needed..... so that's what we are doing.

Although, the ENT says we might want to wait to remove the tonsils until she is older. She says the recovery is much worse than the feeding tube recovery. Since the surgery is on her airway, the doctor can not give her much Morphine for the pain.  But, we have until the day of surgery to make the decision. Anyone have any advice about taking the tonsils out at 2 years old??

The results of the sleep study will be back in less that 2 weeks. I will keep you updated!





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5/30/11

Philomena Claire

Meet my beautiful new niece, Philomena Clare. Named after my our Grandmother. This sweet baby was 5 pounds 8 ounces and 17 inches at birth. I planned to fly up to be there for her birth but like all babies, she had her own plan and came 2 weeks early. I was able to fly up when she was 4 days old. I fell in love instantly. Even Camden decided that he wants another sister "exactly like this one" . I only got to spend a week but will be back to snuggle in one month!











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5/22/11

Gait Trainer


Ailyn has a new ride. I had seen this Gait Trainer on two blogs I follow.  I thought it would be good for Ailyn, so I asked her PT if we can try one. Luckily, she had one handy right away!


My plan is to use it many times a day with her. So far it's not going so well. For walking anyway..... She CAN walk behind a push toy but prefers not to. I wanted to push her a little harder since I know she can do it. I believe her main issue is coordination. She can walk the right way with our hands. But, when you expect her to put her two feet forward on her own...forget it.


So today I took it outside with us. Camden was a huge help. But, then it turned into a game. She would lean back on the seat and have Camden push her around. Then she would go in circles and realize she can go backwards down a hill. She LOVED that she could do this and wanted to do this and not walking.


Her PT said it's OK for her to go in circles and backwards (not down hills I am sure). She will learn she can get where she wants.


We did have her walking with it with very little help from us. In time I am sure she will be able to run with it!


We are hoping we can upgrade it to a newer model. She isn't in the seat very well and she knows how to undo the Velcro that holds her in. I will be updating her progress as we practice, so check back soon!

If you are on our you tube channel, check out her video!
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