6 Month Check-Up

Olivia had her six-month check-up and shots today. The appointment went really well, she is obviously behind where most 6 month olds are because of her prematurity, but I was surprised to see that she is meeting some of the 5 and 6 month milestones. That’s awesome considering that her adjusted age is only 3 months!

Olivia’s weight was 12lbs 5 oz, which was up about 1 lb from Monday (5 days ago). I think one of those weights must be off. Because of Olivia’s BPD (bronchopulmonary dysplasia) or premature lung disease, her doctors want her to be weighed at least twice a week. That has been happening between our home health nurse visits and doctor appointments, but it’s always on different scales, at different times of the day, with different amounts of clothing. How can we really get an accurate picture of her weight gain that way? Unfortunately our wonderful insurance won’t pay the $35/ month rental fee for a scale. So we bought one ourselves, so we can actually track her weight. It really was pretty ridiculous how excited I was to get this scale! I am not sure why, but I was like a kid on Christmas when we found it at our door when we got home today!

Sorry, back to the appointment. So Olivia’s height, or length, was 21 ¼ inches, which is not even on the charts for average height kiddos, but is pretty middle of the road for an achon. Her head circumference was 42 ½ cm. and I am not sure the percentile for either that or weight. I think that they were right around 50th percentile on the achon scale.

Then came the shots! Let’s just say she didn’t particularly enjoy that! Then to make matters worse, she also had to have blood drawn! The renal clinic ordered some blood tests to be done at today’s appt. She wasn’t a big fan of that either! She survived it all though and was actually back in good spirits relatively quickly.



Olivia is starting to babble a lot, and is trying really hard to become a thumb sucker. She hasn’t had much success in the thumb department yet, but she is pretty determined. I think she’s been working on that for almost a month now. It’s just a little harder for her because with her short arms there are some positions where she can’t always reach her mouth.

Olivia has also mastered the pouty face! She sucks that top lip in, and sticks that bottom lip out farther than anyone I know! You can’t help but laugh! Check it out! We got one quick picture before she started hamming it up for the camera!





Olivia also had a visit from her Grandpa Jeff last weekend. That was the first time he had seen her since March. She was still so teeny-tiny then. Olivia got to have some snuggle time and some playtime with Grandpa Jeff.




Last but not least, Olivia has made a new friend, her pink kitty blankey!

Surgery went well!

YAY! We’re home! And Olivia is with us!

So here’s the longer version of how things are going. Olivia went into surgery around 8:15 on Thursday morning. By 8:45 the doctor came to meet with us. She was already changed out of her scrubs and Olivia was in the recovery room. The surgery went really well and was very quick, which is good! I was a little nervous that they would have trouble getting the scope down her because of her small passageways. They did put a breathing tube down for surgery; just because the scope takes up so much space it would have impeded her breathing. They were able to remove that tube right after surgery, before we even saw her. After surgery, Olivia was quite agitated! Who can blame her though, right?! Between the NG tube she has had in for so long and then the scope and breathing tube being put down, she was so hoarse when she cried after surgery! She slept most of the day on Thursday, which worried us that her internal clock would get totally out of whack, but she slept all night though too. She was awake for a few minutes her and there in the evening. I did manage one smile out of her during one of those times. Joe and I spent the night at Ronald McDonald House. When we got back to the hospital Olivia was acting hungry. She took some from a bottle, and then just sat in my arms and smiled at Joe and I. She has been awake most of the day, and pretty darn happy for someone who just had surgery!

Olivia hanging out in recovery while we wait for a room to be available upstairs.

For those of you who don’t know, I have decided to take a leave of absence for this school year to stay home and care for Olivia. With all of her medications, oxygen, monitors, G-tube, and high risk for illness, Joe and I decided it would be best for me to stay home with her for the school year. I will greatly miss being at school, teaching, and my co-workers, but I know I will love the time at home with my daughter!

Check out the new photos!

Help me people! My mom is messing with my hair already!

The Littlest Brewers Fan

Olivia is a pretty happy girl!