March for Babies

Today was the big March of Dimes March for Babies. Even with the rainy weather it turned out to be a pretty good day. In the beginning we were not sure we were going to make it the 5.2 miles. Brie was pitching a fit and did not want to sit in her stroller. She wanted to walk. She was tired and hungry, but refused to take a bottle (we were out in public why would she). Finally after the first 1/2 mile she decided to take her bottle and a nap. Mommy's back was killing her from walking and feeding her at the same time. We actually got to sit down for a few minutes at the first rest area and give her some more of her bottle. She actually slept for the next hour or so and woke up in a much better mood. So along with our friends we made it the next few miles. We did not break any records and were the very last team to make it back to the finish line, but we had a great time. At the end there was a little picnic and we enjoyed hotdogs and chips. Here are a few photos of today:

here we are warming up before the walk:

Brie snoozing during the walk:

Brie holding hands with her NICU buddy Anthony

In addition we are almost the proud new owners of our first house. We have a signed agreement for a house in Muncy and are just working on getting a loan. It is a little complicated because of moving to a new area and me only working part time right now, but our person at the bank does not think it will be a problem. Marcus and I both have jobs lined up already so we should be in good shape. Now we have to search for daycare for Brie. Now that she is over a year we really want her to have some interaction with other children. She is very fussy and always wants to be the center of attention. Because of her rough start we have always catered to her, but that needs to stop. We are thinking about taking her to a drop in center this summer to get her used to the idea. There is a local center here that she can go to for a few hours a week so she is around other children. Now that RSV season is over it is time to enroll her. Hopefully it will help.

lounging at the Zoo

Wondering at the zoo

As for eating, Brie is hit and miss. Some meals she will eat very well and others almost nothing. Today was not a very good day. She missed her afternoon nap and was very fussy at dinner time so ate almost nothing. She did drink her bottles well today so hopefully that will make up her calories for the day. Brie continues to gain weight despite her poor eating. Last night she was 17 lbs 13 oz. It is not much of a gain, but it is something. She also seems to be getting taller. Many of her 6-9 month pajamas are getting too short.

Lots of excitement this weekend!

So Brie has had another eventful weekend. It started with a trip to Germansville to celebrate her cousin Brandon's first birthday. She had a great time playing outside with Christian and Pop. We had to leave before the party really got started, because Brie has more visitors waiting for her at our house. Grandpa and Grandma Myers, Aunt Cindy and Great Grandma Bert came to visit for the weekend. Brie had a great time feeding Grandpa grapes and playing with her blocks. More excitement occurred when Great Grandma had problems breathing in the middle of the night. Brie thankfully slept through the entire night, but Grandma ended up spending a few days in the hospital. She was released today and is feeling much better.

After a few difficult nights with Brie waking up screaming, Marcus and I discovered that Brie has 2 new teeth. The top two have finally made there appearance. She seems to be getting a few more as well. She has raised bumps on both the top and bottom.

Despite the teething, Brie has been eating fairly well. Tonight for dinner she ate almost 1/2 of a piece of tilapia, a few bites of rice, some green beans and for desert some freeze dried raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and apples. Hopefully she will keep this up. We would love to get rid of the bottle, but right now it is still her primary form of nutrition and we can get about 350-400 calories into her a day. From my research she needs about 900 calories a day to gain weight and I think on some days we come close.

As for development, Brie has been walking very well for about a month. She was even able to negotiate the uneven grass at the zoo. It was funny to hear the comments from other parents when they saw her walking. Most of them revolved about how small she is to be walking so well. Brie has also started clapping and signing. She can now sign more and all done. She even signs more for food. We didn't think that would ever happen!

Our little social butterfly!

This weekend Brie was on the move. She spent Saturday at Nana and Pop's house. She playing both inside and out with Christian and had a great time. She even took a bottle for Nana. Of course they had to go for a drive to get her to fall asleep and then she took it, but it is a start. She did not eat very well with them for lunch, but she has not been eating very well due to her cold and teething.

Saturday night we celebrated Nana and Poppop Miller's 50th wedding anniversary. Brie did very well sitting in her highchair and playing with her cousins. She actually ate pretty well at the restaurant. She munched on chicken fingers, hamburger, and mommy's salmon in addition to the various crunchy junk foods that she normally eats. She had fun sharing her baby cheese curls with Brandon.

On Sunday Brie visited with her little friends as well. A good friends baby was baptised this weekend. Brie had a good time running around the lobby of the church and did not get to see little Emily get baptised, but she had fun anyway. She gave daddy a little bit of a hard time at the restaurant, but not more then he could handle. At times she can be difficult when we are out. She was hungry, but refused to eat. She just does not understand that food makes her feel better. Brie has learned that the bottle makes her feel better, but she will not take one for Marcus when they are out.

We are trying to get rid of the bottle so hopefully that not be an issue for much longer. Brie drinks juice and water very well out of a sippy cup and will occasionally drink some formula our of one as well. This week we are going to transition her to a new formula. It is Elecare vanilla. It is similar to her current formula, but it tastes and smells better. It also has more calories per ounce, 30 as compared to 20. We are going to try only offering it in a sippy cup and see how it goes.

A new milestone!

Today Brie hit a huge milestone in the way of growth. She is now 10 times her birth weight. Our little peanut is 17 lbs 8 oz. She is getting so big. In just over 13 months she has come so far. She has grown 14 inches in length as well. Most babies in their first year triple their birth weight so despite her tiny size Mommy and Daddy are proud. Below is a picture of Brie holding a baby that is the exact size she was when she was born. Even the feet and head are the same size. Mommy and Daddy had it made for her first birthday.



Brie has also had a pretty busy week. On Thursday she spent the day with our friends the Johnson's at the zoo. Brie liked looking at the animals, but got very mad when I would not let her pet the black panther. She loves to give our cat Widget hugs, although Widget is not a big fan, and I think because the panther was all black she thought it needed a hug or at least a good tail pull as well. I do not think the panther would have been as docile as our poor little kitty.



Friday, Brie got her last synergist shot. Luckily for us she was able to get this last one, because the insurance had only approved until March. The office had enough left over from her previous dosages that she was able to get this final one. With her having pneumonia a month ago it makes us feel better to have at least a little bit of protection. She is generally not around other children, but now that the weather is nice we will be able to venture out more often.

Feeding Therapy Graduate!

Today was a big day for our little peanut. She saw Nancy, her feeding therapist, for the last time. Brie of course ate very well in therapy today and even took a few bites off of a fork. At this point Nancy feels that she is doing well and that we only need to see her if there is a problem. Brie will now eat foods of various textures and likes things with more of a strong taste. She prefers Mexican. Right now her favorite foods seem to be spicy. She likes mommy's buffalo chicken dip, spicy taco meat, and chili. Brie also loves freeze dried fruits and veggies. She eats dried apricots, raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries all day. Brie also likes fish. We were a little leery of trying it with her but it has been a hit! So far she has had tilapia and haddock. Tonight she ate about 1/4 of a piece of tilapia! Her new trick is spitting things out, but we have just been shoving them back in until she finally swallows them. We just need to stay one step ahead of her.

With regards to growth over the last month Brie has gain about a pound. Last night she was 17 lbs 5.5 oz and using our growth chart she was 27.5 inches so she is growing. I think she just goes in spurts. The last 2 days she has been eating pretty well so hopefully that will continue.

Officially a toddler

Well today Brie got her first official walking shoes. She picked out a cute and probably the most expensive pair of sneakers that she could find at stride rite today. Of course Brie inherited mommy's expensive taste. She looks like such a big girl walking in her new sneakers.

Last night we went to the official meeting to kick of the march of dimes walk in our area. Brie had a ball walking all over and meeting the other children. She also met up with her boyfriend Anthony. The had fun chasing a ball around the room and playing with balloons. It was nice to exchange ideas with other parents and to hear stories of other children who were born prematurely. We are looking forward to walking this year to raise money to prevent prematurity and birth defects.

Brie had a good Easter. We spent the day at Nanna and Pop's house. Brie had fun collecting Easter eggs outside and playing with her cousins, Brandon and Christian. She got lots of new books for Easter and enjoys reading them with mommy and daddy.

Our little walker- almost

Brie is moving forward with walking. Today she walked from the coffee table to the loveseat without falling. It was about 4-5 steps. She was very proud of herself. I don't think it will be long and she will be walking completely independently. She is completely recovered from her pneumonia and has been very happy lately. Since this last illness she has gotten more cuddly. She loves to give hugs and kisses. She hugs all of her toys, even elmo who has kicked her a few times.

Yesterday Brie had her second birthday party. Despite not having an afternoon nap she did wonderfully. I don't think she cried or fussed the entire day. She loved all of the attention. Many of our friends were there from college and we got to meet all of the new babies. It was great to see everyone. We have been secluded from everyone because of Brie's preemie status and are hoping that Brie stays healthy after all of the visiting.

Mommy is starting to get Cabin fever. I cannot wait for the weather to warm up so I can take Brie to the pool and the park. Today we went for a walk and although it was a little chilly Brie seemed to enjoy it.