Hi there friends!
Yesterday we celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary. By celebrated, I mean we hung out with the coolest baby ever, enjoyed some delicious pizza that was graciously provided to us by a friend and watched about 45 minutes of part three of the Hobbit. I know, we're living on the edge! It was a simple and perfect little evening of just the three of us and Bess. We wouldn't have had it any other way!
Lucie's congestion is starting to clear up more, but not gone completely just yet. She's also coughing less, which we're grateful for because we can tell it really hurts her when she does have to cough :( . She also seems to be getting more of an appetite, which is fantastic, especially since she did lose a couple of ounces while she was in the hospital. Hopefully next time she catches a cold or gets sick, she will be much stronger and we won't have another trip to the hospital.
And guess what? Yesterday she flipped over again! Maybe it wasn't a fluke after all! We've mentioned that although Lucie is actually 20 weeks old, we are supposed to track her development according to her corrected age of 4 weeks old. That being said, there are some things that a full term 4 week old baby might not be strong enough to do that Lucie may be able to do ahead of her expected time frame just by the sheer fact that she's been around longer and has gained strength. Things like head control, which she's really starting to display, in addition to having flipped from her tummy to her back twice now. So it looks like we have her Actual Age timeline, her Corrected Age timeline, and her Lucie Suprise timeline. Ha! We don't take any of these developments for granted! Her bilateral grade 3 and grade 4 brain bleeds which have resolved and her ventricles which remain mildly dilated were very serious and the doctors expressed that although they are cautiously optimistic that she would do well as she grows older, they did say that challenges were a real possibility, especially in her motor skills. So to see her making progress and sometimes even be ahead of her corrected age is nothing short of a miracle. Even the fact that her vision is normal so far and that she can hear are things the doctors weren't sure she would be able to do when she was first born. The fact that she came home on her original due date, without her feeding tube and without any oxygen, are also things that are not the norm for 24 week old micro preemies! We can't let ourselves take any of it for granted. We are so thankful that she has done so well. Other things she's started to do also include smiling spontaneously (so cute!!), and following us with her eyes, she really focuses sometimes!
We will be watching her closely and cheering her on with every new milestone she accomplishes and we, along with the Early Intervention Team, will work with her and support her if she gets to others that seem to be more of a challenge. We won't really have a full picture of the impact of her prematurity until she's probably around 6 years old, so like we've said before, Lucie's journey will be tough at times, but ultimately so very rewarding too. We know that through each step of the way we are not alone, we know the Lord is with Lucille and that our little family is surrounded by such a tremendous support group of family and friends.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!
Good morning, world!