This week has been a good one. Stephen has been home for several days. Braden loves having extra time with his Daddy. I got to cook breakfast several mornings and I even made dinner on Thursday nite. Braden is crawling really well now. He can even pull up on to his knees. He is getting into everything he shouldn't... lol He loves going after the dog, his suction machine or the entertainment center doors. We put in the child safety equipment for some of the items. But haven't completely finished child proofing just yet. I hate to lock him out of everything since part of his exploring helps his development. Braden has several appts. early this month. We see Pulmonary, Ortho and Braden will be getting another H1N1 shot along with his monthly RSV shot. Eating is still going super. Braden is handling Stage 3 foods pretty easily now. I have been giving half Stage 3 foods and then a Stage 1 or 2. That way he eats enough and gets the calories he needs.

As far as the pregnancy things are going well so far. The only trouble I've been having is getting enough sleep and headaches occassionally. I feel like carrying one baby instead of two is definitely easier. Or at least so far it seems much better. This week starts my second trimester. So looking forward to the 3rd.

New pics and update

Yesterday Braden started forward crawling. I'm excited because I really thought it would be too difficult for him with his brace. But he figured it out and even showed his therapist during today's session. We've had a rough couple of nites because Braden has been congested and coughing. We've ruled out a cold since he has only gotten better not worse. So we are thankful. Stephen taught Braden how to give kisses on your cheek. The sweetest and cutest thing ever. Although Braden is not going to give them if he doesn't want too. You can ask but you don't always receive. At random though you might get a free one and that just melts your heart. Today Braden ate just regular old Apple's n Cinnamon Oatmeal. He did pretty well but gagged on the first bite. I was really proud because he at 3/4 of it. The second feed of the day I didn't make him eat anything chunky. You can tell he has to work too hard and with as much oatmeal as he ate I didn't want to push him. Plus his cough has made his throat raw and it's not so comfortable to swallow. Hope you all enjoy the new pics.

Weekly update 11/12

This week has been busy. Pop John and Nana came down to visit with Braden and take me to a consignment sale. We were able to purchase a double stroller for half the cost of a new one.:-) Two practically new toys for Braden and another safety gate. So now I have one for upstairs and down. Braden always enjoys company especially when it's his Pop Pop and Nana. He has done really well with the exception of napping and getting enough sleep. He is eating amazingly well. We've had diced canned peaches, mashed up banana, puffs and some stage 3 chunky style baby foods. He has done really well with all of them. The diced peaches took more effort and you can really tell he had to work on them. I think if he has them on a regular basis he'll gradually do just as well as he does with the puffs. He is also eating more by mouth. His appetite has definitely increased with his activity. Which is good but I wish he could tell me when he is hungry. We will have to work on signing for that one. I feed him almost every two hours to make sure he gets enough. We went to the Pediatrician this week for his first RSV shot. I asked for a measurement and Braden is now 31" long. However, he had lost the weight he gained and was back down to 20 lbs 15.8 Ozs. I think he's gained some of that back this week surely with all he's been eating. It's a rollercoaster but not too bad. Mobility for Braden is getting better daily. I'm still amazed how much he can get to with a backwards crawl/rolling/sitting moves and not actually forward crawling. He has also increased his stamina. He can go non-stop all day long now and has started napping where ever he is. A few evenings ago he fell asleep in the middle of sitting up. He was on my lap and it was hilarious. During the day he'll be playing so hard he'll just all of the sudden poop out. Those occasions use to be so rare but lately it's been happening alot. I have to say I love seeing it. It's so amazing to see him exploring his world and being so motivated to go go go.

Exciting News!!!

Well today was a busy day for our family. At 2:00 o'clock we made a visit to see Dr. Wingo. We are very please to announce we are having another baby. I am 10 wks and 5 days. We were anxious to be sure we were not having twins. Happily we saw only one baby with lots of room to grow. :-) The ultrasound looks good and we have pics but unfortunately I do not have a scanner to share them. I'm sure Braden will love being an older brother.

Another feeding report

At the suggestion of another preemie Mom from the yahoo group that I am a member. Take little puffs and mix with purees. Braden did great with blueberry little puffs and Apple delight from Beech nut. To me it's like soggy cereal. But for Braden it was texture without gagging and he liked the flavor combo. He didn't gag once. So I am thrilled. Looks like it's a good week with some new milestones. Hopefully, as he progresses I can soak the puffs less and less till he gets use to them without puree's being mixed with them. Then maybe he can graduate to cheerios and little fishes. I would love to see it. :-)

Oreo Stiks

Well I am so happy to report Braden is eating something new. He tried Oreo stiks today. He did almost as well with them as he does with Cheetos. I am so thrilled. We have to thank Mollie and Dax. Mollie gave a list on her last blog of things Dax will eat. So this is the first item I tried. It's so nice knowing other preemie Mom's and getting suggestions from them. Braden also did better in therapy today. He is still giving a hard time but not so bad that he can't be worked with...