What a busy few months we have had! In a nutshell: Mia is working hard with physical therapy now 2x a week to help get those muscles into action (still not crawling, BUT getting stronger every week!), and speech therapy weekly to work on some pretty significant feeding issues. We have been to the dr. twice now for a modified barium swallow study to view what is going on when Mia is drinking from a bottle. She was choking quite a bit during her feeds, which worried me enough to ask for help! Turns out she was actually aspirating on thin liquids (milk in her lungs), so we have thickened her milk with a special colorless/tasteless thickener that makes it safe for her to drink. We are very thankful that she has not been sick as a result- the aspiration can cause significant respiratory issues/illnesses, so we are glad to have caught this, BUT we don't know what the cause is. And it actually got worse from the first swallow study to the next, so we had to make her drinks even thicker. :( We are hopeful that it is just an issue/delay related to the prematurity, however her doctor was concerned enough to refer us to a pediatric neurologist for further testing. We met with him 2 weeks ago, and he plans to proceed with blood work to check for any muscle diseases, another MRI, and if needed additional brain function testing. Wow, this is a BIG nutshell!
Aside from all of this, Mia is a happy, growing, and curious 1 year old (and oh so cute!). We celebrated her birthday on August 14 with a small group of family and friends, and then Mom and Dad had her all to ourselves on her birthday, August 15.
What an amazing year it has been- such a journey for all three of us! Chad and I are truly blessed to share each day with our little miracle.
At one year some of her favorites :)
Domino- she is so cute when she pets him!
Baby Cheetos (don't worry, they are not the real Cheetos, but Gerber finger food)- she will even bang on her tray for more
Yogurt, apple juice, and sweet potatoes
Dum Dums- we had some left over from her party and Chad gave her a lick- she liked it so much we let her try again.... now she can rip the lollipop right out of your mouth and put it in her own- we know, not a good idea, but it really was so cute...
Her Brown Bear, Brown Bear book
Helping check the mail (really trying to eat as much paper as she can)
Kicking and splashing in her bath (still a favorite)
Piglet- I am hoping for a Piglet Halloween costume!
Does not like:
Any purees I make- so far she has thrown up my peas and cauliflower :(
Bed time- she was so good about going to bed before...
OK, now what you really want, the pictures!
Getting ready to try the sugar free cake Nana and Mom made...
Just hating it!
Daddy saving the Princess ;)
"OK, I'll try a little of this sugar- laden cupcake!"
"Ha, ha! I have them right where I want them!"
"A Princess always knows how to get just what she wants..." :)As always, thanks for checking in on us, and check back soon for pictures of Mia's 1 year photo shoot!
