2/1/2011 56 Days Old

On the 56th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. This morning it snowed, and then it snowed some more, and then it snowed some more. School was canceled today. Another snow day. Another day at home staying in bed and admiring our little girl. She is still struggling today. She has slept most of the day. She needs her rest. She is not struggling with being cute though. She still makes hand gestures when you bug her. She pulls her hand up to in front of her face and holds up one finger as if to say “wait a minute.” Then she drifts off to sleep.

We didn’t have any visitors today due to the weather. Just the three of today. I shoveled snow, Erin held Maya, I played guitar, Erin held Maya, Erin fixed diner, I held Maya. It was an uneventful day. We had the shades in the bedroom open and watched the snow come down, or sideways, or which ever way it wanted to go. I could count the number of cars I’ve seen drive up my street today on one hand. It was a peaceful day.

2/2/2011 57 Days Old

On the 57th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully.  Hi, this is Mom (Erin).  This is my first official blog I have written so if the humor is lacking, you will know why.  We had another snow day today so that means JJ got to stay home with us.  We stayed in bed till late.  Some of us later than others… I slept till 1pm. That is not to say that wasn’t up in part of the night with our little girl, but it did feel good to sleep in that late.  I woke up to JJ going out to shovel the driveway.  He had shoveled twice yesterday and spent another hour and half shoveling today to clear the drive and walk.

Maya was really awake today.   She has spent most of the day exploring her environment with her eyes, playing with her hands, and squirming around.  We stayed most of the day in the bedroom relaxing and watching movies. Grandma Kathy came over tonight and made dinner for us.  She also helped with bathtime and held Maya while she ate.

JJ has another snow day tomorrow. That means one more day snuggled in on a super cold day. Stay warm!

2/3/2011 58 Days Old

On the 58th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. It was my third snow day in a row, and we all slept in. At 9:00 or so we opened the shades to look out at all the snow. We stayed in bed and watched TV until close to noon. About noon Grandma Patti came over to visit Maya. She had not seen her since before the blizzard. We also had visitors from Erin’s work; Haley and Marissa. Maya was awake for much of the day today. She really likes to sit by herself propped up on her boppy. She looks like she is sitting in her own personal recliner. She had no diapersasters today. All that need to be contained was. It was a good day.

This evening grandma Kathy came by to eat diner with us and hold Maya for a bit. We watched The Big Bang Theory, and hung out on the couch. We are sitting around watching Maya eat now. It is just nice and peaceful. Tomorrow I return to work. There will be no fourth snow day. It was a great week to be at home. It seems like it has been forever since I had to leave the house. I better make the best of the rest of the night. Time to stop typing and go kiss my little girl.

Big Eyes

Clapton Kisses Maya

2/4/2011 59 Days Old

On the 59th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. I returned to work this morning. I woke up and fed Maya and got to hold her for a bit before I got ready for work. Before the dawn, me and the most beautiful girl in the world, we sat and we snuggled, and then I was off.

When I got home Grandma Patti was holding Maya on the couch. She came over this morning to see Maya and help Erin for a while. Annie and Jaden were over as well. They came over to have a play date with Erin and Maya.  Jaden was born one day after Maya. It was fun to sit them next to each other. He is a cuttie. Apparently before I got home he was quite an active participant in the days activities.

Later in the afternoon it was time to change Maya’s feeding tube. We labored over the task for an hour before we finally got it placed. Maya screamed the entire time. When she gets really irritated she squaks and squirms. Erin thinks she sounds like a teradactyl. I don’t know what a teradactyl sounds like, but I think Erin may be right. Later in the afternoon Maya’s nurse came by for a check up. When we told her the story of the feeding tube plavement and Maya’s wails, she asked ” do you think it was hurting her.” Our response was ” I wouldn’t like it either if you shoved something 28 centimeters up my nose.”

While the nurse was here she went through her normal routine of timing Maya’s breathes and counting her heartbeats. While she was listening to her lungs we noticed that she was listening for a longer time than normal. She told us that she heard a crackle in Maya’s chest. We don’t know if it was moisture in her lungs from her recent ordeal with feeding tube placement, or something more serious. It could be an early warning sign of congestive heart failure. We don’t know but we are watching her closely.

Even if it is a sign of a developing issue, we will still have some more time with her. She is tough and she is resilient. We are always amazed at how well she bounces back. We are hoping that is the case once again. Every day is so special with Maya. Each day counts as many. And in each moment a connection is made. That is what we have and that is what we pray for. more of. More of these little moments, that when added up will make up her life. The life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world.

The joys baby leggings… these things are awesome.

2/5/2011 60 days old

On the 60th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world… oh wait it’s Saturday…  Maya is doing well today.  Good night.

2/6/2011 61 Days Old

On the 61st day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. We stayed in bed and slept in this morning. We picked Maya up out of her bed and set her up on the boppy on our bed. She really like to sit up in her boppy. She can roll to her side until her check comes to rest on her hand and drift off to sleep. Erin got up and out of the house at 10:30. I got to have a couple of hours alone with my baby girl. We watched movies and napped all day long. Maya is still struggling today. When things get hard for her she sleeps for longer. She slept almost all day.

This evening Grandpa Bob and Grandma Chris came over to eat dinner with us and watch the super bowl. They held Maya as we rooted for the Packers. We ate some ribs and burnt ends during the game. It was a good evening. Maya is resting in Erin’s arms now.

Yesterday was a busy day for us. Maya had a ton of visitors. We had Grandma Patti and Grandpa Greg, KC, Michelle and Kids, Krissie and Travis, David. And Maya’s photographer. It wasn’t planned this way but it seemed everyone showed up at once. It was a full house. We did a photo shoot with Maya, and got good pictures of Grandma Patti and Grandpa Greg with Maya. We also did a really cute story telling photo. Stay tuned to Erin’s facebook for pics later this week.

2/7/2011 2 Month Birthday

On the 62nd day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. I woke up at 5:30 to feed Maya and get ready for work. She woke up shortly after I started her food, and I got to hold her while she ate. I curled her up against my chest and sat on the bed holding her for almost half an hour. it was a good way to start the day. Over night her sat. and heart rate were fluctuating up and down. It hurts me to see her struggle like she has for the last few days, but when me and her are cuddled up early in the morning all of the worry fads away. A half an hour seems like a long time when we are so cozy early in the morning. She had taken to be cranky for what seems like no reason recently, but this morning she just rested in my arms and nodded off.

I only had to work a half day today so I was home shortly after lunch. When I got home Erin and Maya were still in bed. We pulled the curtains closed and napped. This evening Grandma Kathy came over to see Maya and eat dinner with us. After dinner we filled the kitchen sink to give Maya a birthday bath. We ran the water a little warmer than normal this time. When we put Maya down into her little bathing hammock she squirmed a bit. She made little noises as if to say “I’m pretty sure I don’t like this. The water feels nice and warm, but I remember last time and I don’t like it.” After a while she decided it was OK. That is until we pulled her out of the sink and wrapped her in a towel. Then the cries started to come full force.

Now she is resting in grandma’s arms. Her eyes are wide open, and her recently washed hair is fuzzy and standing on end. It is strange to think that it was two months ago today that we met Maya for the first time. Two full months of admiring the most beautiful girl in the history of the world.

2/8/2011 63 Days Old

On the 63rd day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. It was my day off today. After Maya’s 5:30 feeding I was able to go back to sleep for a while. I really needed the sleep. Maya kept us up half of the night. She was irritable and crying most of the night. We don’t know if it was because of her condition or just being a cranky baby. We hope that it was the later. When she gets upset it shows in her monitor. Several alarms were sounded last night as Maya wailed. We held her and comforted her for most of the night. Eventually she calmed down and drifted off to sleep.

Later in the afternoon Maya got a visit from her nurse. She received her R.S.V. vaccine. The process is not one that Maya is fond of. As soon as she felt the needle close to her leg she began to wail. We held her and calmed her down. She also got weighed today. She is now 6 lbs 15.5 oz. She would have made the 7 lbs mark if not for an untimely diaper change right before weigh in. Speaking of which. She is on her third onesie today. The new diapers worked for a while but she seems to have figured out a way to best them. No diaper is a match for the diaper assassin.

This evening Grandma Kathy came by to see Maya. We ate diner together and watched TV. It was an uneventful night. All onesies survived and Maya slept. We are turning in early tonight. I never thougth I would be looking forward to going to sleep at 9:00. Oh well, I guess that’s just life as a new parent.

2/9/2011 64 Days Old

On the 64th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully.  The night however was another story.  Maya has gotten her nights and days mixed up.  She was irritable again tonight and kept me up until her 2:30 feeding.  Dad had to get up to go to work today so I was able to sleep in till her 8:30 feeding. It was a quiet morning.

Grandma Patti came over to help out today.  Kendall also stopped by to look over the photographs that she took in December.  She also got a chance to hold Maya. She has done two photo shoots with Miss Maya, but hasn’t gotten a chance to hold her until today. After lunch Magen, the OT, came to work with Maya.  She is impressed with how well Maya’s joints have been doing.  The work we have been doing on her hands and hips have been paying off.   We worked on tummy time and tried out the bouncy chair.  We had tried it when she was 2 weeks old, but she didn’t do well with her head support.  She did much better today. She was very focused on the stuffed snail that hangs from the bar.  Magen gave us some things to work on to help her focus and track better with her eyes. After Magen left I was able to nap for a little while.

Dad had to stay at work late for conferences so this evening we tried out the Moby Wrap.  I wanted to get somethings done in the kitchen before her feeding so I put her in the sling and was able to be hands free while still holding Maya.  Morgan stopped by for a visit.  Grandpa Bob and Grandma Chris are here this evening to get their Maya time in.  Maya is eating now and getting rocked by Grandma.

We hope for a better night tonight.

2/10/2011 65 Days Old

On the 65th day in the life of the most beautiful girl in the history of the world the morning began peacefully. I had parent teacher conferences today and did not have to head over to school until 11:00. I got to sleep in and spend a little extra time with Maya this morning. She had a better night. She was able to calm down and get to sleep around 11:00 and stayed asleep until her 5:30 feeding. The extra sleep was appreciated.

Today while I was at work Michelle came by to see Maya. Erin was able to to get maya to go to sleep in her bouncy seat for the first time today. The O.T. had helped Erin set up the bouncy seat so that Maya’s toys hang down just above her hands. When she moves her hands bells ring. For the first time Maya is able to play with her toys and entertain herself while stimulating brain development. She can control her head better now. For short times she can hold up her head and look around.

This evening Grandma Kathy came by to spend some time with Maya. We watched the Big Bang Theory and Community. Maya still thinks Ahbed is hilarious. Now Maya is curled up on Erin’s lap and is drifting in and out of sleep. I have the day off tomorrow and am looking forward to some extra Maya time.