1st Surgery Went Well

Kyleigh is currently sound asleep and recovering from her first surgery. We arrived at 7:15 am for her surgery. She was taken back by 7:30 to the prep room. She was taken back for anesthesia at 8:45 am. The doctor came out at 10:30 to explain that her tear ducts were completely blocked and needed a lot of T.L.C. and irrigation. Originally the surgery was scheduled for the left eye but the left tear duct was more blocked and became irritated during irrigation. The doctor almost had to call the ENT to help clear the blockage but she was able to do it successfully given some extra time. We then gave clearance for the doctor to operate on the right eye this week so that the left side would have time to heal. The cataract removal surgery then took until 12:30pm. I was able to go to the recovery room soon afterwards and hold her while she slept. Dennis was able to come back shortly after that (around 1:30pm) and he was able to get her to start drinking pedialyte. 

The hospital was out of beds on the regular floor so we were placed on the 5200 pediatric floor for patients with Bone Marrow Transplant. They are very cautious of disease on this floor and it is a very sterile room. It feels like I'm in a foreign land but the nurses are really nice and Kyleigh is getting great care. I can't wait to go home though. 

She just took 1 oz of milk and is resting peacefully. I plan to try and rest soon myself. Just pray that we have a restful and easy night without any pain. 

First Surgery Tomorrow

Kyleigh is scheduled to arrive at Duke tomorrow morning at 7:15 am. She will have her tear ducts flushed and then the cataract removed from her left eye. The reason for flushing her tear ducts is because they have become clogged and could hold bacteria that might cause a bad infection in the eye if not treated and flushed first before removing the cataract. 

Of course as with any surgeries there are risks of complications. We are trusting that God will have his hand on Kyleigh and lead the anesthesiologists and doctors to take good care of Kyleigh so that complications are minimized. One complication that is most prevalent after such a surgery is childhood glaucoma. Kaitlyn has this in her left eye and is treated with eye drops daily. We are praying that this will be something that Kyleigh will not have to go through and that the removal of the cataract will be the only problem with her eyes. 

I will be staying the night with Kyleigh at the hospital and Dennis will return home to spend the night with Kaitlyn. 

We appreciate all of the prayers prior to surgery, during surgery and after surgery during her recovery period. We will update as soon as we can by phone or on the blog Thursday. 

Kyleigh's One Month Check Up

Kyleigh's Weight 6 lb 12 oz

                Length  20 inches

                Head circumference 13 1/4 

She is at less than 3% on the growth chart so she is still tiny compared to babies her age. Dr. O'Kelley agreed that her decrease in eating was a concern. In addition to the Zantac twice a day, he has added another medicine to help with heartburn and digestion. This medicine she will take 3 times a day. After taking it at lunch time she had 4 poopy diapers immediately. Wow -- guess she was clogged up! She was also a little on the restless and fussy side until her daddy came home and cuddled with her. She fell fast asleep and slept until the next feeding. Tonight she finally took almost 3 oz again which is what she should be eating every 3 hours now. We can only hope that this medicine helps and doesn't make things worse (we aren't so sure she is going to rest well tonight)

My Beautiful Girls

Kyleigh and Kaitlyn are all dressed up and nowhere to go!! 

Reflux

So Kyleigh wasn't acting herself yesterday. She wasn't feeding well and by nightfall had a slight rise of temperature to 99.4. Of course they don't consider that a fever for her but she is always normal 98.6 or 98.7 so this indicated to me that she was at least not feeling herself. As well as the shrill cries she was producing and restless behavior. Today the pediatrician said he feels like she is experiencing some reflux that is making her not eat as much but wants to eat b/c she is hungry. So he called her in some Zantac. We've been down this road before with Kaitlyn. Hopefully it will prove to be successful treatment for Kyleigh and she will get back to her happy baby self soon. 

All By Myself

Okay so this may seem trivial to most but this morning I got Kaitlyn up and ready for preschool, Kyleigh fed, took care of my needs, and we were out the door and on our way to preschool by 8am!!! This is a miracle in itself in my book. I was so worried about doing this by myself for the first time today but Kaitlyn was so cooperative and happy this morning. Kyleigh slept until almost 7am and then woke up happy and ready to eat. Both girls were happy little campers in the car on the way to preschool. We managed to get to the preschool and Kaitlyn showed off her little sister to all of the teachers. She was beaming like a proud little mommy. She washed her hands, signed in with her polar bear, gave me a big hug and kiss and walked us to the door like a big girl without any tears whatsoever. I was so proud of her and myself for accomplishing such a major task this morning. Yeah!!! (This doesn't mean that I'm ready to do it everyday though--need to have some more practice runs first). 

Kyleigh's Growth

Kyleigh now weighs 6 lbs 10 oz today. The nurse came out to the house and weighed her. She also noticed how plump her cheeks are becoming and a little roll developing on her arm. It's funny how words like "plump" are celebrated for babies and frowned on when talking about adults. Way to go Kyleigh- keep growing!! 

My Amazing Girls and Husband

I am finding myself falling in love with my girls more and more each day. Yesterday I spent time with Kaitlyn playing "party" and imaginative playtime. She was such a joy to be around and was having so much fun. Her smile and laughter made my heart swell with joy. I am realizing how quickly she is changing and growing up right before my eyes. 

Kyleigh has also stolen my heart. Despite the 2am feedings when I'm so tired I can hardly keep my eyes open, I enjoy watching her smile as she becomes completely satisfied with a full tummy. Occasionally she will also give out a little chuckle that makes me laugh. 

I love my girls and relish in their moments. Although they are different from each other in their abilities and personalities, they both have my heart. 

I am also still "Amazed" by my husband. I am falling in love with him all over again as I watch him with our two amazing daughters. He has such patience with them both. He doesn't panic when the crying starts, even when it is simultaneous. He is able to juggle the responsibilities of the house, the kids, and his job all at the same time. I admire him for his dedication to his work and to our family. I know that our girls are blessed to have a mommy and daddy that love them very much and especially a father that will join in and play pretend or hush the tears away. 

Cleft Palate

Kyleigh went to Duke today to see Dr. Georgijade, a plastic surgeon. He looked at Kyleigh's mouth and determined it is only a soft cleft palate and should require only one surgery to correct. However, they do not do this surgery until the child is closer to one year of age. 

Then we met with the speech pathologist for a feeding consultation. They watched Kyleigh eat and gave suggestions of how to best work through her feedings. They agree that she needs to be fed in the side lying position using the Haberman feeder (special bottle). As it turns out she will never use a regular bottle (Playtex or Dr. Brown's) for feeding. She is unable to get a full suction. It is described as a drinking from a straw with a hole in it, you never seem to get enough. With the Haberman feeder she is able to make compressions on the nipple and pull out the milk rather than suck like babies do with regular bottles. It was suggested that she is still elevated in the side lying position to help with possible reflux and fluid building up in the middle ears. She has already sustained some hearing loss due to fluid building up on her ears. We will be making an appointment to see an ENT at Duke to have her ears checked again soon. It is important to have her followed to help prevent middle ear infections. She will ultimately need tubes in her ears to help drain the fluid. They may be able to do this at the same time as the cleft palate surgery. 

So for now, we will see an ENT and then go back August 5th to meet with the entire Cleft Palate team at Duke to develop a surgery and recovery plan. The surgery will most likely occur between 10 months and one year of age. The recovery time is 1-2 days in the hospital (discharge is pending on her eating) and then 2-3 weeks until sutures disappear. They may wait and do her surgery closer to one year so that they can have another echocardiogram of the heart to determine the if the atria septum defect is still a concern or if it is closing up. 

They encouraged us to start trying to get her to drink out of a regular cup (not sippy cup) around age 7-8 months. They said that it is early but it will help in the eating and recovery period after surgery. 

We will be going back to Duke next Wed for her first surgery on her left eye to remove the cataract. 

Heading to Duke

Tomorrow morning we will be heading to Duke again. This time it is for the evaluation of Kyleigh's cleft palate. We will meet with a team of doctor's and specialists. There will be a feeding session with the physical therapist as well. We are to report at 10am but have no idea how long we will be there. Pray that we have safe travels and a smooth visit while there this time without any drama or sickness. 

Snow Day

We awoke this morning to a dusting of snow on the ground. Schools were closed but Dennis still had to go into work. Kaitlyn, Kyleigh and I were just planning to hang out in the house and when Dennis got home Kaitlyn could go out in the snow. But that plan backfired when I looked out the window at noon and saw grass and pavement. Oh no --- the snow was melting fast and Dennis wasn't home from work yet. So, I got Kyleigh down for a nap and Kaitlyn to eat her sandwich. Then we bundled up and headed outside to draw shapes in what was left of the snow on the driveway. Kaitlyn wanted so badly to build a snowman but she had to settle for drawing one instead and making a snowball with the little bit of snow still on my car. Needless to say I think it satisfied her need to "play" in the snow - thankfully. However, it won't be long before she will wise up to how snow days work and we won't be able to get by with giving her only 5 minutes in the driveway. I feel so bad that she didn't get to spend more time but I hoping to get a much better snow day next time and maybe she will have boots to wear by then. 

Superdad....Sick Mommy

So it's official, I am now sick and Dennis is having to be "superdad". He is doing a great job at it too. I'm completely amazed at how he has it altogether. Not only did he feed them both, put them both down for a nap at the same time, but he also has dinner cooking in the crock pot. Not just an easy meal but homemade potato soup! WOW!!! That is impressive and he has earned the status of "Super Dad". My girls are the luckiest in the world to have such a loving daddy. I'm the luckiest woman in the world to have such an all around great husband. 

3 Ring Circus

Okay, not exactly but that is what it felt like at around 5 p.m. today when both of my girls were crying. Kyleigh was struggling through a feeding. She was screaming and arching her back even when the bottle was in her mouth. She got choked and spit up way too much from her nose and mouth. At the same time, Kaitlyn was crying that she was hungry too and saying, "What about me mommy? You didn't give me nothin' to drink. It's getting dark and I need to eat." "Are you going to play a game with me?" "I need my sweater, I'm cold" "Put baby Kyleigh down mama and come help me" and so on....My head was spinning with all of the noise from Kyleigh and Kaitlyn. At one point I just sat back and watched both of my girls cry and have a miniature meltdown. Then I took a deep breath and tried to rescue them both from the disaster. Kyleigh finally finished the bottle and settled down and I started dinner for Kaitlyn. She calmed down and played in her room until dinner was ready. So although we didn't have lions, tigers or bears in our circus - there was definitely drama!  

Tuesday, Jan 13th Appointments

Dennis was still very sick throughout the night on Monday. Kaitlyn woke up at my parent's house and was feeling better, or so we thought, so she went on to preschool. My mom came to go to the doctor appointments for Kyleigh so I wouldn't be by myself. The first appointment was with Dr. Pamela Reitneur a pediatrician and genetic specialists. The goal of this appointment was to see if a link between genetics (heredity) and birth defects could be found. In the middle of the appointment Kaitlyn's preschool called and said she was crying and vomiting. So I called in reinforcements - great grandparents- to help us out. We left the doctor's office with little to no information today and headed to the preschool to get Kaitlyn. She was so happy to see her mommy and made it very clear that she didn't feel good. We all headed home and I called the doctor to try and get Kaitlyn an appointment. 

Meanwhile, the great grandparents came so that they could go with me to Kyleigh's afternoon appointment while mom takes care of Kaitlyn. Kyleigh's afternoon appointment was at Women's for an audiological test to check hearing frequencies and fluid. She unfortunately has fluid built up on her ears already and it is affecting her hearing. She failed the screening most likely due to the fluid. As a result we will have to keep a close watch on her ears as the fluid could become infected. We will also need to elevate her bed more, elevate the changing table and change her feeding position to help alleviate the milk flowing to the middle ear as often. It is also 99-100% that she will need tubes in her ears as statistically children with cleft palates get tubes put in before age 1. 

Kaitlyn's doctor appointment was at 2:40 and by 4:00 I hadn't heard from my mom. I called and come to find out they never told the nurse that she had checked in. She was still waiting to see the doctor. Are you kidding me? I was furious. I called the front desk and gave them an earful as to why my sick daughter should not still be waiting to see a doctor and I wanted someone to see her now. Within 3 minutes a doctor was in the room examining Kaitlyn. She has an eye infection and a bad cold. The congestion is what caused her to vomit. So they put her on Zyrtec, Nasonex, and eyedrops. The cute thing is that when mom explained to the nurse what was wrong with Kaitlyn, Kaitlyn responded with this statement- "Oh man, I am never going to get to go back to preschool". Bless her heart. She loves preschool and hadn't gone this week until today and because she threw up had to leave. She was also disappointed that we wouldn't let her kiss and touch Kyleigh. We can't wait until she is feeling better so that she can interact with her sister and go to preschool again. 

Duke Visit..Long Day

We left this morning at 6:30 am for our trek to Duke Eye Care Center. 

Kaitlyn spent the night with my parents and thankfully so because she is sick and running a low grade fever. Dennis woke up feeling poorly but thought it was just heartburn (acid reflux). As we drove to Duke he seemed to get worse. 

We arrive at the eye center at 8am just in time for our 8:15 appointment. Dennis is now looking pale and in pain. He is complaining of being cold. I am thinking...this isn't good. 

Dr. Sharon Freedman sees us almost immediately to dilate Kyleigh's eyes with eyedrops. She didn't seem to mind the drops. However, she was a hungry little girl. So while the drops did their work and Dr. Freedman contacted Women's Hospital for discharge papers, we went to a waiting area to feed Kyleigh. I say "we" loosely as by now Dennis is out of commission and can barely walk and carry bags at the same time. It was pitiful.

Soon, Dr. Freedman calls us back in to the office exam room and looks at her eyes. She confirms that the cataracts are definitely covering the entire lens on both eyes. Then she conducts the ultrasound on her eyes. We watched eagerly awaiting to hear if she could see the "stalk" that would show if she had PHPV (the eye disorder Kaitlyn had) or not. Thank God...no STALK...NO PHPV!!!!!!! 

So we are only dealing with cataract removal. PRAISE GOD for small blessings!

It was determined that we should have surgery on the left eye first as it is the largest of the two eyes. However, the surgery has been postponed until Jan 28th. The thought is because she technically should be 1 day old today and not 3 weeks. So they want to give her until she is 3 weeks corrected age old which is 6 weeks old until the operation. Also, we are starting with the left eye because it is the largest of the two in hopes that the right eye has a little more time to increase in size. The small size of the eye and cornea poses a small risk for the surgery and makes it difficult to remove the cataracts. There are other risks involved such as glaucoma, retinal detachment, and others but we will pray that none of these come to pass. 

Afterwards we headed up to the pre-op floor to complete paperwork on Kyleigh in case the surgery remained on the calendar for Wednesday. At this appointment they decided we should see a Duke Cardiologists immediately to get clearance for anesthesia. So an appointment was made for today at 2pm. 

Needless to say I am starving, Kyleigh is tired, and Dennis is looking worse by the minute. We head to the cafe' where I feed Kyleigh and grab a small bowl of pasta to eat. I try to get Dennis to eat some crackers and drink water but it was not helping him at all. 

We headed to the cardiology appointment early at 12:30 in hopes they would take us back early so we could go home. They took us back around 1pm and started the "triage" part of the visit by weighing Kyleigh and taking her measurements and blood pressure. She now weighs 6 lb 6 oz. Yippee!!! This part of the appointment took until 2pm because the blood pressure cuff for newborns wouldn't connect to the machine correctly...go figure. Then we headed to a room for them to do an EKG on her heart. She was so good for this part of the appointment with all of the sticker like cords hooked onto her body. She remained calm and quiet during this procedure...thanks partly to a very calm and nice nurse. The same nurse gave Dennis a mask to wear so that he wouldn't contaminate anyone else (especially Kyleigh). 

The doctor (Dr. Campbell) and took her history and ordered the echocardiogram to be done today. Unfortunately, we couldn't proceed to the echocardiogram right away because Kyleigh was ready to eat again and it required me to have privacy for pumping. Luckily they provided us with a room (consult room) so that I could pump with the door locked and then feed Kyleigh. Next we headed to the echocardiogram. Kyleigh was happy at first with her belly full. But by the end of the procedure I was holding her still at the legs and keeping the pacifier in her mouth while shushing her in the ear- EXHAUSTING. Meanwhile, Dennis is laid up on the couch in the consult room with a blanket and pillow. Poor thing. 

We return to the consult room to wait for the doctor to come tell us the results. Dennis is so ready to go home but dreading the fact we are more than an hour from home. 

Dr. Campbell comes in and gives us reassuring news about her heart. Although she doesn't have the PFO (newborn hole in the heart that is considered normal and closes soon after birth), the hole she does have won't need any action taken right now. It is a atrial septum defect and 1 of 3 things may happen by her 1st birthday. 

1- it may still close on it's on (unlikely because her hole is large)

2- it may get smaller and pose no concern at all and they will just monitor her frequently

3- it will remain large and they will monitor her closely until the age where surgery is considered best option (right before entering kindergarten) 

So, that is one more surgery we can cross of the list for now and just pray that the hole in between her upper chambers closes by her 1st birthday or reduces in size so that it never causes her problems. 

All of this to say, her first eye surgery is Jan 28th and the second one is Feb 4th. The cleft palate appointment is the 21st of Jan. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Especially pray for quick healing of the stomach sickness that Dennis is experiencing and for Kaitlyn. Pray that Kyleigh and I do not get sick. Kyleigh is extremely fussy tonight and I'm hoping it is just because she is overly tired from the day. Tomorrow we go to the hearing screening and Genetic Doctor appointment. Look for an update on that tomorrow night or Wed morning. 

Uh...oh...baby crying..gotta go now! 

Kyleigh's Bath

Kyleigh had her first tub bath today. She liked it. She didn't cry until it was time to take her out and dry her off. Kaitlyn helped and was excited to be a part of this time. 

Kristen came over and played games with Kaitlyn to pass the time. They enjoyed a game of Candy Land, lots of turns with Don't Break the Ice, and then we all played "Hungry Hippos". She had so much fun and I was glad we were able to spend time with her as she was so bored this morning. 

My parents came by to visit this afternoon as well. They ended up taking Kaitlyn home with them and to church tonight since we have to leave for Duke early in the morning. We have her full eye evaluation at Duke tomorrow. 

Kyleigh is Growing--

The Smart Start Nurse, Laura, came out again today to weigh Kyleigh. She has been eating so much better since Wednesday. She now weighs 5 lbs 15 oz. She should be over 6 lbs by surgery date this coming Wednesday. Praise God for growth!!! 

Prayer is a Powerful Thing

Tonight our pastor and small group gathered around us to pray for our family. Specifically they prayed for healing powers over Kyleigh's life. We asked for God to miraculously touch her eyes, palate, and heart. We prayed for him to use her to teach others to have faith that God is in control. We asked for protection against the enemy in regards to our family, Kaitlyn's adjustment to this transition, work, finances, physical and mental strength, health and well-being. I believe the prayers in that room won't just end with the "Amen" said tonight. Instead, we will continue praying and ask those of you following our story to join in prayer with us if you believe in the power it holds. 

"What ya thinking?"

So this morning at breakfast Dennis and Kaitlyn were seated together at the table. Dennis finished eating before Kaitlyn and he usually gets up and starts cleaning the kitchen and preparing to leave. But today he continued to sit with Kaitlyn while she finished eating. He had his head resting on his hand when Kaitlyn asked, "Daddy, what ya thinkin'?".  He was astonished that she was so observant and understood that his body language indicated he was thinking about something. Just another sign that our little girl is growing up and learning new things every day. 

Eating Out

So my parents came up to visit today and help me with Kyleigh. It was great. I got to take a shower, nap, and mom took me out to lunch. She also helped me with laundry which was no easy task because our dryer is on the blink and would only work in 10 minute cycles. 

My dad stayed with Kyleigh while we went to lunch. He enjoyed his special time with her. Then he went to visit people at the local hospitals while mom stayed to help with Kyleigh.

We had two visitors from work today, Dana and Amy. They both got to see Kyleigh and Amy brought dinner- what a treat! Dana brought diapers and wipes which are always a need in this house. 

My parents stayed for dinner and Kaitlyn enjoyed getting to spend some time with them before they headed home to Thomasville. 

Kyleigh has eaten better today. She has finished every bottle and we are so happy to know she is eating better. Now if we can just get her to sleep comfortably in her bed. 

Feeding

Kyleigh has had a difficult time with her feedings the past two days. I'm not sure what is going on but she will rarely take the full 2 1/2 oz. She sometimes only takes 1 oz and then falls into a deep sleep. This morning she struggled through a feeding and had several blue spells and got choked. It was scary. The nurse came by to check on her. She said all was clear with her lungs and tummy. She lost a 1/2 oz to 1 oz of weight. She will come back on Friday to recheck her weight again. Dennis seems to have better luck at feeding her than I do. 

Thankfully, a friend from church, Stephanie, came today so I could shower, eat and take a nap. What a blessing. We also had dinner provided by church friends, Jenn and Scott. It was delicious. 

Kaitlyn is doing very well. She was such a good girl tonight at dinner and afterwards as we prepared for bed. She colored me a pretty picture. 

First Day Home Alone

Well, it didn't go as well today as I had hoped. Dennis went to work today and Kaitlyn went to preschool. That left Kyleigh and I to have our first day alone. However, Kyleigh struggled with her feedings today, she cried a lot, and didn't want to sleep unless she was being held against my chest. Needless to say I can't rest if I'm holding her. I did manage to get a shower thanks to our friend Kristy stopping by to entertain for a little while. However, just as I thought I could get some lunch she continued to be fussy. Unfortunately, lunch never happened and neither did sleep for me. I gave in and called my neighbor Janet over to hold and rock her while I got a few things done around the house and ate dinner. Dennis and Kaitlyn arrived home shortly afterwards. I will soon retire to bed and get rested so we can do it again tomorrow. 

Oh where did it go?

Kyleigh lost her umbilical cord on Sunday. I went to change her outfit and noticed it was gone. It was in the foot of the sleep n play. Looks like she might have an "outtie" belly button instead of an "innie" like all of us. Of course, there is still time for it to go in but we will have to wait and see. 

Kyleigh is Growing--

The nurse came today and Kyleigh is measuring 5 lbs 12 oz. Way to go!!!! 

Princesses and Playtime

Kaitlyn and Hadley had the best time today. They both dressed up in princess dresses as soon as they arrived at the house. Then started cooking up a feast in the kitchen. Before we knew it they had almost every toy pulled out in the living room and Kaitlyn's bedroom. They enjoyed jumping on the trampoline and pretending to play bedtime. This pretend play led them to "brush" teeth. However, neither of them used their toothbrush. Instead they found the extra brushes we keep for guests and brushed their teeth. Needless to say we have thrown out those brushes now. When they got tired of dressing in princess gowns they opened Kaitlyn's closet and started to try on her new dresses from Christmas. Of course, you would think where was the supervision. I was busy with Kyleigh and Dennis was running around doing errands in the house. It was so funny every time we turned the corner and found them in something else. They giggled and had a great time together. 

Pics to come soon. 

Monday...

Kyleigh had a rough night last night and so did mom and dad. She wasn't eating like her usual and once she awoke at 2:15am to feed she wanted to stay awake but not a happy awake. She was gassy I believe and it was miserable. Dennis had been up with her from about 11pm to 1:00am and then I was up from 2:15am to 5:15am. Needless to say we missed our sleep and Dennis decided he wasn't going to work today this sleep deprived. I was very glad to see him walk back through the door as I was dreading him going to work. Of course, Kyleigh is resting now and I would be except the hammering outside my room is keeping me from sleeping. I'll be glad when that room is finished. Guess I should be thankful that Kyleigh doesn't mind the noise. 

Hopefully I will get some rest today as Kaitlyn has a playdate this afternoon, her best friend Hadley is coming over for just a few hours after preschool and I want to be able to enjoy them. Kaitlyn has been begging for Hadley to come over since before Christmas and it just happens that Hadley's mom needs a few  hours of sitter time tonight. We definitely owe her as she has helped us out tremendously since I went on bedrest. We absolutely don't mind watching Hadley because she is such a sweet little girl and we love watching Kaitlyn and her interact. I am looking forward to seeing Kaitlyn and her playing with the kitchen, playdoh, trampoline and anything else they can dream up for entertainment this afternoon. 

Our Little Parrot

It seems that Kaitlyn has reached the age where she is repeating what she hears other people say. For example, I was helping her get her PJ's on last night and she was going slow. I asked her, "What are you waiting for?". She responded very matter of factly, "college maybe". What???!!! Did my three year old just use sarcasm with me in the correct way? I can't believe it. I was shocked. I had to walk out to laugh and go tell Dennis. We both wonder where she heard that phrase before tonight. We must now pay closer attention to all the words that are expressed around her even if from the television. 

Great Grandparents

Today my mom, mamaw and papaw came to visit Kyleigh. This was the first time mamaw and papaw had seen her. My papaw kept saying how she looked like a baby doll and was so small she didn't seem real. My mamaw was thrilled to get to put her arms around another grandbaby. Dennis and I were able to go to the store during their brief visit. When we returned Kaitlyn was cooking up food for everyone in her little kitchen and my mom was feeding Kyleigh. My mom was thrilled to spend more time with Kyleigh as she is growing more each day. Hopefully my dad will get to see her soon as he has been a little under the weather. 

Visitors from Jersey

Yesterday we were so delighted to have special visitors from New Jersey. Our friend Kristy Titcomb and her manfriend "Josh" came to see us. Of course, she described it as we were driving through from Tennessee. Not sure if NC is really a drive through from Tennessee back to Jersey but we were thrilled to have them come for a few hours. They brought with them lots of cute clothes for the girlies and helped keep Kaitlyn entertained and giggling. We (especially Kaitlyn) hated to see them go. She even tried to keep Kristy and Josh's shoes by wearing them around the house so they couldn't leave. How cute is that?! 

What's up with that?

So Kaitlyn was obviously exhausted yesterday and was in bed at 5:30 pm. She slept through the night until her regular wake up time this morning. She did wake around 1:30 am (not sure if Kyleigh woke her or not) and was asking for her pillow. But she found it herself and went back to sleep without our assistance. Kyleigh on the other hand was having a hard time with sleeping last night. It was as if she couldn't get comfortable. She would fall asleep and then wake with horrid cries. So her daddy finally slept with her sitting up at the recliner until she rested finally. What a long night. 

The Smart Start nurse came out and Kyleigh weighs 5 lb 8 oz according to her scales. On Wednesday using the nurse scales she was 5 lb 6 oz so she gained 2 oz according to her scale. Dr. O'Kelley's office had her at 5 lb 71/2 oz so she could very well be 5 lb 9 oz right now. Either way she is outgrowing her premie diapers and sleepers but not yet ready for the Newborn size. Her feet and legs are lost in newborn clothes and the diapers seem so huge wrapped around her little bottom. 

Sleeping....zzz

Kyleigh loves to sleep. She is so hard to wake up during the day. But thankfully it is starting to carry over to the night time as well. Dennis got up once and I got up once with her during the night. That is awesome compared to multiple times. We are all home today enjoying family time in our PJ's. Kaitlyn is playing "playdoh" and having a blast.