My Boys

Baby Cracker

 

My little Parker is 9 weeks old!!  Wow!!! The big news since my last post about him is that he is now at home.  He came home on October 1st which was 1 day short of 8 weeks in the NICU.  I won't lie, I was scared to death and this first week has been a roller coaster but I think we're doing OK.  He did come home on oxygen and an heart/apnea monitor but he didn't have to come home on a feeding pump because he is now taking all of his food orally by bottle.  In all honesty, this is quite a struggle but we have managed to get his daily requirement down him and he is gaining weight.  I'm hopeful that this will become easier and less time consuming than it currently is and I know we will get there eventually.  He is such a joy and I really like his awake moments.  Alexa is doing pretty well also which was a big concern of mine.  She likes to know where Parker is and if he is going "nite nite" and makes sure to tell me when "baby's crying".  It's pretty cute.  We're trying to get her to pronounce his name a little differently because it sounds like "baby cracker" but I have to admit I think this is cute too.

We have a lot of appointments coming up and I have yet to feel comfortable doing the whole routine on my own.  With the oxygen and monitor and a baby who needs to stay positioned correctly, taking him places is quite a trick.  I guess I should get used to it though.  We have home health care nursing and are seeing a pediatrician, audiologist, opthamologist, geneticist, urologist, nephrologist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, ENT, and are getting early development services set up.  Ahhhhh!!! 


The other night I left Paul home with the kids and I left to get a prescription filled and get some ice cream.  It felt so strange to have some "alone" time even if it was to run errands for 20 minutes.  I realized that in order for us to stay sane, Paul and I both need to find ways to have some "me" time so I'm going to be working on making that possible.


It's been easy for me to feel overwhelmed lately but Annie from my MOPS group sent me a bible verse tonight that was perfect:  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."  Philippians 4:13.  Thanks Annie, this is exactly what I needed!

more pics to come...

Catching up with Alexa

Now that it's fall, I thought I should catch up on posting some pictures from the summer.  Here's some of what Alexa was up to:

 Strawberry picking with Grandma Celia,

looking at the clouds after summer storms,

spending countless hours at the park,

running through the sprinklers,

painting her new room purple, 

walking in Daddy's shoes,

helping Grandpa Donn in the garden,

visiting Great Grandpa and Grandma Metcalf in Kansas

spending time with her cousins, Foster & Loghen,

being asked (without success) to smile for family photos,

bike riding with Daddy ,

getting together with Mommy's friends,

going to the zoo,

dancing, dancing, and more dancing,

 splashing at the Children's Museum,

and welcoming her new baby brother, Parker, into the family!