2016 So Far

I've been really slack about the blog, but I do have some updates about Kinsey.

She was really sick last month and we thought we were managing it at home ok, but after a couple of days we ended up taking her to the hospital and it turned out she had Pneumonia! I got really scared at first because I remembered the nurses telling us when she was a tiny baby that pneumonia could kill her, but then I remembered that was because they were afraid she would aspirate (from the cleft palate) and get it that way. Plus pneumonia is always more dangerous for babies. Anyway, we caught it early and a couple weeks of antibiotics cleared it up quickly. But as a result of this latest illness, Jamie and I've become more vigilant t in our efforts to keep that poor girl healthy. We've switched her diet to include even more fruits and vegetables, she's now getting healthy doses of probiotics through a supplement and Kiefer, and we've added a multivitamin back in too. We're being even more careful about wiping down surfaces she comes in contact with when we're out and about (I'm already super neurotic about this) and washing her hands more frequently. Let's hope this all helps!

After this latest sickness, we're also working on getting some more equipment at home: a reliable, hospital-grade pulse ox machine to track her oxygen levels when she's needing it (right now we just have one of those finger things from Walgreens and it's really hard to get a good reading on her). And the dr at the hospital recommended a Therapy Vest to help "shake" the fluid out of her chest and lungs. They used it on her while she was in the hospital and so we're working on getting one to have at home too.

A couple of new and exciting things for Kinsey: first of all she's not really wearing bibs anymore! We stopped putting them on her when she was home for Christmas break and noticed she was doing really well without them. So she's generally not wearing them although I do still pack a couple in her school backpack in case she needs one and we do usually still put a bib on when she eats. She still occasionally insists on "sucking" on her thumb or holding a toy in her mouth and soaking herself in the process, but typically if she does that for a little while and gets wet, she stops and her clothes dry off and she stays dry the rest of the day. So it's still a mixed bag, but at least it's progress!

She's also recently become more helpful with getting dressed. She knows how to put her socks on by herself (although it usually takes her a very long time). She's understood for a long time how to help put her arms through her sleeves, but now she also helps with pulling her pants up. Most times I put her pants on her legs while she's laying down, but I only pull them up to about her knees and then stand her up to pull them up the rest of the way and now she will bend down and try to help pull them up. Again, progress!

Kinsey's the most amazing big sister I've ever seen! She's so loving towards Winnie and she likes to try to play with her. Now Winnie's really starting to react to her - she watches her walk around the room and smiles whenever Kinsey comes over to her. It's SO sweet watching them play together and I'm sure it will only become more fun as Winnie gets older.

Here are some pictures from the past month: https://kinseyandwinnie.shutterfly.com/pictures/51