4 MONTHS OLD!

Today is Avery's 4 month old birthday! We saw Dr. Khanfar this morning and he is very pleased with her progress. Her are her stats: She weighs 9 lbs, 10 oz, she is 21 1/4 inches long and he says she is doing excellent. Because she is doing so well he is going to keep her on the Neosure (every other feeding) until she is 9 months old. By that time she should be caught up to her developmental charts. She is still not caught up right now, but she is definitely progressing normally. She would need to weigh a little over 11 lbs to be in the 5th percentile and 14 lbs to be in the 50th percentile, so we still have some catching up to do - which is normal for a baby born at 2 lbs! Overall, he thinks she is doing very well. He told me I could put off her 4 month immunizations for 6 wks, which I was very excited about. She just had her 2 month immunizations a month ago so I really did not want to pump her full of more of that stuff right now! She is eating almost 5 ounces now and eats every 3-4 hours. (sometimes in the day she will only go 2 hours between feedings, and at night she is sleeping at least 6 hours in a row - which is great!) He sent us to have blood work drawn to check her platelet levels and see if we should continue iron. I hate, hate, hate that part. My poor little baby girl laying on the table while 2 nurses poke and prod her little arm. This time they couldn't find a vein and it probably took about 1 minutes, but it felt like 30 minutes with Avery screaming. So after her well deserved nap we'll take some 4 month old pics!

In other Avery news, Denise (her therapist from Early Steps) came yesterday and said she can really see a difference from 2 weeks ago. She said Avery is focusing very well now and she got to see her smile a few times and even coo! She was really excited and said Avery is acting like a mature 2 month old. (Which is her adjusted age). So, we still have some work to do, but she is catching up quickly. This is the last time I'll be here when Denise comes, unless I can get my work schedule switched around, so that really stinks but at least Charlie will be here.

I heard back from my third sitter choice and she said her boss cannot work around those hours. Since I'm out of options my lovely mamaw and papaw have agreed to temporarily move to Monroe (they have a motor home, so they will have somewhere to stay) until I can figure out what to do. Daycare, whether at a business or in someone's home, is just not an option at this point. When I go back to work I'm going to explain the situation to my boss and see if there is anyway I can leave at 2:30 (2 hours early) on Wed, Thurs and Friday. I feel confident that I can still get all of my work done, but if I ever had a lot to do I could stay later on Monday's & Tuesday's or come in early any day to get it all done. I'm not asking to be paid of course, just to be able to leave early and keep my job! Please say a prayer that this will work out...if not, I'll have to put an ad in the paper and set up nanny cams and I just don't feel good about that at all. It would be such a blessing if either me or Charlie could keep her, at least until January when she is a year old.


Thank you all for your continued prayers for Avery. There is no doubt in our minds that the prayers are the reason for all the little and BIG miracles we've experienced. We know that because of your prayers Avery will be caught up in no time!