Favor from Our Readers

It's been almost two weeks since I've posted, and I know I owe you all an update and some pictures, but first I have a favor to ask of our blog readers. For Casey's upcoming 1st birthday, I am planning to put something together as a keepsake for her that includes notes and comments from those that have followed Casey's story, prayed for her along the way, or kept up with her journey.  It doesn't have to be much, but just a little note to Casey which could include prayers you have prayed for her, how her story has impacted you, etc. and we would also love to know your name, where you are from, and how you know us (or don't know us!) or how you found our blog.  The idea is that when our Doodlebug is old enough to understand, she will see just how big of an impact her miracle beginning has made and how people from all over have been touched by her journey.  You can do this two different ways: 1. Send an e-mail to casey.sattler@hotmail.com (how many almost 11 month olds do you know with their own e-mail?) OR 2. Leave a comment on the bottom of this blog entry.  Thanks so much and we can't wait to hear from you and share your messages with our sweet girl!

Now for the update:  We have been keeping busy between playdates, catching up with friends over lunch, our regular appointments, lots of errands in ridiculous 100+ temps, and prepping for the Doodle's birthday party (this DIY crafty mommy is learning that my projects that I used to be able to knock out in a day take a LOT longer when you are working around nap times).  Our biggest development lately is that we had Casey's 6 month of service review with ECI (Early Childhood Intervention) and we have decided on some major changes to her plan.  We have said goodbye entirely to our Dietician (so no more biweekly weigh-ins), as we were all in agreement that Nutrition services were no longer necessary. Since Casey's eating has improved so much, we have also cut our Speech services down from once a week to once a month, with the agreement that we will re-evaluate as we start introducing more solids and as we continue working on communication (Casey love, love, loves her Speech Therapist, so we are a little sad about this one, but happy about the feeding progress!).  Casey was also re-evaluated for Physical Therapy services, and although she previously did not qualify, we have now opted to add services twice a month to help her catch up on her motor skills and work on skills such as sitting with more stability, crawling, pulling up and walking.  Combined with our continued SST appointments twice a month that also focus on fine motor skills, we have already noticed a difference (we have consecutive roller who went half way across the living room as of today), and our Physical Therapist seems to think we will only need her services for a short time and that Casey should progress quickly with therapy.  Overall, we have changed from eight ECI appointments a month down to just five, even with adding PT to her routine.  While there is no doubt that there still continue to be some issues to overcome from her extreme prematurity, we continue to be so amazed by her progress, and slowly but surely she is catching up.  Whew! Can you see why it already feels like summer is flying by?  Never a dull moment around here!

All Dolled Up!

Rockin' one of her new big bows

Casey was a bit annoyed that Porter kept swishing his tail on her head during picture time

This baby is so stinkin' adorable!

Big cheesy grin!

 "Mooooom!  I am much too busy playing my piano to stop and pose for your picture!"

Just letting my belly hang out!

Such a stinker with her tongue out!

Excited to play with Daddy's old pound puppy

Looking good in her giraffe print

If there is any doubt that this girl has one stubborn personality, here is a picture I snapped of her on the video monitor, determined to rip the breathable bumper off the crib.  She was at it for a good 10 minutes before she finally gave in to sleep.

Since it has been a while since I have posted Casey in action, here is a video from a few weeks ago of her making just a few of her favorite noises from her repertoire.

Father's Day and First Swim

Today we celebrated Brian's first Father's Day by taking Casey to my parents' house for her first swim. After the initial shock of the cold water, she actually seemed to love it! Some of my favorite memories as a child were of going swimming during the summer, so I am thrilled that she may be the next little fish in the family. We had four cameras going and I think we probably got somewhere in the neighborhood of about 500 pictures between us (don't worry, I won't share them all!).  Casey is so lucky to have such an amazing Daddy who absolutely adores her.  Brian has been so devoted to his girl and never missed a single day visiting her all 130 days she spent in the hospital, even while studying for his PE Exam.  In the beginning, after I went back to work and things were still so touch and go, Brian would drive to the hospital to check on her during his lunch break to get a report in person, and when she moved to Special Care, he would take his books up there and study while she napped.  For many months after she came home, he got up early every morning to do her 6 a.m. feed, and he still gets up many weekend mornings for her first bottle.  When he comes home every evening she always breaks into a huge grin when he walks into the room. Casey is crazy about her Daddy, and it brings a smile to my face every day just watching their interaction.  We are so glad he is ours! Happy Father's Day to Brian and all of the other dads and grandfathers we are fortunate enough to have in our lives!

First Swim

Lounging in the sun!  Love their expressions! Her favorite part of swimming was kicking (she's a natural!)  Posing with Daddy Bathing beauty Daddy's Girl! All that swimming wore her out!  I Love Daddy! This week we broke out all our "Daddy" shirts in honor of Father's Day  Cuteness  Always giggling!  Ready for some sun after lots of rain this week! Much more interested in grabbing me than taking pictures Finally got her to pose  ...and then she discovered her bow and decided she would much rather pull it down than pose sweetly Happy Doodlebug!  She sleeps just like her mama!

10 Month Stats

How is it possible that our sweet baby is already 10 months old? She is so full of personality, and we have so much fun watching her learn and discover new things each and every day.  She definitely knows what she wants and her facial expressions constantly crack us up.  The best part of our girl turning 10 months old is that it is party planning time!  When we weren't at appointments or busy with playing, playing, and more playing during our first week of summer, I was scouring the Internet for ideas to make my vision of the Doodle's 1st Birthday Extravaganza come true!  Sorry,but I am going to have to keep you in suspense about the details for now.

Current stats:

• 15 pounds 7.5 ounces
• 25 1/2 inches long
• Size 6 month clothes
• Size 2 diaper (about to move to size 3)
• 0 teeth (I keep thinking one has to break through any day now)
• Eats four 5-6 ounce bottles a day, in addition to Stage 2 baby foods and rice cereal twice a day

 Happy 10 Months (7 Months Adjusted) Casey Elise!

 It wouldn't be a monthly photo op without a pink bear beat down!

 She was pretty thrilled with her antics

Most Recent Accomplishments:

• Turns at her name
• Rolls both ways consistently (she loves to roll onto her tummy these days)
• Cues when hungry (this is huge people, we have waited over 9 months for this!)
• Sits up almost unsupported
• Smiles and laughs ALL the time
• Constantly making clicking, babbling, and raspberry noises with her mouth (I really need to get this on video) and will often mimic sounds we make
• Waves (on rare occasions)

"Cheese!"

Giggles and grins

 Roly Poly

Loves:

• Mommy and Daddy!
• Her paci (especially her monkey Wubbanub)
• Being lifted up in the air above our heads (always brings on the giggles)
• Her swing (not sure what we are going to do when she outgrows this in the near future...when she gets fussy, it is the quickest way to calm her down)
• Grabbing faces (almost a guarantee that if you get close enough she will try to rearrange your facial features)
• Playing in her Excersaucer
• Taste testing everything (she does not discriminate whether it is edible and non-edible, if she gets her hands on it, it goes straight for the mouth)
• Pulling the cat's hair
• Her toes!
• Exploring and scratching at textures (pillows, my chair, the breathable bumper, and her newest favorite is scratching the paint on the wall next to her changing table - we now have to keep baby mittens on her dresser because the sound resembles nails on a chalkboard...and mommy doesn't do nails on a chalkboard)
• Sticking out her tongue
• Pushing buttons (especially on the remote control)
• Apples and Sweet Potatoes

 Caught the cat by his tail

Enjoying the yummy sun on her Excersaucer

Toes!

Hates: (Luckily this section is pretty short because our kiddo is pretty go with the flow most of the time)

• Sound of my hairdryer (makes her cry almost every time)
• Green Beans and Peas!
• Mornings (this girl rarely wakes up on her own in the morning. Not that I am complaining!)

Here are a few more cute pictures from the week:

 Doing a little light reading

 Trying on her shades (they promptly ended up in her mouth)

 Such a sweet babe

 

Ready for bed!

Enjoying the wrapping from Granddaddy's birthday present (and very red-cheeked from celebrating on the patio in the Texas heat)



Summertime

Summer has officially begun, and I can't believe it is actually here!  Last week was pretty crazy with the end of school, and I always seem to forget how hectic those last few days are. I am really going to miss my sweet class from this year, but I can say the Sattler girls are definitely enjoying the extra sleep that comes with summertime.  Casey also had a few visitors last week, as my grandmother was in town and had not seen Casey since the last month she was in the hospital.  Casey has become so much more aware and active since then, and I think it is pretty safe to say that they were pretty crazy about each other.  She also got to meet her first Casey cousin, when Brian's cousin Ryan was also in town for the weekend. We are definitely not easing into our vacation with our visitors last week, and the 5 appointments scheduled between Casey and I this week, but things should calm down again soon. Right?  Yesterday, I had my latest check-up with my Endocrinologist, and it looks like with the end of pumping comes some big adjustments in my insulin requirements.  I also had the pleasure of getting on the scale for the first time in a while (I may have accidentally broken ours months ago when I unknowingly put a full laundry basket on top of it.  Oops!), and let's just say that today I began to get reacquainted with our treadmill.  It's been awhile (like since the day I found out I was pregnant), so it was time, but I have a feeling this whole getting back into shape thing is going to be less than fun.  The Doodle has also accompanied me on a few errands in the last few days, and after the oohing and ahhing about how adorable my child is, more than once I've been faced with the question I dread, "How old is she?"  I usually just go with her adjusted age, but inevitably the response is, "Oh, she is really small for almost 7 months." So far I've managed to just smile politely, but I know it is only a matter of time until I respond with, "If you only knew!" Gotta love small talk with strangers.

 Most of the time the fan is way more exciting to look at than Mommy with her camera again.

 Lounging

 We broke out her fancy clothes because Mimi was in town!

 Trying to coax a smile out of her

Got one!

 Loving her Mimi

Big smiles for her cousin Ryan

We have really been working on sitting up on her own, and she is getting close!

 She was mesmerized by the bouncing shapes on my iPad

 A ride in the car is almost a guaranteed nap for this girl

 Best friends holding hands

Always good to have a back-up paci on hand!