Katie's Surgery

One week ago today Katie had surgery on the metopic suture of her skull (in english - the bone in her forehead). The day started for us at 3 AM when she had her last feeding before surgery. We arrived at Chippenham Hospital around 5:30 AM and she was taken into surgery around 7:45. Turning her over to the nurses was - BY FAR - the hardest thing Matt and I have ever had to do. In Matt's words...she's been through more medical issues in 7 weeks that we have in 30 years. I'm happy to report that she's doing great! The pictures below are some before and after photos.

Below is Katie the day before surgery.......a happy baby with NO idea what was about to happen to her. I felt guilty all day Monday. I knew surgery was the best/only option for her condition....but, I did not want to put her through the pain and trauma.

Katie sleeping in her carseat on the way to the hospital.

A picture with Daddy the morning after her surgery.

In her carseat on the way home from the hospital. A picture of her incision...about 25 total stiches.

Her swollen face....Poor thing!!! It took almost 2 days before Katie would smile at us again. But, by Thursday morning she was finally getting back to her old self. Popa came over and helped out that day.....and Katie greeted him with a big, gummy, toothless smile!Over the weekend, Aunt Annie came for a visit and to help out post surgery. This is a picture of Annie and Katie getting to know one another. :-) Annie kept Katie while I got some extra sleep in the mornings. She also did our laundry and grocery shopping. Thanks so much for coming Annie!!! In addition to Aunt Annie, we owe a special Thank You to several family and friends for making this past week as easy as it possibly could have been. First - Thank you to Aunt Sally who arrived at the hospital at 7AM on Tuesday to spend the day with Matt and I...supporting us and keeping us distracted while Katie was in surgery. Second - to our parents for all their help and support this week. Third - Aunt Katherine for helping Saturday and organizing meals for us & Uncle Rob for running an errand at the hospital for us. Finally - all of our friends who have provided meals, prayers, support, and love. Thank you to everyone!!!

Here is a picture of our little girl one week after surgery. She's looking much better....and doing great post-op!

Katie's Halloween Costume - Please vote!!!

Halloween is only a month away. So, this week I took Katie out in search of her first Halloween costume. We found two possible options and would like to have your help in making our final decision. There are pictures below of Katie in each costume and a poll on the right. Thanks in advance for voting!!!


Now - if you look at the expression on Katie's face you may notice she is a bit biased about which costume she likes most. Please don't let that effect your vote!!! :-)

Katie Update - 1 month and 1 week

Our little girl who came home at only 5 1/2 lbs. is now about 8 1/2 lbs. I took the picture below this morning before we left for church. I was super excited because its the first outfit that wasn't either a Premie or Newborn size. Notice she's getting a little chub on her...also she's a little ticked that I woke her from her nap to take this picture!
This week Matt setup the playmat that Aunt Sallie gave Katie. She was a little overwhelmed initially by the 12 dangling items and 20 different bright colors. But one feature she did enjoy was the mirror. Notice in the picture below that she's checking herself out! Thanks so much Sally!!!

Katie is still a bit of a bobble-head, but she finally started holding her head up this week. See below.

This is a cute one of her smiling at her UVA bear mobile in her crib. Grandma Brammer - thank you for my cute yellow outfit. The flowers almost match the crib sheets.

Katie and I do morning walks together. Over the past week or so it has been much cooler so I've started bundling her up in her VT/UVA blanket in the stroller. This is a before walk and after walk set of photos. She almost always goes to sleep about 10-15 minutes into our walk. Check out that double chin!! :-)

These last few pictures are just for fun. My favorite is the one where she's sticking out her tounge! :-)

Kathleen - Weeks 3 & 4

Thursday at 11:08 PM Kathleen turned 4 weeks old. I've completely slacked off about posting photos of her, so I'll try to do better over the next couple weeks! Here are a few pictures of Katie's recent activities.

Katie really likes sleeping on her tummy, but we only allow her to do so while on our chests where we can monitor her breathing. As you can tell, she's out cold in the picture below.

I have NO idea why, but Katie really likes her changing table. This one was taken a little over a week ago...I feel like she's alot bigger now. The two pictures below were taken on Thursday when Katie turned 4 weeks old!!!

Saturday was Katie first VT football game. I thought I should get a couple pictures of her in her VT onesie to mark the event. Unfortunately, I didn't purchase any VT outfits in a newborn size so the 0-3 months one is a little large on her. Oh well, she will grow into it!Here she is dancing with Daddy. She loves to look up at Matt while he sings and talks to her. Its SO CUTE!

This is our little flower power baby.....Thank you Aunt Annie for this super cute outfit!The picture below is one of my favorites. Katie and Daddy napping together! :-)