Monday, November 24, 2008

Welcome


Hi to all of you who have made your way here from Evelyn's carepage. As she is now home from the hospital I felt it was time to create a "normal" blog for her. I hope you enjoy my endeavor. For those of you new to Evelyn's story I would like you to know a few things about her. Evelyn was born on 7/10/2008 at 23 weeks gestation. A baby is not considered medically viable until 24 weeks gestation. She weighed 1 lb 3 oz at birth and was once considered the sickest patient in the hospital. None of the medical staff thought she would survive. But she did and she thrived as well. She is by all standards a medical miracle. To us she is simply our daughter and though we are very grateful to all the doctors and nurses who made her life possible, we just want for her a "normal" life. So if you are interested in reading on about this average baby welcome to Extreme Evy.

OK I guess the blog name is not average or normal, and indeed I wish for Evy an extraordinary life. The fact of the matter is that Evy was born with the condition of extreme prematurity. The effects of this condition will lessen as she develops. But the side effects of it, gestating outside the womb, will last a lifetime. Evelyn is extremely feisty, extremely stubborn, and in my opinion, extremely cute. She also has a very high tolerance for pain, and appears to be a sensation seeker. The fact of the matter is that my husband and I brought home a 7 lb bundle of joy, but we did not bring home a newborn.

Life with Evy is trying. She cries a lot, she scratches at herself and others. At times she refuses to nurse and grabs my nipple to push it away. She hates for her diaper or cloths to be changed and she wants to be held all the time. Normal right? She does like tummy time and her baths. She likes to take the dogs for a walk and she likes to visit the doctor (Our only outings outside the house.)

I would like to hear from those of you who have a little ones. Are you are going through the same things? I am also willing to discuss prematurity, life in the NICU, and health/developmental issues associated with premature babies. But mostly I would like to know about your little one and the daily challenges of being mom.

3 comments:

Heather said...

What a wonderful blog! I think it's so neat you're willing to share your story. Evy sure gives us all reason to hope and to see the good in this world!

P.S. What an adorable picture of Evy. I am smiling!

Bethany said...

Hi, I am so glad you decided to continue blogging about your family:) I look forward to seeing how it all goes. I was given the advice to sleep when the baby sleeps. This worked well for me and Jasmine. I didnt work so i could have naps whenever. Being on her schedule was easier than trying to get her to stay awake when she was trying to zonk out. She cried all the time too, she was very colicky and had lots of gas. I would just sing to her , partly to soothe her and partly to drown her out:) Good luck I know it will all be fine, But most parents are in general just sleep deprived the first couple years.

Sandstone Writings said...

Hi Marilee: Great blog. Hope you don't mind, I gave the address to one of my internet friends who is expecting her second little girl. Love the picture!