Come find us

Life has been crazy too much so to keep up the blog so Kennedy is on facebook. Add her!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=100000206685689

Make sure to tell me who you are when u send the add please :)

Pictures

Happy Birthday Kennedy!!

One year ago today at 4:52pm our beautiful daughter was born by cesarean weighing 1pound 6ounces and measuring 12 ¼ inches long. The doctors didn’t tell me what they were doing during the operation and Kennedy didn’t cry when she came out so Shawn and I were left behind the curtain wondering if she had been born yet and weather or not she was alive. The thing I remember most about the operation was asking Shawn if he could see anything. He said, “No, but I think I see a chunk of you on the floor” to which I replied “Does it look important?” I don’t remember anyone telling us if she was alive or not. I think maybe they aren’t supposed to say, since its so touch and go with the micros, until after they get them into the NICU and can watch them for a bit. It was a few hours later in the recovery room that Patty, one of the NICU nurse practitioners, came in to update us on Kennedy’s condition. I was still doped up form the morphine they gave me during the operation so a lot of it is hazy but I remember her saying that Kennedy was in critical condition, but stable and that she had blond curly hair and she was feisty. She was a fighter and being feisty helped save her life. It would be 12 hours after her birth before I would see Kennedy for the first time, and ten days before I could hold her.



To look at her today you would never guess the struggles she has faced in her short life. She has relatively few scars from her NICU days, she has a perfectly round head thanks to Nurse Gail and her dedication to "beauty sleep," and she has managed to get off all her medications AND her oxygen before her first birthday. Although Kennedy doesn't eat much and is hard to feed sometimes she hasn't show any of the aversions to foods that a lot of micro preemies have, nor does she show any signs of other sensory issues. She sits, she plays and she never stops babbling. Kennedy hasn't started crawling yet, but she gets around by rolling, scooting and arching her back and pushing with her legs. She loves standing and is really good at doing it on her own if you just give her your hands to hold on to for leverage. She has just started taking big steps and bending her knees when she steps. She loves walking so much we think she might even skip crawling. Just yesterday Shawn and I watched and cheered her on as she was able to maneuver herself from laying down completely to sitting up on her own for the very first time. Every day she amazes us with something new. Shawn and I feel so grateful to have her for our daughter.

We are going to the doctors office today, so i will edit this post later and give you her 1 year height and weight

Update- appointment was changed to 18th

One year ago today...

One year ago today I was in a hospital room at LLUMC waiting for the results of a formal ultrasound done the night before. It was longer a matter of if she was going to be delivered early but when. Shawn and I waited all day and never heard anything. it was probably one of the longest days of my life.



Yesterday was Kennedy's birthday party and it was a blast. I was so tired after. I can't imagine what its going to be like when she's five and I have a bunch of little girls hyped up on sugar running around to manage. She got lots of great gifts and did extremely well with the amount of people and getting passed around to people she had never met before. Soon as I download the pics I will get them posted.

One year ago today- the countdown

One year ago today I had a routine ultrasound scheduled in the afternoon. On the way there Shawn and I talked about how we hoped there wouldn't be too long of a wait because we were both starving and how we really needed to get started on painting the baby's dresser so I could have it done before the baby shower and be able to show it off. We hoped the ultrasound would confirm we were having a girl. We had no idea we were about to begin the scariest weekend of our lives with most stressful, terrifying 4 1/2 month long journey I hope we ever have to face to follow.

Today we are having Kennedy's birthday party. It should be a lot more fun then we had one year ago today.

Ignorance is Bliss

Today is the the one year anniversary of the last peaceful day of my pregnancy.

Sick of being sick

Yep, I'm still sick. That's right I have been sick for 3 weeks and I am sick of being sick. The good news is I am feeling a lot better. I still have a bit of a cough and it seems an ear infection. The bad news is we had to miss the March for babies today. I once went down the hill with an ear infection and it wasn't fun. I opted not to try today. Kennedy still has a cough but we took her to the doctor and she said Ken was not sick. Its probably an asthmatic cough, so we have been continuing her breathing treatments and I am going to follow up with a phone call to the doctor if she doesn't improve in the next few days.

We're Still Here :)

Just a quick note to let everyone know we are still here. I have been sick for almost two weeks and finally went to the drs over the weekend. I have bronchitis, laryngitis and a sinus infection. So far Kennedy hasn't gotten it, but she has started to cough a little so we are doing lots of breathing treatments to try and keep her from getting worse. We need prayers that she doesn't get sick since she was just taken off oxygen last Monday. That's right- no more tubes! for the first time in her life she hasn't had to be hooked to any type of medical equipment and we don't want her going back! Sorry for such a sort post, but you can look forward to a super big birthday update coming soon!

Adventures in Cloth Diapering

I've been trying to think of ways to save money and it dawned on me recently that cloth diapers might be the answer. I had toyed with the idea of using cloth diapers during my pregnancy. I had a whole going green phase where I was obsessed with recycling and saving the planet. When Kennedy was born that idea got set on the back burner. It seemed like a huge inconvenience that I didn't need to deal with, especially when I faced the reality of bringing a sick baby home and all the extra work it would entail.
Anyway, I did the math and found that by using cloth diapers I could save $40-$50 a month. Who couldn't use and extra $50 a month? So I went to craigslist and found some cloth diapers. Today was my first day trying them out and I thought I should chronicle my adventures in cloth diapering and tell the public the low down dirty truth about cloth diapers. Here it is:

ADVENTURES IN CLOTH DIAPERING

Day1

When Kennedy woke this morning I changed her out of her disposable diaper and into a cloth diaper for the very first time. They aren't the the white square diapers of yesteryear. they are the new fancy all in ones. Basically they look like a regular diaper only made out of cloth, and they use snaps or velcro for the closure. They come in all different designs. I picked the prettiest newest looking one to try first. It was pink camo with bright pink fleece lining. and was super soft and felt fabricy on both sides. I got Kennedy dressed and put her on her blanket to play while I picked up a little. About an hour an a half later it was time for breakfast so I picked Kennedy up and she was sopping wet. As it was sinking in the she was covered in pee I thought to myself, "maybe this wasn't such a good idea". I decided to press on and changed her into a diaper with a plasticy feeling outside this time.

Before I got the diapers I read up a little on cloth and everything involved as far as "solids" go. Most website tell you to scrape the solids into the toilet. I don't know about you, but when I hear the word scrape I think with what? A stick? A spatula? What exactly do you suggest I keep in my house as a stinky poo stick? (Upright Citizen's Brigade anyone?) I think this is one of the huge turn offs to cloth diapers and really I was dreading the first one because I honestly didn't know what I was going to do. A few websites said you could swish it in the toilet, but really sicking my hand in a toilet doesn't sound that appealing either. Ken's second diaper presented me with the solids deli ma for all half a second when I realized, "duh, just use the wipe to push it in the toilet" (I'm boycotting the word scrape) So that horrible, disgusting, gross reason I didn't want to use cloth diapers really wasn't that big a deal after all. Shawn and I opted to put her in disposable for the night. I really don't want to do a sheet change in the middle of the night so for now we will keep disposable for travel and night and cloth the rest of the time.

So my cloth diaper truth for the day is: What I thought would be super gross is really no big deal, and so far they don't seem any less convenient than a disposable diaper for home use.

Capri pants, doctors, and frustration

So yeah, I woke up this morning and all of Kennedy's pants are capris now. Last week I put her jeans on and thought they were starting to look a little short, but now they are mid-calf so we could really use some hand-me-downs size 6 months and up if anyone is looking to unload any.

We didn't make it to the BPD clinic yesterday AGAIN. I called Friday to make sure that everything was in line with the referral and was told it was never ordered. The nurse said from the file it looks like the pediatrician doesn't want me to follow up with BPD anymore. That made no sense to me at all since I had just spoken with the doctor at the last visit and she asked me when I was going to see them again. The doctor was out of the office and is supposed to be back today and return my call so we will see what happens from there.

News Flash!!!!!!!!!

Kennedy got her first tooth today! Lower right central incisor. Boy is she grumpy :(

Quick update

So we still haven't made it to the BPD (Bronchopulmonary dysplasia) clinic yet. We went down for our appointment last month and the drs office never called in for a referral so we had to be rescheduled for the 7th. They did let talk with a nutritionist about Kennedy's food and formula intake. She suggested I start adding vegetable oil to Ken's bottles and butter to her solid foods and we see where she is on the 7th. It sounded like a great plan, but then i went and got sick and even though I wore a mask and used hand sanitizer Shawn picked it up and then Kennedy got it too. Her eating really went down hill so we ended up taking her to the drs on Monday and the doctor said her lungs sounded fine and that it was probably just a cold. We increased her oxygen to 1/4 liter and have been keeping a close eye on her. It seems like today her eating is a lot better than it was and she is feeling much better, almost normal.

Well it’s about time! I am actually going to give you an update in words. Don’t worry there are some more adorable pics at the bottom of the post too. So we have been doing pretty well for the most part lately. We are coming up on two months in the new house already and I only have 1 box left to unpack. We had to move Kennedy to the smaller bedroom, but I actually like the setup better in there anyway. I am currently contemplating how I want to decorate Kennedy’s new room. I don’t know if it will be modern or classic, but I can promise you it will be PINK! Ken (yes I know I said I would never call her that, but its so much easier to type) Was 26 inches long and 13 pounds 2 ounces on the 11th. She is out of almost all of her 3 month size stuff and is quickly filling out 6 months size. I am finding it hard find clothes, especially pants that fit her well. She is 6 months in length, but her waist is still much to tiny to fit 6 months. Any suggestions on where to find tall skinny clothes for babies would be much appreciated. As of her last doctors visit they were not pleased with Ken’s weight gain. We are now adding vegetable oil to her bottles and butter to her solid foods to try and boost the calories. We will see how she does on her next visit to the BPD clinic. Ken’s teacher from inland regional suggested we get her some shoes since she tends to stand on the sides of her feet so she got to wear her very first pair of shoes the other day. They are little pink crocs and she had on her Minnie Mouse shirt that day so she looked like she was ready to head off to Disneyland. Very, very cute!

Random Pictures

March for Babies

Every year the March of Dimes holds a March for Babies in over 900 communities across America to help raise funds for research to help babies born to soon or sick. May 3rd they are holding an event in Loma Linda near the hospital where Kennedy was born. Shawn, Kennedy and I are pleased announce the creation of team Our Baby Kennedy. We wanted to create a team to honor of our beautiful daughter to celebrate her life and how far she has come. Everyday we are grateful that she is still here with us. We know so many other families that didn't get the fairy tale ending like we have. Without the research funded by the March of Dimes Kennedy would not be here with us today. We are asking everyone we know to help us reach or team fundraising goal of $500. I know times are tough right now and money is tight but even a donation of $1 is a step toward making sure that one day all babies are born healthy. So far just the three of us are walking but team Our Baby Kennedy would love to have some company so if you would like to join us use the link below to visit our team page and click on " Join this Team". You can also use the link to make a secure online donation to team Our Baby Kennedy.

Click HERE to view our team page. You can donate securely online, sign up to join team Our Baby Kennedy, or look for a walk in your area.


Help give every baby a fighting chance!

I'm back!

We finally have Internet!!! Yay! So we have been living in the new house for 21 days now and we love it. It is so close to all our friends and they have pizza delivery out here, something we have lived without for the past three years. Trust me you don't know how fantastic it is to have hot food delivered to your house until the option is no longer available. We have most everything unpacked and I am starting to get back into a routine with Kennedy. She has been doing great lately. we have tried all sorts of new foods and her teacher says she is at her actuall age level with her speech. Thats right her real age, 9 months, not corrected. Shawn and I are so proud of her. Not too much else exciting going on around here

Hello from the new neighborhood!

Just a quick line to let you all know we got moved last weekend. Verizon has a conspiracy against me so still don't have any Internet and don't expect to until at least the 12th. I will be sure to post soon as it is up and running. Still looking for homes for the cats so keep the word out.

Thanks!
Katie

Goodbye, Hello

It’s true we are moving! Since Kennedy got to break the big news, I will fill you in on the rest. Right after I posted the blog about looking for a house I went online and browsed our local paper’s classified ads. There was a 3 bedroom 2 bath house in the area we were hoping to live in our price range and it had an address so I could go see what we could get the price we could afford. I made the call and it was still empty and they were doing work on it so I decided to drive by the house and look t the outside. I map quested it and off Kennedy and I went. It was the first time I picked up on the spur of the moment and went somewhere with Kennedy with out any advance preparations. We were following the directions that map quest gave us and as I started getting closer I started thinking how familiar everything looked. Then I realized that I was going the same way Shawn and I drove a while back to look at the house that my friend Jenn and her husband were buying. Turns out the house I was looking for was two houses over and three houses up from their new house. If the price+ the size + the location of the house didn’t sell me then that sure did. How awesome it would be to live so close to my best friend! The house was older, but nice on the outside and since it was so close to D&J I decided to call the office back and ask if I could peek inside. They said it would be fine so Kennedy and I went in. I filled out the application to rent and then called Shawn to see if he could swing by and sing the app. before I turned it in. Shawn came by with a buddy from work. While they were there the owner of the house came by to check on the progress his crew was making and it turns out that the guy who owns the house has know Shawn’s friend from work for the past 15 years. Fate, luck, divine intervention- what ever your flavor it must have been on our side because by Monday afternoon they offered us the house on the condition we thinned our herd of cats. It was an exceptionally bitter sweet moment for me. We were getting this house that was so much more than we expected to find in a great area within a five minute drive of most of our friends and a very short walk from two of them, but we were also forced to choose between all our cats. I spent the better part of two days crying every time one of them would walk past me. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love my cats. It was a horrible decision to make and in the end we did what we thought would be best for all involved. The brothers, Jackson and Julian, have never been apart and Jackson is already depressed about having Kennedy take his place as my constant companion that we just don’t think he could take it if he and his brother were separated. I even joke that we would come home to find him a tiny noose and a paper with a kitty paw print as a suicide note. Pants and Gray were ok before us and they are so adaptable they will be fine where ever they end up going so for now I am doing my best to look at it as another rescue only this time they got to be extended guests in our home. Today we are supposed to go and get the keys for the house. Last Shawn and I saw the house it was still under construction so I am super excited to see the inside all done. They were completely redoing the inside- New carpet, paint, kitchen counters all kinds of good stuff. I will post pictures soon as I get some. Kennedy had an appointment at the BPD clinic on Tuesday. She weighed 12 pounds 10 ounces and was 23 ¾ inches long. They lowered her oxygen from ¼ to 1/8 and increased her dose of Pepsid since she was still getting the same amount as when she left the NICU and has almost doubled he weight since then. She is off Reglan and Diuril completely and they ordered some blood work to see if we can wean her off the Phos-Nak. They still aren’t as happy with her weight gains as they could be but she is doing ok and we talked about starting solids. I had already started Kennedy on rice cereal a while back so Tuesday night I made her some sweet potatoes and she loved them. She has had them everyday since without a reaction so far so I think I will be trying something new soon

A Message from Kennedy

Hi everyone! Thanks for reading about me, I am glad you enjoy the blog Mommy does. I bet your asking yourself right now, “If little Miss Kennedy is glad, then how come she looks so sad in this picture?” You see, Mommy and Daddy told me that we are moving very soon. I know you’re thinking that I am only eight and a half months old so what’s there to be sad about. Its not like I am going to have to change schools or anything. But I am sad. I’m sad because I am going to have to leave behind two of my best friends, and that’s why I asked Mommy If I could have a little space on the blog. Mommy and Daddy said our new house is real nice, but that we can’t take all our kitty friends with us. My two best kitty friends are Panther and Mr. Gray. I love them cuz they let me pet them and grab their fur and sometimes when Mommy is feeding me Mr. Gray rubs his head on my hand and purrs. I am so sad about not being able to take them with us and mommy is too. She cried for two whole days when she found out and she still gets a little sad every time they come to snuggle with her. I guess cuz she is going to miss them so much too. I’m hoping that someone who reads Mommy’s blog about me will be looking for two of the best kitties in the world to be their friend and come and give Mr. Gray and Panther a good home. About a year ago Mr. Gray would come around the house, but he was too scared to let anyone touch him. One night Mommy gave him turkey and catnip and tamed him. The next night he showed up with his friend Panther and they never left. Mommy and Daddy call Mr. Gray their karma kitty. They said he is so sweet and loving that he came to us because of all the kitties they have saved and found homes for in the past. He is really fluffy and all you have to do is say his name and he starts purring and doing dough paws. He loves to be petted and curl up next to you. Panther is a all black kitty. At night when he sleeps on the couch and the lights are off you can’t even see him. Just two eyes and sometimes a pink tongue if he is taking a bath. He is super sweet too and will soak up all the attention he can get. He also loves when you go outside with him. He likes to frolic and play. Both kitties are neutered and like to be able to go outside, but they also need to snuggle on the couch inside too. They are best friends so it would be good if they could find a home together, but they would be ok if they had to be split up. They are very adaptable and would be ok in a home with other cats. We don’t have any dogs, so I’m not sure how they would do with dogs, but I have seen Panther stand up to a few in the yard and he sure didn’t look scared to me. So, if you know anyone how might like to have two of the best kitties ever as their pets can you pretty please with a cherry on top and sprinkles have them e-mail my Mommy? They can send it to ourbabykennedy@verizon.net . I will be sure to let you know when we find them a home so until you see it on the blog we are still looking. Ok, that’s all for now. Mommy is going to post pictures of the kitties for you to see. Blog to you later.

Kennedy

Panther

Mr. Gray

I've been tagged

I've been tagged by Tricia, so here it is, the 4th picture in my picutre file:

It's a picture of a surprised Kennedy with a shirt on her head. Since the people I know who have a blog have already been tagged i'll leave it up to you- Make a blog and post the 4th picture in your "my pictures" file.

Have fun!!

We need your help!

This blog has helped us in the past so we are turning to it again. We need your help finding a house. Due to ongoing issues with Kennedy I am unable to work out of the home right now, and it is going to be that way for a while. Where we live we rely on propane instead of natural gas and it is incredibly expensive. Since Kennedy has been born we have been receiving a great deal of help from my parents but we don't want to have to continue to rely on them. Shawn and i have decided the best way for us to be able to save money it to cut back on our housing expenses but we are having a hard time finding a place to rent that we can afford. What we are hoping is that one of our readers might know someone who has a rental house that can help us out. We would prefer it be in Hesperia since it would be a shorter drive for Shawn to work, but we are open to Victorville, Apple Valley, and Adelanto as well. It would need to be on natural gas and at least 2 bedroom 1 bath but preferably 3 bedroom 2 bath. We are planning to stay a few years at least so it would be nice if it had a small yard for Kennedy to play in. If anyone knows someone who would like to help out 5 cats, 2 parents, and 1 adorable baby please email me at ourbabykennedy@verizon.net to discuss rent and details.

Thanks!
Katie, Shawn & Kennedy

Happy New Year!

Ok, I know its almost half way though the month and these belated greetings are getting a little old, but better late than never right? I was going to write yesterday, but it was my birthday and I just didn't feel like it so I vegged out instead. Truth be told the reason I have been so tardy with my posts lately is because of my addiction. That's right I'm not afraid to say when I need help. Hello, my name is Katie and I am addicted to World of Warcraft. About a year, year and a half ago Shawn bought World of Warcraft but our computer wouldn't run it. Well when my dad gave us this new to us computer he made sure it could run the game. At first I didn't want Shawn to put it on the computer because I didn't want him to get all wrapped up in it and be on the computer constantly, but I caved and after 3 days of downloading patches there it was a shiny new icon on my desktop that I was sure I would never use. Oh that tricky Shawn, he got me to make a character under the guise that it would be fun and I didn't have to play if I didn't like it but I did. It was only a few days after Thanksgiving that we started the game and already I have switched guilds a couple times, I'm working on my second character, I chase down alliance with all enthusiasm of a lioness after a tasty gazelle, I talk about how I had to spend 3 days in Mulgore farming so I could finally buy my mount, and I would love to have that girls shirt with the Horde logo on it. If you have no idea what I am talking about then its for the best, don't go googleing or anything or you too might get sucked into the online sensation that is World of Warcraft. By the way you know how I was worried about Shawn spending all his time in front of the computer? He spends maybe a tenth of the time I do playing so I guess I should learn to keep my mouth shut. Can anyone say "moted." lol

In the name of the New Year, looking back, and fresh starts I hereby declare this Kennedy's official New Year update. Hopefully next year this time, maybe sooner :0) ,I will do another big update for the year and we can look back and see how much Kennedy has grown and changed. Can you believe that Kennedy turned eight months old on Sunday? I can't. I know they say time flies and you don't believe how fast they grow, but its so true. Its even weirder i think for me because even though Kennedy is 8 months old she still looks like she is only 3 or 4 months plus she has only been home for 3 months so it really doesn't seem like that long. Every day she amazes me so much. She is always doing something new, or better and exceeding our expectations. She laughs at daddy all the time now and always has a smile for everybody. We are working on strengthening her core so she can sit up and she loves doing baby crunches. Her hair is really starting to come in, although, only we really notice it since she is still such a baldy. No teeth yet, but for the last week or so I have been letting her have cereal so she can practice eating solids. Most of it gets spit out, but she has a good time with it and seems to look forward to it when she gets set in her high chair. Yesterday she even opened her mouth real wide for the spoon when I said "ahhh." She rolls from her back to both sides evenly now but hasn't been able to make it all the way to her tummy. She is reaching well and has become an expert at getting her hand to her mouth in one try. She cant hold the bottle yet and has difficulty getting the pacy into her mouth the correct way but every day she gets a little better. Shawn and I have her on a schedule for feeds (8, 12, 4) and have recently stared a bed time routine. She gets a bath, bottle, and book and is in bed by 8pm. She usually wakes around 7 am and I am currently trying to figure out the best nap schedule for her. She is still eating poorly. On good days she will take around 530ccs (about 18 ounces) for the whole day. When she came home from the hospital she was taking about 450ccs ( about 15 ounces) and that's what the bad days still look like. It was ok but she keeps getting longer and not gaining much weight so she is getting to be a pretty thin baby and she is starting to loose some of her rolls. Its to too bad yet, but enough that I am anxious to talk to the doctor about it next week. We have weaned her off her Diuril (diuretic). Ten days ago we switched her reglan to twice a day instead of four times and she was doing so well on it that Sunday we took her off all together so hopefully she will continue to do well and it will be one less medication she has to have. So for right now she is on Pepsid 2xs/day, Phos-Nak 3xs/day, Eyrthromicin 4xs/day, and a multi-vitamin once a day. Last week Kennedy weighed 11 pounds 7 ounces which was two ounces more than last month- not a lot but still going up and up is better than maintaining and way better than loosing. She is wearing size 3 months clothes and I have a feeling she will be in them for a while since I just got rid of the last of the newborn size stuff just after Christmas. Even though Kennedy is still 3 1/2 pounds from the weight limit on her bassinet Shawn and I went ahead and retired it anyway. We both decided that we aren't quite ready for her to sleep in her own room yet so we moved her crib into our bedroom.
I almost forgot to tell you! Kennedy way given an apnea monitor to wear at night when she came home. Mostly is was given to us because I kept pushing for one after she had a few heart rate drops close to her discharge date and because the insurance didn't put up a fight when the doctors requested one for us. We had alarms since she had been home, but as far as we could tell they were all false and they usually only have you keep the monitor until the baby is 6 months adjusted so a few weeks ago Shawn and i decided to let Kennedy try a night off the monitor and we haven't been back since. The discoloration where her leads went has improved and Kennedy still scratches her chest but far less frequently than when she had to wear the leads every night. All in all Kennedy is doing great. Amazing considering where she was eight months ago. Well that's all for now. Type to you soon!