Thankful :)

Today we made baby food for Ali just like we do every 2-3 wks. Depending on how many people we have working on it, it usually takes a couple hours or so. Today it took 3 hours and I was fairly tired by the time we were done. Still as we worked, I was extremely thankful.

I thought about what a blessing the feeding pump is which continuously feeds Ali. It makes feeding Alegria really so much simpler than feeding her with a syringe (like we did when she was first born). I also thought about how amazing it is that we even have the technology to be able to feed her via the g-tube. In other places and other times, many others have not been so blessed!. Despite the challenges we sometimes face, it is truly such a blessing how easily we can feed this little girl who is unable to eat by natural means!

As we were preparing Ali's food, I also was extremely grateful for all convenient kitchen appliances with which God has blessed us. I am thankful for our food processor which quickly thinly sliced enough sweet potatos to fill 2 large pots so we could quickly cook them. I was also thankful for our grain mill which ground the quinoa (a small but high calorie/protein grain) so that it would run through Ali's feeding pump easier once it was prepared. And I was thankful for our high-powered Bosch blender which purees it all so it will easily flow through the feeding pump. None of these were purchased specifically for Ali. We had them all before we ever started making food for her and yet they make feeding Alegria real fresh food possible. Isn't amazing how God provided us some of this equipment years before we ever needed it for Ali!!! The blender is probably the one that amazes me the most. There are only really one or two blenders which are powerful enough to get the food pureed fine enough to use with the feeding pump; we already had one of them because it came with our mixer which we bought around 9 years ago!!!

Jill
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Alegria is MOBILE!!!

 

This week Alegria got a new-to-her baby walker. She LOVES it!  Right now she is only able to scoot backwards in it, but she doesn't seem to mind!  Her brothers and sister just turn her around when she gets stuck and off she goes again. I'm not sure who is enjoying it more Ali or siblings. :-) One of the other things Ali really enjoys are the toys on the walker. Thanks Aunt Kimmy for finding it on craigslist!

 

Ariel is growing very well and catching up on Alegria quickly. At one month old, she weighed 11 lbs 8 oz. Ali enjoys playing with Ariel and will try to grab Ariel's hand/foot or just rub her hair. These two girls are fairly spoiled and they get held quite a bit of the day. Someone is always asking to hold one of them. Annabelle (6) who is a very cuddly girl herself usually has one of her sisters in her lap. :-)

 

Alegria has had a cough since Christmas. Not really sure if its been one cold or two different ones as some of the others have had a couple rounds of sniffles too. Ali is doing fairly well with the cough, but it still does make her vomit about once a day.Al has been helping make Ali's baby food since Ariel was born. With the whole family working together, baby food gets done even quicker. We make up 2-3 gallons every couple weeks or so and then just freeze it.

Having Ariel has really helped me to relax. I am much calmer with 9 children than I was with only one. :-). I think it was a great blessing to be forced to delegate Ali's care to others when Ariel was born. It helped me to see how much I had let worry direct how I cared for her. I think the memories of the numerous emergencies she faced in her first 6 months were still tainting how I cared for her now. I often reacted as though every cough was a crisis and treated her though she was still that fragile infant. My desire to protect her from danger lead me to unnecessarily coddle her a bit too much. Watching her daddy care for her though helped me to see that she is much older and stronger now.

 

Alegria is now sitting at the table with us for meals. She usually gets something to taste and chew on like a teething biscuit. Her favorite thing though is to try to grab the silverware, plate, or glass of the person sitting closest to her. :-D Makes the meals interesting and often fairly funny.

We are trying to make some decisions about Alegria's sleeping arrangement now as she continues to get more active. She is still sleeping on her reflux wedge, but I have given up trying to get her to sleep on her stomach as that only lasts about 5 minutes before she flips herself over. But even on her back she still manage to reposition herself sideways :-/  I'm pretty unsure about letting her sleep lying flat as she still feeds constantly through the night. Also it seems more likely for her to dislodge her tubing or g-tube with free range of her crib, but it seems likely she will outgrow this wedge soon.

One quick prayer request is that God would help Ali to put on weight. With all the sickness she has faced lately, it has been a challenge to get enough food into her to help her to grow. She is on continuous feed now and we have recently increased her volume despite the cough. I am praying God would give me the wisdom to know how to best meet her needs.

I am hoping now that we are starting to settle back into a routine that I'll be able to update the blog on a weekly basis now.

Jill

Our 9 :)

Another round of sniffles

Alegria has been fighting another head cold all week. From the symptoms the other children are describing, it seems to be a primarily a cough and sore throat with a bit of a runny nose.

I am extremely thankful for how well Ali is managing it, though it has not been without it challenges for sure. The coughing has caused Ali to vomit but only once or twice each day. She seems to be coping with it all much better than usual. I am also very thankful Ariel has managed to avoid it thus far!

I am beginning to wonder about hibernating the rest of the winter :-) as it seems everytime we go out we come home with some sort of bug.

Thankfully we have still had a very good week. I'm looking forward to Ali feeling better though!
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