As soon as Ava was home, all that I wanted to do was hold her. I felt like we had to make up for lost time and I just couldn't get enough of her (who am I kidding..I still can't). Things were a blur those first few days. Ava slept a lot, but woke up every 2-3 hours to eat which was exhausting. Adding to the exhaustion was the apnea monitor that Ava came home with. It was a great peace of mind to have that monitor because it would alert us of any problems, but the majority of the time when it alarmed it was because of a loose connection. And let me tell you, when that alarm went off in the middle of the night it nearly gave us heart attacks it was so loud!
Both Matt's family and my family came to spend time with us that first week that Ava was home. Both of our parents had spent time with Ava in the NICU, but only grandparents were allowed in the NICU. Unfortunately aunts and uncles could only look through the window at the babies to prevent germs from spreading. It was very hard for Erin that she was unable to hold Ava, so she was ecstatic when Ava was home and she could hold her whenever she liked. My brother also got the chance to meet Ava when he was passing through Philadelphia. He was pretty blown away at the fact that his little sister was a mom. My parents continued their weekly visits which they had been making since I had Ava. Their visits were much nicer now that we could be in the comfort in our house, not in the NICU. Matt's parents made the trip from New Hampshire and his brother came with them before he had to go back down to New Orleans to start law school. It is always great to see them and it was so nice to be able to spend so much time with them. I didn't want to bring Ava in public, so we mostly just hung out around the house. Everything was still so new for Matt and I, but they all assured us that we were great parents and they were very proud of how well we were doing.
As the days passed, we started getting into a groove and Ava and I became two little peas in a pod while Matt was at work. Ava really liked being held and there were some days that I could barely put her down without her crying. I remember being so frustrated and not knowing what to do so I called my mom who told me that if she wanted to be held then hold her because soon the day would come when she wouldn't want to be held. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved finally being able to lay around and hold my baby all day, but there were times when I just wanted to do laundry or the dishes, but couldn't. In retrospect, Ava's 'hold me all the time' phase really didn't last that long at all, but at the time it seemed like she'd want me to hold her until she was 5.
When Ava left the hospital, she weighed 6
lbs. 9 oz., almost double her birth weight. A month later at her 3 month check-up, she was up
to 9 lbs. 9 oz. and was 21" long! The doctor couldn't believe how well she was gaining weight and was blown away that I was exclusively nursing and not supplementing with formula at all. When Ava was around 3 months old, we went on her first overnight trip to my parents house. She was absolutely mesmerized by the movement of the trees and couldn't take her eyes off of them. Now that she was a little older, she was developing such a personality and she was really beginning to discover the world. She was starting to smile all the time and a smile from her never failed to melt our hearts (it still doesn't).
When Ava was just over 4 months old, we packed her up and brought her to Saratoga Springs with us so that we could go to a Phish show. My parents and Matt's parents made the trip
so that they could babysit. This was the first time that I was leaving Ava with anyone other than Matt, so I was a little anxious, but I knew that we were leaving her in good hands. The show happened to be on Matt's birthday, so it was nice to be able to go out and have some fun. We had a great weekend and learned that Ava is a great little traveler. She was very good for her grandparents and even slept for a 6 hourstretch for us, which she had never done before. We also found out that weekend that Ava loves to swim. We brought her in the pool and she had so much fun.
A few weeks later, we headed up to Vermont for a wedding. We were nervous for the 6 hour drive, but Ava was great. She was amazing the whole time we were away. Again, Matt's parents met us there to visit and to babysit Ava. (We're so lucky to have such amazing families!) The wedding was a lot of fun and it was great to see some of my friends from college. We were also able to spend time with Chris and Niki while we were up there which is always nice since I don't get to see my big brother often enough. We ended up staying until Monday, so on Sunday night, we stayed with the family that I used to babysit for. They were as excited to meet Ava as I was to introduce her to them. Anna and Ava were quite enamored with each other and Anna probably took about 100 pictures of Ava. It was so cute to watch them interact and see Ava smile and stare at Anna. Being there reminded me just how much I love Vermont and how much I miss it!
For Labor Day, we went to my parent's house for the weekend. On that Friday, we also got the news that Ava didn't have to wear the monitor anymore! After almost 3 months, she was finally free! I was so happy to get rid of that monitor, but I was also really anxious because it had become such a source of security for us. The first few nights were actually much easier than I thought they'd be. It's so nice not having to lug that machine around and not worrying about tripping over the cords. That was really Ava's last tie to the NICU.
That basically brings you up to speed and brings us to present day. Ava is almost 6 months old, which I cannot believe, and she has been doing so tremendously well. She is getting stronger and stronger each day and is actually further along than where she should be for her adjusted age (how old she would be if I had her on my due date of June 25). People are amazed when I tell them that she was a 30 week preemie because she just looks so healthy. We have been so incredibly blessed with how everything has turned out and we couldn't be happier. After reading peoples stories on the March of Dimes website, we consider ourselves so very lucky. Ava is our little miracle and proves it to us every day!
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