Pretty In the Park

The weekend before last was the last weekend of the summer, and so we took our sweet babe to the park to enjoy the end of our first summer together as a family.  Here is our pretty girl in the park...

NICU Reunion

This past weekend, we had the very special opportunity to attend Harper's NICU reunion at Kimball Farms in Westford.  Kimball Farms is an amazing spot for homemade ice cream, but there is also mini-golf, a driving range, pony rides, paddle boats, batting cages, and animals.  It was a HUGE event!  The Beth Israel took over, with NICU graduates and their families and also the NICU nursing staff.

Harper's Auntie Annie came with us to the reunion, and we all had a great time eating ice cream and enjoying the attractions.  The weather couldn't have been more gorgeous.  Harper and I cheered for Auntie and Daddy at the driving range.  Perhaps what I enjoyed the most though was a slide show, with photos of the NICU babies when they were there and current pictures too.  Not surprisingly, many of the NICU graduates were multiples, twins and triplets.  I don't think I have ever seen so many sets of twins in one place.  The oldest NICU graduate in attendance was 18 years old!  It was great to see so many NICU graduates, grown up and healthy thanks to the efforts of some incredible doctors and nurses.  

We had the chance to say hello to one the nurses who took such great care of Harper during her time in the NICU.  This particular nurse was actually the one who was there on the day we left the NICU so it was fun to be able to catch up with her.  We are so very grateful to the amazing nurses who watched over our sweet girl until she was strong enough to come home with us, and to help us throughout the process.  This event was a profound reminder of how far Harper has come in the last ten months and the countless ways in which she has blessed our lives.  We couldn't be happier.


*To make a donation to the NICU at Beth Israel, click here or visit www.gratefulnation.org and click the "donate now" button in the top right corner.  In the field marked "Please designate my gift," use the drop-down menu to select the NICU (Newborn Intensive Care Unit). 

10 Months!

Last week, Harper turned 10 months old: double digits, yay!  It is hard to believe that she is getting close to a year, but at the same time, she seems more grown up every day.  Here's what our busy girl has been up to lately:

A visit to the doctor got...interesting.  A couple of weeks ago, I took Harper to the pediatrician for her 9 month check up, which was in actuality a 9 1/2 month check up.  She weighed in at 19 lbs. 14 oz. and measured 28 1/2 in. tall.  She is now in the 75th percentile for both height and weight, and her doctor was very happy with her progress.  So we were sent to the lab to have some blood drawn, and a little virus showed up in the results.  This wasn't a surprise to Dallin and me because Harper had suffered a small stomach bug the previous weekend.  But to be on the safe side, Harper's doctor wanted her to have her blood work redone when she was well. 

So we went back to the lab the following week.  The lab technician pricked Harper's finger, and Harper was a little trooper and didn't even cry.  However, unlike the first time, this lab technician put a bandaid on Harper's finger.  I could see the writing on the wall so my plan was to remove the bandaid once we got out to the waiting room.  Too late!  By the time we had walked all five feet, Harper started coughing, I looked at her finger, and the bandaid was gone.  Fortunately, this disappearing act didn't worry the doctor, who assured us that the bandaid would pass.  Moral of the story: tiny bandaids simply don't belong on a baby's finger.

The world is Harper's oyster.  Now that she is independently mobile, there is nowhere she doesn't go.  The other day, we found her looking at Pat the Bunny underneath her walker.  She also likes to get into mischief.  I have recently been on an organizing kick, and Harper has been more than happy to lend a hand going through the paper.  She is such a curious little girl, which often results in a mess for mommy to clean up, but thank goodness for that cute little face!

Harper also has even more teeth coming in.  In addition to the two on the bottom, she has three more coming through on the top. Her smile has been totally transformed.  She has really been pretty tough, as far as the teething process goes--though her sleep has been a little bit disrupted lately.  I honestly have been so surprised at how long it takes for a single tooth to come in though!  I thought a tooth would be in after just a few days, but it takes foreverrrr.  

Dallin and I have been having so much fun with Harper.  Her little laugh will make us do the most ridiculous things, over and over and over again, if it means that we get to hear her little giggle just one more time.  Basically, she has us wrapped around her little bandaidless finger.  And we love it.