Due to an unexpected event, I am now rewriting this entry. Wednesday morning I decided for my act of kindness this week, and this was completely on a whim that occurred whilst taking my morning shower, to send big Mylar smiley face balloons to all of the 23 toddlers who have the unfortunate pleasure of staying at Arkansas Children's Hospital (ACH) here locally. I have been very blessed to have such a healthy little girl, and I thank my lucky stars for that everyday, as many things could have gone wrong had fate not smiled upon Piper and me during my pregnancy and her delivery. She had no genetic disorders for which she ran a very high risk due to my age, and her unusually short umbilical cord, which gave her 6 times likely of a chance to be a stillbornm posed no threat greater than decreasing her heart rate every time I contracted during labor. Had anything gone slightly in the opposite direction, Piper may have not survived and thrived the way she has. I'm lucky, she's lucky, and that's something that we will always remember.
They have a great sign!
With that being said, I know there are many children out there who aren't so lucky. My goal this week was to make a handful of those children smile for a day. While sending a balloon to a sick child might not seem like much, it was just a small something I could do. Once I decided this would be my act of kindness for the week, I made several calls to the Infant/Toddler Unit at ACH, got the head count of the toddlers currently staying in rooms, contacted the gift shop, and had each child delivered a smiley face balloon with a card reading "someone is thinking of you today." I wanted nothing to remind them of their illnesses, so I kept all "get well soon" phrases, or other things of that nature, far away from the surprise each of them received.
I know this was one of the balloon designs sent!
After I had ordered the balloons for delivery, I began reading about ways to help out the hospital. One of those was by starting a individual fundraising page. I thought this was a great idea, and it's free to host and all donations are tax deductible. I have set my page with a small goal of raising $1000. I've never done anything like this before, so I figured starting small was the best plan. I will get back to more information about this fundraising page here in just a minute.
After all that I had done throughout the day regarding helping out the children at ACH, an unfortunate turn of events occurred. It was one of those coincidences that you'd rather not run across, but things happen that we cannot control. The following day, my niece Maggie went in to emergency surgery at this very same hospital. She has had a swelling on her neck which was initially thought to be a salivary gland issue. Actually it was thought to be a lot of things along the way, from mumps to mono and other not so pleasant possibilities. In then end, after many go rounds with various doctors, she finally ended up with the ENT specialists as Children's. It came to light that the swelling was from a very infected cyst that had to be surgically removed. The core was the size of about half a baseball and it had about 21 mL of fluid surrounding it. Now don't quote me on the specifics, this was the last I heard before my brother went running to the hospital yesterday afternoon.
This pic is from last Saturday, and it got much worse from there.
Last night my mom heard from my brother and Maggie had come through the surgery fine, but they had to remove a lot more tissue than expected. She was in tremendous amount of pain, to the point where they had her on the maximum of everything allowed for pain and they also had her on oxygen. Every time she woke up she woke up screaming in pain, she couldn't hardly swallow, and last I heard they were maybe going to have to intubate her. I have yet to hear anything today, as her immediate family is busy speaking with doctors and others on staff at the hospital regarding the surgery, her recovery, and whatnot. All I know is that the amazing staff at ACH did a remarkable job possibly saving the life of my niece, and that is something that can not be repaid with mere thank yous.
The coincidence of me sending balloons to patients at Arkansas Children's Hospital, setting up a donation page for them, and then having Maggie go into emergency surgery there the following day when we had no inkling this would happen, like I said before, some coincidences you'd rather not have happen. But all is getting better, Maggie is receiving some of the best care in the nation, and all will be well in the end.
Here is where I'm going to ask you all for a small favor...
When I set up the fundraising page I started the donations with a small $25 one of my own. Now I am not asking for others to drop $25 into the pot. But if I could get everyone I know and everyone who reads this to donate just $1, I could reach my $1000 goal within a week, probably even sooner. I might even go over my initial collection goal. I didn't expect my act of kindness this week to turn around and hit so close to home, but it has and it makes it that much more dear to my heart. I hope I can encourage others to also make it dear to theirs and click on the link below which goes to my donation page, and make even a $1 donation today to help ACH continue to save children's lives and provide some of the best care available to children in this nation. If you can spare more than $1, that would be awesome, too. And just so everyone knows, the donations do not go to me and then onto Arkansas Children's Hospital. All donations go directly to the ACH. And just think, this could be your random act of kindness for the week!
UPDATE: It was just brought to my attention that the way the ACH has their donation pages set up requires a $5 minimum donation. I apologize for not realizing this sooner. They also only take credit cards online, no Paypal. I'm sure all of this is due to avoid unnecessary fees that would cost them precious dollars and end up as transaction fees, but I really wish I'd known this before asking for $1 donations. I sincerely apologize if I misled anyone due to my lack of information regarding this issue. Hopefully I will still be able to raise the funds, it might just take a bit longer. :)
So if you all would, please follow the link and help out if you can!
I'll wrap up this entry with a great big thank you to all who have helped Maggie over at the ACH. Also, thank you to anyone who sends a donation their way or who simply send Maggie good thoughts for her recovery. I'm a believer in positive vibes, so vibe away if nothing else!
And to all those children who received a balloon from a stranger on Wednesday, I wish I had a picture of your smiling faces but I am fine just with the knowledge that your day was hopefully brightened a small bit. I wish you all the best of luck, and I'm sending positive vibes to each of you that you'll be up and out of the hospital in no time!
Thank you ACH for all you do!
And the spiel...
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So much has happened over the past week in Piper's development, it almost seems unfathomable. Just a couple of weeks ago she was still just doing simple roll-overs and sitting with her Boppy. All of a sudden last week, however, she has shot up from being slightly ahead to bounding right off the charts. Last Tuesday, Piper went in for her 4-month check-up and vaccinations. I knew she was pretty advanced, but the pediatrician confirmed it all for me. She was amazed how Piper flew through the 4-month development questions and stated she was definitely on a 6-month level. I was proud of my little go-getter baby, but I know this means I am going to have my work cut out for me considering she's going mobile a lot sooner than expected.
All smiles with my cousin Haven!
I can no longer leave her alone for a second unless she is strapped into something. She crawls in her silly commando style to go wherever she wants, unless she's having a stuck-in-reverse moment, which happens every so often. She gets so frustrated when this happens, and I understand. There is nothing worse than trying to get your favorite toy in front of you and ending up further and further away from it. That would definitely piss me off, too! Besides being able to sort of crawl/scootch her way around, she's also just about able to maneuver out of her swing. I have always used the seat belt with the one at home, as it sits more upright. The one at the office, however, lays flatter and is more cradle-like, plus I'm always right there with her when she is in it, so I have never used the seat belts...until now. Now she wriggles her way right down to the bottom by bouncing and squirming around. If I left her to her own devices, she'd bounce herself right off the end. So, needless to say, I now have to lock her in so she won't Lemming herself off the far edge. She can now literally bounce the whole seat contraption off the ground. She has earned herself the Hyper Piper moniker!
Still smiling!
With my cousin, Larkin!
Having a moment!
Besides her mobile ways, she also has advanced in her sedentary ways. She just started, all of a sudden, sitting on her own last Wednesday evening. She is mainly using the tripod stance to keep herself upright, but she is constantly learning how to balance whilst trying to play with her toys. I love watching her go for one of her balls and toppling over because she refuses to let go as it rolls away under her grasp. She has yet to master rolling it to herself, but I'm sure that will change very quickly. Along with sitting upright on her own, she now also has the ability to stand while holding onto objects. Yep, her legs are way strong and she likes to stand all the time. I have bragged before about her holding her own weight on her legs since she arrived home from the hospital. She has been standing with help for forever. But standing while holding on to such things as the arches on her play mat, her Nana's knees, with her hands against the mirror, whatever can help her maintain her balance works. Don't get me wrong, she is not pulling herself up on these objects as of yet, well except for Nana's knee, but she does like to be placed where she can hold on to them, it gives her great joy to plant her two feet firmly in place and explore her world from yet another angle.
I can sit on my own!!!
Hog fan all the way!
Such a big girl!
Checking herself out in the mirror.
Speaking of joy, she now gets the giggles on a daily basis. They aren't always in response to something we're doing with her, but sometimes now she amuses herself and gets the giggles while examining one of her toys or staring at something in her crib. Whatever is going on inside that little head of hers most assuredly is funny at times. I really do wonder what goes on inside her head. What is it that makes her laugh when she is alone? And speaking of little heads...
Her measurements at her check-up were nothing unexpected. She weighed 14lbs 7ozs (73%), which was a wee bit more than I expected, especially since she is so physically fit underneath all her clothes...well except for them cute, chunky baby thighs! She was 24 1/4" (55%) in length and had a very tiny head at only 15 1/4" (5%). I think the head measurement was slightly off as my mom and I kept getting closer to 16", but either way I'm not worried about her small head and neither was the doc. My mom has a tiny head, and Piper is probably going to have a petite (skinny) frame like my mother, which includes a smaller head. I'm so happy she doesn't have a giant baby noggin. I have seen some babies with massive heads, and just looking at them hurts my vagina! Her little head fits perfectly with her size and shape, I wouldn't want her any other way.
I'm perfectly proportioned!
At her visit she also received her next round of vaccinations. I was utterly shocked that she didn't cry more. She screamed, turning bright red when the needles went in, but as soon as I picked her up she quieted right down. It was less than 30 seconds from mad to okay with it all. She did have a bit of the grumps later in the day, probably when the soreness from the shots kicked in, but I gave her a bit of Tylenol and she settled down.
Fist bumps!
Okay, now let's move on to the tooth update. Yes, she is still drooling and gnawing and chewing and getting tooth grumps, but a tooth has yet to come to the surface and makes it's way through her gums. I feel like she should cut one just any day now, but she may be walking before she has teeth if she keeps things up. I've read that some children will have months of on and off teething symptoms before a tooth actually emerges, so I've quit holding my breath about it. Some days her gums kill her, some days she's fine, it's always a crap shoot around here with all that.
Hanging onto Nana's knee.
Let's see, what else? Oh yeah, we went out for her birthday to celebrate. It was her official restaurant debut, and she behaved the entire time. She didn't even get upset when the lights went out for a bit as a storm was rolling through. She did throw a fit all the way home, though, as it got past her usual meal time and hunger kicked in. The following day we continued the celebration and I gave her a few itty bites of ice cream. She loved it and totally spazzed out wanting more! Don't worry, I limited her intake. She got just enough to know it was a treat, get a sugar rush, and get her face all sticky. Good times!
Did you say ice cream?
The last thing I want to touch on is her current diet and digestive issues. The doc asked if I had put her on solids yet, which I was completely honest about since I have had her on solids since just before three months, and the doc was actually happy with my choice to do so. She said I had made the right decision as far as Piper went to have put her on solids already. As a matter of fact, they were going to to tell me do so if I had yet to do so. Piper is already on 2nd foods and began meats a couple weeks ago. So far she has yet to meet a food she dislikes, which makes me so happy she's not a picky eater. I'm a bit of a foodie, so I'm hoping she'll take after me and not turn into one of those kids who will only eat macaroni and cheese and chicken nuggets. As for her digestive issues, remember she had GERD, I took her off her meds last week and she hasn't had a single instance of reflux or major spitting up. It seems her tummy problems have cleared right up, and a lot of that probably stems from adding solid foods to her diet. Although she may be eating solids, she is definitely not missing her boob time! She still treats me like a cow and never misses a feeding.
I have no idea how my belly button got wet!
Can I have some more ice cream?
Although her solid food is on a schedule, I still give her the boobs whenever she wants. We have a new Sunday morning routine where I give her a boob while laying down when she first wakes up. We then drift back off to sleep together, with her waking and nursing here and there whenever she needs or wants. It's such a delightful way to start the day. Last night we had some thunderstorms roll through and I had to bring her into my bed for a 5:30am feeding since she couldn't get back to sleep after all the thunder and lightning woke her up. We did the lie in bed method and it worked like a charm. We ended up being late to work because we both fell back to sleep so soundly we missed out usual wake-up time. It was lovely!
Still the best feeling ever!
Well that about catches everything up to date with Piper's milestones. A day does not go by where she doesn't astound me with something new. Lately, however, her large newisms (good word, right?) are coming closer and closer together. It's hard to believe that four months ago she was still inside me. It seems like a lifetime has already passed since she's been in my arms. People have always told me to hold tight to these first years as they fly by, but to me time has seemed to slow down remarkably. Maybe it's because I have the privilege to be with Piper all day, everyday. Or maybe it's her way of keeping me young. For whatever reason, I hope time continues to slowly drift by, because I'm enjoying every second of it. Life's good, life's really, really good!
And here are some extra pics, cause you know you wanna see 'em!
I die!
Sleepy face
Hanging with Papa!
With my cousin, Haven.
My many faces!
UPDATE (8/16/13): Just this week Piper began cutting either the upper right canine or first molar! So much for thinking those incisors were on the way like normal children, lol. And yes I'm being serious, a part of the tooth has broken through the gum line. She is also pushing up to all fours and lunging forward, so her crawling is getting much more regular. I bet she's full-on crawling by 5 months, ugh! She just last night finally started laying on her back and deliberately sticking her toes in her mouth, so her leg control is now spot-on. And lastly, she started saying "hi" yesterday. I shit you not! She has said it a couple of times before, but now it seems more intentional and she is consistently practicing that word. I don't think I'm going to count it as her first word, but I certainly could. What will my obviously alien child do next? Stay tuned to find out!
As always, if you enjoy my blog please drop a vote for me over at Top Baby Blogs by clicking the button below. Also, feel free to join me on my other Social Media sites by clicking on the additional buttons below that. I update about all things Piper daily on Facebook, so if nothing else come join us there!
A couple of weeks ago, I was turned onto a Facebook page called Little Tweethers- Twiddle and Teether Necklaces. This page is hosted by a wonderful artist across the pond who makes the most adorable teething necklaces and other such awesome things. The description reads "Custom handmade jewellery. Reminder Breast Feeding Bracelets, Twiddle Necklaces and Teether Necklaces designed to aid motor development, satisfying for little gums and creating a stronger bond between baby and wearer." As I love unique, one of a kind items that also have a function, and Piper is teething, I knew I had to have one of the teething necklaces ASAP! I took a gander at the page, private messaged the owner, and we began discussing the style and colors I was interested in.
We paid just a tin bit extra to have her name etched.
Many of you may be aware of how I love collaborating with artists...see all my Nurseryland posts if you are unfamiliar with my need to have unique items. What I love about doing this is that I can put in my two cents and then let the artist do what they do best, turn my two cents into a one-in-a-million creation that is totally special and better than I expected on the front end. I have much respect for the creative streak of others, and love when artists listen to my needs and wants, and then combine them with their own creative genius to create something truly unique that incorporates my ideas while still holding true to their artistry.
Her initial taste test!
I received my necklace last week, and I was thrilled with the quality and workmanship. It is so adorable and Piper absolutely loves it! I'm especially glad I opted to have her name etched into the wood ring, it made it that much more special to both of us. The necklace will definitely be a keepsake that will end up in her baby scrapbook or treasure box. Well, I hope it does. She may end up gnawing it to pieces, but if so we will at least keep the piece to go with the pictures.
Piper instantly knew what the necklace was for!
So what does this necklace have to do with my random act of kindness this week? Well, I loved mine so much that I messaged the artist and offered to pay for whoever's order she next received. I didn't car what they ordered, I just wanted to cover the costs. I know it isn't much, as the price on these is remarkably inexpensive, but it's not about money. I wanted to surprise a total stranger with a gift from afar.
Taking a break to check out the camera.
What I thought was really sweet, is that the artist then turned around and posted on her Facebook page about what I had done and announced which customer benefited from the kindness deed. I really liked that she did that, as it helps others get inspired to start doing the same...acts of kindness, that is, not promoting my deeds, lol. As a matter of fact, the customer who is receiving the necklace posted a comment that she was also going to pay the act forward, just I have been doing. Nothing like causing a chain reaction of awesomeness!
Going back to town!
The necklace I purchased for the random stranger is in the process of being made. Once it is complete, the artist over at Little Tweethers will be sending me a picture to post here. I cannot wait to see what it looks like, because she said is a style she has never made before, how exciting! Nothing like letting the creativity flow! So, once I receive the picture, I will be posting it at the end of this entry. For now, however, I hope everyone has enjoyed Piper's pics of teething joy!
Look at them lips! So damn cute!
Looking forward to my random act of kindness next week. I have no idea what it will be, but I'm sure it will put a smile on someones face besides my own. Here's to spreading niceties!
The act of kindness necklace!
Speaking of niceties...
If you enjoy my blog, please do me a random act of kindness and drop a vote for me over at Top Baby Blogs by clicking the button below. Also, feel free to join me on my other Social Media sites by clicking on the additional buttons below that. I update about all things Piper daily on Facebook, so if nothing else come join us there!
