Getting Ready. 9:50pm

Everyone that I know that is leaving tomorrow for Camping, is still getting ready tonight!  It's been a loooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggg day!

Here's some of our camping stuff..  still packing a little more..

glad Gary's going to pack the car in the morning. And we are only going for 5 days!

keeping Grace busy, while Mom packs is Daddy showing Grace the "Gilligan's Island" song on his phone.. so intently she watches!!  She really loves music.. she was fussing this morning in the car, (behold she was very constipated poor baby) and I started singing..she just stopped fussying & listened! :)

Mollie was over today & our little friend, Abby.  All four of us girls, hung out.. went to the dollar store together & shopped. Had lunch & a special treat of ice cream in the afternoon, before I dropped them off.    A nice day, but just stressful to pack everything & make sure you have everything for a baby!!

 And here she is...  going back to the scene of the crime.. we are looking

forward to going back to Saco Camping Site!!

I'll try to post pictures this weekend, because YES I'm taking my laptop..remember

this time last year, if I didn't take it..oh my! What would I had done.

Grace LOVES her monkey!

Thanks for reading! Wish us well as we head back to NH..

thinking of Maxwell..

& making new memories with Gracie!!

Love,

pattie & gary, Gracie & max



Prayer warriors needed please. 10:04pm

Gary's cousins' daughter, who is 6 years old needs your prayers, happy thoughts.. whatever you believe in please send her way.. she had surgery today at Boston Children's hospital for a tumor found at the base of her skull.. it is malignant.  I'm sad for her. I'm sad for her family & what the next steps are for them.  Ashley, the little girl & her parents need all the prayers & positive vibes they can get.  Thank you.

On a good note.. a GREAT note.. it makes me think about all that we've

been thru in the past year with Miss Grace..and she is doing soo well..

I think her molding helmet is really starting to work.. here are some

pictures from today, when she was on the floor playing with her vision specialist & speech therapist.. she was doing soo well on her belly.

Wow!!!  What a big girl...

And my upside down pictures of her..

She is doing really well.  We are so thankful!

We are getting ready to leave for camping on Thursday..

tomorrow is an easy day for Grace & I, we have no appointments..

PT will be here on Wednesday.. then we are outta here on Thursday!

Thank you God for all you have done for our Grace..

please pardon Ashley as well..keep her safe in your arms!!

Love,

pattie & gary, Gracie & max



Sweet Sunday 6:28pm

A warm, sunny Sunday.. and a bag of clothes I went thru for Grace..

and among them this..

How do you all like my new Robe?? Looks like I'm ready for the spa!! Into the tub I went, and my robe will keep me warm after swimming at the pool this week while we are camping!!

 We went lighthousing on Saturday..down to Ned's Point in Mattapoisett (a town over).. it was nice.  Since we were in Maine & saw some beautiful lighthouses, I love to read about them & our next stop will be Falmouth Lighthouse!

And this picture was from the other night as Gracie slept.. she

was holding on to her crib!!

We leave for Camping with our friends Peter & Paula & the boys on Thursday morning.  Camping in NH.. We are starting to pack (any vacation that's the worst part.. setting up & breaking down).. but we are looking forward to just some R&R,

some swimming in the pool, and remembering where it all began, already just a year ago!  Keep us in prayers for a unsuccessful event! :)

Happy Week everyone!!

Love,

pattie & gary, Gracie & max



Drumroll please 7:51pm

This is what a 13lb. 11oz. baby looks like!!

Yup, Grace weighed in at 13 lbs. 11 oz.. YEA!!

She has gained 2 lbs in one month and a few weeks, and is finally

on the curve chart for weight, as a 8 month old adjusted age!

Yea!!

A great day yesterday, as we spent the 4th of July with our good friends down the cape, Chuck & Lorraine.  We had a nice lunch of burgers and dogs, a great salad, and a

yummy strawberry trifle I made.  It was HOT..but Grace weathered well..

Today was just a relaxing day with a friend of mine from High School (25 years ago), that visited Gracie & I.  It was wonderful to see Monique.. we chatted from the time she got here, til the time she left.  She's a warm hearted, beautiful person.. I wish

her the best.    Our 25th reunion was this past Saturday, and honestly, we didn't have a babysitter..but also I think I wasn't ready for the emotions that would've come up with my classmates that were so generous to me back in the Fall, while we were up in Maine, so I opted not to go.  Now, I kinda wish I had.  :(  I'll see them in 5 years!

Thanks for visiting Monique!!

And then we had a visit from Auntie Heather & the kids.. who just are wonderful with Gracie.  It was Olivia's first time holding Grace..and she was very excited.  Olivia is 2 & twins with her brother Jackson, and then of course there's there older sister, Abby..

who told me she wishes she was my daughter so she could have Grace as a sister!!

Awwww.. I thought, but reminded her she has a good family too.

Good job on guessing the right weight, Auntie H!!

Then an appointment with the nutritionist at 3:30..what a great day!!

Need to get laundry done & house cleaned tomorrow.. :(

The "fun" stuff.. lol

Thanks for keeping up..

Love,

pattie & gary, Gracie & max

11 Months Old. 7:21pm

Happy 11 months old, Gracie!!

Where is the time going?? She has really turned a healthy corner & is doing well!!

We are thankful!!

At 11 months old:

Gracie loves music.  Itsy-bitsy & Mama's favorite itunes.

Favorite baby jarred purree:  Squash.

New thing started:  more bottle feeds & holding the bottle (with help)

Loves laying on her belly & back on her mat

Still NO teeth! But loves eating her hands :)

Works great with PT.

Started pulling and grabbing her toys that hang above her.

Can hold a rattle very well in her hands, and holds links as well in her

hands.

Grace is SMILING alot!

If a stranger looks at her, she bats an eyelash & smiles!!

(now don't be jealous):  Grace sleeps thru the night, at least 11-12 hours a night!

Plus 1-2 hour morning nap & about a 3 hour afternoon nap!

Loves Bathtime!

Loves books..

Her Great Aunt Pat sends books on a monthly basis, and we read them all

I'm sure I could go on & on.  She's doing great!!

Loves people.

Auntie Lisa R. bought this 'dress/onesie' for Grace..she wore

it today, in honor of her 11 month birthday! Thanks, Auntie Lisa R.

It has fake pearls on it (those two lines under her neck & it says, "This is my little black dress."

Today was a long day.. she had a bath, helmet back on & she's asleep already!!

Love HER!!

Thanks for reading!

love,

pattie & gary, Gracie & max



Feeding. 7:10pm

Well today was a great day..we have started something new with Grace..

we are trying bottle feeds during the day, every 4 hours (that's when it seems she gets fussy/hungry) & whatever she takes from the bottle, we subtract from her total for the day.. then the rest will be given by g-tube overnight).  And, she did well today!!

I think she's getting the hang of it, but today was just the first day trying it.

I find that we are home ALOT, or have been, so giving her a feed thru the gtube every 3 hours works, but if we have appointments or going on vacation (next week, another story), then we have to be more flexible with the bottle & that's teaching her the bottle as well.  It's all a balance act.  Isn't that parenthood, anyway??)

So here she is holding the bottle..

so this morning she ate 95ml's by gtube at 8:00; then at 12:30pm she had 40ml's by mouth :) (yippee!!!), and then at 4:30ish she had 18ml's by mouth..

at 7:00 she is having 95ml's by gtube, and then over 9 hours tonight she'll have 61ml.

For her total of 800ml's!

Hope to do that again tomorrow..as we have invited ourselves over to a friends house.. lol.. our neighbors kept inviting us over..but they're odd & they smoke

& we don't want that for Grace.. soo we're heading down the cape!

Read more about what she's doing on the next page..

her 11 month birthday!!

Thanks for keeping us in thoughts & prayers!

Can't wait to see the nutritionist on Thursday..for a weight #.

Love,

pattie & gary, Gracie & max



Happy July! (already!) 10:01pm

Happy July, already! Time is going somewhere, very fast..

and Gracie is getting bigger by the day.

We made it to church this morning, and our "God moment" was telling everyone

that Gracie is reaching up to her hanging toys, pulling them down & holding them.

Then we get home (after going to breakfast, which she did well, just cried a little because she was sooo hot!), and we had an immediate "God moment"

Gracie took 30ml's (1 oz!) of formula thru her bottle!!

She was hungry!!  She did so well with the bottle, and didn't choke on any of it..

I think it's somewhat hard to get her to take from the bottle, because she eats every 3 hours to get her 800 ml's of formula in 24 hours..but maybe she needs to go to 4 hours, and try a bottle..if she's really hungry she'll take the bottle.

Hmmm.. mission this week.. more bottle!!

What do you think she's trying to tell me in this picture??

Funny, ah??

Grace comes into our bedroom around 6 a.m., sleeps in her RNP (rock n play) for about an hour & half, and then daddy puts her in our bed (so we can snooze for maybe an extra hour) and once she's in our bed..she's a CHIRPER!!

Louder than the birds in your ears.. she just is babbling soo much!!

I tried to tape her today, of course when she's on demand she has no time

for Mama!!  She's 8 mos corrcted/11 mos (actual this week) & she is babbling alot!!

Soo cute!! Almost sounds like she's saying, "hi".. you have to hear her!

This was after that ounce of bottle.. she was soo tired!  Slept for nearly 4 hours this afternoon.

 And then on her mat for some excercise..

I have a couple of appointments on Tuesday, this week.

Grace goes to her nutritionist on Thursday..

Of course the holiday in between there, on Wednesday..not doing much as of right now.  Maybe a quiet day in our ac's.. :)  Neighbors have already told us they're having a party.. they're odd..

I'm looking into a MOMS club to join in town.. I really need to do something for me.

This club, not only does things for mom & baby, but also for mom out by themselves, and they do community work.  Something right up my alley.

I hope I like it!  I really need to do something for myself.

My 25th High School reunion was last night, and I didn't go.

In high school, I was the opposite as I am today.. shy back then, reserved.

My twin brother was the outgoing, social one..and he is oppossite of that today.

Weird how that's worked out.

Anyway, I like who I am now.. confident & outgoing..

we didn't go to the reunion for a variety of reasons.. and I've seen pictures today..

everyone looks great & I truly think I missed a good time. :(

Alot of my high school classmates were a huge comfort to me back when we were in Maine.. they really put themselves out there for me.  I'm kinda sad that I didn't go!

On the good side, a friend from high school is coming over Thursday morning for

breakfast with Grace & I.. it'll be very nice to see her after 25 years!!

(I know you don't think I look like I've been out of school 25 years!!)

Thanks for reading.

Have a great week..hope most of you are on vacation!!

Love,

pattie & gary, Grace & max