6 Months

I know I am a little late posting Leyna's 6 month update, but we were on vacation in Wisconsin when she turned 6 months. We were also there when Hailey would have had her 2nd birthday. It was nice to be around family but it just didn't seem the same since we didn't really do anything to "celebrate" her birthday. I think next year it will be easier for us to be home where we can do a balloon release and make cupcakes for her 3rd birthday. I sure do miss that beautiful little girl.

Leyna is doing awesome, she is already sitting up on her own (since 5 1/2 months actually) and she now has her 2 bottom teeth! She is also trying out some foods, so far her favorites are peas and carrots. She's not much of a fan for the sweeter foods. But that's alright because the vegetables are much more healthy for her.
This summer is really going by fast, I can't believe Leyna will actually be 7 months old soon. She will be turning 1 in no time! I can't wait for that update and all her birthday pictures and her "smash cake"!

We also had some family photos done while in Wisconsin so I will share some of those after posting her 6 month photo. She didn't feel like smiling for her 6 months photos, so maybe her 7 month ones we will get a smile!

6 Months old!

Cousins, Leyna and Taylor

Grandma and Grandpa with all 4 grandchildren.

Beautiful girl!

<3 Sisters <3

Also, please pray for baby Rachel's family. I have been following their blog since before she was born. She was only expected to live a few weeks after birth. She ended up living almost 15 months. Sadly, she passed away yesterday. Please click here and offer her family all the support you can.

Not fair

I just really want my Hailey back. I miss her so much it hurts!! It's not fair that all the druggies and child abusers get healthy children. Why us? Why did she have to die!? It doesn't make sense. We would have been amazing parents to her! Just really sad tonight and missing my baby girl. :'(

Happy 2nd Birthday, Hailey!

Today Hailey would have been 2 years old. I'm not going to do a long post at the moment as we are currently on vacation in Wisconsin. I just wanted to write a quick "Happy Birthday" to my very special little girl. We love and miss you so very much!

5 Months

Just wanted to do a quick little 5 month post. Leyna is getting really good at grabbing everything in sight! She is also sitting up really well, almost with no support at all. Of course we still have to be really careful and watch her since she likes to lean back suddenly! We're currently in the process of moving to a new house, so this shall be fun. Packing and moving with a 5 month old!! Luckily my Mom is coming out from North Carolina to help entertain Leyna for us while we pack. Then it's off for another adventure, July 16th we are off to Wisconsin for a week. So if you have any tips for flying with a soon to be 6 month old, please let me know! I am going to need them!



Leyna in her beautiful dress a friend of mine brought back from Hawaii



Pretty Girl!

Our hippie baby!

4 Months Old

I know I am a little late with her 4 month update, but she keeps me so busy!! I am loving every moment with her. Leyna has really started "talking" and laughing a lot now. I LOVE it! At her 4 month appointment she was up to 15 pounds 11 ounces and 24 inches long. She's in the 90% for weight and 50% for height. She is just growing so fast!
Tomorrow is going to be a very bittersweet day for us. Tomorrow Hailey has been gone for 18 months and Leyna will be the exact same age as Hailey when she passed away. I don't know what it's like having a child longer than 4 1/2 months, and now I will get to find out. It's amazing how many emotions can come back when you think of these milestones. It hurts so bad but there is also so much joy now that we have Leyna in our lives. She brings a lot of happiness to us. I wish I could just spill all my emotions on here about what it's like having a rainbow baby, but I have never been very good at letting it all out. Maybe one day when I can figure out how to explain it a little better. All I can say is that it's so worth it if you're reading this and thinking about having a rainbow baby yourself.
I also wanted to let anyone who stumbles across my blog from a search index know that there are so many HLHS survivors out there. Don't give up on your baby if you just got a diagnosis of HLHS. I am posting this because the little monitor on the right hand side telling me who has visited my page also tells me how someone found my blog and what they typed in the search index. I see a lot of searches for statistics and what not. I recomend you check out Sisters by Heart. Also check out the video I posted last month. There is so much hope for your little one!

Ok, now for the fun part. PICTURES!


4 Months Old

Leyna with her Mia Marrone Heart Charm



Happy on one of our many walks we take!



If you would like to purchase a Mia Marrone heart charm, Click Here!

3 Months Old

Leyna turns 3 months old today!

She is finally out of her colicy stage and becoming a happier baby everyday! She smiles a lot and is always "talking" to us. It's so fun to see these stages develop and to hear her sweet voice. We never got to hear Hailey "talk" and she only smiled once, the day of her Glenn surgery. It really is amazing to watch her grow and learn, I love this little girl SO MUCH! I just wish she was able to meet her big sister.
She still does not like to be put down at all though, but I am not really complaining. I am sure in a few months she will want to spend all her time on the floor playing with her toys and less time in my arms. The only thing we're having a hard time with is tummy time. She refuses to be put on her tummy, she just screams her head off. So if anyone has any good advice how to get their little ones to actually enjoy tummy time, I would appreciate it!

Sisters by Heart is continuing its mission to inspire and support newly-diagnosed HLHS families.

With your help, we can reach more families and spread the word that a diagnosis of HLHS is not the end, but just the beginning of a life-changing and rewarding journey.

Our children, both survivors and angels, bring us HOPE for the future of HLHS. Please, share our message so that we may continue to reach out to those in need.

2 Months old

Leyna turned 2 months old on Friday! She had a great doctor appt, and is at 12lbs 1oz and 23 inches. She's in the 75th percentile for weight and lenght. She's got her daddy's genes for height that's for sure!

She also got her vaccines and did really well. Only cried for a little bit and was fine for a few hours. But she didn't have a very good night. Woke up crying a lot. But a little Tylenol helped with that.

Here is our gorgeous girl at 2 months!

SMILE!

Leyna started smiling on March 10th. She gave her first real smile to her cousin Andrea. And I finally caught one on camera!

Also, please keep Jenny and her daughter Aly in your prayers. Aly is only a few weeks older than Hailey and Jenny and I found out around the same time about our daughters diagnosis. We've been following each other since before our daughters were born.
Aly will be having her fontan surgery tomorrow and could use lots of prayers for a fast and safe recovery.
http://www.alyjeansspecialheart.com/

Almost 8 weeks old!

I know I haven't posted much in almost 2 months, but it's hard for me to even check my facebook let alone write a blog! This girl sure keeps me busy! She is a very very needy baby who wants to be held 24/7 (she happens to be in my arms now a I type this with only one hand.)Life sure has been interesting though. She went through a very fussy and unhappy stage for about 3 weeks and with lots of trial and error we figured out she has a milk protein allergy. So we are giving her breast milk and supplementing a bit with formula because I'm not making enough for her (her jaundice made her a very lazy eater in the beginning so not much milk came in)So she is now on my milk and a soy based formula.
She has been growing so fast too, already at 11 pounds. I can't wait to see how big she is at her 2 month appt next Friday. I'm not looking forward to her having her vaccines, but it needs to be done.
Other than that, not much going on. Just lots of eating pooping and sleeping (well not much sleeping I guess!).
Well someone is getting fussy, so I will try and post a few pictures for you all to enjoy. One of these days that she lets me put her down, I will post a longer update. But for now this is all I can do! I don't know how so many of you post so much after having a baby, I can't do it!

One of my favorites

Just took this one today.