our big girl

fourteen months old today, and having a blast

what are you smiling about, zoey?

Zoey is excited about the arrival of her new cousin!!! My sister, Erika...aka Aunt Rika...,and her husband, Josh...aka Unka Rone..., announced that they are pregnant. A-WHOO-HOO!!!!! And Zoey can't wait to have a little cousin to play with. This Sunday they will be 13 weeks pregnant and they're due on August 24th. I couldn't be more excited for Josh & Erika. I just hope baby Wiese stays in the oven until we come home from kamp.

back to her old self

It's been over a week since Zoey's surgery and she is doing great. It's been a few days since I've given her any pain meds and she seems to be pain free. I'll be honest, it's rather difficult to tell if your 13-month-old is in pain. She can't exactly tell me if she's hurting. But she is as active as ever and hasn't let her tummy get in the way of having fun.

On another note, we've been teaching Zoey baby sign language and she has mastered several signs. She can sign...drink, more, banana, cheese, books, all done, bye-bye and she blows kisses. She can say mama, dada, and ball. She knows where her ears, nose, head and tonuge are and she dances and sings. She's not ready for American Idol or anything like that, but we think it's pretty cute.

Check out flickr for the latest pics of our girl.

good to go

Zoey had her surgery this morning and everything went perfectly. Here's how our morning went...

6:20am scooped Zoey out of bed, quick diaper change
6:30am on our way to the Pediatric Surgery center
7:30am arrived and checked in
8:35am called back to the pre-op room, Zoey gets a nose spray to make her drowsey
8:45am Dr Vaughn & Dr Kampine (the anesthesiologist) visit with us
8:49am a nurse took Zoey from us...she only cried for a second
8:50am back in the waiting room while the surgery takes place
9:20am brought into a consultation room where Dr Vaughn briefed us on the operation
9:40am brought in to see our very sleepy Zoey
10:35am time to get Zoey dressed and head home
11:20am arrive at home, lay Zoey down in her bed
12:00pm still asleep
*******
UPDATE
*******
4:00pm woke Zoey up to give her some medicine
5:00pm she ate a great dinner...fruit, yogurt, a whole banana, and cherrios (all her favorites)
6:30pm crashed on me for 20 minutes
7:00pm more meds and bedtime...haven't heard a peep
********
Thank you so much for all your prayers. It couldn't have gone better. The surgery center was amaizing...they are so good at preparing and comforting parents. Here are some picures from our day. We'll post more later...

Getting changed into her gown

Getting sleepy after the nasal spray

"It sure is drafty in here." Notice the Steelers socks.

We got to hold her as soon as she woke up from surgery.

Very sleepy and cuddly.

Starting to wake up more.

Walking to the car after being released...my eyelids are having a hard time staying open.

The car ride home.

under the knife

Zoey is 13 months old today and she is a little under the weather. A week ago this past Friday Zoey had her 12 month shots and the nurses warned us that a week after the shots, she might run a little fever. Thankfully Tylenol seems to help a lot.

I need to share about what's happening this Thursday, January 31st. Zoey was diagnosed with a supra-umbilical hernia which is a defect just above the umbilical ring. Supra-umbilical hernias are less common than umbilical hernias and do not close spontaneously. She is not in any danger and could live her entire life with no complications. However, it could become worse and the older she gets the more difficult the surgery and longer the recovery time. We thought it would be best to have it operated on now while she's still young enough to have no memory of the surgery. It is a very simple, out-patient procedure that should only last 15 minutes. The doctor who will be performing the operation, Dr Glaze Vaughn, said she will be sleepy after the surgery but back to normal by the next day.

Although this is a simple, routine surgery I still have to hand my baby over to a stranger and trust that the Lord will be holding her and comforting her while we're apart. We've been praying for the doctor, the nurses and everyone else who will be taking care of our little girl that they will be well-rested, focused and accurate with every decision they have to make.

Thank you so much for your prayers. We'll let you know how it goes.

it's official, she's walking

As you saw from the last video post, Zoey has no trouble at all getting from point A to point B. She crawls, she cruises, she pushes her cart. But the other day she just did it on her own. Since this video was taken (1/15/08), she has gotten a lot more confident in her walking abilities. I love how she raises her arms above her head to help her balance.

Independence

Zoey Michele...12/28/2006

Zoey Michele...12/31/2007

Last night I nursed Zoey for the last time. It was a very bitter-sweet moment. I have spent the last year of my life committed to doing this and because of that I've never been away from her for any extended period of time. It's been a challenge but I have loved every minute of it. Up until now she has needed me for nourishment and to sustain her life. But, over the last few months as she has been introduced to new foods in her diet she started nursing less and showing her desire for independence. Now that she is over a year old and drinking cow's milk, she can physically do without breast milk. I look at the picture from the day she was born and I cannot remember her being that little. She could do nothing on her own and she relied on us for everything. Now at a year old, 20 lbs 6.4 oz (45%) & 30.5 in (90%), she is not a baby anymore...but a toddler. I keep reminding myself that this is a good thing. She obviously can't nurse forever. Tonight Dave and I are going on a date. I can't even tell you when our last date was that didn't start at 8pm...after we put Zoey to bed. We're actually going to dinner AND a movie. So, as I say goodbye to this chapter in my life I am so thankful for the precious moments (actually hours upon hours) I spent nursing Zoey. It's something I will never forget. I hope to nurse again someday, Lord willing, but in case that never happens I will cherish these tender memories forever.

new pics posted on flickr