Wednesday, December 29, 2010

A Christmas to remember!!!

As we celebrated our LORD’s birthday this year we were also blessed to have all Peter’s family here in town for Christmas…what a joy…. Olivia got to meet for the first time her uncle Matt, auntie Lydia, Micah, Bea and her great-grandma Nika from my side (my first time meeting Bea also :) or Beebs as Livi calls her).
Now Livi’s favorite place to go is over at grandpa-grandma’s cuz she knows that’s where she gets to see all her cousins at once and be silly with them…
I can definitely say that this has been one of the best Christmas in a while ;))))))) …

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Thankfullness...

What a great thanksgiving month this one has been...

Even though this is a bit late i still wanted to say how thankfull I am for ALL of you: - Our wonderfull biiiiggg family (even though some far away), our nurses and doctors that have helped Olivia to be where she is, my wonderfull friends, all the people at church that still shower us with continues prayers,love and support (thank you for all your encouraging cards) and above all I'm thankfull for God and HIS gift to me, a great husband and a precious miracle called Olivia Grace.

Yesterday we had Livi's nephrology appointment and it went great. Her labs were still stable and she had the biggest grow spur last month which shocked everybody...she weights 23.6 lb (5-15% tile) and length of 30.5 inches (almost on the chart)...whoohooooo....

Thank you again for all your prayers since we couldn't have done it without you ALL.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

The itsy-bitsy spider... BOooooOOO

Since Livi started to talk her favorite song has been “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider” so we decided to dress her up as a spider… a super cute one ;)))
Going trick or treating with all of her cousins it was a bless. At first she was scared going by people’s door thinking that she was getting a pokey (her word for labs) but that didn’t last long. After the first 15 min and her cousins Roi, Christian & Antony bodyguard-escort to every door she was demanding she wanted candies and not the ones that they would offer to her…:” I wanted, no I want this one… Livi wants candY”…lol and sometimes she went for seconds… well all I can say, Thank you Livi for mommy’s snickers and Butterfinger breakfast the next day…hahaha

Another prayer answered

Yesterday at about 7:30 PM we got a call from Olivia's nephrology office. The results are back and after they reviewed them, Livi's bone matches her age...yayayyayaay...what a relief. I was so exited that tears of joy covered my face and couldn't stop them for a while :) :) :).
Ahhhhhh...such a relief knowing that she doesn't have to get those hormone shots. GOD IS AMAZING.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Great news...and some prayers needed

Great news after almost 10 months weight struggle for Olivia ( between 19-20 lb back and forth). She is finally back on the chart at 5% tile :) with a weight of 21 LB & 11oz. It has been very stressfull dealing every-week with therapyst,dietitian and doctors so hopefully she gets a break for a while with new feeding recipes since she gained a little. Livi is still in her baby-formula but they did take her off the protein and fiber substitute which appeared to effect her digestion so now that she has gone for a whole month without chocking spells she is more acceptant to try food by mouth…PRAISE THE LORD. I have made her a couple different soups (with her allowed veggies), and veggie pures so she seems to enjoy trying new tastes and textures everyday. So far her favorite munchie has been the “veggetable chips”…and Paco’s too bc we like to share a LOT ..haha

Like every doc. appt this one was no different since it seems like every good news comes with a “BUT” for us.
The nephrology Dr. brought to my attention that she is still not on the chart for her length (29.5 inch). If she wasn’t a kidney failure patient this wasn’t a big deal but they need to take action in Livi’s case. They did a “left hand bone age scan” today (x-ray) to measure where she stands age wise. This will decide if they start her on bone-grouth-hormone shots or not. It’s an everyday shot and it goes for a long time untill she reaches her stage. We really need everybody's prayer for this one… here are the pros and cons
PROS:
- It will help Olivia to be on a more healthy chart instead of getting her too heavy (raising her calories) which will affect her heart function.
-It will help her body grow so when she gets the transplant her body will be bigger to handle it.
CONS:
-it has to be given everyday (maybe by us) and she is traumatized by niddles/pain.
-The biggest side effects are the same as the symtoms of meningitis without having the bacteria in you ( constant bone pain & painfull headaches). The only way to relieve the pain is to actually “tap the spine” (is done by putting a niddle in your spine to extract the extra fluid).

It is such an overwhelming news and decision to take that my only hopes are to pray to GOD to continue to do miracles with our precious Livi. Peter and I are prepared for everything and we are aware that Olivia has a long-rockey road ahead of her but we’re praying for a painless one because that is very hard to see for both of us …

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Accountability at 19 months old ….

Yeaterday before her sedated ECCO Livi was getting her vidals done by the Doc. As always miss Olivia was interested in everything the doc. had in her hand.

Doc:- " Olivia if you wait 2 min. it will all be done... 2 min"
Livi:- " One. Ntwoo.Fthree. Foow. Fiiive...FIIIVEEE....FIIIIIIIIIve...
Doc:- " I'm sorry how old is she again???"

That's our daughter, keeping people liable for their words...LOL

Thursday, July 22, 2010

The first family vacation :)

The past week & a half has been amazing. All three of us took our first family vacation, camping in Mackinac city. Thanks to my wonderful husband that made awesome fires and grilled every meal it really made a difference in enjoying the beauty of the nature and camping itself.
Besides spending quality time together we really cherished the excitement that Olivia expressed being on vacation and having both of us there with her at all times. She loved trying s'mores, shopping and being driven every night as a way to rock her to sleep :) (very very spoiled).
Below are some pics so you can get a sneak peak of our vacation :).

1-st family vacation///Mackinac City

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Monday at the bank.

Waiting to meet with my friend Amy this Monday gave me time to take some of Livi's pics in her Daisy dress :))). She just looks so grown up...LOVE it.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Daddy's special day.

It felt so good having Olivia dedicated with the other babies this Sunday. It was so exiting because Livi had a good day too, like she knew that it was her special day. She decided to show off by walking around (holding my hand)and giving kisses to everybody :))). She also kept the flower in her hair suprizingly the whole time.
Unfortunatly we forgott the camera so the only 2 pics we have are the ones I got with my cell :( .

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Livi's updates.

I’m sorry I haven’t updated the blog in a while …Livi keeps us pretty busy day and night ;).
Olivia is almost 17 months old, 19lb and 29inch long (finally this month). Her mouth is almost filled with teeth and she repeats everything you say…all day long… . Her favorite words are “NO”, “I DON’T KNOW” and “I LOVE YOU TOO”. Walking has been her goal to reach this month it seems because she has been trying to walk (by holding on to objects) every chance she gets: “GO GO GO” is all you hear from her demanding little voice.
Livi is still on the kidney friendly baby formula but we did start her therapy for spoon feeding (baby jarred food) almost 3 weeks ago and she is doing better already at taking sometimes about a tbs a day and a few baby puffs : ))) . We’re so thankful to see where she is right now and how smart that little girl is.
Her doctor’s appointments have been spread out to every 3-4 weeks which makes it easier on her not to get labs every week especially now that she understands more.
This Sunday for Father’s day we are dedicating Olivia to our Lord and Savior at grandpa H.’s church. We hope and pray that she does grow up knowing our LORD and all HIS work so she can serve Him better.

Monday, May 10, 2010

A great mother's day!

Happy Mother’s day to all the moms out there and I hope you did get a chance today to sit down and retrieve those beautiful moments that made the word ‘MOTHER’ so special…
I cannot be thankful enough for my beautiful daughter and for God giving me the greatest gift of them all by making me the mom of the most wonderful baby ever, Olivia Grace.
Today was great as my wonderful husband got up at 6:30 to get flowers and a card “from Livi”, in order to surprise me when I got up. And yes he did go the extra mile to bring me breakfast in bed ;)))).
Olivia had such a great time with her cousins today over at grandpa & grandma H.
She got another molar yesterday, so she has 8 teeth all together. (15months, 19 lb and 28 inch)
Thank you Olivia for making me a “mommy” and thanks to everybody that continuously prays for her and us. Special thanks to everybody at our church that has been and continues to be by our side every day.
May God bless all the children that make our everyday life so meaningful and special.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

O.C.D

This morning as Livi and I were relaxing in her room I found myself emerged in the internet obsession called ”Instant Messaging”.
Olivia was right next to me on the floor entertaining herself and I was typing back and forth like a mad woman to both of my sisters in Albania at the same time. Next to the rocking chair where I was sitting, she has two of her favorite things which she loves to play with: her TV and her shoe container.
I have to say, my daughter is the best baby EVER when it comes to keeping herself busy. Today was another great example of that. I could see with the corner of my eye that she was doing a repetitive motion but not exactly what so I stopped…….look down and I see my little O.C. baby dusting away her TV and the shoe container as fast as she could. I could’ve just died laughing. She would dust in a circle pattern with her tiny washcloth and then stop …. smell the washcloth and then start again from the beginning… It was the most adorable thing ever. I tried to take a picture but couldn’t get a good one so I’ll try to record it for you all next time so you can see it with your own eyes that our 14month old baby is already obsessed with cleaning : ))

Friday, April 16, 2010

Carnival.

Today after work, Peter suggested we go to the carnival by our house since we had such beautiful weather. It was so much fun just being able to have family time and enjoy getting a couple of “prizes” for daddy and Livi ….LOL…
On our way out we had just $ 2 left and decided to do a dart game hoping to win another prize. Well Peter, very confident had me do it since “he believed” in my ability to aim. Picture me nervous holding the dart in my hand and Livi in the background screaming “GO DADDA GO, DADDADDADDA…as you can image I LOST …such a bummer that was. I felt bad but it’s a game and we had fun which counts as a prize too ; ) .
Isn’t family time just great especially when you make those little moments really count? I love my family.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Getting easier...

This week's nephrology appt. went very well as well. Olivia was still at around 20 lb and 28 inch but that’s awesome considering everything during her first year. Our weekly appointments now are spaced out to monthly ones which is great news and also shows how much better Livi is doing that doesn’t need the weekly check-ups : ) . She is still drinking during the day out of the sippy cup and we just got the okay from her doc. to try to cut down her nightly tube feeding and added to the day as long as Livi handles it.
During our days off our times with her are so much more productive since we don’t have to carry the pump around. On my days off Livi & I go grocery shopping, to the mall (of course shopping for my little fashionista) or visit friends & family. On daddy & Livi’s days they go to MC Sports/ Gander Mountain or at Barnes N’ Nobles…soooo much fun WE LOVE IT.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Happy Easter: " HE IS RISEN JUST LIKE HE SAID"

It felt great today to go to church with Olivia and really feel impacted from the great service that our church had... It had been a while since we went to our church due to Olivia's health condition.
After church we enjoyed lunch at mom & dad H. and it was awesome to see Livi just have a blast and scoot everywhere in the house with no “child-proof” gates like at home :). This is Livi’s second Easter and she is doing better than ever because of GOD’s GRACE…
“THANK YOU JESUS FOR WASHING OUR SINS AWAY WITH YOUR BLOOD”

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Butterflies in the garden...

Today was a great Michigan weather day. Peter and I have wanted to go and watch the butterflies at the Meijer Garden for a while now and since my sister Tina is leaving in 2 days for Albania we thought to take her there for a last excursion. It was awesome. Olivia had a bless going around the garden and looking at all the pretty things, including riding the miniature “Italian Stallion horse”…hilarious…

It is such a blessing to be able to take Livi out & about and do the things that all parents want to do with their children:)))). She is doing great, continues to drink from the bottle and growing smarter and smarter everyday… Her Cardiologist Dr. Lee is very happy with her heart and didn’t change her medicine for now; he actually is giving us a six months break before the next appointment.(great news).
The Nephrology office continues to watch her closely (every 2-3 weeks which is very helpful) and so far no transplant schedule …thank GOD… and thanks for all your continues prayers.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

A cute thief.

It is amazing how smart kids are… every day Olivia shows me how I shouldn’t underestimate her “smartness”.
-Every time she does anything that she knows she shouldn’t and she gets caught she:
* looks at me all cute and blows me kisses as of nothing should go wrong ‘cuz kisses cover any bad action…
*she gets her point finger up and waives it towards me calling ME a “bad biiirl(girl)” before I even say anything to her ( she knows it)
*or she’ll turn to Paco and yell at him “paem-paem Aco” (spank-spank Paco in Albanian) like he did it and not her …amazing…
- It takes us just one time showing Olivia things and she’ll do it.
*I was teaching her how to feed her baby doll with the fake-baby bottle. After that 1-st time she grabbed the bottle right of my hand and started doing it like she had done it before…so I encouraged her by clapping, than I turned around to find a different toy for her …before I even turned fully I see her taking the bottle out of the baby’s mouth and put it in her own while she was looking at me with the corner of her eyes so she didn’t get caught…lol …now that’s a CUTE THIEF :0) .

The imitator.

Yesterday as i was changing Olivia's diaper, she kept pulling her G-tube (belly feeding tube) like she always does as a way to get more attention on her. At times it gets frustrating 'cuz I'm scared that she'll pull it out so i stopped, looked at her and put my hands on my head:
(I)- Oh, my Gosh Olivia why do you want to do that to yourself???
(O)- Got up using her abdominal muscles, put both of her little hands in each side of my head and start mumbling...oooo mighaaa....ooomighaa

It was the cutest thing ever so I started kissing her all over, laughing as hard as I could….funny.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The donation....

Sunday the 14-Th went great. We took all 72 presents over at the DeVos Children's Hospital and it was wonderful to see all the reaction from the staff. It made us feel so good to know that we could possibly put a smile in those parents faces even for a minute during those heart aching days. We would again like to thank ALL of you that were right by our side helping us with this donation and always being there to put a smile in our face :))) ...we could've never done it without YOUR support.

Olivia also enjoyed seeing a couple of the staff. Being there with her reminded us again how far we have come with the power of prayers.

She is doing better than we ever thought: drinks out of the sippy cup (throughout the whole day), has seven teeth, can almost stand-up on her own even though she gets around by scooting everywhere, loves to repeat and imitate everybody and she is almost 21LB (kind of growing like an egg cuz she is still at 20% for height: P ).

Olivia thanks for making us parents. We LOVE YOU sweetheart more than words can ever describe.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

All comes from love!!!

It was amazing to see all the people that contributed and helped with Olivia's mission. We can't wait to take those presents to the DeVos children's hospital and give that "love" feeling back to which one of those families that spend all their days at the hospital wondering if there will be a "tomorrow"...

Once all was done we gathered: 50 onesis(much needed in NICU), 10 outfits, 20 baby-night gowns(boy/girl), hats, socks, mittens a bag full of toys and $300 towards children's hospital :)))) .... AMAZING...

Thank you ALL for being there for us and ALWAYS showing GOD's LOVE through your actions. WE LOVE YOU!!!

My Montage 2/1/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

Livi's 1-st year journey!!!

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Happy 1-st Birthday precious Livi!!!

One year old...our precious baby girl is 1-yr old already.
As I was holding her this morning after she woke-up I kissed her little chubby chicks, sqizzed her tight and told her softly: " Olivia did you know that your mommy gave birth to you today last year???" she squinted her face and gave me a huge smile like she new what i said :))))))))
A smile is all I need from her to make my day and make me feel so wonderfull.

January 31-st 2009, 2:47 Olivia Grace was given to us by emergency c-section. I was in labor for 12 hrs and was under a lot of anesthetic since the epidural didn't do much .All i can hear is the doctor's voice telling me that they had to put me under since i was feeling a lot of the procedures. I remember looking up at Peter as i squizzed tight his hand and whispered...please don't let them put me under, I want to see my baby( it was a chance that Olivia couldn't make it) please, please...
2:47 PM two tiny hands reach out and grab both doctors point fingers like she needed a lift. It was than that I heard the most beautiful voice and I saw the most beautiful face ever. Soon after Livi was rushed out of the room and taken to Neo ICU which became her first nusery.

Olivia has taught us a lot during this past year. She has made us realize what a gift from GOD life & she is and how important is to honor our LORD in what we do. There is hundreds of people that pray for Olivia and us everyday and neither one of us couldn't have done it without all those prayers. Our baby girl has gone through a lot of hospitalized procedures during her first year of life but she is stronger than ever. Looking at her and what she has gone through it makes us stronger for her and for each other. She has the sweetest personality, never cries or complaint no matter her pain or discomfort. Livi's eyes always have that sparkle of life that "all is good" and GOD is always by my side...

As of this past week Livi weight's 20.1 lb , 27inch, and has 5 teeth. She is really working on standing up by her crib, eating by mouth (sippy cup and spoon) and trying to say something different beside "dadda" and "paco".