Finally, Time For Another Update!

As you can see from many of these pictures, Alayna has accomplished the milestone of clasping her hands! She enjoys playing with her fingers, putting them in her mouth, and holding her hands together. One thing that we battle is the hair in the eyes when she has her helmet on. Alayna always wears a bow on the top that helps, but her hair does wiggle its way into her eyes. It's frustrating at times to us, but it doesn't bother her much.
I've seen such a difference in Alayna's attention and ability to focus on something. She is so much more alert lately and really responds well to sounds. She absolutely loves to watch toys that light up and loves the ones that play music. You can get her to turn her head toward the sound so easily and I'm so glad. The tubes have made such a difference.
Alayna still uses her swing nearly everyday. She loves it and it is a life-saver not only to keep her occupied, but to give her another activity to do. Alayna still sits in the bouncy seat and bumbo seat and gets tons of floor time, but she gets bored just like other kids!

If Alayna isn't clasping her hands or playing with a toy, she has them in her mouth. And she is still working on those top teeth. She sucks on her fingers so much that it looks like her left index finger is a bit swollen. She prefers her left hand. I've bought her numerous kinds of teething rings, small ones, big ones, hard ones, soft ones, one for the refrigerator, but the problem continues to be that she can't hold on to them for very long and she tosses it over the side of the bouncy seat. I'm going to get one of those vibration teethers at Walmart this weekend. The boys had one of these and Alayna's therapists tried it last week. She seemed to like it. I guess we'll just have to help her out and hold it!

I'm sorry for all of the head photos here, but I'm so excited about how the helmet is going. And I was trying to get the best angle to show all of you. Alayna's head shape continues to change. She has been wearing it for about 7 1/2 weeks. You can see how the back of her head is starting to round itself out. She's even getting a bit of the "ridge" at the bottom. I think the most noticeable change is on the sides of her head and the top corners of the back of her head. She isn't as wide.
Her hair continues to grow...and like most babies, most of it comes from the center of her head. Right now we do a bow or she'd have a major comb over.
What are we doing mom and dad??

Alayna and her cotton balls in the ears to keep the water out. That is the biggest pain in the tush right now! Her ears are so small it's hard to get them to stay in. And I always get them wet because I've got to rinse her hair out. Oh, one more thing to share....my boys would occasionally go #2 in the tub, but Alayna takes the cake on this one. It's nearly every time. UGH. It must relax her enough I guess. At least she isn't constipated!!??? LOL!
I just think her head is starting to look so good! I took her for a helmet check two days ago and he said with the way it is going he'd be surprised if she wore it much past June! I hope it is off before the really hot weather.

She is starting to really sit up good with support. Her head does bob up and down some of the time and she is starting to throw herself backwards, but when she pays attention and tries, she does well! We are really working with trying to keep the hands out of the mouth and look up while she sits. She likes to keep her hands in the mouth and this forces her to put her head down.


Alayna continues to make progress. Therapy is going well and she brings a smile to our faces everyday. The kids continue to hog over her and tell her how cute she is. Drake remains the biggest guardian angel of all of them. And they are so good about washing their hands and not touching Alayna's hands. They have been told over and over how important it is because she has her hands in her mouth nonstop. They love to make her laugh and watch her smile. You can literally see them light up when they accomplish this task. It's neat to watch them.

I wanted to share how much I enjoy carrying Alayna up the stairs and around the house with one arm. I can pick her up and not have to necessarily hold my other arm behind her to guard her from falling backwards. Her strength is improving and that is one example of how I can tell. It's such a small thing that is so huge for us! I'm still looking forward to the day she can sit on her own and play with her toys. And I can't wait for the day I can give her a bath and use the tub ring instead of the baby tub. I might try that sometime soon, she may just surprise me!

Another good thing is that we don't have any doctor appointments scheduled anytime soon. She will be visiting Iowa City and see the pulmonary doctors and neurology in the the next month or so, but that is about it for now. We look forward to spring and the warmer weather that surely has to be around the corner. We are tired of coats, hats, gloves, boots, snow, ice, and all the other winter stuff. I'm eagerly awaiting the day I can take Alayna out to the green grass and rub her feet in it. Most kids don't like the feeling. I wonder what she'll do? Alayna continues to teach us patience and reinforce our appreciation for our lives the way that they are....blessed.