Levi update . . .

Summer Fun . . .

We have already had a full summer and are so thankful that we still have another month left of it to enjoy. Then again, SC summers seem to last a little longer anyway :) Papa and Nana were able to fly out for the first time since Levi was discharged from the hospital. He currently weighs 16 pounds and 2 ounces and is such a SWEETHEART!!! He is so smart (as a matter of fact, he is trying to help me push the keys as I type =] ) A week ago he was seen for his well visit and was told that he is up to date on all of his immunizations until his 1st birthday in October - Levi was so thankful to leave the office painfree. He has a follow up with the pulmonologist scheduled for the 11th. We will find out when they will begin to give him the monthly synogis shots that will help to prevent another case of RSV. RSV season will "resume" in September and last through April. While we know that we are to walk by Faith rather than fear, we must be wise and continue to do our best to keep the kids away from other children (in an indoor setting during this season). We did allow the children to attend a VBS this summer and were even brave enough to allow Levi to stay in hotels during our fabulous beach trip with Papa & Nana as well as an overnight trip to Charlotte to watch my cousins,12 yr. old triplets, compete in track and field at a National event (They too got to experience the NICU and are obviously doing amazing.) Levi had so much fun getting to visit the zoo for the very 1st time. He was not as sure about the crashing waves that he recently experienced. He loves to hear his own voice and deep belly laugh. Teddy and Naomi are thrilled that he has taken not only such an interest in them but in his books and toys as well. He has started rolling onto his stomach to sleep at night - for several nights we battled with him to no avail . . . finally, we called his Dr. for suggestions - he assured us that once they can roll themselves over they are no longer considered at risk for SIDS. Levi is quickly outgrowing his infant carrier that we once wondered if he would be big enough to ride in and is just barely fitting into his nine month outfits. He still has NO desire to wear shoes or sandals. It is so wonderful to watch the kids interact. If Levi gets the least bit fussy, Teddy and Naomi run to comfort him.

Naomi is just fine!

Just before we were getting ready to head back to the ER for additional X rays, Naomi surprised us with her paper clip. Thank you Lord!

Please pray for our princess!

Yesterday, since the boys were still napping, Naomi and I got to have what was supposed to be some special one on one time. I saw her pick up something shiny and pop it in her mouth. When I calmly asked her to show it to me, she said "I swallowed it". (This is a constant battle with our sweetheart. Despite the fact that she is 2 1/2 she still puts everything into her mouth - unless of course you ask her to.)

Justin stayed with the boys while I took her to the Children's ER. I told them that I thought it was a paperclip. After a series of Xrays, they confirmed that it was indeed a paperclip and that it was in her stomach. (This was a praise report that it had made it to her stomach and not been aspirated into her lungs or caught going down.) So now we wait . . . we give her foods high in fiber . . . and pray that it comes out all by itself. (Yup, you guessed it . . . we get to do a treasure hunt. I am reminded of Willie Wanka and his golden wrappers. I am certain that I will be far happier than Charlie ever was when I find it). If after three days, we do not, she will go in for additional X rays.



Thanks in advance for all your prayers!

Love,
The Bledsoes

Levi rolled over!!!

Levi rolled over from his back to his front for the very first time today! He is so excited that he was able to accomplish this that he has really been a little "roly-poly". One of his nicknames is Chubalub because he is getting rather round. His chuckles could easily be mistaken for those of Jolly Old St. Nick's. His very first laugh was a result of Teddy saying "Pirate Boat" in a rather country accent. Levi just lost it. Teddy realized that he was the cause of this contagious laughter and began to say "Pirate Boat" close to 300 times. Needless to say the laughter continued and Levi ended up getting a large case of the hiccups. Both Teddy and Naomi can make Levi chuckle at the drop of a hat. We have really been getting out and about with him lately. Just recently, we went to pick strawberries, visit all the local parks, stroll along the Riverwalk, and even went on a golf cart ride with Levi. We still do not take Levi inside public facilities other than for his appointments. A few weeks ago he had an appointment for his 6 month well visit and immunizations. Levi measured in at 13 pounds and 6 ounces. He did not seem to appreciate his shot one bit. Despite his painful reminder of needles, we were very excited to find a new practice that is familiar with babies like Levi . . . a practice that has reassured us that they will take any and all of his health concerns quite seriously. Right now, he is only on the apnea monitor at night and will most likely be taken off of it completely in a month. Currently he is taking only milk and will begin to take cereals when he is gestationally 6 months old (the end of August) unless of course my supply is unable to keep up or he seems to need additional food.

Teddy had to get five shots the following week for his 4 yr. old well visit. He came straight home to Daddy who stayed home to play with Levi and Naomi and said "I got one, two, three, four, five shots . . . and I don't like shots". He absolutely loves animals and has been toting their new kitten Jericho everywhere (in our yard of course). We have three others that we are still trying to find homes for if anyone is interested =] - They actually just turned 6 weeks old today. We had to explain to Teddy that we are only keeping one of them. He quickly suggested that we hide the kittens from others since the kittens need to see him. His humor never ceases to amaze us. Even when he is not trying to be funny he keeps us going. Teddy and Naomi are very interested in "what letter objects begin with" The other morning while they were brushing their teeth, Naomi asked me what letter sink started with. Teddy then tugged on the shower curtain and asked about it and then ran to the toilet paper roll and inquired about it. Later that week, we were working on our alphabet puzzles and Teddy held up the letter "T" for Naomi and said "T is for Teddy and T is for Toiletpaper" so now rather than all of the other "T" words such as Train, Tiger, Toys etc . . . that I have taught him, he continues to associate "T" with toiletpaper.

Naomi gets very excited about picking out her outfits each morning. It is amazing how innate her feminine side is despite the fact that her siblings, cousin, and many of her playmates are boys. She loves to play dress up and play with dolls just as much as she enjoys playing tractors in the dirt. Even though she is so petite, Naomi is easily one of the strongest people I know. If she happens to take a fall while running she doesn't hesitate to get right back up and go again. Sometimes she speaks as quiet as a mouse and others she is as loud as a lion - depending on her mood. Tonight after dinner we were enjoying some of the strawberries that we had picked and Justin was sprinkling a little bit of sugar on his. Naomi asked for some sugar so we got her some strawberries with sugar on them. She got very upset and began bawling that she just wanted sugar and not the strawberries. Confused Teddy looked to Justin to see why she had gotten so upset and Justin laughed "Welcome to the wonderful world of women".

Our Big Weekend

Once again, I find myself past due on updating everyone as to how we are doing. Perhaps you can take it as "no news is good news". This past weekend was a big one for us. We attended the March of Dimes/NICU Graduate Party at the State Fair Grounds. This was Levi's very 1st time to go outside (not counting the times when we are whisking him to the vehicle with a blanket overhead =] ) Many of the NICU staff members were able to attend. It was so nice to finally reunite with some of his favorite nurses, respiratory therapists, and lactation consultant. They could not believe that Levi is already a 13 pounder who is wearing six month clothing. At the event, we were also able to see two of Levi's best friends, Lynzie and Marshall. They were discharged around the same time that we was. They too were getting to truly experience the outdoors for the very first time. March of Dimes was having an annual march during the event and reported that they had over 400,000 dollars raised in their name for this chapter over the past year. It was also mentioned that they spend approximately four million dollars annually to save our precious babes. After singing Happy Birthday to all of the babies, we enjoyed delicious hamburgers and ate cake. Teddy and Naomi also had a blast at the "Baby Birthday Party". Auntie Rebecca was able to join us and as always was a big help with brother and sister. We were so glad that she wanted to be a part of this celebration especially since she was so much a part of our surviving his NICU/PICU stays. Levi now gets to go outside with us (in the shade ofcourse) and loves it! He is so happy. All it takes to make him grin from ear to ear is to say his name and talk to him. His brother and sister constantly have his attention. Their love for each other is so strong. I consider myself to be most fortunate for getting to call myself their mother and getting to spend my time watching them grow.

What they've been up to (April 2008)

Levi - This little man is so full of smiles. He is just on the verge of laughing. He is also starting to startle easily. A few mornings ago, I unintentionally let out a not-so-quiet yawn and he immediately screamed at the top of his lungs. It took quite some time to calm him and regain his "trust". Teddy and Naomi too have discovered that they must talk in a soft voice when he is nearby or they also get a bit of a frown and then a very loud cry lets loose. Developmentally, Levi is right on track. He turns his eyes and head toward you when you speak to him. He can also hold his head steady and in-line when held in an upright position. He is discovering what cooing noises that he is capable of making such as "ooo", "ooh", and "aah".


Naomi - She absolutely loves to color and read books in her free time. She recently aquired the nickname "little squeaker" because she speaks in a very high pitch when she gets excited (which happens quite frequently) . While she is known for being a copycat to her older brother, she is also quite capable of coming up with some silly activities of her own. She loves to take things from people so that they will chase her. Her favorite outdoor activity is swinging. (Both she and Teddy would do this all day if allowed). The biggest struggle we have with our princess is that she loves to put things in her mouth - unless ofcourse they belong there. Keeping markers, playdough, crayons, chalk, paintbrushes, etc . . . out of her mouth is my primary focus during any type of project that we do. Unfortunately, we have had to take away some of her favorite toys because she cannot refrain from chewing on them. I actually got her a teether and was letting her chew on it hoping that it would allow her to get the desire out of her system. I then thought that she might puncture it with her teeth and then decided not to give it to her anymore. Chewing gum seems to help but obviously this can only be done on occasion. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Teddy - He is our very own stand up comedian. His goal in life is to make others laugh. Just the other day, I was walking by his room and heard him say " Thank you Jesus for giving us tickles . . . cuz they make people laugh". Our favorite recent story about him is a result of his last haircut. We currently have to cut his hair ourselves since the last time we attempted taking him to a professional it ended very poorly - he was crying . . . she was crying . . . and we left the store with half of a hair cut . . . needless to say we ended up paying for a haircut, giving her an exremely large tip and came home with his hair looking much worse than when we left the house. Justin and I both had to buzz his hair together. We gave him popsicle after popsicle to take his mind off of it. When we finally finished, Justin encouraged him to go look in Naomi's vanity to see what it looked like. He just looked in disbelief and then quietly murmured " I look like a chicken". We tried to convince him other wise but he continued to insist that he looked just like a chicken. (Perhaps it reminded him of a fuzzy, freshly hatched chick). The next morning while he and Naomi were eating breakfast we heard him relaying the events of the night before to her and then exclaimed "and then they turned me into a CHICKEN!!!". We just about fell over from laughing so hard. I then asked him what he thought Justin looked like (since Justin shares the same haircut) and he nonchalantly answered "like a chicken". This whole time he thought his father looked like a chicken and didn't have the heart to tell him =]