Going Home!!!!!

Yah! Well since this is a teaching Hospital I have had about 3 different Doctor's come in and tell me that we will be going home today, so not to disappoint each of them for bringing me the good news I act surprised and excited for each of them...lol It is just hard to find 3 different excited facial expressions....hahaha. Paula and I are both ready to go home and sleep in our own beds, and she just can't wait to run around she is so done with this laying in bed thing. I have been trying to tell her that when she is older that is all she will want to do. =) Well anyway, Paula had a good night last night but I must say it is really weird not having to get up and suction her when she coughs. She did do a lot of coughing last night though, which is a good thing to get out all of the junk. Another wonderful discovery she has made is drinking out of a straw! We were having such a hard time with her learning that, because she never drank out of a bottle she wasn't quiet sure how to suck liquid out of a cup or straw. So, on monday I put a straw up to her mouth and she took a couple of tries and juice came out so she has been a straw drinking fool the past couple of days....It is amazing the difficulties that come with having a preemie, developmental milestones that come naturally to a full term baby take time and practice for most preemies. I just thank my Heavenly Father every chance I get, to be lucky enough to have such a wonderful spirit so close to me. Paula with be 2 on the 13th and boy what a wonderful Birthday AND Christmas present!

Waiting..........

Well.....Paula's Doctor came in this morning around 8 a.m. and removed her trach. We had about 3 Doctor's, 2 Nurse's and a Respiratory Therapist in her room watching her and the monitor. As I looked around everyone was on pins and needle's. I guess this was what it was like watching the moon landing for the first time.....lol. Anyway, she did well, her oxygen saturation's where high 90's and 100 at times. I shared with her Doctor her oxygen was rarely at 100 when she had her trach and he was surprised. I was nervous cause he said that depending on how she did he might have had to put the trach back in, but like always she passed with flying colors. He stayed by her bedside for about 40 minutes and was real pleased with how well she was breathing on her own. Once the trach was removed she could immediately tell something was different and she stuck her pointer finger in her stoma (hole) and had a surprised look on her face as she looked at her finger, she was not expecting that....lol. The Doctor said that usually when the patient is not ready for de-cannulation (trach removal) you will see signs right away like low oxygen levels, straining to breath and discomfort, Paula was showing no signs that she was not ready. After they gave her a breathing treatment and medication to help with any swelling around her stoma, and all the medical staff left, It was just my baby girl and I. I thanked my Father in Heaven for her, and allowing me to be able to witness his healing powers. If all continues to go well we should be going home tomorrow, but her Doctor did stress to me that at anytime she might need her trach replaced not to worry, her accomplishment today was a huge milestone. She has since began to really cry, and now can really begin to talk. She loves for me to rub and scratch her neck, she reminds me of a little kitten. Thank you again to everyone for your love and support and the many prayers in Paula's behalf. For those of you who did not know my Aunt Paula, she was a Beautiful, humble, amazing woman who taught others so much in her short 23 years on this earth. I couldn't have chosen a better name for my sweet baby girl and I see alot of my Aunts precious spirit in her. I like to think its because my Aunt took such good care of my baby before she came to me....

O Happy Day!!!!!!!!!

Well, the day has finally come. Today we went to Georgetown University Hospital for Paula's Bronchoscopy and Lyrnxosocopy (scope out her Trachea) and the Doctor felt she was ready to have her trach removed!!!!!!! She had some scar tissue that had formed just from her having the breathing tube down her throat for so long when she was first born. So the doctor removed the scar tissue and she the first night she will still have her trach, just to allow her trachea to heal, we will be spending a couple of nights in the PICU (Pediatric Intensive Care Unit). She will be closely monitored tonight and tomorrow morning her Doctor will come up and remove her trache completly. Thank you to everyone who had loved and prayed for her she is truely a miracle to be witnessed. I will be sure to post a update tomorrow.

Update!!!!!

Well, sorry it had taken me so long to post an update but my life has been a little bit busy these days. So much has happened in the past few months that I don't even know where to begin, this picture was taken on Mothers Day 2008 we were visiting Nana Dee Dee and had dinner. Since my last post we have bought a house, a 4 bed 2 bath rambler with tons of space. Paula is growing and amazes me every single day. She began to crawl the end of May while we were in the processes of moving and has just begain to walk!!!! My precious baby boy is looking more and more like a big boy rather than a baby...=( I am learning so much my second time around..lol. As for Chris and I we are great, enjoying parenthood. He loves his job working with D.C. WASA and I am loving staying at home and watching my babies grow.

First time Mom, Again!

While Paula was at Georgetown University Hospital recovering from her Tracheostomy we found out that we were going to be parents again! We were exstatic, after having a less than normal pregnancy and childbirth with Paula, I must admit I was a little nervous about this pregnancy. However they had me on every medication they could think of and took all the necessary precautions to ensure this bun was staying in the oven until the egg timer said so. Well, he did, and at 38 weeks I gave birth to my beautiful baby boy, Christopher Michael Cusic Jr. a.k.a C.J., Needless to say I was a first time mom for the second time. Everything was new to me, after my 26 week mark (when paula was born) I was in uncharted waters and I had a blast! The birth was smooth and easy ( thank goodness for percocet!) My babies are only 13 months apart and I love it! They love eachother so much and actually play well together. C.J. is starting to catch up to Paula and they look more like twins now, but you can really tell the age difference once you see them play together.

Our Miracle

This is our precious piece of heaven a couple of weeks after she was born. She came into this world on December 13th, 2006 when her actual due date was March 16th, 2007. That's right, a whole 14 weeks premature. She weighed 1 lb 13 oz. and was a mere 13 inches long. She has had a very rough start. And for those of you who do not know her story (which I find hard to believe because we share it with everyone we know) we were once told that there was no way she would be able to breathe on her own, and we should consider thinking about how long we wanted to sustain her on the ventilator. I remember that day as if it were yesterday. We sat across the table from her doctors and nurses that took care of her and my answer to that question was "If she is not meant to be here any longer then I will not have to make that decision." But the Lord had other plans for his little one.

And this is her today, a beautiful, vibrant, active toddler who keeps me on my toes along with her 4 month old brother C.J. We love you Paula Marie, and can't imagine a day without you. You and your brother are the light of my life.

It's Official

I am a blogger, or at least I am going to try to be. I am not to sure where I will find the time but I will try to keep everyone updated on our happenings. Well we have reciently bought a house, modular home to be correct. It is 1707 sq foot, 4 bedroom, 2 bath, family room, and living room with fireplace. We will be going to settlement on the 27th so we will be moving shortly after that. Things were just getting to crowded at Chris's grandmothers house, not that we really wanted to go but I have come to realize that children come with lots of stuff, or their Nana's buy them everything they want...=) Anyway, this next week to come will be super busy for us because besides the move, Paula will be going in for a procedure on the 30th to see if she is ready to have her trach removed. If she is not ready yet (meaning her airway still needs more time to heal and grow) then they will be putting in a larger size trach for her little growing body. She is finally pulling herself up in her crib and her Physical Therapist doesn't think it will be long before she will be crawling, then my life as I know it will be over! None the less I am so stoked to see her progressing as a healthy, active, toddler. This week we were finally able to turn her around in her car seat to face forward and she loves it, her body may be small but her mentality is so mature and she was ready to take on the world. C.J. on the other hand is catching up to her is currently 16 lbs and 24 1/2 inches long at his last doctors visit. He is in the 75 percentile for his weight and the 25 percentil for his height, so he is short and round like everyone else in his family =). I will be sure to post more updates on the house as the time comes close with pictures and everything.