Collins Family

Hospital Stay

2010-04-05T17:15:00.000-07:00

Ok, where do I start???
Well, Wednesday Mackenzie was admitted to the hospital for an abscess that was forming on her back. She had fever and had been on antibx at home, so they thought she needed to be admitted for IV antibx and possible surgery to drain it. Through the week, she progressively got worse. Fevers continued and the abscess grew bigger and bigger despite the antibx. Then, a few days after being there, they discovered that the culture that was done of the abscess was resistant to the antibx she was on....so they switched them and I also was able to drain a lot of the pus out one night after a hot bath!!! The next day (Friday), she was doing better. Fevers were going down and she was finally starting to eat and drink again!!! Yay, road to recovery, or so we thought. Saturday evening, she was in the "treatment room" with another nurse and myself to get a new IV placed....she decided to have a seizure!!! Very scary thing to watch as a mother. The neurologist has told me that she could possibly have seizures due to the PVL (periventricular leukomalacia) in her brain....but I thought "she has come this far" and thought we were in the clear. So I am waiting on what the neurologist says about the seizure...hopefully we will just have to watch her and keep track before we start her on meds.
Anyway, as of now, she is doing great. Dr Sue drained the abscess today at the bedside (Mackenzie was sedated) and so hopefully she will not need the surgery. The plan right now is to have labs drawn in the morning and if those look good and neurology clears us.....WE ARE OUT OF HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our House

2010-03-15T14:44:00.000-07:00

A few from Feb

2010-03-15T14:15:00.000-07:00

Pics are finally here

2010-03-15T14:04:00.000-07:00

Ok, so we left you with Christmas pictures...here are some from Jan.
We were at a Bday party which was held at bounce house warehouse. Mackenzie loved it, she got to climb all over everything and didn't matter if she fell! She also got to drive a race car with Daddy which of course played music!!
I haven't figured out why the blogger puts the pictures in this order, but I am working on it so it looks a little more in order.

Pictures to come...

2010-02-21T17:42:00.000-08:00

I promise that tomorrow, after I take Mackenzie to school, I will work on uploading pictures from my camera and post them. A lot has been going on around here lately....We bought our first house on Dec 9, 2008!!! We have done a lot of work to it, but also have a lot of work left! I will add some pics of the house tomorrow too. Mackenzie is growing up so fast, I can't believe independent she has become. She is walking all over the place, and says new words everyday. She goes to preschool full time now and has been one of the best things for her. She has made a lot of friends and is learning so much!! Mike is doing well at his job, improving his skills everyday too. I am currently taking a class offered by my hospital to improve my skills in nursing. It will basically allow me to work either on the pediatric floor (which is where I will be most of the time) and also in the pediatric ICU!! They are paying me to go and it is something I have always wanted to learn. So long story short, things are good here...sorry we haven't put much up lately, but we have had internet problems and been working a lot on the house. Now that things are getting back to normal, I hope to have some posts up on a more regular basis...

Update

2009-12-24T08:26:00.001-08:00

Well, I don't have any pictures right now because I have not had internet at my house. But as most of you know, we recently moved into our new home!! It is absolutely wonderful!! The house is a MESS...Mike knocked down one of our bedroom walls and then in Mackenzie's room there was some mold we had to take care of!! So, it's kind of hectic right now, still living out of boxes and sleeping on our mattress on the living room floor, but it is OURS!!!!!
We all have been sick, Mike is by far the worst. He was begging for a trip to the hospital the other morning...but I made him hold out to go to the dr office when they opened. He has a nasty upper respiratory infection, but is now on antibx and doing a little better. Mackenzie is starting a new daycare on Monday, we are not happy with the one she is at now. It is a little more expensive, but necessary for her to change!!!
We are going to my mom's for Christmas this year and are very excited to see how Mackenzie will react. Last year she was only 4 weeks old for Christmas and was fresh out of the NICU, so she really didn't get to do much!!! We are very excited to share the holidays with family this year since we missed last year!!!!

A few more that wouldn't fit

2009-11-24T14:52:00.001-08:00

2009-11-24T14:46:00.000-08:00

We took Mackenzie to Babies R Us on Sunday and had her 1 yr and Christmas pictures done. I think they turned out really good...here they are :-)

Andrew's Bday party

2009-11-19T17:55:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we went to Tradewinds Park for Andrew's 1st Bday party. We got to pet animals at the petting zoo, ride a pony, and play on the playground. Mackenzie wasn't too crazy about the helmet she had to wear when it was time to ride the pony, but she finally got used to it. I thought she might be scared to ride, but she loved it. Mommy walked with the pony and Daddy held onto Mackenzie. She had a great afternoon playing with all the other kids...I love her face in that helmet too :-)

Mackenzie Turns 1!!!!

2009-11-19T17:52:00.001-08:00

So, my baby turned 1 on Nov 17th!! I cannot believe my little miracle is doing so well. It brings tears to my eyes to think about the things we were going through a year ago. God has definitely given Mike a I a very special gift and I thank him for her everyday!!!!

Of course I couldn't get much of a smile out of her, oh well!!

On the move...

2009-11-09T14:57:00.001-08:00

Mackenzie has been on the move a lot lately. Here are a few pics I got today while she was cruising around the living room with her car!!!

2009-11-09T14:51:00.000-08:00

We went to Zoe's 2nd birthday party last weekend at the Garden's Mall. We had pizza in the food court, then off to Build-A-Bear for the party!!! Here are some pics of Mackenzie loving her pizza, cookie with frosting, and of course her bear!

Hurry Mommy, we need to get to the front to pay for our bear's clothes!

Yummy cookie!!!

This one daddy....this one!!!!!

Happy Halloween!!

2009-11-01T07:26:00.001-08:00

We dressed Mackenzie up as a lady bug for halloween this year. Friday night, Mike DJ'd at the hospital for the Diabetic Halloween Party. Mike of course made the party...had all the kids dancing and playing games. It is a such a good way to keep their minds of "not being able to eat candy"!!!!
Saturday, Mike DJ'd another pary, so Mackenzie and I went to my girlfriends house and hung out there. We trick or treated, ate lots of great food and hung out in the street with all the neighbors!!!
Here are a few of the pics I got of her before we left! This first pic is at the party Friday night...she had on Michelle's crazy glassess!!! It was hilarious!!!

Pumpkins!!!

2009-10-20T07:25:00.001-07:00

We went to Lakeland over the weekend for a friend's wedding and to see family! Saturday, we went to Brandenton to the Pumpkin Festival...here are a few of the pics I got while we were there. It just so happened to be Mackenzie's 11 month bday ;-) on Saturday, so I am using the pumpkin pic for her 11 month shot!!!

Mylee and Mackenzie!!

Light the Night

2009-10-09T22:25:00.000-07:00

Here is a random picture I got one afternoon while we were out looking at houses.

We walked for the Light the Night benefit tonight. It is a mile walk and the money raised by the walkers goes toward research for the Children's Cancer Foundation. The walk starts downtown at the Meyer Ampitheater...so of course on stage they had a DJ...therefore, that is where Mike was before and after the walk started!!! Here is a pic I got before we left.

New foods

2009-10-01T13:17:00.000-07:00

Well, lately Mackenzie has not been to excited about babyfood. I have always made her babyfood at home, the store bought stuff is gross!!! She wants what Mommy and Daddy have, she is very independent!! So, last night I cooked some ground turkey, sweet potatoes, squash, and zuccini. I cut the potatoes into cubes and cooked the squash/zuccini alot to make them really mushy. She loved it!!!! She made quite a mess, but none the less she ate every last bite!!
Here are some pics I got while she was eating :-)

No House Yet

2009-09-30T12:37:00.000-07:00

Well, we had the house inspected today and found out that the wood around all the windows is rotted. It's probably from water damage, but it is scary to see how much is rotten. The whole house has a wood frame, so it may even be from termites. So, needless to say we are cancelling the contract because we obviously don't have the money to fix everything....and quite frankly don't think we should have to fix so much on something we just bought. So we are back to square 1 and looking again for something else.
On a happier note, Macknezie saw her GI specialist yesterday and she no longer has to see him. She has been off of her reflux meds for 6 weeks and has done really well. She is off a premmie chart and growing wonderfully. Yay...one less doctor to drag her to!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NEW HOME

2009-09-28T12:01:00.000-07:00

Well, we finally did it!!! We have bought our first home...we have not closed yet, but we should soon!! Our monthly morgage payment will be less than what we pay for rent, kind of crazy huh?!? I don't have any pics yet, but hopefully later this week I will. Now we just have to find someone to sublease our apartment!!! Obviously we cannot pay for a house and an apt, so please keep us in your prayers!!

Disney Princesses on Ice

2009-09-27T18:21:00.000-07:00

Mike's company had some extra tickets to see Disney Princesses on Ice last weekend. I thought Mackenzie would be too young, but she actually loved it. She laughed and clapped the whole time!!! She loved all the lights and people. When Mickey Mouse came out, I thought she was going to jump over the balcony to get down to them :-)
Here are a few pics we took while we were there.

Hanging Out With Grannie

2009-09-27T18:18:00.001-07:00

Mike's mom came to stay the week and spend some time with Mackenzie. They had a lot of fun all week while Mommy and Daddy worked!!!!

One more...wouldn't fit

2009-09-17T12:45:00.001-07:00

This one wouldn't fit on the other post...

10 Months Old

2009-09-17T12:40:00.001-07:00

Mackenzie is 10 months old!!! I can't believe how fast she is growing up!! Here are some pics we had taken at Babies R Us today...we were strolling down the isle and a woman stopped and asked if she could take some pics for their portfolio. Although Mackenzie has not been feeling well, she seemed to like the lady enough to give me a few smiles.

More surgery....

2009-09-11T11:35:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, I will be having more surgery on Wednesday. I saw the surgeon on Tuesday and he is not to pleased with the way the hole in my abdomen is healing. With my diabetes, it's just taking too long for him. I have seen him on a weekly basis for almost 2 months now, and we are beating our heads against a brick wall, so he wants to take me to the OR and clean it out. He thinks my body might be rejecting a stitch that's underneath my skin. He told me it is out patient and should be able to work right away. I took the day after off so I could relax, but hopefully will be able to work on Friday. I am of course nervous bc the last surgery was supposed to be out patient and we all know how that turned out :-)
Please pray for me and my family and I pray the God lays his hands on the surgeon while he does his work.

Random pics

2009-09-08T07:20:00.000-07:00

Lima beans and rice!!

2009-09-08T07:17:00.001-07:00

Mike and I had lima beans and rice for dinner last night...and of course Mackenzie doesn't want her food, she wants what we have. So, I mashed the beans and mixed them with some rice and she went crazy...the bowl was empty in a matter of minutes.

Beach Trip

2009-08-24T06:43:00.000-07:00

We went to Vero this weekend to see Adam for his birthday. Mackenzie had so much fun splashing in the water. Because of the storm, the waves/under toe were too much to go into the water, so we sat at the edge and played in the dirt!!! One wave actually knocked Mackenzie over!!!

Hangin out in mommy's beach chair while daddy set up the shade :-)

Here she is waiting very patiently for us to get dressed to go down to the beach!!

Happy Birthday Adam!!!

2009-08-24T06:39:00.001-07:00

We drove up to Vero Beach on Friday to hang out with Adam for his birthday!!! I can't believe he is 12 years old already...I remember his first Christmas! Mackenzie had fun swinging on the swing set that is outside the room!! She had a little trouble understanding that she had to hold on, so she didn't get to swing too high, but she still had a good time out there!

9 Months Old

2009-08-18T18:21:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics I got of Mackenzie yesterday!!!
9 Months Old already.....boy, time flies when your having fun!!!

Quick update

2009-08-14T11:33:00.000-07:00

Mackenzie had her 9 month check up and shots today. She is doing great, catching up wonderfully!! She is 17lbs 14oz and 28 1/4 inches long! She is in the 40th percentile for weight and 70th percentile for length on a "normal" growth chart, not a premmie chart!!!! We are so proud of our girl and thank God for her and her health everyday!

From 4 wheelers to bath time...

2009-08-11T14:06:00.000-07:00

Mike drug out Mackenzie's 4-wheeler to see what she would do with it. She had a blast while Mike pushed her around the living room!!

After the exciting 4-wheeling, we put Mackenzie in the tub....and of course, she had fun splashing around in there!

Standing Tall

2009-08-11T14:02:00.000-07:00

Here is how I found Mackenzie yesterday afternoon. I guess it's time to lower the crib down again...

She is so proud that she can stand up and play with her toys.

Stuck

2009-08-09T13:31:00.000-07:00

My last week at the hospital, my aunt and cousin came to help with Mackenzie. Here is Mackenzie trying to get to Adam's video game remote!!!

This is one night when she was crawling around on the living room floor and managed to get her legs stuck under the couch. Mike thought it was pretty funny so he snapped a couple of pictures of her reaction.

Chicken Bone!!!

2009-08-09T13:25:00.000-07:00

One night when I was at home in between hospital visits Mike grilled some chicken legs for dinner. Mackenzie is always wanting what we are eating, so Mike's mom gave her a chicken bone to chew on. She was tearing that thing up...sucking every ounce of juice off of it!!!

Some new pics

2009-08-09T13:21:00.001-07:00

While I was in the hospital, Mike's mom and sister were here to help with Mackenzie. Here are a few of pictures they took of her...she has learned to smile at the camara whenever someone tells her to say "cheese"...it's really cute :-)

Here she is with her auntie Lou...having a good time :-)

This is one night in the bath tub with daddy...she loves taking a bath. Of course once she heard "say cheese", she was all smiles for the camera!!

Finally home...

2009-08-06T20:05:00.000-07:00

I am finally home! I had to wait to get a dose of antibx first, so I didn't get home until 8 or 8:30...but I am finally here. I am home with IV antibx for 10 days, but at least it's at home and not at the hospital!!

Update...

2009-08-05T14:20:00.000-07:00

Well, I might get to go home tomorrow! I am having a regular diet for dinner tonight, and if all goes well tonight and tomorrow morning...I get to go home!! I have had a great day today. I have been up and about, drinking water, milk, juice, etc. No belly pain...a little crampy, but that is to be expected. The surgeon is very pleased with my progress and we are all praying that we are at the end of this adventure! Thank you to everyone for your prayers...I will keep you updated as much as possible. Hopefully I will be writing a note tomorrow from my house :-)

Back again....

2009-07-31T00:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I was doing pretty well at home over the past few days. But this morning around 2am, I woke up feeling quite nauseous. I went for a walk around the neiborhood hoping it was gas, but when I got back I was still feeling lousy. I asked Mike to run across the street to Walgreens to get me pepto and as soon as I got some in my mouth, I started throwing up green bile. As a nurse, I knew this was bad. I called the hospital where I work and spoke with one of the peds resident's who is a friend of mine. She suggested I come in to the ER and get some tests done. So at around 4:30am we arrived and I am still here. Thank the Lord that Mike's mom is here this week....we were able to leave Mackenzie at home with her. Well, I had a CT done, and it showed a small bowel obstruction. I have another NG tube and I am not allowed to eat or drink anything. I saw my surgeon this afternoon and he said we will just have to rest my bowel and see what happens. My body might fix itself, if not then I have to have more surgery. As you can imagine, that is the last thing I want to have to do. Please keep me in your prayers as I recover from this. If surgery is needed, the surgeon said it will be a little more extensive than before, so I would really rather sit here for a few days with my NG tube and get better with God's help, not the surgeons!

Finally Home!!!

2009-07-27T06:39:00.001-07:00

Well, as some of you may know...I finally made it home from the hospital on Sunday afternoon. For those of you who don't know, my surgery turned out to be quite extensive! Instead of the quick 2hr surgery, it took about 6hrs! My OBGYN went in with a small camara to look around and try to figure out why I was having pain. They saw nothing!!!! My uterus and ovaries where PERFECT...but as he was about to pull out, he saw some adhesions in my small bowel! He then got a nurse to step into the hall and find a GI surgeon fast! She found one, and he graciously stepped in and took over the case. He told me it took him 2 1/2 hrs to clean out all the adhesions in my small bowel. He had to do a small bowel resection because it was damaged beyond repair...only about an inch though. He was definetely sent from God to be in that hallway at that particular moment. My OB told me that if they were unable to find anyone at that time, they would have to close me back up and wait for me to become obstructed and then it would be emergent and GI would then take me. Anyway, with all the anasthesia, it took them awhile to wake me up in recovery and they would not let Mike in...which did not go over well with him at all. I finally woke up at around 4:30pm and was alone and in a lot of pain. Overall, it was a pretty bad day for all of us, but God pulled us through and I am now home where I belong.
As some of you may now, I had adhesions removed about 10 yrs ago. The GI surgeon told me then that I would probably have them again in about 10-15 yrs...I was right on time. The surgeon went in the same incision, this time I got a drain which helped with the post-op pain, but let me tell you, it was not fun getting that thing out yesterday!!!!! I have a HUGE scab on the inside of my nose where my NG tube was, but that should heal too. Mike's mom and sister are here for the week to help me with the baby. My parents went home Sunday afternoon....thenk you to them for everything they do for us!!!
It's hard not being able to pick up Mackenzie and I hate that she doesn't understand. She is doing well though, lots of grandparents to keep her entertained!
Please keep our family in your prayers and pray for a fast recovery!
Some pics to come....

It's been awhile!!

2009-07-19T05:11:00.000-07:00

I know it has been awhile...and I'm sorry. I do have a few new pics of Mackenzie, but I am at work today so I am unable to post them right now. She is doing great! We were at the pulmonologist office the other day and she weighed 16lbs 12oz! She is crawling around like crazy and she is into EVERYTHING!!!! She has two teeth now, and loving the fact that she gets some "big girl foods". I am not sure how much will be posted for awhile...I am having surgery on Tuesday of this week. Hopefully outpatient, but we will see. They say that I might need to stay for a 23hr observation. Anyway, please keep us in your prayers over the next few days. Thankfully, my mom is coming to keep Mackenzie for us so that is one thing I will not have to worry about if I end up staying the night. I work tomorrow until 3...I will try to get some pictures up when I get home. If not, I will post them as soon as possible.

Bills, bills, bills

2009-07-06T13:11:00.001-07:00

Drinking Daddy's kool-aid....yummy!!!

Having a snack while Mommy tries to get dinner started!!

Here is what Mackenzie thinks about the bills!!!!!

A few new things...

2009-07-06T13:08:00.001-07:00

Mackenzie has been doing a few new things lately. Sitting (briefly) on her own and TRYING to crawl. She gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth, then plops down on the ground. She will be up and moving in no time!!!!!
PS...video to come! ( I have to use Mike's work computer to get it to download)

Tooth!!!

2009-07-06T13:06:00.001-07:00

I finally got a good shot of Mackenzie's tooth!!!! It's really coming in, and there are more to come for sure!!!!!

new stuff

2009-06-30T13:59:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I don't have any pics...but I do have a few new things.
Mackenzie is cutting her first tooth!!!!!! So far, so good. No fever or fussiness.
She had a physical therapy evaluation done this afternoon and it went very well. The reason for the visit was because of two things...number one, she is a premature baby...number two, the neurologist noticed that when she stands, she tends to stand on the inside part of her feet. Well, the therapist told us today that she is "advanced" in most of her skills and she showed me some stretches I can do for her feet!!!! I am so glad things are going well for her. No PT appointments necesary!!!!!
As far as her tooth, I haven't been able to get a picture that makes it visible. I can feel it though, and I'm sure she can too. She drools like crazy and wants to put EVERYTHING in her mouth!!! Hopefully I will have a picture of it soon!!!

Father's Day

2009-06-23T17:43:00.000-07:00

Here is Mackenzie helping Mommy make breakfast for Daddy on Sunday morning. She had so much fun sitting in the kitchen with me. When I handed her the wisk, she went to town on those eggs!!!!
Happy Father's Day Daddy....We Love You!!

7 Months Old!!!

2009-06-17T15:43:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby is 7 months old today!!!! We had a check up with the neurologist today and she had a wonderful report!!! She needs to have a physical therapy evaluation done because she has some tightness in her feet/ankles and we don't want it to be problematic when she starts walking.
She weighted in at 15lbs 13oz and 27 1/4 inches long!!!!

Shane's BBQ

2009-06-15T13:53:00.001-07:00

Well, on our way back from Gville, we stopped to get some take out from Shane's Ribhouse...(LOVE that place). Mike had a plate full of ribs until Mackenzie got a hold of them!!!!

Gville

2009-06-15T13:51:00.000-07:00

We went to Gainesville over the weekend to see some friends and Mike DJ'd a wedding. Here are a few pics we took while we were there.

Surgery news

2009-06-10T15:37:00.000-07:00

Well, Mackenzie had her surgery on Monday to have her tongue clipped. Everything went wonderful, we were home by 1030 am!!! So far, she is doing pretty well, not eating much babyfood, but taking her bottle like a champ. She is requiring a little bit of pain medicine, but that is to be expected. Please keep her in your prayers as she continues to recover!!

Bubble Bath!!

2009-06-03T18:13:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics I took of Mackenzie in the bath tub with Daddy!!!!

Sippy cup

2009-06-01T09:43:00.000-07:00

Mackenzie is learning how to use her sippy cup....she's getting good at holding it, still learning that stuff comes out when she sucks on it though :-)

New toy

2009-06-01T09:02:00.001-07:00

We were cleaning up the DJ/Guest room on Sunday afternoon so when my parents get here they can actually find the bed!! Of course, Mackenzie is all over the place these days, so we put her on the bed and she just LOVED kicking the ball up against the wall.

Here is a few pics of her real "new toy". We have been looking for something other than the walker to put her in!!! These exersaucers are great, I can't wait until she figures out that she can bounce in it and spin around in the seat. Of course they are expensive...but I found this one on craiglist for only $20!!!!!!

New stuff...

2009-05-25T17:16:00.001-07:00

Here is Mackenzie playing with her new piano...we got it for her today while we were at Walmart. She LOVES it!!! She just bangs away on those keys...it is sooooo cute!!

This was dinner tonight. Holding her own bottle!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She can only do it for a little bit, but she is at least trying! Everytime she has a bottle, I make her hold her hands on it so she can learn to hold it herself!!! We have been practicing for the last few days, and this was the first time she held it by herself!

All Dressed Up ;-)

2009-05-25T17:09:00.000-07:00

The other night, we decided to get dressed up and go to dinner. We had some Outback gift cards to spend and hadn't seen much of each other this week...work has been crazy!!!
PS...excuse my dark roots, I'm finally going to make it back to Gville and I'm getting my hair done there!!!

1st Cookie

2009-05-19T13:41:00.000-07:00

Well, we have been looking all over the place for some teething cookies for Mackenzie. The only thing I could find was Organic cookies...in other words double the cost...and yuck!!! So, then I remembered my cousin putting something on her blog about these cookies that Isabella loved and were not a big mess!!! So, I finally found some at Wal-mart (gotta love that place!)...and let Mackenzie try one last night.
This is what went down :-)

As you can see, those cookies were no match for those gums!!!!!

6 months old!!!

2009-05-18T12:14:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby is 6 months old already!!!! She is growning sooooo fast, I can hardly keep up :-)

Day at the Pool

2009-05-16T12:19:00.000-07:00

We we are getting ready to head to the pool!!!

Mackenzie loved splashing in the water!

Here she is in her turtle floaty that we borrowed from a friend!!

Sleeping Baby...

2009-05-16T12:18:00.000-07:00

Mackenzie loves to sleep with her face in the corner of the bed :-) Here is what I found the other day when I went in to check on her during her nap!!!!

The Beach!!!

2009-05-05T11:22:00.000-07:00

Sunday, we were invited by Dr Sue to go to her beach house up in Vero!!! We had sooooo much fun. A few people from work went with their kids too, Mackenzie did great. She just hung out all day, no complaints as long as she got to eat on time!! Here are a few of the pics we took while we were there!

New pics...

2009-04-27T12:36:00.000-07:00

We had a friend who is starting up her own photography business come over on Saturday afternoon to take some pictures of Mackenzie for her webpage!!! We got a few of the preview shots, we should have a whole cd with lots and lots of pictures in a few weeks!!! Here are a few of the pics I copied from her webpage!

Also, we had a check up at the doctor's office today...Mackenzie weighted in at 13 lbs 3oz and she was 25 1/2 inches long!!!!

Thanks Nana...

2009-04-22T20:04:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics of Mackenzie in her dress that Nana bought her :-)

Look what Daddy tried to cook for dinner last night!!!!

Mackenzie's Day at School!!!

2009-04-21T15:07:00.000-07:00

Mackenzie wanted to tell me all about her day at school on Monday!!! This is what she had to say :-)

Cool shades...

2009-04-21T14:58:00.001-07:00

Mike and Mackenzie came to have lunch with me at work on Sunday. This is what Mackenzie looked like when she came around the corner :-) Mike said she is always closing her eyes outside when she gets in the sun, so he put these on her to see what she would do and she seems to like them!!!

DJ Mackenzie!!!

2009-04-18T18:54:00.000-07:00

Mike was playing around with his DJ equipment the other day and had Mackenzie....next thing I knew he called me in to show me what he taught her :-)

5 months old!!!!

2009-04-18T18:50:00.000-07:00

Mackenzie turned 5 months old yesterday...I didn't get any pics because I had to work, but I managed to get some today :-) She is doing well, growing so fast :-) We are so lucky that she is so healthy and we thank God everyday for putting her in our lives.

Finally got my 4 month pics...

2009-04-18T18:48:00.000-07:00

Easter weekend

2009-04-18T18:42:00.001-07:00

I know it's been awhile, but here are a few things that have been going on lately. Easter weekend we went to my parents house...we got a few pics of Mackenzie in her Easter dress...

Here are a few more pics we took over the weekend.

Cereal time :-)

2009-04-04T18:25:00.000-07:00

Well, Mackenzie and I tried a little rice cereal tonight...and I must say that it went pretty well. She seemed to do pretty well with it, with such a full belly she ought to sleep like a champ tonight!!!

Finished the whole thing!!!!

Finished product

2009-03-30T18:25:00.001-07:00

Found one!!!!!

New studs!!!!

2009-03-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

We took Mackenzie to Claire's to get her ears pierced on Sunday afternoon. Mike was brave enough to hold her, which was very suprising to me because he hates seeing her cry. She did great, although some of the pictures look like we were killing her...she has done great since. She lets me clean them and turn them no complaints.

THis is the finished product, not too bad :-)

We don't have a good picture of her ears with the earrings in, but we will get one soon!!

Some new pics

2009-03-27T14:58:00.001-07:00

This was taken when we were in Gville. Mackenzie and Peyton are buddies and he loves taking care of her when we are there :-)

Laughing out loud :-)

2009-03-27T14:54:00.000-07:00

Well, we finally got proof of Mackenzie laughing!!!! She is doing it more and more each day. She is finally smiling at lots of different things. I'm so glad Mike's work computer is able to upload videos...for some reason we have not been able to get it to work with our other computer. Maybe when we get it back it will work better :-)

No computer...no pics :-(

2009-03-24T04:44:00.001-07:00

Well, our computer is in the shop again :-( Therefore, we are unable to post any new pics until we get it back. I am posting this at work...hopefully we will have our computer back soon. Anyway, Mackenzie is doing well. I must admit, she did much better with this last round of shots than the first ones. Her stuffy nose and cough have finally cleared up and she is feeling much better. We spent the weekend in Gainesville for Haley's birthday. It was alot of fun, we miss everyone so much...but we also like it when we get back home :-) We will be in Lakeland Easter weekend, so hopefully we will get to see lots of people.

4 Months Old!!!

2009-03-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, I can't believe my baby is 4 months old!!!! She got her shots today and weighted in at a whopping 11 lbs 8 oz!!!!!!! She is finally getting over all the cooties she has had the last few days and is feeling better :-) She is starting to hold her head up a little better, so we are going to try some cereal soon....we will let you know how that goes...and hopefully will have a few pics of the experience :-)

A day at the park...

2009-03-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

We had some friends come to visit over the weekend so we went to the park on Saturday to get out of the house for a while :-)
Before we went, Mackenzie got a bath...here are a few pics I took of her before we left the house.

Sick again :-(

2009-03-13T14:56:00.000-07:00

Well, we went to see the pulmonologist today for a check up and to get her monthly synagis injection. She has been congested since yesterday, but the doctor said today that her lungs sound good. He hooked her up to a pulse ox machine to check her oxygen levels and she was 95% which is good. He said to just watch her to make sure she doesn't get worse, so I will be bringing home the stethescope for the next few days to make sure her lungs don't get junky!!! Here are a few pics I took the other day...

BIG SMILES FOR MOMMY!!!!

AT THE PARK WITH MOMMY AND DADDY LAST WEEKEND

Mackenzie's Latest Adventure

2009-03-06T08:44:00.000-08:00

Well, Mackenzie has been in the hospital since Tuesday. She was up fussing alllllll night on Monday night and quit eating. We took her to the doctor on Tues and she had a fever and a high white count (meaning possible infection). So, we had to get admitted for a sepsis work up because she is still so young. (Better safe than sorry)...so she got a spinal tap, urine culture, blood culture, stool culture, and respiratory testing. Everything came back negative, but we had to wait 48hrs to get he final report. We were discharged this morning and she is doing pretty good. She has to take soy formula for about a week to let her stomach recover. I just have to watch her closely to make sure she doesn't get dehydrated from all her pooping and throwing up. It is much better now, so I hope she is on the mends.

Weekend in Lakeland

2009-03-02T11:38:00.001-08:00

Here we are trying to get a picture of everyone together. As you can see, Abby and William were over it and Mike and Jonathan could not be serious for more than 2 seconds!!!!

Here is Mackenzie snoozing in the back seat on the way to see Nana and Papa!!!

Smiling big, we finally made it to Lakeland :-)

Finally smiling :-)

2009-02-22T17:49:00.000-08:00

Waiting on daddy to take her to school...very patiently I might add :-)

Nap, what do you mean I have to take a nap, I don't want to take a nap right now...

Mommy, please don't make me take a nap.

Mommy finally got a good smile. I know the picture is kind of fuzzy, but she wouldn't smile at the camara only at mommy's face so the camara was over to the side.

MRI update

2009-02-16T16:35:00.000-08:00

Well, we had the pediatric radiologist look at Mackenzie's MRI and come to find out she does not even have a cyst or an infarct. She has what is called a PVL (periventricular leukomalacia). Basically, she has a small area of her brain (about 1cm in diameter) that was deprived of oxygen and is know swollen. There is no treatment and as long as she continues to meet her age appropriate milestones, she will be fine. There is a small chance that she will have some developemental delays, but the Dr told me since it is so small in size and she is doing so well so far, she doesn't think that will be the case. We just have to watch her closely to stay on top of her progress. Below is a website where I got some more information about it...
http://www.babyzone.com/drnathan/premature/pvl.asp
Or if you go to google.com you can type in PVL and find some info that way too. This will obviously be an ongoing thing, so please keep her in your prayers. We have complete faith that she will be fine and turn out to be a step ahead of the other kids her age :-)

MRI results...

2009-02-13T08:57:00.000-08:00

Well, I had the doctor I work with at the hospital pull up Mackenzie's MRI results for me yesterday and the news is good. As far as she could tell, the cyst MIGHT me completely gone. She is going to have the pediatric radiologist look it over and see what he thinks. They did find a SMALL bleed, but it is chronic (meaning it's been there a long time). It is nothing to be concerned about, we will just have to follow up on it and we will watch her closely to make sure she meets her "milestones" as she gets older. I'm not sure when we have to repeat the scan, hopefully not until she's about 12 months or so, but I will know more when we see the neurologist on Wed. I will keep everyone posted as I receive information...thank you to everyone for your prayers.

Update

2009-02-11T08:49:00.000-08:00

Well, Mackenzie and I are home from our trip to the hospital this morning. Her MRI went well, although it did take 2 doses of medicine to get her to go to sleep. She is stubborn like her daddy :-) She did stay asleep for the entire procedure, which means we won't have to repeat it next week!!!! She is very groggy, but doing well, we just have to watch her close for a few hours and make sure she doesn't develop any breathing problems. We should know results next week when we see the doctor again. I work tomorrow, so I'm going to try and see what I can find out then. We will keep you posted...thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers.

Go Gators...

2009-02-09T15:28:00.001-08:00

Daddy dressed me to go to Brayden's birthday party on Saturday.
Had to represent my Gators :-)

Gainesville Trip

2009-02-03T08:35:00.001-08:00

Peyton turns 2!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is the cake Crissy spent ALL NIGHT decorating. Turned out pretty nice I think!!

Peyton was very curious about Mackenzie. He was so cute checking her out.

Finally he decided that he wanted to feed her. Crissy says that God made Mackenzie so Peyton will one day have a perfect wife. :-)

I know it's been awhile :-)

2009-02-03T08:25:00.000-08:00

Look how big I'm getting!!!!!!

Check it out, I have a "fat roll"!!! Mommy was very excited about that :-)

Here I am after a long day at the doctor's office.....PASSED OUT :-)

Now for some updates. We went to see the ENT on Friday, he is going to cut her tongue when she is about 6 1/2 months old. If we did it now, we would have to spend the night at the hospital for her to recover from the anesthesia (because of her age) and it's not causing any feeding issues at this time, so we will wait.
We also went to the neurologist on Monday. (She has a small cyst in her brain). They are not very concerned about it, it should go away on it's own. There are two kinds, one that will go away or at least stay the same size and not cause any problems. The other kind could be an issue, if she hits her head just right, it could bleed out. So until we have an MRI, we don't know for sure which kind it is. So next week, we get to have an MRI done so we know for sure!!!!
So, as you can see it's been crazy around here...trying to get everything scheduled around my work schedule. When we were there on Monday, she weighted in at 9lbs 8oz and she is now 22 inches long!!! I can't believe how fast she is growing!!!

Weekend at Papa and Nana's house

2009-01-26T07:07:00.001-08:00

Mackenzie and I went to Lakeland over the weekend to suprise Nana for her Birthday!!! Daddy couldn't come because he had to work, we had a good time though. Lindsie brought Mylee by to meet Mackenzie and we snapped a few pics...she is so cute and I can't believe how big she is getting. We can't wait for the girls to grow together and hopefully will be as close as Lindsie and I are.

Sitting in my "big girl" seat...not so bad (for the moment anyway)

All dressed up and waiting on everyone else to go to Tampa...wonder what's taking them so long????

Naked on the couch watching some television and waiting for mommy to bring me clothes because I decided to poop all over the one's I had on :-)

Random

2009-01-22T08:41:00.001-08:00

Here are a few random pictures Mike took the other day...too funny!!

Some of her "firsts"

2009-01-22T08:25:00.000-08:00

Here is Mackenzie dressed and ready to go to her "first" day at her new daycare. She is going once/week to keep her spot so when I start back to work (in 3 weeks) she and the sitter will be comfortable with each other and I can go to work and not stress out about how she is doing. She is going to a home daycare which now only has 4 kids (including Mac) and the women is very nice and takes great care of my angel!!!!

Saturday we went to Lucas's 1st birthday party... and Mackenzie's "first" birthday invite!!!

Here is Lucas opening the present Mackenzie got for him!!!!

Here is Mike taking Mackenzie on her "first" slide. As you can see, she didn't show very much interest, but she will one day!!!

News from the doctors...

2009-01-16T20:21:00.000-08:00

Well, Mackenzie had ANOTHER doctor's appt today. Today we went to the Pulmonology doctor to get her monthy Synagis (sp?) injection. For those of you who don't know, Synagis is a drug given to premature babies to help reduce the risk of them getting RSV. I learned something about doctor's office scales today too. Earlier in the week, Mackenzie was 7.4lbs on the scale, which I assumed that meant 7lbs 4oz. I was wrong, it meant she was 7.4 pounds which calculates out to be 7lbs 9oz. So she has been a little bigger than I thought, and today she weighed in at 7lbs 13oz!!!!!! She has gained 3lbs since birth and is right on schedule. She should gain an average of 30 grams/day, and we calculated today that she has gained 29.7 grams/day since discharge from the hospital. Overall, she is doing wonderful. We got rid of the apnea monitor today, but got a home nebulizer. It's not for anything now, but the doctor wants in on hand with all of this weather change...if she starts to show signs of congestion, coughing, etc...he wants us to use it right away to try to keep her out of the hospital. I don't have any pics now, but I promise to post some soon!!!!

2 months

2009-01-13T07:32:00.000-08:00

Well, yesterday Mackenzie got her 2 month vaccinations. It was harder to deal with than I thought :-) It's a whole new world when it's your kid screaming. Anyway, she's doing okay with them so far. She is experiencing some vomitting from the rotovirus vaccine, but hopefully it will be over soon. She is up to 7lbs 4oz and 21.5 inches long!!! She is doing great, a little behind schedule with her milestones, but not suprisingly because technically she is still supposed to be inside of mommy's tummy :-) She will catch up, we just have to be patient.

Hanging out with dad

2009-01-10T11:38:00.001-08:00

Lounging on the couch with dad on Saturday afternoon :-) I got my ducky outfit on that Nana bought me!!!!!

GO GATORS!!!

2009-01-10T11:35:00.001-08:00

We took Mackenzie to Gator Dockside to watch the National Championship game on Thursday night. It was really loud and exciting, but Mackenzie slept right threw it all!!!! How lucky was that first shot I took of her and Mike in front of the big screens after the game!!!!!! The back drop happened to be Tim Tebow :-)

This one is for Papa...

2009-01-08T15:07:00.000-08:00

Getting ready to watch the Gators win their 2nd National Championship!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This one is for Nana...

2009-01-08T10:09:00.000-08:00

Here you go Nana...Thanks for the clothes you bought me (a month and 1/2 ago!!!). I can FINALLY fit into them :-)
Love you...Mackenzie

New pics...

2009-01-07T11:17:00.000-08:00

Mommy finally got a little smile out of her!!!!!

Here are pics of Mackenzie sleeping in her crib Papa built. It was a sad night for mom, but we are all sleeping a little better these days. Before you know it she will have her back pack on for school :-(

Bath time

2009-01-07T11:10:00.000-08:00

As you can see, Makenzie's not too excited about taking a bath!!!!

This is Mackenzie right before she pooped all over my dad and her outfit, which in return got herself a bath....see above :-)

This is daddy's new gun!!!!! My dad got it for him for Christmas, got to have something to scare away the boys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-01-07T11:04:00.000-08:00

My parents came to spend New Year's with us since we were unable to go to Lakeland for Christmas. Below are some pictures my dad took of Mackenzie :-)

Passed out on the couch, mommy was out getting her hair done, so Mac got to spend some one on one time with Papa.

Papa had a photo shoot with Mackenzie, how fun!!!!!!!

I had to get a few pics of my parents with Mackenzie, although she was not really in a photo taking mood :-)

Last but not least, we finally got a picture of the new family......Mike, Katie, and Mackenzie!!!!!

6 weeks old already!!!

2008-12-31T09:55:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures daddy took, I swear she gets more and more precious everyday!!!! We went to the pediatrician yesterday and Mackenzie is up to 6lbs 3oz!!!!!!!!!!!! She is growing and thriving well. She got her Hepatitis shot, which she most certainly did not like, and will get her 2 month shots in only 2 more weeks. I can't believe she is 6 weeks old already. I think because she was in the hospital so long, I missing about 4 weeks of time. Anyway, she is doing well and she cannot wait to meet the rest of her family!!!!!

Ready for Santa...

2008-12-29T11:12:00.000-08:00

We had a very quiet, uneventful Christmas morning!! It was different, but nice to be home alone with Mike and Mackenzie :-) We had a gift for each of us, and then we had some gifts from some of our friends in Gville for Mackenzie. After gifts, we went to Mike's boss's house for lunch with him and his family. It was fun, we had great food, and best of all we didn't have to cook!!!!

Bath...and Chair

2008-12-24T15:37:00.000-08:00

This is a picture of my new glider my mom and dad got me. I am so excited it is finally here, I ordered one online about 3-4 weeks ago and recently found out it was on back order until the end of January. So, not wanted to wait until then, I cancelled that order and ordered it from another website...and here it is!!!!!!!!

Here is Mike working hard to get it put together :-)

Well, our latest discovery is that Mackenzie manages to poop and pee outside of her diapers at times!!! She has been wearing newborn sized diapers, but today I had to break down and buy some premie diapers. They say that they fit up to 6lbs and she is almost there so I was trying to make due with the ones I already had, but she made it very clear this morning that they are a little too big. As a result she got "hosed" off in our bathroom sink!!!!!

She was not happy that daddy wanted to take pictures of her at that moment...she was naked for goodness sake :-)

New Stuff

2008-12-24T15:33:00.000-08:00

Well, we had to run to Publix today for some last minute things and Mike found these cute little shoes for Mackenzie. The funny thing is that they are key chains!!!!! They are the perfect length, but they are not quite wide enough :-) I took a picture of them next to her so you could see how small they are!!!!!! I wish they would have fit her, they are really cute :-)