Faith's Blended Diet and Other Things that Help with Her Digestion

-
Image
This page contains affiliate links and Faith's Mom may earn a commission if you use them. As an Amazon Associate, Faith's Mom earns from qualifying purchases.  Learn more.   Ever since Faith was born, she has struggled with her digestion. When she was in the NICU, she would spit up after eating even the tiniest amount of formula. Her dad and I were convinced her tummy was too small to handle large volumes of food. Sometimes when she ate, her heart rate would drop really low, which is why she needed to be in the NICU for longer. She just could not get the hang of eating and breathing at the same time!  Faith receiving food through an NG tube in the NICU.  Grandma giving Faith a bottle when she was 2 months old.  After finally bringing her home, eating continued to be an issue as she struggled with severe reflux and constipation. We tried various formulas, but she was never able to drink enough formula to gain a lot of weight. She also had trouble burping, and she...
2 comments

Faith's Thankful List 2016

-
This page contains affiliate links and Faith's Mom may earn a commission if you use them. As an Amazon Associate, Faith's Mom earns from qualifying purchases. Learn more. 

Every year I try to get Faith to come up with a thankful list so that we can remember what Thanksgiving Day is all about. But really, though, Faith is pretty good at being mindful of the things she is thankful for throughout the whole year.

Here are some of the things that made her list this year:

Family - She really does love her family, including all four of her grandparents, her aunts, uncles, and cousins. This year, a new baby joined the family - my great niece, Marla. Faith loves seeing her and likes to say she is her "big cousin." 

Besides seeing all of her mom's side of the family on a regular basis, she also enjoys talking to her auntie Joh to hear about her pets - Rosie and Ruby. She even gets to hear Ruby purr over the phone. She also likes talking to Rob's parents whom she calls Grandfather and Grandmother.

Faith at her grandma and grandpa's house with most of her cousins


 Prayers - She still loves having people pray for her, and some of the people who pray for her have been doing so most of her life. She has a wonderful group from church who pray for and with her on a regular basis, and they have been such a blessing to us. Many people in this group come to our home for visits as well. This year Faith had made a lot of headway in learning to pray for herself, and for others, which we do every night as a family.

TV Shows - Faith still loves watching some of her favorite TV shows. This year we got Amazon Prime, so she's been watching a lot of Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. She still likes Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood and good 'ol Barney. I've been trying to get her to watch some new shows that are more appropriate for her age such as 7th Heaven (which is also on Amazon Prime). She'll watch it, but I really have to coax her to watch the entire thing. And of course, we still watch Wheel of Fortune every night! This year, she even had a WOF birthday cake!

Faith's Wheel of Fortune Cake

Learning Spanish - Faith really wanted to learn Spanish this year as part of her homeschooling curriculum. Her auntie Barbara and uncle Todd got her a book and a dictionary so that we could look up all the words. Every day she'll ask something like, "how do you say neighbor in Spanish?" She's good at counting to ten and we're also trying to learn the Spanish alphabet, colors, and other words.

Faith with her auntie Barbara - her inspiration for learning Spanish!

Chiro and PT - Faith really likes her chiropractor. In the past, it's been hard to get her out of the apartment to get her to go to some of her appointments, but she always looks forward to seeing the chiropractor. Part of it is because she feels better afterward but sometimes, she wants to go just to visit. She also enjoys going to physical therapy. We found the perfect pediatric physical therapist to work with her, for which I'm also very thankful. 

Other things Faith is thankful for include:
Rob getting Tim Horton's in Fargo!

Faith with her prayer warrior, respite care provider, and friend - Janie!

 May you, too, find something or many things to be thankful for, not only on Thanksgiving, but each and every day. But most of all remember to "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His love endures forever." Psalm 107:1

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular Posts

Guest Post: Who Needs Sympathy?

-
Image
Guest Post by Stephen Gallup Last week, a columnist for the local newspaper interviewed me in connection with a memoir I wrote that’s being published this year. It was a comfortable, low-key discussion in which he asked about the basic facts regarding my disabled son Joseph and what I’ve learned that might be of value to other families. It was the sort of dialog that required no special preparation in advance. I just sat down with him and talked about the subject closest to my heart. But looking back on it now, one thing bothers me. In concluding the interview, the reporter expressed heartfelt sympathy for everything I’ve endured. He was being more than polite. I mean, he laid the compassion on with a spatula. Startled, and already thinking ahead to what I had to do next that day, I just thanked him and said goodbye. But now that final note troubles me. I don’t want sympathy! First of all, from the point of view of a new author hoping to promote his book, sympathy...
Read more

Our Review of Wheel of Fortune: The New Era

-
Image
This page contains affiliate links and Faith's Mom may earn a commission if you use them. As an Amazon Associate, Faith's Mom earns from qualifying purchases.  Learn more.   Last year, when I heard the news that Pat Sajak was retiring from Wheel of Fortune , I knew I better prepare Faith. When season 41 began, I told her, "This is Pat's last season. Next year, there will be a new host."  Faith likes Vanna but loves Pat!  Faith and I have faithfully watched Wheel of Fortune every night since she was about 5 years old. It's how she learned that AEIOU were vowels. The show was also a great way to reinforce the rest of the alphabet. Counting was reinforced, too. When Vanna turned the letters, she counted how many T's, N's, or other letters there were.  She also learned some geography skills with the different trips they gave away. Upon winning a trip to Aruba, she would ask, "Where's that?" Sometimes I honestly didn't know and had to loo...
Read more

Faith's Blended Diet and Other Things that Help with Her Digestion

-
Image
This page contains affiliate links and Faith's Mom may earn a commission if you use them. As an Amazon Associate, Faith's Mom earns from qualifying purchases.  Learn more.   Ever since Faith was born, she has struggled with her digestion. When she was in the NICU, she would spit up after eating even the tiniest amount of formula. Her dad and I were convinced her tummy was too small to handle large volumes of food. Sometimes when she ate, her heart rate would drop really low, which is why she needed to be in the NICU for longer. She just could not get the hang of eating and breathing at the same time!  Faith receiving food through an NG tube in the NICU.  Grandma giving Faith a bottle when she was 2 months old.  After finally bringing her home, eating continued to be an issue as she struggled with severe reflux and constipation. We tried various formulas, but she was never able to drink enough formula to gain a lot of weight. She also had trouble burping, and she...
Read more

Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month: Reflecting On Our Journey So Far

-
Image
Did you know there are 1 million people in the United States who have cerebral palsy? I guess that means Faith truly is one in a million!  Faith was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was six months old. Prior to that, she had been given the diagnosis of Periventricular Leukomalacia  (PVL). During her premature birth, there was a lack of oxygen to her brain, which resulted in damage to the white matter, or inner part of her brain.  I will never forget receiving that news. Faith's Dad and I were told that nobody knew what the long-term effects of PVL would look like for her. All I could do was stare at my tiny daughter lying in her isolette, hooked up to all kinds of tubes and lines, and choose to believe she would be okay.  Faith in the NICU a few days after she was born. After over 70 days in the NICU, we finally took her home to Watford City. There, she would receive regular visits from an Early Intervention team who would assess her and ensure that she met al...
Read more