11 Months Old

1/25/15

Today Carter turned 11 months old.  A little recap to the month of Carter's new tricks include looking for toys after he drops them and just recently he became an "official" sitter.  He requires very little support during sitting anymore and does a great job correcting his posture when he gets off-centered.  Carter still loves saying da, da, da, da, da which we tend to hear a lot more when he gets tired.  He is also saying "th" and a little bit of ba, ba as well.  He has become a master at rolling over from his belly to back but we are still working on back to belly.  He is becoming more consistent with his eating which makes mommy and daddy very happy.  His two bottom teeth and just about fully in so beware he is not afraid to chomp down on your fingers if they get close enough.  Every night him and I play and I couldn't think of doing anything else.  He is my little buddy and I cannot wait to see what he continues to have in store for us each month.  Enjoy his 11 month old pic.

I'm a model patient

1/21/15

Today Carter went to see Dr. Gold, his ophthalmologist in Orlando.  He performed tonometry testing to make sure his intra-ocular pressure was normal then he dilated his eyes to look at the retina and other structures.  Throughout the entire exam Carter did amazing.  When we were first called back the nurse was entering in all of his information and then asked us if we had an email they could enter and Carter answered with a very emphatic nod "NO".  It was a good laugh.  Dr. Gold was very impressed with how well Carter did getting his eyes dilated then having his exam.  Dr. Gold said he wished all of his patients had Carter's demeanor.  Carter smiled during it and had fun with Dr. Gold.  The great news is that we can say good-bye to ROP (retinopathy of prematurity).  We do not need to go back again for 1 year.  It is very exciting.  Here are some pictures documenting his visit to Dr. Gold.

The pre exam excitement

Hi Dr. Gold!!

It's getting bright in here

Gotta wear my shades

 

Happy New Year

1/14/15

I am just a little behind on my New Year post but I promise it will be worth while.  Carter, Katie and I are very happy to see 2015.  The year 2014 brought us many challenges that strengthened every aspect of our life.  As many of you know I started Carter's blog to help me sort out all that was happening as well as to keep all of you connected to how Carter was doing.  As I have continued his blog I have hopes that our experiences with having a micropreemie could and would in some way help others find strength and provide optimism that no challenge is too tough with the help of family, faith and friends.  With that said my 2015 Baby Carter Blog will continue to provide the updates you all have come to know and love....along with some pictures but it will also include topics that I feel may help others face some of the same challenges that we encountered along this journey.  Now onto a Carter update.  He is doing amazing!  He is a champ and has the most amazing personality.  We have recently changed his formula and he has been doing a lot better with his intake.  He has also been eating more baby food and is finally finishing off entire servings.  There have not really been any clear cut favorites but he tends to enjoy veggies more.  He had a pulmonology appointment earlier in the week to receive his RSV shot and since he is a whopping 17 pounds now he had to have two shots.  Some tears were shed but a little mommy loving dried them up quickly.  Next week we have an eye appointment in Orlando.  Fingers crossed all will go well and it will be our last visit for a while.  We also have another GI appointment coming up next month.  Now time for pictures of this little superman.

A little couch support but hey I'm standing!

Jumping makes me tired.