Home Sweet Home

My sweet mom and sister had the house ready for us!

Yesterday marked one month since we got to come home from the hospital with our sweet little girl! Four weeks have never flown by so fast!

All dressed and ready to head home!

Olive has done so well since coming home! She nurses like it's her job and has put on well over two pounds. She has also grown four inches from her birth length! In general she is such a happy baby, and we are just over the moon in love with her!

In her car seat on the drive home!

On the way home I noticed that one of her pupils was not dilating the same as the other. We mentioned this to our pediatrician and she thought it was best that we have it checked out. We met with a Neuro-Ophthalmologist who diagnosed her with Horner's Syndrome. Basically this meant that at some point the very fragile nerve that connects to the eyelid and pupil had been damaged. He scheduled us for an MRI to rule out the possibility of a tumor being the cause. This was very scary news, but we are happy to report that the MRI came back clear of any tumors or neuroblastomas. We did find out that she suffered a small stroke, probably within her first few days of life. It is hard to not feel sad about how much she has gone through at such a young age. But the doctor reassured us that this was more than likely a solitary event and that the only damage it seems to have caused was the Horner's Syndrome.

Olive also had to go through a quick procedure to dilate her esophagus. After an esophagram, her surgeon decided it would be best to gently stretch out the area where they made the repair. She did so well! She was still smiling even after the lack of nursing for almost 4 hours, and she came out of the procedure smiling too!

Hanging with her papa and her puppy, Fargo!

We feel so blessed to be receiving the medical care she needs from such kind and talented people. Her surgeon and pediatrician are so excellent! They are both non-alarmists and so positive - they completely put us at ease whenever we start to feel scared or worried. We know that there will be ups and downs with her diagnosis, but we feel very positive that she will have a happy and healthy childhood and will get stronger every day!

Already making friends!

Here's to you Olive Rose! We love you so very much!!