My very own miracle...

Today, my baby is TEN! I cannot even believe that I've been a mom for TEN YEARS. I remember how stressful those first few weeks were! Here is my baby, only a few hours after her premature birth. Maddie was born 8 weeks early, and weighed in at a whopping 3lbs, 11oz. She spent a total of 14 days in the hospital, and came home on my birthday, April 14, 1998. My best birthday ever. When your preemie is born, nobody can tell you what you want to hear. That your baby will be fine, and that your baby will be going home from the hospital on XX date. At birth, she was breathing on her own, but during the night, she suffered an episode of apnea, which automatically meant a likely 10 day hospital stay. She needed to be off the apnea meds for 7 days before she could be released. Thankfully, there were no more apnea episodes, and each day she grew stronger, and more feisty. See how she is on her side? The NICU nurses would lay her on her back, and she would fuss, and cry, and wriggle around until she was on her side. STUBBORN. She was the talk of the NICU. OH YEAH - this was only the beginning, lol. For the 14 days in the hospital, each day, I was prepared by the staff for the many different scenarios that come with a pre-term birth. There are many, many health issues that can arise, but I am happy to report, that this girl - this 32 week preemie - has had exactly ONE visit to the doctor that was not a well child check. SERIOUSLY. ONCE in ten years. Not too shabby, Maddie! What do you think of this vintage point & shoot photography? It's actually not too bad, but I wouldn't want to try to enlarge this snapshot scan, lol. A lot has changed in 10 years, not the least of which is my camera!

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Here she is in Kindergarten. Can you almost hear her giggle? OH MAN - this girl is BUBBLY! LOOK at the curls! LOL. I know this is just a standard "school portrait", but it makes me smile when I look at it. In kindergarten, everything was fresh and new and OH SO EXCITING. I remember thinking "I can't believe my baby is in KINDERGARTEN!" Isn't she cute with her little glasses on? Maddie has had glasses since pre-school, age 4. I remember feeling devastated at the time, wondering if this was my fault, for not carrying her to term, but the reality is, she is farsighted, and that actually is common in my husband's family. Her cousin's Nick and Cassi each had glasses when they were toddlers. I think she first asked for contacts at age 7, roflol.

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And finally, here she is now! I know you've all seen a few pictures, as I work on my photography and digi scrapping, but this weekend, when I was practicing with the camera (and thinking about Maddie's birthday), it really struck me how much this girl has accomplished. My miracle baby. We are so blessed! Happy, happy birthday sweet girl!



I hope you all have a FABULOUS MONDAY, and maybe even your own miracle today! And I know you all are wondering where the curls went...WELL...she *hates* them, so she brushes them out each day, while complaining loudly about how she really wishes she had thin, straight hair like all her friends.

SIGH. If you look carefully, you can sort of make out the thick, natural waves...