Videos from August

Here are a few videos of Arabella from August...

I don't know why, but my favourite thing is when she pretends to be a dog (barking at the kitty) 😂

She tries to copy what we say...

And loves playing peek-a-boo!

Homecoming anniversary

August 12th marked one year since Arabella came home from the hospital. ONE YEAR! It's one of those days we just can't help but celebrate!

Bella says, "Thanks to your guys' love and support, we managed to get through the toughest time of our lives!"

The hospital life wasn't easy, but it taught us how to appreciate every single day that we're together. It showed us how not to sweat the small stuff, and made us appreciate everything we have.

Family. Friends. Togetherness. This is what life is really about.

We'll likely celebrate her homecoming for years to come, if not forever, because it means the world to us. It's the day our little family started to feel...well, normal. 

It's hard to describe the feeling.

How has it already been a year since you came home, Arabella? 

And now you're crawling all over the house, throwing your toys around, talking, babbling, and even yelling at your mom and dad...

You're making a mess of this place, Arabella, but it's so good to have you home. And as long as you're in our life, there's nothing else that matters more to us.

Life is good when we're all together...

Baby on the move!

She finally did it! 

During the last few months we saw lots of bum scooting, rolling around, slithering on her tummy, and then suddenly we saw Arabella crawling!

After her g-tube surgery, Arabella became so much more mobile. She started to throw herself backwards and forwards, and we had to constantly catch her or surround her with pillows! Then we placed some squishy foam underneath the carpet in an effort to be more hands-off. That way, Arabella could start to explore by herself. And explore she did!

She would fall down, she would get frustrated, but now she's taking her first steps to independence. 

Great job Belle! 😀

Summer of Bella

Summer is here, and it's been hot, hot, HOT. Lots of sun, and sometimes lots of humidity. We've had to be extra careful with Arabella because of her lung condition, but it just means limiting our time in the heat. 

And keeping her cool, and in the shade!

This is the summer of Arabella...

We've been going out everywhere with her. Visiting friends, family, going on walks, going to parks, pools, trails, beaches - you name it...

We're taking advantage right now, and going out as much as possible, because come October we'll close ourselves off again for cold and flu season.

But for right now, we're really enjoying ourselves, and Bella has been a lot of laughs. 

I've told you guys before that she points at everything she finds interesting. That finger is her main line of communication 😄

She makes a lot of faces, and she grunts and groans when she's not happy. 

Momma will tell her "No, no, no!" and wag her finger at her, and Bella will shake her head and wag her finger right back at Momma. 

She gets excited when she sees a phone or iPad. She wants to tap it and swipe it, knows how to access the phone's camera, and gets upset when we take it away, or tell her NO. 

"Here we go with the iPad again", we tell ourselves. So now we hide it and keep it out of sight. 

Bella loves to take selfies of herself, and after a few minutes it's not uncommon to find 50 pictures of herself in the camera roll, like this one:

She's turning into quite the big girl, with an even bigger personality... 

Her hair is getting longer, thicker, and lighter. Her features are changing right before our eyes...

Arabella's also made great strides with her mobility this summer. She has no problem sitting on her own, moving and scooting around on her bum, and recently she's learned to shift herself from sitting into the crawling position. 

She's so proud of herself. And we're really proud of her!

Can you tell that she was once a micro-preemie? I wonder what people think when they see her...

Arabella's been doing so great, and developing so wonderfully, that I'll have to write a separate post about all of the things she can do.

Baby, you're a superstar! 

Daddy's girl

It's great being a father to this little princess. Every day brings so much joy. 

Smiles, and smiles, and smiles...

A few weeks ago it was Father's Day.

It felt very different from the first one. This one felt right. Away from hospital walls, this is how it was supposed to feel, I suppose. 

Comfortable. Intimate. Worry-free.

What more does a dad need, than to have his girl by his side? She is the best gift I can ask for...

Each and every night, when my head hits the pillow, I tell God "thanks" for another amazing day, and I realize how lucky I am to have her in my life. I'm lucky to experience her love and laughter, and it's so much sweeter because I know how different things could have turned out. 

I can't imagine my life without her.

As soon as I come home from work, that smile greets me at the door and those little hands reach up to say, "Take me Dadda."

If that's not the best feeling in the world, then I don't know what is...

One year celebration!

Arabella's birthday fell on February 17th - during the tail end of winter. It was unpleasant, chilly, and more importantly, it was still cold & flu season. Having a big party wasn't worth the risk. 

"We'll have a real birthday celebration when Arabella turns one year corrected", Kiera and I thought. The weather will be nicer and we can have everyone outside for some drinks and barbecue. 

Well, that day finally came...

Arabella turned one year (corrected) in mid-May. It was her 'should-have-been' first birthday, so we sent out a few invitations to our family for early June.

Finally! Let's all celebrate! 

We were so excited to have our family over. Some of them haven't seen Arabella since she was in the hospital, so a gathering like this was very much overdue. 

And Bella was thrilled to be the centre of attention!

Last year we couldn't imagine having so many people around Arabella. We were scared to let anyone else touch or hold her. We were nervous about her fragile bones, germs and exposing her fragile immune system. But now things have improved so much that there's no reason to hold back any longer. 

Go ahead Arabella, put your fingers in that cake!

So many presents! And after we specifically told everyone not to worry about bringing gifts! But of course, everyone loves Bella, and this was her BIG one year celebration. 

Like a unicorn, Arabella is a symbol of purity and grace. She's legendary!

To our entire family, we thank you and we love you for all of the support you've given us during the last year. You guys are the best!

Love,
Arabella 💗

Bella's favourite things

Arabella loves music. Music is her world. 

Since last September she's been especially in love with the Australian children's music group 'The Wiggles'. She claps and dances to all their songs, and it's the only show on TV she'll watch! 

"Dadda, play the song about the 5 little ducks!"

Of course, mom and dad know all of the songs too! Sometimes I find myself randomly signing them in my head throughout the day. They're permanently embedded into my subconscious 😬

And when we need Bella to be calm, music is the only thing that works. We noticed this as soon as we brought her home from the hospital. Music is all she needs to be content.

Play-time with Bella means playing with all the toys she can get her hands on. THIS ONE...no wait...THAT ONE...never-mind...THAT'S THE ONE I WANT!

Toys and books are great for a while, but only for a few minutes until she wants the next one 😄

You know she's concentrating when that tongue is out!  😛

Bad hair day...

Every item she has in front of her is going to be thrown onto the floor. Pretty typical behaviour, right? But it's her favourite!

"Give me that phone, dadda! I know you have games on there!"

Bella wants phones. She wants iPads. TV remotes. Cables and gadgets. Just give me the cool stuff, guys!

She still doesn't talk or babble very much, but she definitely communicates with us. She points and she grunts. And this is her way of saying, "Take me to the swing!"

One of the things her physiotherapist has taught us is to encourage her to stand. 

And Bella's getting better with each passing week. We're still hoping she will start to crawl one day, so we're working on that too!

For now she moves and spins around on her back, which makes tube feeding really difficult. There have been many occasions where her feeding tube will get tangled or dislodge. Formula ends up spilling out...so then it's time for yet another late-night laundry load! That's definitely not one of our favourite things!

Tube feedings are best accomplished while she's in her stroller. Bella can sit comfortably and take in the sights and sounds of the neighbourhood while the pump slowly delivers her food. 

While on our walks, Bella absolutely loves watching other people. If you ask us, she's a little too nosey sometimes!

She loves animals, and isn't afraid to reach out and touch them. Dogs are great, but ducks are her favourite! "Quack quack!" (Bella will open and close her hand to mimic a duck quacking)...

She loves baths, and the weather has been amazing lately, so we'll just pretend that this is her mini outdoor pool. 

She loves to splash and play in the water, and she's not afraid to get wet!

Generally she loves being outside. Smiles all around! Here she is enjoying her outdoor play-tent.

And of course she loves spending her days with Momma. These are just a few of Bella's favourite things!