Saturday, May 10, 2014

Celebrating One Year in Mile High Country

I wish I could've written earlier this week but we've had a lot going on.  It almost seems impossible that we've been living in Colorado for a year!  Time flies whether you're having fun or not.  Seriously...life goes by so fast and you don't even realize it until time has been lost.  This past year has been one of the hardest we've endured in our lives, and thankfully it'll be a year of struggles that Mila won't remember.  While it feels like our hardest year yet, it's also been filled with tons of joyous moments :).  I look forward to sitting with her for hours, looking back on the memories and reading the stories of how she overcame soooooo much!  She's my fighter!

Since I've been so consumed with Mila's progression and Michael consumed with work, our friends circle is pretty minute.  We've recently been making a conscious effort to improve in that area.  Honestly, "friends" have been the furthest thing from my mind because Mila and Michael are my number one priorities.  We bask in family time when we can get it!  And...lets be honest, my friends in NC are my favorite part of "home!"  A new friend gained cannot compare to the love of my girls back east.  They have been such a huge support system to me...I could not have survived this past year without them on the other end of the phone!

My nearest and dearest best friend also celebrated her first year of marriage this past week!  I remember how crazy and hectic things were back at home.  Trying to be a decent MOH, while packing up our entire lives was such a blur.  Michael, his dad, and his brother pretty much did ALL the work!  The wedding was simply amazing!  It took place on the farm where Hope and James now live.  I still can't believe Hope is MARRIED!  I can't wait to see her in August!
Hope's BEST DAY EVER! May the 4th Be With You, 2013

We got to celebrate our first year here by getting PE tubes for Mila.  Although her hearing tests had been normal...the continuous infections were beyond annoying!  Seven doses of antibiotics in less than a year was ridiculous.  Needless to say, Mila is not an "ideal" patient.  I mean, in the pediatric world, you can't really expect any kid to want to be poked or prodded.  Just to give you an idea...EVERY report given from pre-op, intra-op, and post-op all started report with, "Yes, I have Mila Young...yada yada yada...she DOES NOT want ANYONE to touch her BUT mom!"  Of course!  Only my kid would be the fussy, crying child if the nurse even walked into the room, let alone touch her.  Hahahaha!  I got to go to the OR with her while they put her to sleep.  Anytime you're draped over your kid holding them, while gas is being administered, singing their favorite tune...there IS a chance you could catch a gas buzz!  Luckily no one had to carry me out :).  Wouldn't that have been a good story.  She was a trooper despite her "touch me not" ways.  She slept for 4.5 hours when we got home and woke up as a new kid!
The Smith glare she gave ALL healthcare team members (check out those red eyes)
She wanted her Daddy after surgery
I have to tell you how much Mila rocks...This kid! She woke up from her crazy long nap and all she wanted to do was pull up to stand!  She had been doing it with assistance, but as soon as I put her on the floor...she took off!  She pulled to stand 13 times!!!  No help...no reassurance (she usually likes me to be right behind her, with a finger touching her...not kidding).  Michael and I were dying over her independent determination! Then she started doing squats!  What the heck?!  Since Tuesday, she has been climbing on EVERYTHING and trying to crawl up the stairs.  She'll even stand at the entertainment center for 20 minutes straight!  Did we just get "miracle" tubes?!  Call it coincidence, call it answered prayers, or simply that she needed these tubes to change her world...no matter what the reason, we are so OVERJOYED and GRATEFUL that she has taken off!  Every movement she has done this week will prepare her for walking.  I have prayed so hard that she start walking by her second birthday, and this past week is a testament that ANYTHING is possible!  I wish I could post videos up here to show you all her "mechanical"moves, but still pictures will have to do for now.  I'm so proud of my fighter!








My in-laws were kind enough to send me some chocolate covered strawberries for Mother's Day.  Opening this box of goodies made me soooo emotional!  I'm laughing about it now as I'm typing, but I wasn't actually crying over strawberries.  The mere thought of celebrating my motherhood, or what Mila means to me is something that one day (Mother's Day) cannot fulfill.  There is not a gift, an action, or even a few words that can explain the joy I feel from being Mila's mom!  She is so special to me in ways unimaginable.  We have been given the opportunity to appreciate the little things God gives us through our children.  We have been humbled over and over again.  Our prayers have been answered time and time again.  His grace has helped us endure our toughest moments.  Mila is our miracle baby in a lot of ways....the textbooks say her genetic make-up would leave her in a vegetative, low functioning state.  She continues to overcome and fight through every challenge.  My girl WILL be the exception to 15q24! We will give her the life she deserves to function the best she can!  Its a good thing God is our medicine man :)