Some of our Favorite People

We would love more than anything to have more time in our lives to visit with family and friends. Luckily we had some opportunities to visit with some of our favorite people!


Alida loves Baby the Bunny. My girlfriend's mom owns this bunny and it's just like a dog! Roams around the house and takes naps on the couch!!

Baby Maddox and his momma! My girlfriend Jen does not know what she's in for!! Alida is dying to have a little friend that she can play with in the area and it looks like Baby Maddox might have to fill that spot! Alida talks about him constantly...everything is Baby Maddox. She even calls him on the phone!!

Even though Alida went binky-less as an infant she LOVES other kid's binkys. If it's missing Alida has it!

Enjoying a view that she used to love herself! Ahh, the baby days!!!

A visit to Ginny brings some of us closer together. Alida had a great time hanging with her cousins. She loves to run around them and play with their toys as they watch her. Look out Alida....they are mobile and they are boys....only time will tell!!!

Enjoying some pool time with Carter!

Chowing on some puffs!

It's Norah! Alida's favorite neighbor! They both like to shop at Target!!!! HEHE!

Too far behind...time to post-date!

OK, there are a million things that I would like to post about. Alida has been so stinking cute lately and I have so many little stories to tell. I am way too far behind at this point and rather than post-dating all the bits and pieces I'm just going to shove them all together! Of course...I only have time to post this little ditty below as I need to get back to studying..UGH! Stay tuned....


Alida LOVES her ball pit! We've had the balls since Christmas but we had no pit. We gave up searching for something that would fit all the balls and wouldn't take up too much room in her playroom. We settled for a LARGE plastic bin...it works!

Visit to CHOP

Well...I finally got an appointment with Dr. Finkel down at CHOP. Mom-Mom joined me for the visit. Alida did quite well I must say. It was the morning of the snow storm so driving was not ideal but I didn't want to risk rescheduling and having to wait another month or more. We got to the office on time and then had to wait over an hour to see the Doc. Dr. Finkel was very thorough in his examination and once he weighed all the factors and checked Alida upside and down he gave us his opinion. Alida does not have a Brachial Plexus Injury as we had thought. The Doc said that her problem is one of two things...A. She has a developmental anomaly of the right lobe of her brain which controls the left arm OR B. She suffered a motor stroke while in utero or during delivery that was very mild. So....further investigation is needed to see if we can figure this out and Alida will be going back to CHOP for an MRI....yippee! UGH! I am not looking forward to it! Dr. Finkel reassured me that her condition is VERY mild and on a scale of 1 to 10 it is definitely a 1. The MRI results might not tell us anything since it is so mild. The best Dx would be a stroke....there is 100% recovery and the likely hood of it happening again is rare. So....we shall see.......

NO Cheesy Smile!!

This morning Alida tried on her summertime gear! As soon as I showed her the swimsuits I had gotten she wanted to put them on. We played a little game of peek-a-boo and I got some GREAT pictures. It's so rare that I can capture a real smile!!!! I was ecstatic to get more than one!
Here's to warm weather!!

"Scared...Pablo"

Matt and I recently took Alida to see her favorite cartoon character at The Crayola Factory...Pablo from The Backyardigans. I was so excited to see how she would react. She absolutely LOVES this guy! Well....sure enough she was scared. BOOHOO!! She wouldn't even stand with him to get a picture! From a distance she loved him but up close and personal was way different. Despite my disappointment I was still glad that she got to experience the visit, even if it wasn't ideal. The entire ride home (and for the next few weeks) she chanted the words "Scared Pablo" over and over. She still loves him though!!

By the way...I am crossing my fingers that one of these days...when I ask Alida to 'smile' she won't give me the cheesy toddler grin that she just hasn't been able to shake yet. One of these days!

Waiting for Pablo...

He's here.....

Scared Pablo!!

The world's largest crayon and the world's cheesiest toddler grin...

Another cheesy grin! Man, I gotta stop asking her to smile!!!

OK....so, it's my fault. I know what she does when I ask but I still do it!!!!

Erb's Palsy

Long story short....I had Early Intervention out to see Alida recently...I was still concerned about her left hand. As soon as they got here and engaged her in some play they told me that they think she has Brachial Plexus Palsy. The Brachial Plexus is nerve that runs from your spinal cord into the neck that controls sensations and movement in the arm, hand and fingers. A lot of times when babies are assisted deliveries (forceps or vacuum) the neck can be stretched too far from the shoulder pulling on this muscle causing damage. The damage is usually severe and in Alida's case it is very mild...thank goodness. So...Miss Alida now has her own Occupational Therapist that visits weekly to strengthen the muscles and the nerve signals in that arm, hand and fingers. She enjoys the playtime!! I plan to take her down to CHOP to see a specialist...if I can ever get an appointment!!

Jabber-Jaw

Alida is talking up a storm!!! I am amazed at the words she knows and remembers to use in context! At least...once I figure out what the word is that she's actually saying!! In all seriousness though she is doing incredibly well with talking. She labels everything she sees and repeats anything that you could think of saying....time to watch our mouths!! She loves to do puzzles and go through flashcards....and she's even started helping me when I read to her!! She downright amazes me!!