Pig Roast 2010

With Uncle Dick

This weekend we shared Stella's sweet smile with everyone @ the Goolden's Annual Pig Roast.  The Hooley's were visiting from Ohio, and lots of family and friends joined us for the festivities.  Mommy was nervous because Stella had some sniffles later in the week but she was feeling better by Friday and the weather was spectacular. After the party we slept over at Grammie and Pa's and had breakfast with everyone before they left.   It was a fun way to end the summer so to speak.

This past week was Stella's last full week at home with daddy - it's back to work on Wednesday...

Stella with Grandma Linda

Our Visit to Burlington

NICU 2010: Rachel and Jeff Mars with twins Bradon and Riley, Carleen Meseck with Ty, Tara, Shawn and Kadence Graham with Owen, and Randy and I with Stella - (missing Dawning and Nina from NYC, who had left prior to this photo)

We had a wonderful and very busy  trip to Burlington!  It was an emotional weekend but we got through it and it was nice to see some Fletcher Allen friends.  When Trey passed we just sort of up and left without saying goodbye to anyone, so this was a nice chance to just let people know we are thinking of them.

The NICU Reunion was a lot of fun despite the rain.  We had a chance to catch up with some people who meant a lot to us.  The picture above features some long-term NICU families during the beginning of '10.  We also had some time to visit with some NICU staff including two of our favorites:

Stella with Lizzy B. - one of her primaries, and our NICU 

'Mother'

Stella with Miss Heidi, one of Trey's primary care givers

In addition to the NICU Reunion Picnic, we had a great time visiting with Caroline and Caleb.  We had a delicious dinner out on Sunday night and were very grateful to stay the night at their house.  Stella had some quality time with Caroline - her 'Burlington Auntie'.

Stella's doctors appointment today went great.  We were able to see Elizabeth, the nurse practioner who has been working with Stella from the beginning, as well as Dr. Johnson, a neonatalogist we had been hoping to run into.  Stella has made wonderful progress - she now weighs 15 lbs. 15.5 oz. so she no longer needs to have fortified formula (we can just follow the directions on the side of the can now, no special recipe!).  They gave us some more tips for homemade baby food options and said they don't need to see her again until the end of December.  We are so pleased that Stella is doing so well.

We finished off our hospital trip with visits to both the PICU and NICU to see staff we had spent time with during our long stay.  We also stopped in to see Beth's colleague Nancy who is recovering from a very serious illness.  She is doing well and it was good to see her getting back on her feet!  All in all we had a great visit.  The first trip in to the parking garage was a little overwhelming, but once we made it into the hospital it wasn't so bad.

Our trip to Burlington would simply not have been complete without a visit to the Ronald McDonald House.  We stopped in to drop off a few items and to see some of the house staff.  They greeted us just as warmly as they always have...

Stella visits old friends!!

Stella had a quiet week @ home which included two home-cooked meals with good friends: The Zender's and The Britton's. The week culminated with a Sunday trip to Burlington to visit with former NICU families, Fletcher Allen staff and Auntie Caroline.  Tomorrow we'll visit the NICU follow-up clinic to see how Stella is progressing.  Check back for the doctors update and some pics from the weekend.

Stella's First Vacation

Stella experienced her first roadtrip this weekend - we traveled seven hours to Waterville, Maine to visit with the Smart family.  It was so great to see Stacy (a WVWC friend of Beth's), Aaron, and Lily - who we met for the first time.  Lily is almost two and she was very happy to have a baby around!  We enjoyed a Lobster feed, a trip to the batting cages and mini-golf, and relaxing around the house just catching up.

Stella wasn't very fond of the car ride, but we travled through the night on the way there so she only had to struggle through the trip back.  We had long stops in Montpelier, VT and Plattsburgh, NY so she could have a break from her car seat and it went pretty well.

Other news this week: Stella is now fond of both peas and applesauce.  She is getting around during floor time really well, she is a scooter.  We don't think it will be long before she starts to prop herself up in an attempt to crawl!

We are looking forward to a trip back to Burlington this coming weekend.  We will be visiting for the NICU Reunion Picnic, a neonatal follow-up appointment, and to see our Burlington family of course!

We Love Summer!

Stella spent some quality time with her Grandma Todd and met some relatives at Aunt Heather Gilsons this week - including Uncle Gary and Aunt Chris who were visiting for a few days.  She also visited the Pribek/Britton families at Chateaguay lake, went to her first parade during the Tri-Town Festival, met another baby her age at the Zender's house, and had a quiet Sunday with Mom - we went to church and watched The Princess and the Frog (well, she fell asleep part way through but we're sure she'll watch it plenty of times in the days to come)!  Stella seems to really enjoy being outdoors and loves to go for walks in her stroller.  She is also doing really well with spoon feeding - she just figured it out somehow!  She isn't a big fan of cereal but we tried it with added bananas today and she ate every bit of it!

Waiting for the Tri-Town Festival Parade

Watching a scene from The Princess and the Frog

Four Little Ladies and Friends

Although Stella doesn't live close to her female cousins they certainly have a few things in common!  I've posted some pictures of each of them with animals from their home states - Stell Belle at TimeQuest Animal Farm in New York (which we visited this week), Haley on a beautiful beach in Hawaii, and the Hooley's at home in Ohio.

Stella continues to do well.  She had a fun week which ended with a nice dinner at Aunt Mary Jane and Uncle Neil's house.  This week we are looking forward to seeing some of daddy's extended family!

Stella with a Goat

Haley with a Sea Turtle

Hooley's with one of their bunnies Mckenna