Not Giving Up

It has been much harder than I thought to start running. First I had tons of knee pain. I figured out that I over pronate and needed shoes with more support. So I bought new shoes and still had pain. I had to completely rest my knees for a bit. I had gotten to week 4 when I had to stop. I bought a Gazelle Edge to use that is easier on my knees and added in some strengthening and a lot more stretching.

I started running again last week, but had to start completely over at week 1. My knee pain, thankfully, is gone. Today, however, I've hit another brick wall. I checked my blood sugar before I left and it was 104. When I returned from my 30 minute run/walk, my blood sugar was 46. A blood sugar of 50 is hypoglycemic. A blood sugar of 40 is critical and puts you at risk of losing consciousness. So. . .great. Apparently now I get exercise induced hypoglycemia. I knew exercise lowered my blood sugar, but didn't think it would drop it by 50! Now I have to make a few more changes. I'm going to monitor it more closely, eat carbs beforehand, carry glucose tablets and possibly wear a diabetes bracelet. If I were to collapse, no one would know what was wrong with me. I also might get a running buddy or run at the Y.

Running has proven to be a lot more difficult than I anticipated. But it has lowered my blood sugar (albeit too much) and helped my restless legs and my mood. So I will continue and someday I'll run a 5k. It may be awhile, but someday you'll see pictures of it on here. At least that's the plan.


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Best Little Sis Ever

See? It says right here!


So it must be true!


I won't lie. The first year or so was tough. Olivia does not do well with change so you add a major life event like a new baby sister and it's gonna be hard. She had a lot of jealousy and felt Abigail took her mommy away. I am so happy that they now seem to absolutely love each other. They both learn a lot from each other as well and that has been such a blessing. Olivia often calls her the best sister ever and can't imagine life without her.

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World Autism Awareness Day

I thought this would be a tough blog post for me to write, but as I form the words in my mind, I don’t believe that to be the case. 

For years after Olivia was born, I wondered what she would have been like had she been born full term.  If I could take away her rough start and have her grow up with Logan, I would do it in a heartbeat.  But, as Olivia grew and her personality emerged. . .I fell in love with exactly who she is.  I don’t care what she “would” have been like because she is perfect as she is.  She is the Olivia we all know and love.

Recently, we took her to a child psychologist so that we could help her in some areas that are difficult for her.  She has some sensory processing difficulties and breaks down in tears over a pair of jeans or a shirt that doesn’t feel just right.  Eating and gaining weight are still challenges and her anxiety can be pretty severe.  I feel that life is only going to get tougher and I want to give her all the coping skills and strategies available. 

We found that Olivia does have autism spectrum disorder.  You never want to use your child’s name and the word autism in the same sentence.  However, I don’t see it as anything “wrong” with her.  Olivia is Olivia and I love everything about her.

I debated about whether to discuss it on the blog.  On the one hand, this blog is meant to raise awareness and educate people on the effects of extreme prematurity.  Autism and extreme prematurity go hand in hand quite often.  I always want to help others going through a similar journey.  But, on the other hand, I want to protect my child from being labeled before people get to know her.  The scary incident a few weeks back helped me to decide that it is worth sharing.  It takes Olivia a little bit longer to process information such as “Look out! There’s a car!”  As she stood frozen, trying to process what was being said, a car backed into her, knocked her down onto the concrete and she suffered a mild concussion.  She does require a bit more attention than your normal 6 1/2 year old. To keep her safe, I feel others need to be aware of this and it is what prompted me to share the news of her diagnosis.

Today is World Autism Awareness Day so I thought today would be appropriate to share the news. Autism has many faces and no two children are the same.  Olivia is at the high functioning end of the spectrum with fairly mild characteristics.  As her mother, it’s my job to make sure she gets all the tools available in order to be successful. I’m not content with her being successful “as a 23 weeker.”  I want her to achieve all that she wants in life. . . as a person like you or me.  I hope her diagnosis helps people understand what she needs and not define who she is.  She is an awe-inspiring, sweet, funny, energetic, one of a kind girl.  High functioning autism is just one tiny facet of who she is.  I hope everyone who crosses her path in life is able to see just how amazing she is.   

Monday, March 31, 2014

I love Spring! But for entirely different reasons than I used to. Spring means short sleeved shirts and leggings and socks are soon to become optional. These things are Olivia's forté! LOL! Getting dressed will become less of a challenge!






And Abigail decided she no longer wanted to be in a high chair! She wanted to sit at the table like the rest of us. She was overjoyed with her booster seat. . .as you can tell.




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Friends Forever

We met up with Olivia's friend from preschool yesterday. They go to different school districts this year, so they don't get to see each other often. However, they seem to pick right up where they left off. And look at the joy on their faces!













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Hippity Hoppity

Easter's on its way!










Jodi- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone