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August 30, 2004
Karis models the latest in fashion for the surgical patient
Well, Karis came through the left eye probing procedure just fine. We had to be at the hospital at 5:30 am to be admitted to short stay. Poor little girl hadn't eaten since 1 am and couldn't understand why mommy wasn't providing breakfast immediately upom waking as she is accustomed to.
She actually did very well. I had asked for a specific nurse that I used to work with to be her circulator. Amy is good with people, very "schmoopy doopy" and I thought Karis would take to her. She did, and went off with Amy without a whimper. Apparently she was amazingly quiet, just taking everything in... until they put the mask on her to administer anesthesia. She made her displeasure quite clear I'm told!
All went well, the procedure took 5 minutes. The doctor says it has a 90% sucess rate with a 10% re-occlusion rate. Hopefully we are in the 90% and don't need to have it done again. those of you who knew about this, thanks for the good thoughts and prayers. They're greatly appreciated.
Posted by mclianne at 09:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 28, 2004
Karis and her Plugged Duct
Two days after Karis was born, it was noted she had a plugged tear duct on the left side. Her eye always had an excess of tearing (as you see in this photo) and every so often would get, for want of a better term, "gunky". I kept it as clean as possible by wiping it with warm cotton balls and massaging the tear duct several times a day in an effort to get it to spontaneously resolve itself.
When it got "gunky", there were antibiotic drops to put in it several times a day for 5 days. For the first 7 months or so, it wasn't hard to get the drops in. As Karis has gotten older, her evasive manuvers have gotten more sophisticated. I can't hold her little arms down, hold her head still, pry her eye open enough to get the drops in, and still have a hand left to actually administer the drops.
Over the last 3 weeks or so, the "gunkiness" has increased and it has been getting increasingly red. We went to an eye doctor who said that after 6 months of age, each month the chances of it clearing up with massage get less and less. So, Karis is scheduled to have a "Probing and irigation of the left lacrimal system". It is minor surgery, and she will be under anesthesia while they do it. There really aren't any risks to the procedure itself, but of course with general anesthesia, there are always risks.
I know that in the scheme of things it is a very small procedure, but I worry none the less...
Posted by mclianne at 07:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 25, 2004
The Reluctant Naartjie Model
My husband Andy likes to say, "I knew when we had a girl, we were in trouble..." Ahh, he knows me and my love of shopping well.
I read a board named Baby Bargains and discovered a clothing line from South Africa called Naartjie. I love the bright colors and unconventional look. So different from the Target, Walmart, Gymboree (love it though), OshKosh, and Carters world that is the midwest. The clothes can be viewed at the store site then ordered by email or phone for those that don't live by a B & M store they can go to.
Karis had a short afternoon nap today and had woken up a little clingy (Velcro Baby) and cried every time I put her down, Even when given to daddy as you can see. She is a reluctant model, you can see her eyes swimming with tears still... sniff, sniff
Posted by mclianne at 11:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
August 23, 2004
Karis and her "Uncle Lee"
Karis had a ball with Daddy's friend Lee the weekend we spent in TN. She took to him almost immediately.
He would say that he "doesn't know why, but kids like him". Of course maybe it's his willingness to make faces and be goofy that endears the little ones to him. And the fact that he obviously enjoys kids doesn't hurt either.
Karis just loved him and could be counted on to smile and be generally outgoing whenever Lee was around.
Posted by mclianne at 11:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
August 20, 2004
Waking up in Chattanooga
Daddy's surprise BD trip was to TN to see some of his college buddies. We pulled off 3 separate surprises: 1) The trip to TN- he thought he was going to FL 2) His best friend Lee drove up to spend time with us 3) Other friends drove in Sat night to see him as well. We spent about 5 days there...
Posted by mclianne at 05:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 17, 2004
Andy's Birthday Collage
For Andy's birthday, we had a surprise dinner with friends at home. I gave him a photo frame wih 4 openings. The photos on the left are what i put in the frame.
It was a trip trying to get 4 different good photos to use. I got plenty of pics with Karis trying to eat the letters. She was so intent on checking out the wooden letters that i had to make all kinds of goofy sounds and faces to get her to look up and smile, Once she tired of the letters she resorted to pulling up grass and trying to eat it.
Posted by mclianne at 07:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)