In addition to visiting friends and actually going in their houses(!), Tera also attended her first Bunco last week. This was definitely more for me than for her. We left the boys at the house and had a couple of hours of much needed Girl Time. I know we get that all day, but I needed some girls that would talk back!
We also had two lunch dates last week, both at TGI Friday's because they have outdoor seating. The first was with Alicia and Kinley, and Kari Beth and John Turner. Tera is older than both Kinley and John Turner but, not surprisingly, very noticeably smaller. The second lunch was with MyGoo and Doc. They came down last Saturday to visit and to keep the kids so that Barry and I could go to our friend, David's, wedding. I thought it would be harder to leave her for such a long period of time (we were gone for about 3 1/2 hours) but I was surprisingly comfortable. MyGoo fed her a couple of bottles throughout the day, another activity I thought I would worry about that turned out to be just fine. While Tera still has minor choking spells, they don't seem to be more than what any other baby deals with. I've been feeding her while cradling her in my arms instead of lying her on her side like I did in the hospital. She's been eating great like this, so neither MyGoo nor I was too nervous about letting someone new feed her. I think it will be awhile before we have any non-family baby-sitters though. She's only two weeks old (technically)!
We went to the doctor yesterday for the second time since Tera's been home. The Occupational Therapist at UAB referred Tera for an Early Intervention Program in Dothan to work out some of her muscle and joint stiffness. This is not unusual. Lots of NICU babies are a little cramped from being cooped up in an Isolette for so long. Since we've been home, I have been worried that her stiffness has gotten a little bit worse. It's harder to stretch her out to do her exercises. When the Early Intervention Specialist called yesterday about her referral, she informed me that their policy is not to evaluate babies until they are at least three months old, adjusted. That means three months from Tera's due date. After a call in to Michele, my OT sister-in-law, she explained that stiffness is not one of those things that I should ignore for the next three months. If I was really worried about her, I should just go straight to the pediatrician and then to a private OT if needed. So, that's just what I did.
After evaluating her, the pediatrician said that he thought she was moving very good. In fact, he said that whatever stiffness she might have had at UAB seems to be gone now. He explained that Tera is at an age now where she will fight back when you pull on her arms and legs. When I tried to extend her appendages to stretch them, she pulls against me. (Side story: after Tera's "rolling over" event last week, I talked with Beth, one of my Preemie Mom friends, about it. We joked that the NICU must put steroids in the baby's milk while they're in the hospital. How else do they come home so strong?!). The pediatrician's suggestion was to let her relax before pulling and tugging on her. She might be more receptive then. So, from now on, Tera will get a daily massage from me, followed by some mild stretching exercises just to keep everything loose. I'll still have the Early Intervention Specialists evaluate her in three months, just to be sure.
The upside of going to the doctor for seemingly no reason is that Tera was weighed again. I know that I see her everyday, so it is hard for me to see changes, but I was a little worried that she wasn't growing very much. She's been eating great - about 3 1/2 ounces in each bottle nowadays - but she looks just the same to me. According to her growth rate in the hospital, she should have gained about two pounds since we've been home. She was 6 pounds 10 ounces then, so I was hoping for anything between 8 and 8 1/2 pounds. 8 pounds 10.5 ounces! It makes for One Proud Mama!
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