Monday, September 15, 2008

Physical Therapy Fun

Elaina has had a pretty uneventful weekend. The doctors are still fine tuning her diuretics and balancing her electrolytes, so she's had to have blood draws and a couple of chest x-rays, but that was the main excitement this weekend. I was able to spend the night with her on Saturday and she had a great night. We spent most of Sunday catching up on snuggles. The nurses joked with me that I need to stay every night because the only time she does well on her c-pap is when I'm in the room! Ha!! I wish I was able to stay all the time, but Ben needs to have me home to get him off to school. Oh well, it's good to feel needed anyway!

Right after I got to the hospital today our new physical therapist came in to work with Elaina. I was holding Elaina, but she was awake, so we decided to "play". Elaina seemed to enjoy it and she is doing really well!!


The physical therapist brought in a mat for her to use on the floor.


She's able to hold her back straight without too much help. (If she let go, Elaina would fall, but she's getting pretty good at balancing.)



Elaina had fun playing with the toys. She looked up at me when I called her name!
Here's a short video of her following one of the toys. This was near the end, so she's a little bit worn out, but it's still cute.



The physical therapist told me that she was very impressed with how well Elaina is doing. She said that she's developmentally delayed, but mostly due to the amount of time that she's spent in the hospital. She seems to be catching on quickly, but is still very weak. She will try to reach and grab for toys, but doesn't have much strength to hold on to things. The PT also put her on her side to encourage her to roll over. Elaina was able to balance herself on her side, and would roll onto her back when she was following the movement of a toy. Rolling to her stomach is still far into the future, but she was able to bring her arm from behind her back to her front. She should improve over time, she is just starting on this part of her recovery. I know it probably sounds silly to be excited over such little things, but I just can't help myself.

Elaina also got a new swing today! It was donated to the hospital, and since it's made out of fabric, they don't allow it to be used by multiple patients (to help prevent spreading germs) so Elaina gets to keep it! She absolutely loved it and fell asleep shortly after getting in. Of course I'm sure it helped that she had just used up all her energy in physical therapy!



It's a little blurry because the swing was moving, but she was loving the music and watching the little toys moving above her head!


On a personal note, I broke a tooth today! I'm not really even sure how it broke. I felt something in my cheek, and it was a piece of one of my back molars! Holy cow! Anyway, I've got a dentist appointment tomorrow, so I won't be making it to the hospital. There just aren't enough hours in the day for everything. The nurses assured me that they would hold and rock my sweet girl since I won't be able to be there. I hate going to the dentist.... :)

11 comments:

Kelly said...

Hollie, she looks incredible! I bet it was so nice to see her up and out of bed and doing "normal" baby things! She looks so content! Good job Eliana!

Lady said...

What a big girl! It's so nice to see her up and around! :) xoxoxo

Unknown said...

It was so nice to see Elaina sitting up like a big girl!

It must feel great to be starting on this part of recovery!

That stinks that you broke your tooth. Hope it's not too painful at the dentist tomorrow. I hate going there too.

carolyn q said...

Sorry to hear about your tooth, what a pain. I hope the dentist is nice :0)
WOW, to see Elaina out of bed is incredible. I bet it was fun to see her playing as much as she could.
I hope your allergies have gotten better too.
Heart Hugs,
Carolyn

my life: said...

WOW!!! This post brought tears to my eyes....tears of joy this time! Look at your little miracle baby sitting like a big girl! Her eyes are so engaging and observant...what an amazing God we serve!

The Portas said...

Silly getting excited over the little things? NO WAY! I totally understand. I jump up and down and squeal like a crazy woman when Elijah does ANY new thing. It's ALL worth celebrating!

I'm so glad Elaina was able to get some PT. That is sooo good for her! I love in the video how her eyes dart between the PT and the floor. It's so cute. What a cutie. And way to go on working so hard, little one!!

Yucky, tooth issues stink. I hope you get it fixed up today so you can get back to your little girl. xoxoxo

Djinni said...

Don't think you are over-reacting to her little milestones. They are huge steps toward her recovery, even I am really excited to hear they are even doing physical therapy at all. They have been so negative in the past and I think she is showing signs she is going to do well. I am really excited for her progress. Come to Isaac's room when you get a chance, we will be in the surgical unit on the third floor after Wednesday. I'll check on you and Elaina when I can.

Kathy said...

She's such a big girl!
Tell that PT I said to give her a break with the No NO's and take them off when she's playing...poor thing!
and..I bet she does love the swing! I wish I knew that she didn't have one...I would have sent you one!! Everytime we would take Isaac to the hospital when he was little, we would actually bring our swing each time (the big one)...we must have looked like complete DORKS..but, our little man loved it!
Thanks for sharing.
Sorry about the tooth.
I hate dentists too...

Mp said...

Wow she looks good! I'm glad to see that they have her out of bed and are working with her! Good luck on your tooth, I hope it isn't too big of a deal.

Hugs,
Mike

Tina:0) said...

She looks GREAT!! Just think... before you know it she'll be crawling around getting into everything! Isn't it wonderful when they start doing "normal" things!

Sunshine Marketing said...

Hollie,
Oh! What progress she has made! Last time I saw her she was a beautiful "blueberry" color! She looks so big! My gosh! What a sweetheart! I am glad that you were able to spend the day with your son! Congrats on her progress!
Much love and prayers!
Tami (Thatchers mom)