Fun at the Park

We have had a fun few weeks! Callie is back to her self after being in the Hospital and is enjoying being back in routine and going to school again!

Today was a nice day in Maryland and we were able to take Callie for her first real trip to the Playground. We have an amazing playground a few miles from our house, called Annie's Playground, and there are different sections for different age groups. Callie loved it! she wasn't too sure about the swing...

But LOVED to slide! She kept walking back up for more turns! Her smiles got bigger each time she went down!

Callie also loved the musical section...they had bells and chimes that the kids could play with.

In other news, we are going to the ENT tomorrow, we finally think it is time for tubes in her ears. She has had 6 ear infections this year and if they were help keep her healthy, we are all for it! Also, Mommy had the honor of being asked to speak at a local private school, Harford Day School, on behalf of the March of Dimes. Mommy talked at an assembly of K-8 graders about Callie's story and how we became involved in the March. They have their own team and are doing things like bakesales and dressdown days to help raise money for the walk. It was nice to see such young kids so excited to help support such a great cause!! They can't wait to meet Callie in April!

What a week!

As many of you know, we have had quite a week! Over last weekend, Callie got very sick and ended up in the emergency room at St. Joe's. Callie was diagnosed with RSV (http://www.cdc.gov/rsv/). She ended up in the hospital through Wednesday afternoon. RSV is a virus, so there wasn't much the doctors could do except monitor her Oxygen and give her supplemental Oxygen when necessary and strengthen her with IV streroids. The days were better almost immediately, but when she would fall asleep, her Oxygen levels would drop and we would start the countdown to go home again.

Once we got home, our little girl was back to her normal self...well actually, she eats more and talks more, it is great! Especially, her new favorite food-french fries!

Before Callie's hospital visit, she had the opportunity to reconnect with her preemie friend, Ailyn, at a March of Dimes event. It was so great to have the girls together again!
Callie is repeating EVERYTHING we say! She is also starting to say her ABC's and other songs and nursery rhymes. We really can't believe how quickly it is all coming together.

Today was a beautiful day in Maryland and we got to get Callie outside again!

We got the sidewalk chalk out and Callie had fun drawing all over the driveway!

We are so happy to have our happy girl back home and healthy!

Our 2 Year Old!!

Saturday we celebrated Callie's 2nd Birthday at home with a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Party! It is hard to believe that our little girl is 2 already!!

She was running around the house before the party, so excited to tell everyone how old she is. She would hold her little fingers up and scream "2"!!!

It was nice to be able to finally have a real party for her. Last year we were confined to only heatlhy, adults. So it was nice, and loud, to have lots of little ones running around!

Callie wasn't too sure about the cake, but she did like the cookie cake!

Callie fell in love with baby Luc! She kept reaching for him and wanted to hold him! So we laid him in her lap, which he wasn't so happy about, and she gave him lots of kisses to make him feel better!

And the Howard kids, Gabriel and Leah, couldn't get enough of Callie. They kept hugging and squeezing her-they have been waiting a long time for her to get big enough to play with!

It was really nice getting to see Callie play with other kids. We know that she gets to do this every day at daycare, but it was nice to watch in our home!

Callie was excited about all of her new gifts. She seams to love the kitchen the most! She likes to open and close the cabinets and push the buttons on the phone! We just stand around the corner in amazement of our little miracle that has turned into a little girl!

Birthday Countdown

We have had another busy, but exciting month!! You may have noticed the March of Dimes ticker at the side of our blog. We have again decided to do the Walk for Babies for Team Callie May this year. We are extremely honored that our family was chosen as a Mission Family and Mommy will get to speak about her miracle baby at the annual kick off next Wednesday! We are just hoping Mommy can make it through without too many tears!

Our little girl is as happy as ever! And she is getting more and more talkative everyday. She is starting to say bigger words and stringing multiple words together! She loves to play, and Daddy is trying to get her started early with her golf skills.

Maryland was hit with a few snow storms over the last few weeks. We even had a snow day where Callie was able to go sledding with her friend Ashley!

Eating remains our greatest struggle. She is starting to try a few more foods, but still has her few favorites, including french fries!! We plan on having a serious talk with her Pediatrician at her 2 year appointment just to see if there is anything else we can be doing to help Callie put on a few pounds!!

We are looking forward to an exciting weekend! Our little girl turns 2 on Sunday and is having a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Party to celebrate the occasion! We can't wait to post pictures after the fun day!!

Happy New Year-a little late!!

I am sorry that we haven't posted in awhile...it has been a busy few weeks!

We enjoyed a nice, long week in Canton over the Holidays! Callie was able to spend a lot of time with her cousin Jack, "Jackie". She loved chasing him all over the house!!

Callie was able to spend some fun time with her Preemie friend, Haley (and Mommy's best friend Sara's daughter). It is so nice to see them interact and play with each other! Haley also went with us for Callie's first time sledding!

Grampi also came along for the sledding trip. At first, Callie wasn't so sure about the hill, but by the end she was full of smiles and asking for "more"!

It was great for my Grandparents to see how much Callie has changed. They hadn't seen her since April...so they were all amazed by her progress!

Callie also got to finally meet some family members that have anxiously waiting the opportunity. Two of her Great Aunts had made a trip down to see her when she was still in the NICU, but she was too sick for visitors at the time. I think they really enjoyed having her around. We even skyped in her other Great Aunt and Great Grandma and Grandpa...so Great Grandpa got a picture with all of his girls!

It was so nice to be close to family, that it made it difficult to leave on New Years Day!

Callie has been doing great since we returned to Maryland. We had one tough week with an ear infection, but that seems to be par for the course this winter! We are still trying to put some weight on our petite girl and are hoping by her next synagis shot to break the 20 pound mark! She is definitely starting to try more things and eating a lot more at each sitting, so we are hopeful for a good weigh in!

The big news this month is that Callie was released from Physical Therapy. Her therapist came and said that she was meeting all of her milestones for her age and making progress for the 2 year milestones that are just around the corner. We were really expecting her to need this until she was at least three....so this is another huge blessing! Our Callie never ceases to amaze us!!

Merry Christmas

This year was even more fun than last! Callie was more into the spirit this year, telling everyone about "ho, ho, ho", Jingle Bells and the Christmas tree.

This year, Callie really understood the opening of presents and tried to open one every night leading up to Christmas! Her favorites this year were the big boxes and bows!!

Daddy spoiled her with a Barbie Power Wheels that she loves to drive around the living room terrorizing the dogs!!

We made the trip up to New York this year to spend the Holiday with family! It was so nice to take her back to Mommy's church and show her off to so many of those that prayed for her so hard last year!


Christmas morning at Mom and Pa's was so much fun! As you can see from the pictures, Callie was literally on top of the presents reaching for bows!

We all had a great day watching the twinkle in Callie's eye as she discovered new things around her!!

We hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas!

Coming out of her shell!

Callie has had a great week coming out of her surgery! From the picture above, you can see the redness in her eye, but it isn't nearly as bad as we expected. It is moving pretty well, although the surgeon said it would take 3-4 weeks to really see how well the surgery worked. So far, we are incredibly pleased!

If you have sound, you can tell from the video above that Callie is becoming quite the talker. She is using words all of the time and starting to combine up to three words at a time. Every day she says something new. One of her favorite things right now is "Jingle Bells"!

Callie still loves bathtime! She got a new toy from her Great Grandma and Grandpa Spillane that she loves, loves, loves!!

Callie is still not big on TV, which we don't mind at all. But, if they are singing or dancing, she is completely captivated. She likes Barney's Christmas songs and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse songs the most!!

She also loves to dance and spin. Anytime music is playing, she breaks out into a dance! Sometimes, she doesn't need music at all!