The End of 2009

It's been so long since I've had time to write. So much has happened!!

Gareth and I have even had 2 nights out by ourselves, with no children and not having to worry about hooking Annika up for a tube feed. The first was for our 20 year anniversary (no not married but we still count you know) and the other was Gareth's work christmas do with the teachers of Rongotea school.
Bella has had a ballet recital with Maureen Ax school of dance and made a very pretty princess. She enjoyed her last term in Mrs Tornquists class at school. Next year she will be in Year 2 in Miss McLeod's class and is growing up way too fast. Bella's favourite present this year would have to be her new kitten, who she called Tiger. He's now 10 weeks old and spends his time terrorising the girls, when they aren't lavishing him with love? that is. Annika loves to give him big bone-crushing hugs and Bella is constantly picking him up and putting (rather roughly) down again. Will show photos when I get a chance to download some. Bella spent the week after christmas with her Nana down near Christchurch with her Uncle Jimmy. She came back very spolit and very happy.
Tonight Bella is at her Nana's with her cousin Alanna, who is visiting over from Australia after moving there a year ago. Alanna stayed here last night, with Bella and Alanna both supposedly sleeping in a kids tent in the spare bedroom (which lasted for 10 minutes for Bella before she moved to the bed!)
Annika has grown up so much in the last 2 months. She is using more words; me!! (so cute when she's asking for food), please, Tiger (very quick to learn this one), juice and just tonight 'beer'. Pointed to Gareth's t-shirt and said 'Dad' then 'beer' - hmmm, observant little one isn't she. She has also apparently grown 2 cms!? if they measured her right at the hospital. Annika has gone from 10.85kgs - to 11.05 - and back to 10.85kgs again. She still weighs in at 10.85kgs as at 29th December but she's so happy and active we're trying not to stress. Although the paediatrician was not happy with the loss of weight?? and Annika's limited diet (mostly custard and chocolate) but we keep reminding ourselves she's just been eating for over 2 months and weight gain and a varied diet is going to take time. We have got Annika eating more soups now (mushroom is a favourite) and are adding cream to everything we can, she's even eating some things with lumps in it depending on her mood. The paediatrician was so concerned she got the dietician to contact us, so now we have polycal to add to Annika's food as well as a lovely recipe book on what to make with the nutritional supplement Nutrini (revolting stuff we'd been tube feeding Annika with for 2 years). Very depressing visiting the paediatrician, I think next time I'll send Gareth and Annika by themselves (she wants to see Annika in 2 months time) as I didn't handle the last visit too well. I'm not sure I'd be so calm next time. I think it's too early to panic about Annika's eating and I don't want to stress like we did before with Annika's eating (or lack of it). It didn't help that my TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) levels were low again and I had to go back on medication for it (diagnosed last year with hyperthyroidism). It certainly explains why I'd fall asleep at 7:30pm, felt like I had PMS all the time.... Gareth says it's like living with Jekyll and Miss Hyde but he's still alive to tell the tale so it can't be that bad?
Annika had many other hospital visits before christmas including an ENT one where he looked at her 'large tonsils' and suggested a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy as he's sure that she must suffer from obstructive sleep apnea. I'm to check whether she mouth breathes at night (or day) and whether she stops breathing while she is asleep. Oximetry readings we did for a night seemed to show several large drops to 80% saturation which is big indication that Annika does have obstructive sleep apnea. We have to go back to the ENT in February so we'll have to talk with him further about surgery for Annika. I did panic when the ENT first mentioned surgery as surgery on her throat so soon after getting her eating would not be good!! But I suppose it would take months for Annika to get through the public health system before surgery would actually happen!
One great hospital visit was the heart clinic where the found no detectible heart murmur and hardly any leak in her mitral valve. Also they said we could stop her flecinide medication for tachycardia (she hasn't had a episode for 2 years) straight away. Yay! No more medication!! It's been 3 weeks and no tachycardic episodes so far.
Annika also had her eye's checked and her eye sight has changed. She has astigmatism, which means her eyes are becoming a rugby ball shape. She needs new glasses anyway and will have her eyes checked again in 2 months (sometimes the hospital visits never seem to end).
This year will definitely be a better year though!!