BABY UPDATE

aka. How's HOLLY?

I think that it is time for an update about my niece, Holly.

To refresh, Holly was born to my oldest sister, Annette and her husband, Denis on Friday March 4, 2005 at 9:30 am in Mudgee Hospital. She was born 5 to 7 weeks premature (the original due date was April 20, 2005).

Sadly, Holly was also born with 4 blockages in her bowel, which had to be operated on via emergency surgery only 2 days into her little life, or she would have died.

The fact that she didn't die anyway, is thanks to a number of reasons: the wonderful and dedicated staff of Westmead Children's Hospital; that she's strong willed; she has a strong heart and lungs; she's surrounded by love; and she had many, many people praying for her survival.

They often talk about the power of prayer, but until you see it first hand, it's hard to comprehend. I was so scared by the news about Holly, and so terrified that she would die, I either rang up, or contacted people and asked them to please pray for her. They did, and some passed on the request to others, who passed it on to others, and in the end, there were many, many people praying for Holly - some I knew, some I didn't.

Holly's recovery, and the speed in which she managed it, has been nothing short of miraculous, even the doctor's say that. She should have been three to six months in hospital. It should have been a long haul of ups and downs, triumphs and disappointments. Instead, in less than five weeks she was home, admittedly only for a week, before having to spend three more weeks in hospital due to infection, but still, home, and still an astoundingly fast recovery.

This is one child who is very determined to live and to live to the full, no matter what. Already she has had three close calls with death, all of which she has survived and gone on to thrive in spite of:

The first was when she was born and needed to be operated on, and went on to spend 5 weeks in hospital.

The second was only a week after coming home from the hospital, when she was hit with no less then three severe infections and had to return to hospital post haste for three weeks.

The third was only a couple of weeks after coming home from hospital the second time, when she had a brush with choking to death in her sleep due to being unable to clear a build up of congestion in her little throat. Something luckily picked up on by her father, who by some stroke of luck just happened to be up late that night and saw her distress, otherwise they would have woken up to her dead the next day, (which is an utterly horrifying thought). She was duly rushed to hospital and spent another week there.

In all, Holly has accumulated an impressive amount of frequent flyer points, and all before she was two months old.

Here's where a few organisations need to be deeply THANKED:

TELSTRA CHILD FLIGHT
The ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE of AUSTRALIA
WESTMEAD CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL

Now, though, Holly is doing a whole LOT better. She's growing, not as fast as other babies, but still, growing. Her health has its ups and downs and that worries and concerns us all, but she's a strong, determined fighter, a happy child who giggles a lot, and she WILL continue to grow and thrive, I just know this.

Holly has also already said her first word, "DAD". A word she says a lot, apparently. Her teeth are also starting to come in, as anyone who's been bitten by her recently can testify to. (LOL). Apparently you have to watch your fingers around Holly, in case she grabs them, puts them in her mouth, and then chomps down on them.

Holly's also ready to get up and go. Although she's not yet sitting up on her own, or crawling, she's rolling around vigorously, and grabbing everything in sight. When she gains her legs, Dad (Grandpa to Holly) reckons she'll be off and running... FAST! I hope, then, that Annette (my sister) has her running shoes all ready! Well, she keeps saying she wants to lose weight....... (big grin)

One more hurdle looms for Holly, though. She has to have an operation soon after her 1st Birthday, (what a Birthday gift?!) Due to the operation on her second day, and the fact that babies kick their feet around and don't know the meaning of "take it easy", the poor kid burst some of the stitches inside of her and a hernia has formed. This needs to be repaired as soon as possible, but not before 1 year old. The hospital has already all but ordered Annette to check Holly into Westmead Children's Hospital for the operation within the first two weeks of March 2006, where she will be for two weeks. They do not anticipate any problems, but one never knows.....

So, any prayers for Holly would be greatly appreciated.

Holly is a great kid! I adore her... can you tell? (grin) :o)

Here's some photos:

March/April 2005 (Westmead Children's Hospital):



Holly and Annette (mum):





July/August 2005 (Home/Mudgee, New South Wales):

Holly and Grandpa (maternal Grandfather):



Holly Vocalising (or so Annette tells me those loud arrhhing noises are):