Happy FIRST Birthday!

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Monkey,

First things first...YOU DID IT! Our goal was to have you tube-free by your first birthday and honestly, just a few weeks ago, I didn't think it would happen. But, you once again amazed us. You decided on Sept. 24 that you no longer needed that old stinking feeding tube and you yanked it out. Since it was 10pm and your Dad was in Mexico, I decided to leave it out and just see if you would eat well the following day, and you did. You've taken off since then, eating and drinking like a champ! We are so proud of you. It's hard to believe that less than 2 months ago, your G-tube surgery was scheduled and here you are, tube free for 2 weeks!

Although we took a little detour to bringing you home, I wouldn't change a thing about the past year. Everything that happened has made us the family we are today. You have accomplished more in your first year of life than many will in their entire lives. You have touched so many people--so many more than we'll ever know about. Your story provides hope to families diagnosed with CDH every day. We are truly blessed to be your parents.

It's hard to even look back to that day a year ago and remember what it was like--the terror, the uncertainty, the excitement. We wanted you to stay put, because you were safe as long as you were in my belly, but we couldn't wait to meet you and see what your journey would be like. Thankfully, you have my determination (Daddy calls it a temper, but I prefer determination) and you showed those Doctors who was boss! You fought so hard to live and we'll forever be grateful to you and to God for that.

As of your first birthday you:

• are pulling to a stand and cruising


• are saying mama, dada, baba, ey (hey), ey baybay (hey baby?), nighnigh (night-night)


• are commando crawling and rocking on all fours


• are sleeping through the night, on your tummy, with your book (Peek-A-Who)


• have 8 teeth


• love chicken nuggets, grilled cheese, and apples (apple sauce, apple yogurt, apple cereal bars...you get the idea)


• when you wake up on the morning, we hear you squealing with delight, then you climb up to a stand and bang on the wall, laughing and talking, until we come in to get you


• weigh 21 pounds and are somewhere around 29-30 inches long


• are obsessed with opening and closing doors, especially when Lucy is outside. She's such a good dog--she just stands there waiting for one of us to rescue her and let her inside before you close the door in her face and laugh


• have drank water from Lucy's bowl and eaten several pieces of dog food


• are trying to climb out of your crib, which scares the beejeezus out of me

A year ago today, you:

• weighed 7 pounds, 3 ounces
• were 22 inches long
• breathed with the assistance of a ventilator
• were on many, many medications
• received your nutrition via TPN in an IV

We look forward to what the next year brings, although we're hoping you haven't been told about the Terrible Twos and Threes. :) The fight that we've seen in you to live, breathe on your own, eat on your own, overcome developmental delays...I hope it never disappears. I hope you have that much spunk and fight in you throughout your life (even though that probably means that your Dad and I are really in for it).

Love you bunches,

Mommy, Daddy & Lulu