Pictures of little Haley Matisse are available online!!!. Click here for her gallery.
January 16, 2003
Well, a lot has happened since our last update (December 5). Hopefully, things will slow down now, so we can make regular updates. Anyway here goes:
Haley is growing sooooo fast! The nurse weighed and measured her while we were at the hospital yesterday: 13 lbs. and 25 inches long. Her last measurements a month ago were 10 lbs. 11 oz. and 23 1/2 inches. She has a mess of dark curls on her head. People can't get over her hair. When we tell them this is her second head of hair like this in her short little life, there's typically lots of jaw dropping.
As for personality, Haley has lots of it. She's started really laughing, though it doesn't come freely. She's quick to smile, but it often takes something pretty funny to make her laugh. Typically looking at Daddy does the trick... Actually, with the exception of her giraffe rattle, we can't figure out what makes her laugh. For instance: making funny faces and in the silliest voice possible saying something like "Oh, googly boogle lub lub lub lub" makes most kids—and adults—laugh. Haley just looks at you. And as soon as you turn away she starts laughing. Who knows...
Anyway, she's normally a very content baby, even considering the fact she's had two surgeries, a cold, allergies, and thrush all in 3 1/2 months. She and her mommy are developing such a great relationship. Mommy's become the consoler and comforter. As mentioned above, Daddy's the entertainment.
Holidays in Kentucky
We had a great trip to Kentucky for the holidays, complete with a white Christmas, visits with LOTS of relatives and more luggage in the end than when we started. We were particularly excited about this trip because it was the first time Haley got to meet many relatives, including 3 of her 4 grandparents, 10 of her 12 aunts and uncles, and 7 of her 8 cousins. We also had visits with lots of Kelsee's and Jason's extended families and lots of friends. Haley seemed to charm them all... This was also the first time in a year that Kelsee had been back to visit. It was nice to see so many.
Hernia Surgery
Haley had hernia surgery yesterday. The out-patient surgery took approximately an hour. She was out of the hospital by 3:30 that afternoon, but was really groggy due to the anesthesia until about 10 pm or so. She's such a trooper. Mommy and Dad were a little nervous, even though it was a relatively routine surgery, and smothered the little patient with kisses when she came to recovery. Of course, we smother her with kisses just about all the time, anyway. (Here's a tangent: Kelsee sometimes wears some lipstick with this fine glittery stuff. Typically by the time we get home from wherever we've been, Haley's face is covered in glitter. You don't have to be Hercule Poirot to figure out where it came from.)
Early Intervention Assessment
Haley has an Early Intervention Assessment on January 28 at a place called Kindering Center. Kindering Center specializes in providing intervention services for children with special needs. The services include things like physical therapy, speech therapy, family counseling, special education, etc. Check out their website: www.kindering.org. This assessment will be to determine what early intervention, if any, is needed so that Haley develops as well as possible.
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