Sure, I don’t know her. Don’t know you for that matter either evilbeth. But you’re one of us, Emma Kate is one of us too, and bugger it, I’m going to exercise my right to goo.
This is great stuff. I’m glad things are going well for you all.
Woohoo! Sounds like she’s gonna be just fine! I have a standing offer to trade her for a 6’1" teenager, male, and I’ll even throw in a roll of duct tape for his mouth!
No?
Oh well, I’ll guess I’ll keep him. Handy around the house and all that. Hands things down off the top shelf.
Seriously, I’m so very glad Emma Kate is going to be OK. There were times I was afraid to look at the threads. I should have known she’d make out just fine!
VERY well put!
Excellent news, evilbeth! Tell little Emma that we’re all rooting for her, and can’t wait for her to learn to type! (Have the mods reserved the username “evilemma”?)
I dunno, but to me “Bag-o-Sugar” sure sounds like a keeper of a nickname.
It might work for the baby, too <grin>.
Emma, we continue to send happy thoughts from this part of the world over your way.
Dang, I was so proud when China Bambina rolled over for the first time. I got the second time on video.
Keep on growing Emma. Similac is good stuff, too.
Oh my goodness, rolling over already? What a little fighter! You go Emma Kate, show this world who’s boss!
Go Emma, Go Emma!
Whee! Hooray! Fantastic news!
I’m glad Emma Kate is doing well. Please keep us posted, as TheLoadedDog is absolutely right. Emma Kate is one of us and we wanna know how she’s doing.
::big hugs and smooches for Mom and Dad and a big tickly zerbert on Emma Kate’s tummy from crazy Uncle Zappo::
Zap!
I definitely remember kids with retinopathy of prematurity, and I’m sure you know that the outcome is variable. This can be tremendously frustrating, when you want to know NOW what kind of issues you’ll be dealing with. But, I suppose ROP is not the only uncertain outcome you’re dealing with. My heart goes out to you, but I know you already have a surplus of extra heart space.
As far as suggestions for what to do, I’m not much more of an expert than you probably are by now. Of course, follow your doctor’s instructions as much as you can. Playing visually stimulating games may help, and it certainly won’t hurt. You want to keep her interested in the visual world, so that she will be stimulated to use whatever vision she winds up having. The visual centers in her brain are developing, and they need to have input.
What makes a visually stimulating game? Well, it would be similar to any other game - with interaction and smiles and laughs. The thing to remember is that even a non-premature baby of her age wouldn’t have much in the way of visual perception, it develops with time. You want to go for high contrast items, and move them around sometimes to let her track them in space. There are special high-contrast (black, white, red) toys on the market. They’re a little pricey but one or two would probably be affordable. They also make great gift suggestions (hint to Dopers pondering gifts). You could also go for a panda bear as a teddy bear rather than a beige one. Stuff like that.
I did a quick search on Yahoo on ROP, and found lots of sites with information, support groups, and useful links. There has been a lot of attention paid in the last ten years or so to the needs of kids and adults with low vision (different from blindness), so you should find information there as well.
What wonderful news, evilbeth! Thanks for the update.
Y’know, as a card-carrying member of the Enormous Babies Club (my babies weighed 8.5 pounds to–yes, this is correct–11 lbs 4 oz :eek: ), I can’t even fathom how tiny a 14 oz baby is. Wow.
And now she is Emma-bag-of-sugar. I love it.
The Weeping Princess is 14 months old now, and boy! do I remember that first rolling-over. What an Event…and so many wonderful milestones to follow.
Best wishes to you all.
karol
I have been silently following your saga for months now, and just wanted to pop in and say “All-the-heck-freakin’ right.” Her progress is utterly fantastic and I know you’re on Cloud 9.