Two weeks old today

Looking a lot better, and beginning to get the hang of feeding. They will try to bottle feed tonight, and if successful, the feeding tube will soon be able to be removed.

28th March

We have had several bits of good news in the last two days - she has come off the CPAP again, her feeds have been reduced to four hourly from three, and the real biggy, she has finally surpassed her birth weight - they normally lose weight initially it seems.

Day 9 & 10

Back on the CPAP - it puts air under slight pressure into her nose. SHe's had a few episodes where her heart rate suddenly drops right down then comes back up almost immediately. It seems to be breathing related, and this helps. Her lungs shouldn't be breathing air for another 4 weeks yet. Below, after an exhausting attempt at trying to feed.

It appears we're not going back to Christchurch this week at least.

Amy's First Bath

Day eight, and looking so much better, time for her first bath. Feeding tube still up the nose. Finally dressed and looking like the Michelin man, and ready for her cot - no more incubator.

20th March

Our little baby girl Amy was born prematurely at 7.55 am Friday 16th March in Wellington Hospital (Christchurch was full,) weighing a mere 2.3 kg (about 5lb 1oz in old money.) Donna is being discharged today, but Amy will be in an incubator until she gets a bit bigger. Unfortunately due to a very traumatic and prolonged OP (wrong way round) delivery she has a bit of an elongated head. This will soon

go back to  normal we're told. In these first two shots she is just 20 minutes old

After 27 hours, she's looking better but is hooked up to monitors, a feeding tube through her nose and an IV drip in her arm (hence the bandage.)

These other three are taken on her 4th day, after her IV had been removed. Shortly afterwars she had a breathing tube inserted as she was tending to slow down a bit too much at times. This should be gone soon.

Quake Again?

Thankfully not. Time to get some of those insurance premiums back by getting quake damage sorted - now we can't use the drive for a month. We have passed a milestone though - over 10000 quakes  since Sept 2010. The last big ones, a 5.8 and a 6 were on 23rd December - the first as we were heading for the departure gate for our flight to Auckland. We did eventually manage to get out that day - seven hours late, after the airport was evacuated and closed for three and a half hours.

Cape Foulwind - near Westport, West Coast

February 2012, a trip to the coast to support friends doing the Buller Half marathon. I hadn't entered as I hadn't been doing any long runs, and Donna not for obvious reasons, but the six we were staying with were all in, and one even took out the male 51-55 first prize, and I made the mistake of running with him the following day thinking he'd be tired!

Waiheke Island - New Year

 We managed to get a bit of walking in despite the weather, and even got a few blue sky moments, however the swimming and beach moments were few.

Our home from home for three nights, there were also lovely gardens, a walk to the beach, a communal kitchen and a conservatory where we could sit and read and listen to the rain. And no telephone or cellphone reception, but only ten minutes walk to Oneroa village

And Again

About six weeks later at Shakespeare Regional Park, Whangaporoa, Just north of Auckland. We spent two weeks for the Christmas break in Auckland, with a few days on Waiheke Island over New Year. It rained most days, but then it's been that kind of summer.