"Long, Tall Sally"

There aren't any really tall people in my Mom's family.  My Gramps was shorter than my Gram. My mom was about 5'2".  She had two brothers that were around 5'11", but her other siblings were all fairly short.  I don't remember exactly how tall they were, but all of her sisters were somewhere around 5' 1' or 2" and the other uncles probably 5'6" or so.  On Dad's side, he was about 5'8" (even tho his dad and his uncle were over 6'.)

I hit my top height as a freshman in H.S. topping out at 5'' 2 1/2."  I wasn't exactly a "Long, Tall Sally", but I was taller than my mom and my sister too.  I couldn't swear to it, but I think my niece is about my height.  When Rachlet was growing up I used to tease her that if she ever got taller than I, she would have to move out.  She never did think that wa s very funny, nevertheless, she topped  out at only 5'2";....a full 1/2" shorter than me....so her place in our house was secure until she was ready to move out on her own!   lol!   I remained the tallest woman in our immediate family.  Perhaps that is why I never felt particularly short!  Because I had family that WERE short and I was taller.

Rachlet's hubby, T.A. is 5"11".  His dad was about the same.  His mother and his sister are both around 5'5" or so.  His aunts and uncles are all over the map, but none very, very tall or very, very short.  Just average.

You may remember that when our Maddie-the-Great came along she was a tiny preemie....only 1 lb. 14 oz. and 13" long at birth!   She stayed in the lower percentiles for weight and height for several years.  Nothing all that unusual, she was just on the low side of normal.  I never really gave it much thought, but I guess I assumed she would be on the short side....like the rest of the women in my family.  I remember when she was first born, I was talking with an acquaintance (no one I knew well), and this woman told me her son had been a tiny preemie too but now, as an adult, he was over 6' ft.  That just confirmed for me that being a preemie only affects children when they are young and there was no correlation to being a small adult.  It didn't occur to me, that M-t-G could be tall!

Well somewhere about 3 or 4 years ago M-t-G began to have growth spurts that would add several inches to her height over the course of a year.  Her place in the percentile rankings began to inch up (pun intended!)
That was reassuring.

It's also a little disconcerting!  It seemed like she had grown every time I saw her!  Well, it finally happened!  When we saw her last weekend, she had grown again and when we stood back-to-back, it was clear that she was as tall as I was!!  There is very little chance that she will stop growing right now and never get any taller.  In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she nudged past me during the last week and when I next see her she will be ......(sob)....taller than her Grammy!  (Which means she would be taller than her mom too.)   She's still only 11 (6th grade) and won't even be 12 until April.... and she is as tall as a grown-up!  (Okay, a short   grown-up, but a grown-up just the same!!)

I wasn't finished with growing until I was 14.  If she does the same that means she still has two whole YEARS of growing left to do!  She could end up not only taller than her mom and I, but taller than her other Grandma and her aunt!

Either way it's pretty much the end of my reign as the tallest woman in my family!  Of course, it's ridiculous to talk about being the tallest anything at only 5' 2 1/2"....that isn't tall by anybody else's definition.   A fact that I am reminded of every times someone stands next to me and says, "Boy, are you short!"   Still, it was my one claim to fame in our little family, I was the tallest woman.

So our M-t-G could be a "Long, Tall, Sally" before long, depending on how tall she actually gets before stopping, after all kids are bigger these days.  But it's okay for her to be tall, tall women have a stronger presence, they are harder to overlook, and tall people have more self-confidence....all good things!

When I look at the photos of M-t-G when she was tiny, I am so grateful that with all she had to go through, that she is so healthy today.  Our double-miracle grandchild continues to beat the odds in nearly every aspect of her life.  I do have to giggle just a little though, we were all so worried when she was born and it took her 9 weeks in the NICU to grow to reach 5 lbs, so she could go home.  It seemed like forever back then!  I guess we needn't have worried quite so much,  growing seems to be one of her very best things!

"There's A Girl In Texas"

"There's A Girl in Texas" who is, by almost any definition, really special.  She has been special since the moment she was born.  She is our family's pride and joy and Sunday, April 8, she turned 11 years old.  Happy Birthday, sweet girl!

This special girl is, of course, our double miracle girl, the light of our lives, our granddaughter,  Maddie-the-Great.   Before you go any further, I strongly urge you to take a few minutes and read her story in the following posts.  After you read her story, you'll understand a lot better, why I go on and on about this special girl.  (Go ahead, read.....take your time, I'll wait!)


Part I:  Against All Odds
http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds.html

Part II: It's NICU time!!
http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds_09.html

Part III: Life in the NICU and Beyond
http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds_10.html

Part IV -- The Week When Time Stopped
http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds_13.html

Part V -- Our Second Miracle
http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds_14.html

Part VI --  Addendum
http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds_1208.html

So, are you back??  Did you read it all??  Do you see why she is so special, at least to us?  Of course you do!  She is Maddie-the-Great for good reason!

Those health issues are all over with now and we are grateful.  M-t-G is completely healthy, suffered no consequences of being a preemie and on top of that she has been cancer free for eight years!  There are other ways that she is special too.  She is extremely bright.  Seriously bright, not just proud- Grandma bright!!

At the end of this school year she will "graduate" from elementary school and will be promoted to Middle School (6th-8th grades).  Kids in Austin have several options for Middle School.  Most of the kids go to one of the public Middle Schools as assigned according to the School District boundaries, but in addition to parochial or private schools, there are four other options.  There are three Middle School Magnet schools which focus on different areas of interest.  One is performing arts, one is law and international studies, a third (KMS) is an academically rigorous program, and the fourth is the Anne Richards School for Girls.  Application to these four consists of academic records (grades), special needs (gifted kids), and individual essay. 

M-t-G applied to KMS and Ann Richards.  Ann Richards School is a program established by the late Texas Governor, Ann Richards, to provide educational opportunities focusing women and opportunity.  Richards was also specifically established to provide opportunities for the financially disadvantaged girl.  Their enrollment is structured to be 75% from economically depressed neighborhoods in the city and the remaining 25% of the enrollment is selected by lottery of eligible applicants. 

Our girl was accepted at KMS and  was accepted/eligible at Ann Richards.  Whoo-Hoo!!  That's our kiddo!!  Although accepted/eligible at Ann Richards she was not selected in the lottery.  She may reapply next year or any following year, but I don't know that she will because she is REALLY excited at being accepted at KMS!  It was really her first choice.  There were 800+ applicants to KMS, of which about 200 were accepted and our Maddie was one of them! 

I think it will be a good choice for her.  She needs the challenge of being with other very bright kids.  School has been easy for her, straight As more often than not with not much effort.  KMS has an interesting curriculum and many electives are offered that challenge the kids in unusual ways (e.g., Physics through Cooking).  For the first time M-t-G may have to work a bit harder, but that's a good thing!

Of course, we are extremely proud of her!  She has already taken her Math placement test and she is awaiting the results.  She also has auditioned for the KMS Orchestra (she has been studying violin for four years) and it was indicated that she will most likely be accepted.  She's looking forward to that too!

Maddie has such a broad range of interests....she loves American History (especially WWII and the Civil War eras), she loves math, she loves music, she likes to be physically active, she is taking Tae Kwan Do and has already achieved several different colored belts (I've lost track of what level she is at currently), she is still in Girl Scouts, she loves to swim and roller skate (not at the same time!)  She wants to take up archery!  She loves horses and riding.  Nine times out of ten, when she watches TV, she watches the History or Discovery channels. Her vocabulary is outstanding.  She reads constantly (when she's not doing any of the other things she does!)  Her reading comprehension level has been identified at the High School Senior level and above!  As I said, she's an interesting kid!!

She, like every other kid, has some things she struggles with.  She likes to be in control.  She is feisty.  She has a temper that can get nearly out of control.  She is also approaching the time that hormones kick in and put her on that emotional roller coaster of the Tween/Teenager.  Every parent of girls has experienced that time when all of a sudden their happy little loving sunshine girl into a sad, miserable unhappy lump!   We have seen glimpses of that with our girl, and the next few years could be challenging for us all.

A few weeks ago M-t-G was upset about something with her mom and dad, and it slid into a melodramatic meltdown mode, with yelling, and tears, and "nobody likes me, I have no friends, you don't understand, you won't let me do anything, you don't love me!"  In between the dramatic sobs and the litany of being unloved, she paused, then sobbed out, "I am, of course, speaking metaphorically!!"

Oh yeah, she's our Maddie-the-Great!  She's a pistol!   I mean, really, how can ya help loving a kid like that??!! 

Parenting the Tiniest of Miracles: Prematurity Has No Prejudice

Don't think it could never happen to you....

Parenting the Tiniest of Miracles: Prematurity Has No Prejudice


Take a minute and visit this site.  It is a fascinating account of another family experiencing a premature birth.  Then go to and support the March of Dimes in their efforts relating to preemies!!   If you know a family who has recently added a tiny preemie to their family, please share this with them. 

Thanks!!

Celebrate" Addendum:

If you have read the posting below and you are interested in what happened that brought us to this milestone, the saga of Maddie's life is posted in six earlier entries over November 8 through November 14, 2009.

 Check it out.  I promised, it is a remarkable story.  (Follow this link to the first entry.)

http://mellodeemusings.blogspot.com/2009/11/against-all-odds.html

"Against All Odds"

Part III:  Life in the NICU and Beyond

This is where Maddie's miracle really began to kick in.  We were all frequent visitors to the NICU, to watch the baby and wait.  Ratchlet and TA, of course, were there the most;  Mikey came when he could; and I was there about 5 nights out of 7.  I generally came around 10 p.m. and stayed until after midnight, I am a night person after all. I felt that was Maddie's and my special time.  It was quiet, peaceful, low-key, without the harsh neon lights and loud noises.  I would talk to her, occasionally touch her tiny hands, and I would sing her lullabies.  And Maddie would sleep and eat and grow.

Ratchlet and TA were allowed to finally hold their child.  It seemed like forever, but eventually the rest of us had our chance too.  Cradling that child in my arms for the first time was one of the happiest days of my life.

And she continued to grow a little bit each day, measured in ounces.  Over time, one by one the wires, tubes, and sensors went away....all except for the heart monitor.  That would be with us for a while.  She began to fill out a little and look more like a baby should look.  She was beautiful.

Preemies, especially early preemies, can have an enormous numbers of problems, from Cerebral Palsy all the way to deafness, and everything in between. All of the tests they did to identify possible problems came back fine.  Against all the odds, this baby just quietly and peacefully stayed on track.  One day at a time, one step at a time. 

Nine Weeks in the NICU seemed like an eternity but eventually, at last, she reached that coveted milestone.  Her weight hit the magic number:  5 pounds!!  Maddie could come home!

It was a little frightening in a way.  There was still so much that could go wrong.  The heart monitor would go off fairly frequently, scaring us out of our skin.  Soon we realized, that the leads could become disconnected very easily and the alarm would start screeching.  That monitor never, ever went off because Maddie was having a problem. 

Still Maddie stayed steady on the course and became the treasure that she is.  We soon discovered too, that our little angel had a temper!  Just like the doctor said in the delivery room, "Oh, she's a fiesty one!"  But that meant she had a strong will and that was something that would be valuable to her her whole life.

We kept watching for signs of developmental or physical problems.  The possibilities that did appear were non-issues, none of our worries ever came to pass.  She was healthy, smart, curious, and had her own timetable for lots of things. Most of all she was a joy!Our miracle baby was on her way!

We thought one miracle was pretty amazing and we never expected to need another one....but we did.

Part IV:   The Week When Time Stopped

See you tomorrow!

 

"Against All Odds"

Part II:  It's NICU time!!

When I left you yesterday, Maddie-the-Great had just been born!   Her birth weight was One Pound, 14 ounces, and she was just 13 1/2 inches long!  It was not an error.  Unbelievable!  We were both thrilled and shocked.  So unbelievably small.

[I don't know why, but I never really understood how much danger Rachtlet was in from the Preeclampsia.  It wasn't until the next day that I finally realized that she could have died!!  Wow!  How could I have missed that?  It is my nature to be a worrier.  In this situation my attention and worry were mostly for the baby.  If I had realized the danger to both of them I would have fallen apart.  Somehow, though, somewhere deep inside I was certain they would both be fine.]

Just a little alert, some of the details have gotten a bit fuzzy over time, so some of the sequence, etc. may not be exactly correct.

So the newborn preemie, M-t-G, after a very quick stop at mom's side in the delivery room, was whisked off to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), where she was placed in a crib with open access.  A very large number of sensors were attached to her, each one a monitoring device of some sort:  pulse rate, respirations, oxygen levels, and temperature are the ones that I remember most. They were all being monitored constantly and should any of those levels spike or drop or anything, loud emergency warnings would start up immediately.  Let me tell you, that is one terrifying sound!   Still, the NICU staff was closely in attendance and ready for anything.  They inserted an IV line, just in case they needed to get medications to her in a hurry if it became necessary.

After several hours, we were finally allowed in to see her (after scrubbing), for the first time.  It was heartbreaking.  She was sooo tiny, there of course, was no extra tissue to fill out her little body yet.  She was literally skin and bones. You could hardly see her with all the lines and tubes and sensors stuck to her. Her color was pretty much red.  Still, she had a little light hair underneath the little cap, she was breathing on her own, and sleeping, all worn out from being yanked into the world so soon!  I fell in love instantly.  We all did.

Well, most of us did.  My darling, Ratchlet, who had been part of every single scary moment, and the one who needed to be with her baby the most, didn't get to meet her daughter up close until the next day, as she was still recuperating from the C-Section!   That was very hard on her.  Of course, she was already in love with this tiny gift. 

We were told that preemies, especially at this stage, cannot tell the difference between pleasure and pain, so none of us could hold her, or pick her up, or even touch her over-much.  Truth be told, I think we were all a little afraid of causing this child any more trauma. She was not easy for us to look at, knowing how much struggle she had ahead of her.  Nevertheless, nothing would have gotten me out of that nursery until they made us leave.  It was enough that we could be with her for however long it was allowed.


Caption:  Here she is with her Daddy's hand nearby.  I've never seen a finger so tiny!!

As I said, she was breathing on her own (which was absolutely amazing to everyone!).  When she was 8 hours old, they decided to put her on the respirator so that her little lungs didn't have to work so hard.  A bit later they added  blue light phototherapy, to head off any signs of jaundice, and I think it was the next day that the feeding tube went in.  (The littlest preemies don't have much of a sucking instinct, so this is the only way to initially get nourishment into the baby so she could start to grow.)

The absolutely amazing thing to me both then and now, was that no one....no doctor, nurse, technician or caregiver....ever said anything to make us feel Maddie was in danger.  There was no "make or break" moment.  We never heard anything resembling a warning that she was at a critical point of any kind.  There was no backward step, no crisis.  Maddie the Great was going along exactly as she should, doing exactly what she needed to do. 

She continued doing exactly that for the next 9 weeks!


Part III:  Life in the NICU and Beyond

See you tomorrow!

"Against All Odds"

Maddie-the-Great really is great and fully deserves the designation for she is a double-miracle child!  Really!  As promised  I am happy to share with you the journey so far.  This is a long story, so in the interest of keeping both you and me interested in finishing it, I'll tell it in installments of sorts.

Part One:  Maddie's first miracle occurred when she was born. 

Our entire family was so excited that Ratchlet was expecting.  We had just decided to move to Austin and were in the process of selling our house and packing up to move when we learned we were going to be grandparents!  "What perfect timing", we thought.  "Must mean moving there is the right thing to do!"  Little did we know how right it was going to be.

We made it to Austin and settled in, thrilled to be so close to our daughter and son-in-law.  The pregnancy seemed to be going well as far as we could tell.  Ratchlet and I were having great fun preparing for the baby.

Ratchlet was only in her 29th week of pregnancy when her OB discovered that she developed a sudden and severe case of Preeclampsia, a condition which develops in some pregnant women (although no one know why!)  It causes dangerously high blood pressure in the mother, and can also affects the baby's growth.  Evidently Ratchlet's BP was through the roof and the baby didn't seem to be growing at the correct rate!  

She had gone to her OB for her regular Thursday check up, not realizing anything was amiss.  Well, the Doctor said she needed to be in the hospital, RIGHT NOW!  She also mentioned the dreadful phrase Emergency C-Section!!

TA called Mikey and me at home to tell us what was happening.  My first thought was, "It's too soon.  Way too soon."  Ratchlet was at 29 weeks, she still had at least 11 weeks more until her due date!!  That's very nearly 3 months more!! She couldn't have the baby now.  The child would never survive.

Well, it appeared there was no alternative, so we went to the hospital to be with them and do what we could.   When we arrived the staff spent 3 days giving medications to reduce Ratchlet's BP to a low enough level to do surgery and something else to help strengthen the baby's respiratory system.  It was a done deal.  Both baby and mom needed to have this C-Section as soon as possible.

They decided to do the C-Section on that Sunday morning.  Actually, it turned out to be Palm Sunday and I went to Mass in the hospital chapel that morning.  The priest was distributing the blessed palms so I took several.  The actual date was April 8.  It occurred to me a little later that April 8 was my Grandmother's birth date as well.  I chose to take that information as a positive sign. 

Only T.A. was allowed in the delivery room, of course, so we tried to find a place to settle in to wait.  Less than 15 minutes later, before we had even figured out where to go, T.A. came out of the Delivery Room.  My stomach dropped and I was sure it was bad news.

"It's a Girl!  She weighed 1 lb. 14 oz. and was 13 1/2 in. long!" Ratchlet was fine, came through it perfectly.  The doctor told him that the baby came out crying, breathing on her own, with Apgar scores of 8 and 9, and seemed to be doing great!!

Madeleine Elizabeth had arrived!


Part Two :  It's NICU time 

See you tomorrow!