Today is a big day! It's exactly two years since I scared the shit out of Mummy and Daddy by kicking my way into existence three months early.
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| Finally home - seems like ages ago now! |
Even though I'm now two years old Mummy and Daddy (and everyone else for that matter) still give me the benefit of the doubt by taking three months off my age when I'm rubbish at something. For example, I'm not exactly stringing sentences together yet - mainly my vocabulary consists of going 'Uh ooooh' whenever anything falls on the floor, and shouting 'Bah' if it looks like someone is leaving the room - but this is OK because even though I'm two...
I'm only 21 months really! This is an extremely useful excuse which I hope will last a lifetime. Failed GCSEs?... three months early! Failed driving test?...three months early! You get the idea.
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| My first birthday! |
I suppose I need to apologise for not keeping up with this blog thing once I came home from NICU. Truth is, I was so overwhelmed with all the stuff I had to take on board, I didn't really have much time. I know some of you have been wondering how I did after all that hard work to keep me alive and get me home; well you needn't have worried. I'm just fine. I've had the usual bugs that all kids get, and once or twice I've had Mum and Dad a bit nervous when my breathing has become a bit laboured, but I've not needed to go back to hospital once since the day I was released. They really did patch me up well and get me ready for life outside!
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| AUSTRALIA... |
I had my first holiday in the August after I came home so I was only five months old (
two months really!) when I went on my first flight. It was so cool - I remember the bings and bongs sounding a bit like my incubator alarms but instead of being chucked on a ventilator I just had to put my seat belt on - much easier. Since then, I've been to Spain (twice), Australia (bloody long way) and Antigua! My dad reckons I'm spoilt because he didn't fly on a plane till he was nineteen but I should point out that so far he hasn't needed to buy a seat for me, so he should shut up and stop being such a tight git!
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| Me on a plane!! |
So yes, I've been absolutely fine since I came home but I know that hasn't been the case for all of my fellow NICU inmates - some of them came out on oxygen and some of them have been back in a few times since. It's tough for mums and dads with premature babies. Apart from all the stress and worry about us babies, there's the expense of getting to and from the hospital, the time off work, the car parking, the cost of hospital food and a whole load of other things to worry about. That's where Bliss are brilliant - they are the charity for babies born too soon and they do an amazing job. Mum and Dad have been raising money for them and so far they've been able to donate over £5,000. Mum did some running ('cause she likes that stuff) and Dad did a car rally around Europe ('cause he doesn't).
Amazingly my little blog here, which I only started for my own amusement when I was stuck on my back in a clear plastic box for 90 days, has now had nearly 24,000 visits, which is incredible. Mum and dad have had messages from all over the world, and sometimes when a friend, or someone a friend knows, has a premature baby, they can talk to mum or dad about it. I think this helps a bit even though my parents were actually rubbish at taking it seriously!
Dad says that every now and then mostly when he least expects it, someone who's read the blog will ask him how I'm doing and remind him of my 'scary time', and dad says that his eyes sometimes still get a bit leaky when this happens. I think this is because he loves me.
He's definitely not the only one either. When I finally made it home I met all of my family and they are pretty cool. Turns out I have two 'grown up' brothers who are 18 and 16 who were too cool to visit me in hospital but now they call me 'Pilo Pilo' (don't know why!) and throw me around like a rag doll. My grandparents are all pretty neat too and do all of the required adoration very well indeed.
Mummy says I'm a handful sometimes (I am), and Charlie spends a lot of time trying to stop me from playing with his things (and breaking them). I suppose it's fair to say that I'm a little bit hyperactive but they should have known I was impatient for goodness sake.
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| My 2nd Birthday Present! |
So there you have it. Two years after that crazy day in Warwick and life is good. It's a life I couldn't wait to get started and a life I nearly lost on a few occasions, but it's a life I wouldn't swap for anything!
Happy birthday me!
Poppy Lola (aged 2) xxx
