Some more videos 30th Dec 09

Happy birthday to Ger's Mam, Mary Collins!

Here are some more videos of our girls:

1. Us messing around on xmas day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WqcdWPL7yA&feature=channel

2. Ger and I interviewing ourselves before the C-section
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5WqcdWPL7yA&feature=channel

3. Jaime's first bath at home
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynKiKex8eCo&feature=channel

4. Jaime's first day at home - bonding with Daddy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im66SfS9bTg&feature=channel

Hope you enjoy them xxx

Jamie Rose Collins was born on the 14/12/09 3:31PM

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas to you all. Apologies it has taken me a week to get to write this but Caroline gave birth to a little girl on Monday, who we have called Jaime Rose. Both are doing extremely well, Jaime is settling in to life outside the womb and Caroline is recovering very well.

It all happened last Monday the 14th, at 3:31pm. Everything went according to plan and I am delighted to report that we are now settling in at home, me and my three girls!!. Caroline and Jaime spent one night in the hospital before transferring to a birthing centre for 4 days where they were looked after by midwifes and got time to bond, relax and recover before heading home.

Since we came home on Saturday life has been pretty hectic as we get to grips of life as 4.
I am putting up a few pictures and a few videos so you can get a better look at our little addition.

Talk soon, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for 2010.
Love
The Collins's

P.S. For some of you who are wondering, we decided to change Jaime's second name from Marie to Rose as she was born very red and was red for the first few days. She has changed now to "Sallow" like her dad!!! She is quiet Jaundice still and that will go with time in the NZ Sun.....

Jaime up close

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRriICGFtJw


Jaime having a bit of a stretch.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0tZKaNggrw


First night at home

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA9vVYQ5-E0

Gastrostomy (Tummy Tube) Removed 4/12/09

Ash is doing better by the day. We had the tube removed form her tummy 10 days ago and we are so happy for her! She just loves telling everyone that it's gone, lifts up her top and shows her tummy to every one who as much as looks her way. The thing I'm lovin is the fact that I can finally hug her properly, with her tummy flush against my chest, without having to worry about her bloomin tube sticking out. Unfortunately, she been having problems internally since we took it out - seems like reflux - so she's not eating much and gets uncomfortable when eating - but hopefully that will settle down in the next couple of weeks.

Otherwise, she's able to stand again, that is when she's wearing her splints and when she's leaning against something. It's wonderful seeing her getting a bit of strength back in her legs after being in casts for so long.

We are getting very excited about Christmas coming and about the arrival of bubs 2. Ashling is convinced it's a baby boy so we'll have to wait and see ( as we don't know yet).

Well that's all for now. We'll post a blog as soon as there's news!
Lots of love xxx

Casts Off....earlier than anticipated!

Ash's casts are off! We went in for xrays the other day and the Surgeon decided to get Ashling's casts removed and not to replace them. We are thrilled for her. Her feet look pretty good, one better than the other though. Ultimately, they look flatter though and in a much better position for walking. Obviously they are very scarred and sore looking, and she's pretty sensitive about them. So we're keeping them bandaged up and secure during the day, just so she doesn't give them any knocks. We will be getting foot supports soon from the Orthothic centre, which she will wear for about 6 months when standing and learning to walk.
We are really happy to have all of this trauma over, as it's only about 6 weeks before Ashling's sister or brother will be born. Woo hoo!
This is a video of Ashling's last day in her long casts. It will give you an idea how long, heavy and encumbersome they were, but at the same time, how much she she had adapted to them by the end. she's such a tropper.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Edbi_zGoH2g

These are a few random videos from our holiday in Australia.
Ash and I messing outside a shop:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whMk7FHvubQ

The Hennessys kids entertaining Ashling:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6LSXMSxNR8

Finally this is a wee video of Ashling in her standing frame, doing some colouring with her Daddy;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gvxNm7ykRA

Cheers xxxx

Ashling's Birthday 27th Oct 09

Can you believe that Ashling is 2 year's old? Most people say that time flies when children are young but we feel like she's been around for a lifetime to be honest, because of how much the poor girl has been through in two short years. Hopefully it's onwards and upwards from here.

Well since I last wrote, Ashling had her last surgery on her feet and the wires were removed. She is now wearing much shorter and lighter casts and is so much happier! She can bum shuffle again quite easily and she's back sleeping and eating the same as before her initial surgery. She has to wear the casts for another few weeks (prob about 4 weeks) and then she'll need a lot of rehabilitation to restrengthen her legs after being in casts for so long. We are thrilled to have the surgeries behind us, particularly since bubs two will be be here in about 6 weeks!!!! Where the time went in this pregnancy I'll never know!!!

We decided to have a little holiday after Ash's last surgery, and before things get hectic again...so we're just after having a week's holiday in Australia. Had a wonderful break. Spent time with our close friends Paul and Teasie on the Sunshine Coast and then had a few days to ourselves in the Gold Coast. Ash loved it all but we had to keep her out of the sun because of the heat being in casts and we couldn't take her to the beach cause she can't get them wet. The poor child hasn't had a shower or bath in about 3/4 months!! We do wash her the odd time though.

The next noteworthy event was her birthday. We had decided that we wouldn't have a party for her as we didn't think she'd really enjoy it at the moment. We would wait til her casts were off and her Mickey button is removed (we're hoping to do this before Christmas). But we ended up having 3 small parties for her in the end. We had one in Australia with our friends a few days before her birthday, one on the day with my sis and her family and then one with all my family a few days after. Next year I think we'll do the normal thing!

Here are some videos...

1. Birthday celebrations in Australia.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGk7jwbxPHE&feature=channel

2. Birthday celebrations at my sisters
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIjOYQS8WfQ&feature=channel

3. Birthday celebration with my family;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXhAutX45z4&feature=channel
4. Ash and my bump
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTQuFABSSlE&feature=channel

Thanks for taking the interest in this.

Lots of Love

Car, Ger and Ash

Some Videos - 3 Oct, 09

Hi There, Ash is doing much better thank God. She has gotten used to having the casts on and in general, her form has improved greatly. She's having the last cast change next Friday and the Surgeons will take the wires out of her feet. Then she will have to wear the new casts for about 6 more weeks. Can't wait to be done with it to be honest - all of these appointments and anaesthetics have been way too close together for our liking. Anyway, these are a couple of videos, nothing too exciting, but they will give you an idea of where she's at at the moment.

1. Playing with her cousin, David Neville
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FtBSfFZraJQ

2. Our friend Rohan playing with Ash
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-d-ORfivhc

3. Being entertained yet again by cousin David
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzsBQTJ76iM

4. Ashling got a new hospital type of bed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFwa9XQkKUE

5. Cousin Daniel reading/singing stories to Ash and David
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luX00AlelaE

6. More stories..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YI2JibIXhmI

That's all for now. Will be in touch after her surgery next Friday. xxx

Monday, 7th September

One Foot Surgery down......

Well Ash had the big surgery on her rockerbottom feet. It took nearly 8 hours!

Anyhow, it seems like everything went as it should have in theatre but there were a lot of problems with pain relief afterwards. A leaky epidural was taken out after 24 hours and Ash was put on morphine, which didn't suit her at all. She ended up highly distressed and short of breath and it was all quite traumatic for her to be honest. But 4 days post-op, we took her home, where she's a lol happier than in hospital. It hasn't been easy though. She still has a lot of discomfort and is totally frustrated by her lack of mobility (as the casts go from her toes to her groin). So her bum-shuffling, bike, rocking horse....all modes of transport are not possible at the moment. In fact, the time in casts seems to be crawling so far! But alas in the big scheme of things, I'm sure we'll all look back on this time and it will seem like a drop in the ocean of Ashling's life to date!

Ash has to go back to theatre this Thursday for the 2nd part of this procedure. The surgeons will remove the casts, tighten up the wires in her feet that are holding the new shape of her bones, and then put new casts on. Then it will be 4 more weeks in these, until the next and final change. (after which the wires will be removed but casts will remain for 6 more weeks).

So more prayers needed for Thursday....pleeeeaaaase! Will keep you posted.
Thanks, as always! xxxx

PS: This is a cute little video of Ger and Ash playing the drums a few weeks ago when we were away for a weekend. The picture is a bit dark and blurry though.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1lsqKT3b9Q

Wed, 19th August, 09

Just a few videos and recent photos of Ash, showing off her shiner! She had a nasty fall off her bike and got a black eye and a bruised forehead. Didn't bother her in the least though - think I was more upset about it than she was!

The videos aren't anything too exciting but they'll give you an idea where she's at right now. Cheers x

1. Getting a kiss off her on her bike
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uOaFvB9TNc

2. Dad reading to her while she tries to wear tiny glasses belonging to Mr PotatoHead! Our studious little girl....not!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXJ6SNXjjgE

3. Ash being serenaded by her cousin Katie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKuKbh6oTHQ

4. Watching Barney while chilling out on my rocking horse - a bit boring.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPzyxzewg-0

5. Ash getting ready for bed...NOT!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEGDARsC3uU

6. Ash and Ger messing in her room before bedtime.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpPymkiW_HU

Cheers,
Lots of love, Car and Ger x

A lovely story...

People have often asked me what it's like having a child with a disability. Someone sent me this story recently and it describes perfectly what it's like. Have a read below:

Emily Kingsley said, “ I’m often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability and to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it and to imagine how it would feel. It’s like this: When you’re going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation to Italy. You buy a bunch of guidebooks and make your wonderful plans. You’re going to see the coliseum, the Sistine chapel, the gondolas. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian and it’s very exciting. After several months of preparation and anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go to Italy. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess says, ‘Welcome to Holland.’ ‘Holland?’ you say, ‘I signed up for Italy. I’m supposed to be in Italy. All my life I have dreamed of going to Italy.’ But there’s been a change in flight plans and they’ve landed in Holland and there you must stay. The important thing to remember is they haven’t taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place filled with pestilence, famine and disease. It’s just a different place. So you must go out and buy new guidebooks and you must learn a whole new language and you must meet a whole new group of people that you would never have met before. It’s just a different place. It’s slower paced than Italy and it’s less flashy than Italy. But after you have been there for a while and you catch your breath, you begin to look around and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills. And Holland has tulips. And Holland even has Rembrandts. But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy and bragging about what a wonderful time they’ve had there. And for the rest of your life you’ll say, ‘Yes, that is where I was supposed to go. At least that is what I had planned.’ And the pain of that experience will never, ever, go away. The loss of that dream is a very significant loss. But, if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn’t get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy those very special, very lovely things about Holland. “

Well recovered.....

Ashling has fully recovered from her bug and her oxygen levels are back to normal. She is also eating and drinking the same as before (if not a little better!). We are absolutely thrilled with her and thoroughly enjoying every day with her and her roguish ways!

The other news is that she is going to have a baby sister or brother around Christmas time. Yes, I'm pregnant and due on Dec 21st. We had intended on doing IVF so that the chances of having a baby with Escobar syndrome could be minimised but then we decided to just go for it and pray LOTS! Anyway, the wonderful news is that we have had tests done and the baby does not carry the gene for escobar syndrome. So hopefully we will have a healthy baby for Christmas. Woo Hoo. To say that we are over the moon is an understatement!

As always, thanks a million for taking the time and interest in reading this.
Lots of love, Car, Ger and ash x0x0x0

Minor Set-Back

Well the ole winter cold has finally taken its toll on our little munchkin.

About 2 weeks ago, she picked up a nasty virus and just when we thought she'd shaken the worst of it, she got a chesty cough which she just couldn't handle. Her oxygen saturation levels dropped and we ended up back in hospital for 4 days. We've been at home now for a couple of days and though she still has a cough, she is a lot better and is starting to get her energy back.

Unfortunately, it was a wee step back for Ash because she needed oxygen to recover, which was very disappointing for us since she's been off it now for 7 months. We also had to resort to feeding her through her Mic-Key button cause she refused to eat or drink anything. Hopefully we'll have her eating and drinking independent of her tube in another week or so. At the moment she's still quite weak after being sick, and she is quite dehydrated after having the runs for about 8 days so we'll keep giving her fluids down the tube for now.

The other news regarding Ash's health is that we finally have a date to get her foot surgery done. She is getting both feet operated on at the same time on August 27th so please say a prayer for her then. It will be a pretty major surgery, correcting the shape and structure of her rocker-bottom feet, and she will have wire in her feet for a while after, securing the bones into their new position. She will also need casts for about 12 weeks post-surgery but hopefully she'll have them off for Christmas.

Well that's about it for now. Ashling is going through a real cuddly phase at the mo - which we're lovin! She could kiss and cuddle us all day if we'd let her. It's great!

Ash - nearly 20 months old

Ash is doing well, still eating very little but she seems to be perfectly happy and healthy so we have stopped worrying about her weight.

You should enjoy the following video....it's very cute!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jn2MWyldPjg

Lots of love x

Botox is working!

Well it looks like the botox injections are working as Ashling's legs are responding nicely. The bend has decreased in both legs! We are really pleased. Only drawback is that Ashling's Orthopaedic Surgeon wants her to wear the splints 24/7 for 3 months now, instead of 3 weeks! We are negotiating it at the moment as her Physio thinks that this may be too long and that Ash will lose a lot of the strength that she has built up in her legs. We'll have to wait and see.

Ash has been incredibly tolerant of the splints, she has just found new ways of doing things.

Her eating and drinking is still our biggest challenge - we're not really sure how she is surviving as she seems to eat like a sparrow! Anyhow, she'll get there but let's just say, she'll never be a very big person!

I took a few videos the other night of her showing some of her party tricks. She was just about to go to bed and so was a bit tired but they are still cutish.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGLzblxbCgE


In this one she was getting tired but she still enjoyed her songs - a little bit!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0yzR26DkZ8

That's all for now. Thanks for taking the interest to look at this. Lots of love xxx

Botox Done!

Well Ash had her botox injections and her hamstrings have been somewhat paralysed in an effort to relax the back of her legs. As there is still a bend in both knees stopping her from straighening her legs, the aim of the botox is to allow the physio to stretch her legs and try to get some of the bend to release over time. She's now wearing splints 24/7, which is pretty hard on her cause she can't bum shuffle around the place or ride around on her bike. She was very frustrated for a day or two but it's amazing how much she's already adapted to them. She can now bum shuffle a little bit and she's being incredibly tolerant of them. She'll probably have to wear them for about a month. Hopefully by the end of that time, her legs will be a bit straighter.

In regards to her eating, she hasn't made much progress unfortunately. But hopefully with time, she will take more interest and start chewing food etc.

Besides all of that she is doing wonderfully and is SO much fun at the moment!

I will update with some photos and videos next week.
Cheers, Car x

May 6th: 6 weeks down of Ash not being fed by tube

What a little legend our munchkin is!

Ashling is continuing to do well without tube feeding. She is still just learning how to eat so we can't really count food much in her daily calorie intake (unless you can quantify the salt off a cracker!) but she is experimenting more and more every day and she's getting braver with what goes into her mouth (though most of comes back out again). she's loving her new confidence though. In the past if she put someting in her mouth, she would panic and cry, resulting in us trying to yank it out or she would get sick and bring up a lot more than the little piece that had just offended her! Now she has great control, she puts it in, plays with it, tries biting it sometimes and then confidently spits it out again. The next stage has to be that she'll decide to devour it - well I certainly hope so anyway!!

She drinks about 500 mls of high energy formula per day and some water and that's what's she's surviving on. She has lost about half a kilo overall and is sustaining that (she's about 7.5 kilos) but hopefully in the next month or two she'll start putting on some weight again.

Otherwise, she was supposed to have her botox injections this week but they were cancelled due to being understaffed in theatre. We got a call on the morning - very frustrating. But we got a new date, Mon 18th of May so fingers crossed that that'll go ahead and be successful. They are hoping that if this works properly, i.e temporarily paralyses her hamstrings and gets her quads to work, they'll get a good stretch in her legs and put casts on again for another few weeks. If the overall process goes as well as they hope, she might be able to avoid knee surgery. We can only hope!

On a lighter note, Ash is so much fun at the moment. We are REALLY enjoying her. She cannot pass a person on the street or in the supermarket without saying "Hi Ya", "Hi Ya" until they salute her. She also insists on playing "Hidie...Boo" with complete strangers. What a laugh. Dunno where we got her, Lots of Love Car xxxxx

Caroline forgot to mention that Ashlings favourite game is what every she is playing with, be it a toy or a shoe, she puts it up to her ear and says hi, hi ya, immitating her ........guess who!!!!! I have to agree though she is great fun at the moment and is so enjoyable.
I'll write more next time.......Ger

14th April, 2009

Well, it's 2 weeks today since we gave Ashling a proper tube feed. Very exciting stuff!

We've had to give her water and medicine through it on some occasions but overall, she's doing quite well on her own. She's still not eating much but she is definitely more interested than ever and has managed a few little bits. She was slowing down a bit last week and we were getting worried but so far she's doing well this week. They say it takes 3-4 weeks for the penny to drop properly and for her appetite to stabilise. One thing she likes for sure is baked beans (like her Daddy) and icecream (like her Mammy); she managed about a tablespoon of baked beans the other evening, which was a major breakthorough and we've been giving her a little icecream most days which she's starting to really like. But as with Ashling's usual trend, nothing changes overnight and she's continuing this progress in baby steps!

It's absolutely fantastic being able to give her the control about when and what she eats. She tells us very clearly when she wants a drink or wants to lick some food (usually salty food like crisps/crackers etc). We let her have whatever she wants, as this is how we've been advised for this transition period. It's like demand breast feeding a baby. After a year and a half of having no input into whether or not she eats, Ashling needs to understand that she can ask for food and her request will be adhered to, irrespective of her choice of food/drink etc (within reason!).

I was really embarrassed the other day cause as I said before, Ashling loves to lick salty food, and hey we're not going to stop her cause then she drinks more! (and that's where she's getting all her calories at the moment). Anyway, I take Ashling to PlayCentre on Wed morning and the kids were having morning tea. I took out Ashling's lunchbox, which is like a fishing tackle box with heaps of sections. In each section, there was some sort of food (namely popcorn, pringles, crackers, fruit, bread and pasta). A little 4 year old sitting near us looked into Ash's lunchbox and said out loud to all the parents and kids "Look at Ashling's lunchbox - it's all junk food!!!). I was absolutely mortified and found myself justifying myself to a 4 year old, telling her to note that Ashling also had fruit, pasta etc. Looking back, it really was hilarious!

These are the times when I know I could explain a few things, but can't be bothered!

Will report back in another week. Cheers!

Success!!!!!

Tis with a glass of vino in hand that I write that Ashling is getting there!!! The progress she's making is phenomonal!

We stopped her last tube feed 3 days ago, following excellent advice that we've been getting from the Feeding Clinic in Austria. Since then she has started really increasing her fluid intake and her drinking has become so much more efficient. She still hasn't really managed to eat much but she's trying incredibly hard and tries something new each day. She is so careful though and can only successfully manage bite and dissolve type of food at the moment. She's loving being in charge of it all though. After a year and a half of getting tube fed, irrespective of whether or not she's wanted it, Ash is now in the driver's seat and she really likes that. She still needs a lot of encouragement and gets very grumpy these days, mostly because she's hungry but she doesn't recognise that feeling.

Overall, we are absolutely thrilled with her progress but she still has a long, long way to go....

Thanks a million for all the ongoing prayers and support xxx

Ps: Took Ash out for a while this arvo and I just couldn't believe how easy it was to bring food for her - took a drink and some crackers for her (to lick!). No tube extention, tape, 60ml syringe, bottle, pureed food , formula milk, sterile water, 10ml syringe.....No, just a drink and a snack! WOO HOO!!!!! Bring it on!

Doing ok so far.....but a long way to go!

Ash is doing quite well. She has had a complete turnaround in relation to her interest in touching and tasting food and drink. However, she hasn't really managed to take much in the way of substance and she's unbelievably slow at eating! You need the patience of a Saint!

But she's trying...very hard. We are still giving her a tube feed at night and hope that she will start to take more in the next few days.

One of the things that we are doing everyday is something called a PlayPicnic, which they do in the Feeding Clinic in Austria. This is an opportunity for Ashling to play with food and eat some if she so wishes. The idea is that it is a relaxed situation with no pressure whatsoever. If you'd like to watch one or two of the videos of this, you can look at the following videos.

Thanks for your interest and good wishes. We will keep this updated.

Lunch Time:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyi7X4wuFXs

Our SLT at playpicnic with us:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HP-wp_wqFg

Ashling's first time using a straw:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of5NLismVmg

Ashling eating marmite
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkP0jpiJjGo

Play Picnic -near the end:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ0oBRc1eRM

The time has come!!!! March 22nd, 2009

Hi All,
Just a quick update on Ash’s feeding! As you know we’ve wanted to try weaning Ashling off tube feeds for a long time, and ultimately starve her in an effort to get her to eat more. Although we’ve tried a couple of times for a few days and it didn’t work, we’ve been waiting for the right time to try it properly and for a longer period of time. Now, the time has come…..quite unexpectedly!
We had intended on doing this sometime over the next month but Ashling was sick last week and she had more mucus than ever and couldn’t keep much of anything down. To help her, we stopped giving her milk as dairy causes even more mucus. The offshot of this was that she started showing an interest in food and drink as soon as she started feeling better as she was only getting a very small amount of tube feeds. This started 5 days ago and though she has lost weight already as we have kept her on smaller amounts of food, she is showing increased interest in eating.
Ger and I had been thinking about taking Ashling to a Feeding Clinic in Austria, where kids are basically starved under medical supervision, with a lot of input from various professionals. They usually spend the first week weaning the child and then go cold turkey. The programme takes about 3 weeks and while kids do lose a lot of weight, they have a 99% success rate of the child not needing the tube anymore after leaving the Clinic. As it happens, we have nearly finished a week of weaning her (unconsciously) and so we are planning on going cold-turkey next. We have made contact with this feeding Clinic and they are going to provide online support and guidelines to follow over the next fortnight. The link is http://www.notube.at/home/en/index.php if you would like to look at it. We know 2 other families here in Auckland we have taken their kids to thie Clinic and have successfully weaned their kids off their tube feeds. They have been a wealth of information and a fantastic support for us. We also have our Speech and Language Therapist, Nurse and Dietician on board (though their input will be miminal) so we’re going full steam ahead, starting tomorrow. Nerve-wrecking but exciting stuff!

We really feel the time is right. Ash has been off oxygen for over 3 months now and seems to be getting much stronger. However, over the past few months her eating has become more unpredictable and sometimes she neither eats nor drinks at all during the day and ends up totally dependent on what we give her by her tube. Although her medical history speaks for itself, nowadays most of her oral aversion has gone and we believe that a lot of her problems and more mental and behavioral than physical. The main physical challenges for her are that she is not able to eat very efficiently, doesn’t know how to chew and has never managed to swallow anything other than puree without gagging and then throwing it back up. However, the only way that this will improve is through practice so we have got to the stage now that she needs to desperately want the food in order to learn how to eat it properly. She is able to drink from a sipper cup and she can eat small amounts of pureed food so there is no reason why she can’t do this, though we know she’s going to fight it all the way!!!!
Please pray for us over the next month and send as much positive energy our way as you can.
Thank you,
Caroline and Ger xxxxx

More Videos......10 March 09 (16 months old)

Ash riding her bike!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1T5ij20P7w&feature=channel_page

Ash learning French on TV! (She's very advanced you know! Ha ha)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9FlSBKtGoM&feature=channel

Enjoy!

Some cute videos of Ash

These are some recent videos of Ashling:

The first one is of her winking:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-2FxCkzvsw&feature=channel

The next one is with her Grandad O Shea (this is short and sweet) but I was holding the camera sideways so it's hard to watch properly unless you can turn your screen sideways. Sorry! But you can still hear the laughing that Ashling is doing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_dqBFhLuDw&feature=channel

And this one is with her cousins, David and Daniel Neville, who are trying to watch StarWars in peace! (this is a bit longer and not very exciting, but cute)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QNOIyahp4E&feature=channel

I have a few more videos that I will put on utube over the next few days. Thanks for your interest! xxx

Belated Happy New Year!

After a great break from medical appointments over Christmas, we are feeling quite relaxed in this house. Ashling is continuing to love her independence, bum shuffling around the floor, free from oxygen prongs etc. She's trying really hard to talk, though most of it is gobbeldegook. "Dad Dad" still seems to be her favourite, with 'Dugga Dugga" a close second position. I rarely get a look in, despite any amount of "Mam Mam" brainwashing that's done! No appreciation whatsoever! Ha ha.

Otherwise, nothing much has changed though she's exploring more food than ever...just licking it mind you, but still this is progress!

I am attaching a recent video of her - hope you enjoy it.
Thanks for taking the time to read this. x
http://nz.youtube.com/watch?v=Df0QVJYNbE4&feature=channel_page