We are pleased to announce that Maria traveled very well to Michigan last weekend! She only required one stop on the six hour trip into Grand Rapids (which was a valuable learning experience for everyone...for example, we learned NOT to bring the binky into the restroom with us).
In Grand Rapids she met many loving aunts, uncles and cousins. Despite her mid-night freak session at her Uncle Pete and Aunt Sara's house, I'm fairly confident that they will remain open to having children at some point...(whew!). Her cousins are eager to show her many things, and among them, I believe Katie wants to teach Maria how to give slobbery kisses with a ketchup and mustard smeared face...Katie is being so patient in waiting to demonstrate.
A very special moment in GR was when Maria got to meet Grandpa Wittgens for the first time in person! I love the way she's eyeing him, "are you sure you're German, Grandpa? I was hoping for a German family..." You have no idea what you've entered into, kid!
On the way back to Erie we stopped in Farmington Hills to introduce Maria to Great-Grandma DeWitt and Uncle Tom! 
I was so glad that Maria could participate in having tea with Great-Grandma...it's a bit of a mommy-grandma thing, and I love Maria getting to be apart of it (even though she spent most of the time be bounced by dad so that she wouldn't get fussy).
She slept the whole 4 hours back into Erie. Thank God! Although I think the weekend was quite taxing, because she spent the next three days at home being a fussy-butt, and let me tell you...tequila shots have never sounded so good...can I get an "Amen" anyone???
(And before anyone starts to worry, know that the bottle never came out of the cabinet).
...
Mommy gets to sneak away to work for a while.
When I came home, here's how I found my little family:
We spent the afternoon together, and after dinner Maria got to hear more about Frodo and Sam's adventures in "The Fellowship of the Ring".
Today I took Maria to see Dr. Webster again. She now weighs 7 lbs 4oz! She's 20inches long. She really is like an average newborn baby! The nurse even told me that Maria is now officially on the growth chart!! She's in the 1st percentile for 3 month old babies! The nurse did not know where Maria stands on her corrected age growth chart, though. Still, the nurse was amazed that Maria even made it onto the growth chart this soon!
Maria also went into work with me this afternoon. She got to meet Mary, Colette, Fr Hahn and Fr. Steve!
As I look at her now, I am floored at how chubby her cheeks are (and before you ask, Dzia-Dzia - I mean her facial cheeks)! So sweet, my little girl is.
We are looking forward to introducing her to the GREAT state of Michigan this weekend!!! Just a few more months away until we can climb the dunes at Hoffmaster with her!
Aunt Lisa and Gramma came to visit last week. Thanks to their help, Maria's clothes have moved from being spread all over the guest bed, to hanging neatly and organized in the closet...whew!
Maria visited the mall for the first time while they were here, too! So sorry, babydoll, that it had to be the Millcreek mall...I would've preferred Twelve Oaks to start...
Maria spent a quiet Easter with mom and dad, but mostly with mom. We drove down to Meadville where Joe is working. We attended (most of) mass together. We arrived late and not-so-quietly. First, we were late leaving the house because I'm still getting used to the extra time it takes to get an infant out of the house (and she's not even spending time primping...what takes so long? I still haven't figured it out). Then we had to drive 45 min to Meadville, and since I'm a new mom, I've given up my "driving like a bat out of hell" habit. And since we no longer live in Michigan, we have to drive speed limits that are set at a snails pace...
We arrived to the Meadville Medical Center to collect Joe, hoping that we would only arrive to mass maybe 5 minutes late... Just as we pulled up, Joe got called to the E.R. "Just gotta check an X-ray, hon...wait for me." Our 5 minute delay turned into more of a ... well... let's just say we were at the church doors by the middle of the 2nd Reading. Just as we were about to enter the joyous Easter celebration inside the Church, Joe got paged at the door... quick call back to the hospital...now we can join the celebration! Except of course there are no seats, and so we had to climb over and under what seemed like everyone in the Church to find a place for the dumb car seat! After mass, we feasted on our Easter Dinner, I mean, our Easter omlette, at Perkins. Washed it all down with a bad cup of coffee and mommy and Maria headed back to Erie so Joe could finish more work. I'm so grateful that I found the whole day hilarious! Oh, how nice it would've been to be in Rome with grandpa...
Easter Afternoon at home...
Maria just loves her swing now that I bothered to buy (and install) batteries!
Maria is so excited for the big championship game tonight! Thanks, Busha and Great Aunt Ellen for this outfit to wear today!
I don't know how many people are still checking this blog, but I thought I'd post some updates.
Thursday night we nested with Maria in a room at Hamot. That night we discovered that Maria's grunting and sleep talking can definitely keep us awake, but we didn't care...we were so happy to be with her all night for the first time!
Maria jumped into life in the DeWitt family with no ceremony. No big party, no visitors, no unnecessary fussing...there was no time for that: Villanova was playing Duke. As you can see, Maria got bored with the game fairly quickly. Don't fret, DeWitt women, I'm sure that Maria will be screaming at the TV with you soon enough.
Maria received many visitors before we left on Friday. Two of the security guards came in, Ms. Francis (Maria's favorite housekeeping staff) came looking for her, and two of her favorite nurses came in to visit on their day off, just to say good-bye. Lisa (on right) was Maria's nurse the day we first met her and Lori (left) was always so excited to be assigned to Maria. Lori is easily embarrassed. When I asked Lori once about cradle cap, she began her answer by describing what "cradle crap" is. She's never lived it down. All the nurses were wonderful with Maria, and we are so grateful for their help. We even enjoyed getting to know them personally!
Speaking of nurses...Joe came home yesterday with literally, arms full of gift bags! The nurses and staff at Shriners threw him a surprise shower at work!! I guess they lured him into the lunch room by saying that everyone was singing happy birthday to one of the girls (and he didn't really understand why it was imperative that he be there for it), but when he walked in, he saw a cake with "Baby" on it, and everyone started to sing "Happy Baby" to him! He was very moved and touched. When he came home and told me the story, I almost cried: partially because all the outfits were so so cute, and more importantly because of their thoughtfulness and generosity. This shower was just another way that we see God's provision for us in the love and support we've received going through this. How humbling. How wonderful.
Now that we're home, we're trying to settle into a routine. Maria got her first bath at home. 
She also needs to have her tummy time to stregthen her core muscles.
Every baby does, I know. But before we left the hospital, Dr. Gilmour showed us some muscle tightness that Maria has due to prematurity. This tightness is normal for preemies, and should go away unless it's Cerebral Palsey (CP), which we won't know for sure until she's around 2 years old. She has some type of hyper extension in her feet, legs back and neck. Dr. Gilmour showed us some exercises to do, and recommended a...wait...my dear big brother Dave, skip the rest of this sentence...the Dr. recommeded a baby massage for Maria! Maria really enjoys the messages. Dr. Gilmour also said "no johnny jumpers and exer-saucers". This instruction was like music to Joe's ears because he and I had debated whether these devices were good for babies or not. Joe said "no" because they discourage core strengthening. I can be wrong once a year, so I didn't mind taking the brief hit.
Maria also has some reflux issues. This reflux is also very typical in preemies. We're doing everything we can to help ease the reflux without medication, and I was relieved to hear Dr. Webster echo our desire to use medication as a last resort. But she does spit up so much, we're holding our breath to see if she can still gain weight despite the reflux.
Speaking of Dr. Webster...we were successful in getting into his practice!! Joe thanked him and acknowledged that we did weasel our way into his office, and Dr. Webster said that he is very happy to take her because he likes the NICU graduates with special needs. He also said that he had heard of Joe from someone at Shriners, so we weren't completely unfamiliar. He showed us how Maria does this gulping thing, holds her breath, and throws her head back, which shows that she's trying to keep some food down. Joe really likes Dr. Webster also. We are relieved to hear that he is very pleased with how Maria is transitioning into home.
We already had one home nurse visit, and she'll visit again at the end of this week. Early Intervention will also be visiting to follow Maria's physical development. Hamot is starting a Development Clinic and Maria will be one of their first clients...If that doesn't work out for some reason, Dr. Gilmour has us set up to bring Maria to Allegheny General in Pittsburgh for their development clinic. I'm so relieved that we can intervene early in her development to give her the best chances for normal growth.
Go State!
I was so glad that Maria could participate in having tea with Great-Grandma...it's a bit of a mommy-grandma thing, and I love Maria getting to be apart of it (even though she spent most of the time be bounced by dad so that she wouldn't get fussy).
