3 Months

I don't think it's fair that Olivia keeps aging while we're in the hospital.  I feel like time should stop while we're there.  When the nurses would orient our new nurses at shift change they would tell them that I do everything.  Which really isn't true.  All I did was changer Livie's diapers, bathe her, and keep her happy.  They did everything else, including refilling my water when I was too lazy to do it myself.  Since they did most of the care for Liv that's why I feel like time stops in the hospital.  That and everyday is pretty much the same.
But alas, she is aging.  We spent the majority of her 3rd month in the hospital (boo!) but this stay did help us move forward in a few of her developmental steps.  First off, Olivia is sleeping through the night.  When you go a week without food at all I guess you just figure out that there's no point in getting up for a midnight snack.  She will start squirming at one point in the night when she needs her diaper changed but doesn't even fully wake up for that.  Olivia has also gotten to be a pro at self soothing.  Between me not having to worry about getting Ella to bed and rarely leaving Liv's bedside we were able to work on the self soothing.  I'd just pop her binky in her mouth, sing to her and she'd settle right down.  That, or the mobile the hospital provided for us.  She LOVED that thing.  In fact, her first laugh was at the mobile.
Olivia is getting much more interested in things around her.  Hence, her love for the mobile.  She still LOVES looking at mama but mama isn't the only interesting thing anymore.
One of the things she's found interesting now are her hands.  She's been a little different than Ella.  Ella liked looking at her hands but Livie seems more interesting in textures and such.  Her favorite thing to feel is her fuzzy head.  She'll just reach up and basically pet her own head for minutes at a time.  She also loves holding onto cords.  And heaven knows we have plenty of cords for her to hold onto.  So, now we're just saving her old cannulas to hold onto so she doesn't end up yanking her feeding tube out or pulling her tender grips off her face.  The tender grips are the stickers that hold her oxygen on her face FYI.  Olivia loves holding on to blankets too.  While she sleeps she'll just grab the edge of the blanket and hold on.
Now, I'm not sure if this is entirely intentional but often, after grabbing the blanket she'll pull it over her head and promptly go to sleep.  It's so cute.
Olivia's had a couple firsts this month.  I already mentioned her first giggle.  She doesn't hand out those giggles for free but the hard work it takes to get one is totally worth it.  She also had her first experience of getting her fingernails and toenails painted.  Mommy got very bored in the hospital so we got all matchy.  We also painted Ella once we got home.  Daddy wouldn't let us paint him though.
Funny discovery from this last hospital stay.  Olivia loves accents.  Her favorite techs (well, I assume since she smiled most for them) were foreign.  Techs are basically the nurses assistant.  Not sure where they were from but she'd just smile and smile at them.
 Olivia is such a sweet girl.  More than one nurse has told me she's one of the happiest heart babies they've seen.  She smiles for anyone and even when she isn't smiling her eyes are.  Rumor is, some people think it's cruel to send these kids through these surgeries instead of letting them go.  I have two opinions on that.  1.  If God didn't want my baby to have a chance he wouldn't have sent her in this day and age when something can be done to keep her here.  Also, He could take her anyway.  2.  I know her quality of life will be different than others but not worse.  She's already proven that she's happy to be a part of our family and happy to be alive.  Even though these past three months have been the hardest and most stressful (feel like a teenager again with all this stress acne) I wouldn't change them for the world.  I'm sitting here, looking down on this gorgeous little girl and all the stress, fear, uncertainty doesn't matter because for right now everything's perfect.