1 year old

Hazel and Jude have grown so much the past year. Here is some info about them.

Hazel:

• Weight: 17 lbs 7 oz (5% for actual age, 25% for adjusted age)
• Height: 26 3/4 inches (less than 3rd% for actual age, not sure for adjusted age)
• Head size measured at 45% for actual age, which I'm pretty sure is off because her head is not big, especially compared to the rest of her (which her other stats would indicate). Who knows about these growth charts.
• She got her 3rd tooth on her birthday, but is working on at least one more (probably several)
• She started clapping on her birthday and loves it!
• She loves music and bounces/dances whenever she hears any kind of music or beat
• She is not a great eater overall, but will eat anything I'm eating. She seems to really like garlic bread, pancakes, cheerios, but isn't too into fruits and vegetables (though sometimes she likes carrots and potatoes)
• She loves crawling to the bath naked every night.
• Hazel still hates going to bed, but is getting better about getting up in the night. She generally naps 1-2 hours twice a day, but it's a bit inconsistent.

Jude

• Weight: 17 lbs 8 oz (less than 3rd% for actual age, we weren't given adjusted age)
• Height: 27 1/4 inches (less than 3rd% for actual age)
• Head size is 30% for actual age
• Jude has no teeth, but is working on a mouthful. I can see at least 4 upper ones that are working their way down.
• Jude loves to explore and play with anything that moves (opening and closing doors, gates, drawers, etc.)
• Jude loves to eat and will eat pretty much anything we give him. I don't know if he has favorites because he eats everything. He's very impatient about food and isn't good at chewing (due to impatience I think). He tends to swallow a lot of things whole and I can't cut anything fast enough for him.
• Jude is a little fussier and overall more needy than Hazel, but is still a pretty easy going guy.
• He consistently sleeps 11-13 hours at night, but takes very inconsistent naps (usually 40 minutes 2-3 times a day, but sometimes 1 1/2 hours twice a day).

Though they're both small for their actual age, the doctor thinks they look great and they are growing fine. They're both doing fine on their adjusted age growth charts, but probably won't be very big kids (maybe due to prematurity, but most likely due to "small" genes). The doctor would like them to get on their actual age growth charts in the next 6 months, but all that really matters is that they continue to grow.

When we were at the doctor yesterday (a new doctor), he walked in and said, "Wow, I didn't expect to see a kid (referring to Jude) looking like this when I read about his brain bleed." As the appointment went on, he said, "Honestly, I've never seen a kid with his brain bleed doing this well. I worked in the NICU for a year and saw a lot and I've never seen this." Jude is a true testament to God's healing power and it's so nice to hear how surprised all the professionals are when they see him. Thank you for the many prayers prayed on his and Hazel's behalf. We appreciate the continued prayers to as we strive to encourage them in their development.