She's OK!

Our day began at 3AM as I gave Gabi her last feeding before her procedure. We left the house at 4AM so we could be at Phoenix Children's Hospital at 5AM....too early. Gabi's procedure wasn't until 7AM. We didn't get called in until about 6:30 or so. Gabi had been upset and crying since about 6AM. She woke up and was HUNGRY! It was so sad not being able to help her. We met with the nurse, Dr. Stillwell and the anethesiologist (she had to be under general anethesia). Dr. Stillwell is so kind, you can tell he loves his work and cares about each and every patient. He even made time to do this procedure for us, even though he wasn't scheduled to work today. He was supposed to have his OWN dental surgery this morning and he moved that to this afternoon so he could work on Gabi today.

As we prepared for Gabi's procedure we also met an ENT (ear nose and throat). He said that since he was in the next room, in the event they would have found a hemangioma, he would have been available to do the lazering immediately instead of scheduling another appointment. Very nice of him. We were told that if they did find a hemangioma that we would know right away because we would need to sign new consent forms.

We kissed our little angel goodbye and went to a waiting room. Jack promptly fell asleep. I went to the bathroom and had a little cry :( By then it was about 7:19AM and at about 7:30ish Dr. Stillwell came out. The procedure was finshed. Gabi did not have any internal hemangiomas. Hurray! She does have Laryngomalacia. Everything else was clear all the way down even deep into her lungs. He showed us some pictures that were taken during the procedure and suggested that we now continue to monitor Gabi. If she starts to turn blue and or has problems eating or gaining weight then we would have some other options to discuss. He did say she should grow out of it anywhere from 6mo to 6 years! He also wants us to go in each week or every other week to our ped to have her weighed. Today she weighed 8lbs 7oz ( with a diaper on).

So, we are happy that our little girl is ok. Thanks everyone for your fasting and prayers!

News on Gabi's dr. appointments...

Yesterday morning we were able to see the pediatric pulmanologist with Phoenix Children's Hospital. Because of her breathing and the fact that she has 2, possibly 3 external hemagiomas, it was decided that she needs to have a procedure done.

This is a quick summary of what the doc said:

They're going to do a bronchial scope THIS Friday at 7am. She will be under general anesthesia while they send a flexible scope down her airway and into her lungs. They'll be looking for an internal hemangioma in her airway. There is an 80% chance that they will not see anything at all...which will mean that her labored breathing is attributable to laryngomalacia. There isn't anything they can do for this. We'll just have to keep an eye on her and make sure she always stays pink and can continue to breathe while eating (we really didn't get into what would need to be done if this happens, but he gave the impression that it might be a little more serious...) She should, however, grow out of it eventually.

If they see a hemangioma, they will pull out and schedule a surgery for the next day (or possibly Monday). For the surgery they'll use a scope with a laser to remove the growth. In rare occasions this requires a tracheotomy

If they don't see a hemangioma they'll continue into her lungs to take a lipid sample and verify that her breathing isn't attributable to a vascular ring, a heart condition (rare, but possible).

I am grateful for the extra time I have on my maternity leave so I can keep an eye on her. Please keep her in your prayers, and her anxious parent's too!

Here are some happy pictures of baby Gabi... :)

We call this one "mommy pillow".

Gabi's first time at church. I spent most of my time in the hallway...
She looks like she is saying "Church is how long?"


Daddy and his baby girl.

One month appointment and first bath in a tub!

Today Gabi had her one month appointment with her pediatrician. She now weighs 7lbs 11oz and is 20 1/2in long. Hurray! She is growing so big! :) We also got a referral to a dermatologist for her Hemangioma on her face. It showed up when she was a week old but at the time we thought it was just a scratch. Her ped. informed us that it looked like a Strawberry Hemangioma and we should keep an eye on just in case it got bigger. Well, in the past few days it got darker and a bit raised, so off to the dermatologist we go. We have an appointment this Thursday 7/12...we will keep you updated.

Also, since she has one on her face and a larger one on her wrist our ped. has also suggested that we see a Pulmonologist, because there can be internal hemangiomas and she may have one in her throat. This may be the cause of her "noisy breathing." (It may also be Laryngomalacia which is a common thing in infants and is something that they "grow out of.") The appointment with the Pulmonologist will be on 7/18. Wish us luck and pray that she doesn't have any internal hemangiomas :)

On to happier news...Gabi had her first non-sponge bath today! She seemed to like it at first, but then got really ticked off (as the pics below will show)!


Mommy comforting me after the tramatic bath...

Look at how happy I am after my bath. Check out my curls... :-)

All pretty and clean!