This was just a check-up for Ella Cate before her doctor goes out of town for 3 weeks. Everything looks pretty much the same as last week. She has gained up to 7 lbs. 15 oz. and she is now 20 in. long. She's still growing!
The doctor will see her again on July 9th and at that time he will likely schedule the heart cath. It will probably be scheduled for a week or so after the July 9th appointment. We will keep you updated.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
Cardiologist Visit - June 11
We apologize for the delay in posting the latest bit of information on Ella Cate. It's been a busy couple of weeks! On Wednesday of last week we had another check-up with the cardiologist at Blaire E. Batson Children's Hospital. Again, we got positive news! The doctor advised us that we were probably looking at doing the heart cath anywere from the middle to the end of July. He would like for Ella Cate to be more than 8 pounds when he does this. Ella Cate now weighs 7 lbs. 11 oz.
The good news from this visit is that there is a possibility that when the doctor is doing the heart cath, he can fix all three of her issues at that time. It is also possible that the only thing that needs fixing is the pulmonary valve!!! That is great news because that is the least dangerous of any of the three procedures. The doctor still believes that the coarctation may not be quite the issue that they originally thought it was. He thinks that the turbulence they see in the aorta on the echo is coming from the valve issues. He also thinks that it's entirely possible, not necessarily probable, but possible that the aortic stenosis may be just mild enough not to require any procedure to be done! He said that this possibility is, ofcourse, looking at the situation 100% optimistically, but it's still possible. This is a much better prognosis than we were looking at before!
So, to sum it all up, we will have a heart cath middle to end of July. While doing the heart cath the doctor will fix anything at that time that needs to be fixed by ballooning. This includes both valve issues (if necessary) and the coarctation (if necessary). This procedure will likely take about an hour and if everything goes well, she will only need to stay in the hospital overnight. We go back to the doctor for another echo this week and then we won't go back for about 3 weeks (mid-July).
It's looking up! The Lord has blessed us continuously with good news each time we have visited the cardiologist. We thank Him for the positive news this visit as well! We thank you for your continued prayers and support!
The good news from this visit is that there is a possibility that when the doctor is doing the heart cath, he can fix all three of her issues at that time. It is also possible that the only thing that needs fixing is the pulmonary valve!!! That is great news because that is the least dangerous of any of the three procedures. The doctor still believes that the coarctation may not be quite the issue that they originally thought it was. He thinks that the turbulence they see in the aorta on the echo is coming from the valve issues. He also thinks that it's entirely possible, not necessarily probable, but possible that the aortic stenosis may be just mild enough not to require any procedure to be done! He said that this possibility is, ofcourse, looking at the situation 100% optimistically, but it's still possible. This is a much better prognosis than we were looking at before!
So, to sum it all up, we will have a heart cath middle to end of July. While doing the heart cath the doctor will fix anything at that time that needs to be fixed by ballooning. This includes both valve issues (if necessary) and the coarctation (if necessary). This procedure will likely take about an hour and if everything goes well, she will only need to stay in the hospital overnight. We go back to the doctor for another echo this week and then we won't go back for about 3 weeks (mid-July).
It's looking up! The Lord has blessed us continuously with good news each time we have visited the cardiologist. We thank Him for the positive news this visit as well! We thank you for your continued prayers and support!
Monday, June 9, 2008
Caroline Realizing the Need to Pray
As most of you know, Caroline is our 5 year old daughter. She is the proud sister of Ella Cate. Caroline has known all along that Ella Cate has a heart problem and she has always shown concern for her little sister and her issue. Recently though, as we've either prayed over our meals or before bedtime, Caroline has started saying her own prayer for Ella Cate. It is one of the sweetest things in the world to hear.
Last night, Laura and I took Caroline and Ella Cate to church to see my nephew, Eli, get baptized. This was Ella Cate's first time to go to church. We sat in the balcony so, in case she got a little bit rowdy, we could just slip out. We watched Eli get baptized and then we sat through the worship time and through the preaching time. At the end, there was an invitation and there were several people who went forward to pray at the altar. Caroline noticed what was going on and asked her mom, "What are they doing down there?"...Laura told her they were praying. Caroline then said that she wanted to go down and pray. Laura asked her why she wanted to do that and Caroline said that she wanted to go down there to pray for Ella Cate's heart. A wave of emotion came over Laura and I when we heard our 5 year old say this and we knew that we had to take her and let her do this. So Caroline, Laura and I went down the stairs of the balcony and made our way down the aisle to the altar as a family to pray for our Ella Cate. It was one of the most awesome experiences I've had in the past 5 weeks! We all prayed separately and then before we left the altar, we all prayed as a family.
It was so awesome to realize that Caroline, at her young age, realizes the power of prayer and the need to pray. She is an example and a challenge to me as I know she is to a lot of you. Ella Cate's biggest prayer warrior might just be her sister!
Last night, Laura and I took Caroline and Ella Cate to church to see my nephew, Eli, get baptized. This was Ella Cate's first time to go to church. We sat in the balcony so, in case she got a little bit rowdy, we could just slip out. We watched Eli get baptized and then we sat through the worship time and through the preaching time. At the end, there was an invitation and there were several people who went forward to pray at the altar. Caroline noticed what was going on and asked her mom, "What are they doing down there?"...Laura told her they were praying. Caroline then said that she wanted to go down and pray. Laura asked her why she wanted to do that and Caroline said that she wanted to go down there to pray for Ella Cate's heart. A wave of emotion came over Laura and I when we heard our 5 year old say this and we knew that we had to take her and let her do this. So Caroline, Laura and I went down the stairs of the balcony and made our way down the aisle to the altar as a family to pray for our Ella Cate. It was one of the most awesome experiences I've had in the past 5 weeks! We all prayed separately and then before we left the altar, we all prayed as a family.
It was so awesome to realize that Caroline, at her young age, realizes the power of prayer and the need to pray. She is an example and a challenge to me as I know she is to a lot of you. Ella Cate's biggest prayer warrior might just be her sister!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Friday Weigh-In...June 6, 2008
Well, Ella Cate has gained 7 oz. since this time last week! She now weighs 7 lbs. 2 oz.! Thank the Lord that she continues to grow and gain weight. She is beginning to eat more now and seems to ALWAYS be hungry!!! She's eating atleast 3 oz. every feeding now.
Next week we go back to the cardiologist for the first time in two weeks. It was nice this week to have a break from that. They should do another echo next week, so I'm sure we'll have another update then. Thank you for your continued prayers and support!
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