MERRY CHRISTMAS

Sorry for the long delay on updates.

Ashleigh is doing well. She is over 10lbs and as you can see she has a beautiful smile.

Faith has been stable and improving on the ventilator. She's 7lbs. Her kidney and liver function have improved. We hope to have her home some time in February.

They both will have their challenges moving forward, but we are very hopeful.

Thank you all for the well wishes, prayers, and support. Some day we will thank you all personally.

Have a great Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanza, Festivus, or what ever you may celebrate at this time of the year.

Love

Todd, Michelle, Parker, Ashleigh, and Faith

Update Dec.2

I wish this was a good update however it's not. The past week has been terrible for us. Last Monday Ashleigh developed a rash around her vaginal region that looked initially like diaper rash. As the day progressed, it got redder and more puffy and she also developed a low grade fever. I got her into the Dr. Tuesday morning and was told it was probably contact dermatitis however that didn't explain the fever. The Dr. did a CBC and her white blood cell count was normal. The Dr. asked if I was comfortable waiting for a day to see if it got any better and treat it with Aquaphor. She advised if I wasn't comfortable with that I could take her to the hospital to have them do a CBC and blood culture. Going with mother's intuition that something wasn't right, I took her to the hospital and 20 minutes after getting home the Dr. called and said her count was 30.2 which is extremely elevated and we need to get her to the hospital ER right away. Todd took her to Beaumont and she was admitted Tuesday night. She was diagnosed with cellulitis and is on an antibiotic. They released her from the hospital Wednesday evening. She seems to be doing well, the redness is gone however now I'm concerned she may have a yeast infection. She does continue to gain weight and as of last week she is 8 lbs 9 ozs.

As for Faith, she was reintubated again on Saturday. Her blood gas showed her CO2 level at 100
%, she was extremely puffy and retracting very hard. To be honest, she looked terrible when we got there to see her. She was on 95% O2 with a high rate and pressure. She has been weened significantly since then however we got a call this morning that she self extibated 2 times over night. I'm currently waiting on a call back from the nurse to tell me how it all unfolded. They are in the middle of rounds right now. Todd and I have requested a meeting with all her Dr.'s on Friday. Ashleigh will be with us and maybe we can get the girls a little time together.

I also wanted to let you all know WORLD TTTS FOUNDATION AWARENESS DAY is Dec. 7th. Here is the website to get more educated http://www.tttsfoundation.org. I put a phone call into the woman that runs the foundation this morning. Todd and I think we need a second opinion on Faith's treatment since she just doesn't seem to be getting any better. I will also probably set up a page on the website for Ashleigh and Faith.

Thank you everyone for your continued prayers and support.

Love,
Michelle