Out of the Incubator
Nicole
Well, she was taken out of the incubator this morning.  I think they believe Gregor can do a better job of keeping her toasty.  It is nice to have her in more open space.  It makes contact and interaction a lot easier and more comforting for all involved...

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Dancing
Gregor
We did a bit of dancing tonight. And I am pretty damn sure Arrowen said her first word: dancing. I was saying it to her and then out it popped. Sure, some may say nay...

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Sunday Morning
Nicole
I went up early morning today.  When I got there I could see she was hungry by her suckling noises and puckering lips.  I tried to breast feed her.  It was bit more challenging today...

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Saturday Snaps
Gregor
Arrowen was minus the feeding tube this morning so finally got a few pix of her minus the tube. Food has been increased to 25 ml per feeding and her IV level is down, and Nicole was told it would be coming out today or tomorrow. Got in about 2 1/2 hours of Reiki time with her and received comments from a nurse about the heat coming off her. Oops...

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One Week Old
Gregor
One week on and not much to report today. Feeding level was increased to 18 ml then 20 ml every three hours, and she got to breastfeed (after her fashion) twice today.She is improving, not so sure about myself. I find the room to be oppressive...

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Pushing Along
Gregor
Arrowen keeps showing improvement: her feedings have been increased up to 15 ml every 3 hours and now that Nicole is in full prodcution mode she is getting breast milk exclusively and that has done wonders for her as it is all getting digested unlike the yucky formula which was sitting and rotting in her gut. The cast came off her leg yesterday as her little toes were looking swollen from lack of blood. There are now looking normal and pink. We figure that we'll give her a month or so to gain her strength before continuing with the series of casts to correct her clubfoot...

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The Verdict is In
Gregor
The results of the karyotyping of her blood sample have come in. They show, as was expected, that she has Trisomy 18. Perhaps because they wanted to get results back quicker or because it is standard practice at that particular genetic screening center, 15 cells were karyotyped and all fifteen showed the extra chromosome at the 18th pair. As far as the doctor is concerned this shows that Arrowen has Non-Mosaic (or Full) Trisomy 18...

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Here's Looking at You Kid
Gregor
This morning the cardiologist said she was doing better than yesterday. His main concern at this point is her PDA (Patent Ductus Arteriosus) which is the duct that runs between the aorta and pulmonary artery to bypass the lungs in utero. Hers has yet to close off. Last night he had mentioned giving her indomethacin to close this off...

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Pix From Day 4
Gregor
These photos are from last night. She eventually woke up and got active....

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Day 4
Gregor
The day has begun in the same spirit as last night. One of the many doctors whose care she is in has informed us that the general consensus is that she has Trisomy 18 (a genetic disorder in which there are 3 instead of the usual 2 chromosones at number 18). This has yet to be confirmed, it is just that the various defects altogether seem to point to that being the culprit. At this point it is not a definite diagnosis, but they have requested that the lab fast track her genetic screening...

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