23 weeks

We went for the amniocentesis and a check up today. My little girl was extremely active and growing on schedule. Today, the sonogram showed that her liver and stomach were both in her chest. We still have not gotten the results from the MRI; the doctor told us that the doctor here in Atlanta did not feel that her results were acurate, so she sent the MRI pictures to a doctor in Cincinnati for further review. The doctor told us that he hopes to have the results from the Amnio fish and the LHR numbers before the Thanksgiving holiday.

He told us that since the AFP test that was done at 16 weeks was negative that there is a high likelihood that the Amnio would be fine as well. Finally, a peice of good news!!!

22 weeks

Jason and I decided on a name for our little princess. We decided on Virginia Addison. The Virginia is for her two great grandmothers, her grandmother, and her mom, and the Addison means "awesome" which this little one is already. We figured that she deserved the namesake of 3 generations of strong women to fight the battle that is laid out before her. As far as the doctors, we are in a holding pattern; i feel like we do not much more than we did two weeks ago. We still do not have the results from the MRI.

I feel like we are on a roller coaster that will never end. All I can do is pray and hope for the best. The doctor called and told us that he needed to perform amniocentesis to rule out any congenital defects. The appointment is scheduled for November 21st.

21 weeks

On November 6th, we had an MRI to check her organ and lung development. During the entire procedure, she was very active. I guess the noise bothered her. We were told that we would hear something back in a week or so regarding the results.

20 Weeks

I had an appointment with the Fetal Diagnostic Center for a high resolution sonogram on October 27, 2008. During the sonogram, it was confirmed that we were having a little girl and that she had CDH. It was explained to Jason and I that she had a hole in her diaphragm which was allowing her stomach and potentially other abdominal organs to move into her chest. Due to the presence of the organs, her lungs were cramped and may not develop. We left this appointment with another appointment in a month for a check up and an appointment with the pediatric cardiologist. It seemed that we had so many more questions but no answers.

On October 29th, we went to the pediatric cardiologist to have an echo performed on the baby. During the entire procedure, she kept playing hide and seek with the doctor. I guess it is a good sign that she is so active. During this appointment, we were told that her heart is structurally normal and seems to be growing well, but he did not see what he had hoped for in the pulmonary artery. He said it could be either that it was not developing correctly or it was just too early to see. He scheduled a follow up appointment in 4 weeks to check her progress.

19 weeks

On October 23, 2008, Jason and I went to have a routine sonogram. We were so excited to see our little one and find out whether it was a boy or girl. During the sonogram, the tech grab my arm and told me that something was wrong. I could not breathe and almost fainted. After meeting with the doctor, we were told that they suspected a congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH). The doctor referred us to another doctor for further testing. At the time, I was in shock, and Ihad no idea what CDH was or what it meant for our little one.