Flu Season Begins

Well, many of you already know that flu season has not even begun and the drama has already started. Cameron has had her first emergency room visit and we have spend the last week back and forth at the hospital and the doctors office. Long story short, a cold starting going through our house last week and Cameron ended up running a high fever. She has adrenal insufficiency which means that when her body is fighting an illness if it gets too severe, her body does not make enough stress hormone to deal with it. So, when we left the NICU they told us we would have to administer a cortisol shot to help her deal with it and then rush her to the hospital. All of that became a reality this past Wednesday night when the thermometer was reading 102.5. Unfortunately, we couldn't get the vial of stress hormone open so Seth rushed Cam to the hospital. Upon arriving at the hospital Cam's fever read a whopping 99.9 - we were so frustrated. Anyway, they ran tests and long story short...both girls both have ear infections.

The girls have also had their checkups at the hospital. Cameron weighs 13 pounds and Reagan weighs 15 pounds. The girls are doing very well and the doctors were very pleased. They told us that Cameron has outgrown the need for the shot if she gets sick now - which was a huge relief. They also told us that the girls should begin to outgrow the reflux over the next few months. Reagan's gross motor development was very impressive - she can sit independently for quick bursts of time but she is not technically an independent sitter. They predicted that she will be crawling in no time. Cameron has been referred for physical therapy to help with her gross motor development - just to help make sure that she is meeting her benchmarks. She is trying so hard and has really made a ton of progress. The next time we will go back to Duke will not be until January where they will conduct developmental testing. The girls are 9 months old now - so hard to believe! We had been trying baby food wit Reagan but she doesn't seem ready just yet but we are beginning with Cameron - who seems to enjoy it...pictures soon to come!

We begin our quarantine within the next week which means that we cannot take the girls to places that are very crowded and we need to limit their exposure to germs. We are to maintain strict handwashing and ask people who have any type of cold or flu symptom to stay clear of our house or the girls. I am hoping that now that it is cooler that we can still enjoy many afternoons and mornings outside on walks or at the park though - I think it will do all of us some good.

Stay tuned for pictures of the girls. Cameron should have her MRI scheduled at Chapel Hill coming up soon. We are hoping and praying that our sickness drama that we just experienced is all that we will have to endure for a while - we are all still recovering from it! The girls are feeling better and acting more like themselves every day!

The Results...Sort Of

Today was a very long day. To start out with, due to excessive tiredness on the part of her parents, Cameron was fed at 3 am this mornings - even though she was not supposed to be fed after midnight (oops!). We were worried that that would cancel her procedure but it did not. It turns out her actual procedure did not begin until much later than anticipated due to delays in the ORs for the day.

Anyway, she did well. She handled the anesthesia well and they completed the ABR test. They found similar results to the ABR that was done at Duke and they made sure she did not need tubes. Next, we will meet with the ENT and Audiologists in a few weeks and they are planning on sedating her again to do an MRI. The MRI will determine if there is anything anatomical that is causing such an assymetrical hearing loss.

Regardless, Cameron handled almost all of it beautifully - she just hates going without food - as do most of us. I am praying that for the MRI sedation we can get the first appointment of the day...or atleast I am going to work toward it. We do now know for sure that she is not a candidate for a cochlear implant because if you have decent hearing (with amplification) then you can have normal speech and language - which negates the need for a cochlear implant. I have to say I am a little relieved to hear this because that is a very big decision to make and I am thankful that it is one that Seth and I will not have to make.

Thank you so much for your prayers. We will keep you posted as we learn more.

Quick Prayer Request

Hello all! Hope you are doing well. Cameron's procedure at Chapel Hill has been scheduled. This next Wednesday, she will go into the hospital to be sedated and to have a repeat ABR (hearing test) done. While she is sedated, they will go ahead and check to see if her ears have too much fluid and give her tubes. They will also redo her ear molds. I do not know all of the details but I have a pretty strong feeling that Cameron will be intubated again for this procedure...which makes this former NICU mama cringe...I had hoped that her days of that were over. Of course anesthesia and procedures all have risks of their own. Please keep Cameron in your prayers, that she would remain safe and that the procedure would help to even further get understanding into her hearing. She has never had a procedure at Chapel Hill, although they come highly recommended, so I admit I am a little apprehensive. I will update you as soon as we are home from the hospital. If you think about it, we have to be there at 1 and the procedure begins at 2:30.

Thanks again for being so faithful!