So this morning I received a voicemail stating the heartbreaking news that any genetic counselor can deliver.( I told her to leave a voicemail stating the results because I was scheduled to be working on the expected day the results came and I didn't want to not know.) She did confirm that our result from the amniocentesis showed that for sure that our baby girl has Trisomy 13. Trisomy 13 happens in about 1 in every 10,000 newborns. It is where there is 3 copies of the chromosome 13 instead of two (the usual). When the extra genetic material is attached to the extra chromosome it is called translocation. Our genetic counselor stated there was no translocation. In other words, this means that it did not come from Shane or I (inherited), instead it occurred when the sperm and egg formed the fetus.
Usually some signs and symptoms show that the baby might have cleft lip or palate, clenched hands, extra fingers or toes, low set ears, small eyes, small head and many more problems. The results from our 18 week ultrasound described that she one had one artery and one vein which is usually a sign of a congenital heart defect. Our MD did state that she may have seen a hole in her heart, as well as some white matter floating around on the inside.
I know most people would think this is the worst news in the world to hear, but from having experienced this before with our first son having trisomy 18, spontaneous as well and not coming from Shane and I, definitely puts in a different state of mind then we were during our first pregnancy. We are going to research the best hospitals and doctors and make sure that she has the ability to live life to the fullest, even though many articles state that these babies don't have a long life-expectancy. Shane and I feel like God doesn't give us anything we can't handle and even though it may seem tough at first, God already knows the plan of what's going to happen to our baby girl. We are going to fight and give her the best life possible, regardless of what any doctor might say or disagree with our wishes.
Most people at the age of 25, would have no idea what it's like to be Shane or myself going through this at such a young age. This happens, and yes even though it is very rare and most people just hear of healthy babies being born all the time, it happens way more often then many people think. This is just a diagnosis and it is not going to change how much we love and care about her. I just wish that before people want to judge us negatively with continuing on with the pregnancy and giving her a fighting chance at life, despite what all the doctors may think, that you keep the negative opinions to yourself.
We pray everyday, and if we could ask for many extra prayers as we continue with this pregnancy that people pray that we can carry her to full term and that we have a safe and healthy delivery for the both of us.
We appreciate all of the continued love and support from our families.
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Friday, July 4, 2014
18 week check-up (6/17/14)
Baby: 18 weeks old! Baby is the size of a mango (6 in., .5 pounds) The heartbeat is 153 bpm and sounding great! This appointment was at our specialist in San Antonio due to some blood testing results coming back saying that our baby has Trisomy 13. We went to get an ultrasound of the baby and the sonographer stated that she didn't see any abnormalities but when the doctor came in to do the exam of the baby she stated that she only saw one artery and one vein and not two arteries and also that the she might have a small hole in her heart but we don't know if that's conclusive yet until we get out amniocentesis results in 10-12 days. Usually with Trisomy 13 babies they have a LOT more problems with the brain, the kidneys, the lungs, every organ practically so Shane and I are staying positive that this is just a false reading and we will see what the results say in 12 days. Staying positive is so important right now and we are leaving it up to God to bless us with this baby and we believe we will fight for this baby as long as God allows us to.
Mommy: Very anxious waiting for the results but staying positive and enjoying my days to the fullest with Brielle before I start a new job next month! I am finally getting back to my workout routine since I have more then two days actually in the same place, excited to go.
Daddy: Has been taking all of these results from the doctor's in such a good way. He doesn't start getting negative like the doctor's expect and always asks as many questions as he needs and I am usually writing everything down. I love everything about his strength and courage throughout this process.
Cravings: These past two weeks I have been wanting popcorn all the time. My mom ordered some for Brielle's party and that just gave me a craving fix for a while. It's funny because I really can't tolerate a lot of corn but I seriously love it right now--even if I get sick after lol.
Brielle: At her party I was holding a baby and for the first time she actually went and pretended to give her a kiss and BIT her on her cheek. I couldn't believe that she did because she is always hugging and kissing all the little kids around her. Maybe she felt like mommy was getting a bit to close to another kid. (Uh-Oh)
Here are a couple of pictures, not that good but we got a DVD and cannot wait to watch it again which we probably will tonight. We picked her name so we cannot wait to tell everyone! :)
Mommy: Very anxious waiting for the results but staying positive and enjoying my days to the fullest with Brielle before I start a new job next month! I am finally getting back to my workout routine since I have more then two days actually in the same place, excited to go.
Daddy: Has been taking all of these results from the doctor's in such a good way. He doesn't start getting negative like the doctor's expect and always asks as many questions as he needs and I am usually writing everything down. I love everything about his strength and courage throughout this process.
Cravings: These past two weeks I have been wanting popcorn all the time. My mom ordered some for Brielle's party and that just gave me a craving fix for a while. It's funny because I really can't tolerate a lot of corn but I seriously love it right now--even if I get sick after lol.
Brielle: At her party I was holding a baby and for the first time she actually went and pretended to give her a kiss and BIT her on her cheek. I couldn't believe that she did because she is always hugging and kissing all the little kids around her. Maybe she felt like mommy was getting a bit to close to another kid. (Uh-Oh)
Here are a couple of pictures, not that good but we got a DVD and cannot wait to watch it again which we probably will tonight. We picked her name so we cannot wait to tell everyone! :)
It's a GIRL!!
Side profile of her gorgeous little self!
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Summer Days
I have taken some time off to just relax and get to enjoy being home for more than just a couple of days and let me tell you, it's AMAZING! I wish we could afford to do this more often, it's hilarious that most people get to go on these glorious vacations which is so good, don't get me wrong; my vacation is just going home and being with Shane, and Brielle and I love every minute of it!
It's so funny how much our child LOVES to be outside. Seriously, any time she is fussy or complaining or anything if we just take her outside for a breather she is in Brielle heaven. She loves to play with the cat, and the dogs outside (throw balls/sticks) and just find anything and everything interesting. It's so good to get at least 15+ minutes a day outside for some good Vitamin D but we tried taking her to the park for the first time since she has been older and she did NOT want to leave our arms! She started crying when we put her on the child play set to interact with other kids or to try to go down the slide. Looks like we have to go more often then once in a blue moon.
What is also interesting is all the new foods she is trying being around all of our family here like different Popsicles and ice cream flavors, and of course sno-cone flavors. She is in baby heaven with all of the desserts/goodies she has been able to taste! What I find interesting is that certain foods she will take a BIG bite out of, pretty much stating to us that she loves it and other foods you can't even tell where her bite is that she took.
I also went to a gym class for the first time in a couple of months, I love to go for my sake but also for Brielle to be around other little kids around her age or older and they said she did great. I always love that when I come to pick her up, she is always in someone's lap. It's hilarious because at home she doesn't like to sit down much since there is so much to get into these days! :)
I am going to enjoy this week to the fullest before having to work this weekend and I am going to go to our regular MD for a check-up tomorrow so we can't wait!
It's so funny how much our child LOVES to be outside. Seriously, any time she is fussy or complaining or anything if we just take her outside for a breather she is in Brielle heaven. She loves to play with the cat, and the dogs outside (throw balls/sticks) and just find anything and everything interesting. It's so good to get at least 15+ minutes a day outside for some good Vitamin D but we tried taking her to the park for the first time since she has been older and she did NOT want to leave our arms! She started crying when we put her on the child play set to interact with other kids or to try to go down the slide. Looks like we have to go more often then once in a blue moon.
What is also interesting is all the new foods she is trying being around all of our family here like different Popsicles and ice cream flavors, and of course sno-cone flavors. She is in baby heaven with all of the desserts/goodies she has been able to taste! What I find interesting is that certain foods she will take a BIG bite out of, pretty much stating to us that she loves it and other foods you can't even tell where her bite is that she took.
I also went to a gym class for the first time in a couple of months, I love to go for my sake but also for Brielle to be around other little kids around her age or older and they said she did great. I always love that when I come to pick her up, she is always in someone's lap. It's hilarious because at home she doesn't like to sit down much since there is so much to get into these days! :)
I am going to enjoy this week to the fullest before having to work this weekend and I am going to go to our regular MD for a check-up tomorrow so we can't wait!
Daddy going down the slide with Bri!
We were trying to convince her that slides were fun, she didn't buy it! :)
Getting into everything!
She started picking up her toys and putting them back in the bag without me asking her to! Precious.
She had a bad rash that apparently was from her one year vaccines- side effects- and now it's all cleared up!
Playing outside at Granny and Paw-paw's house.
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
Brielle turns ONE!
I cannot believe I am posting this referring to my baby as a 1 year old! I am so glad she had so much fun and I hope all these pictures describes as much fun as we all had. This all took place at my parents house in Lockhart, Texas which was the midpoint between pretty much every directions all of our family and friends were coming from. It was so perfect, and it was great to celebrate my parents also purchasing their house just 4 months ago!
Our theme was pink and gold, which was not the easiest combination of colors to find with invitations, table decorations, etc but I was so happy with how it all turned out. We really started planning hard on everything about a month before the party and kind of just wrote down all of our activities, decorations, food, and about how many guests we thought were coming. Cards were given about 3 months in advance, just because I know with my jobs I need at least 2 weeks-1 month in advance to get off and I know many people would also be like that as well.
For the food we started planning just finger foods only, due to kids being kids and going to make a mess so we wanted it to be as easy as possible for everyone involved. The choices were sausage rolls, fruit platter, veggie platter, and meat and cheese platter. For the desserts there were cake pops, different colored and flavor popcorn, snocones, and Brielle's gorgeous cake. It was definitely enough for everyone that attended and I think we even had left over fruit and veggies to last us a few days later which was a great snack to bring to lunch at work! :)
For the decorations I wanted just a few pieces, and not go overboard. I got a chalkboard looking poster made digitally from etsy and bought a frame for the poster and it was all about Brielle, from her likes and dislikes to her first word and her favorite food. It was so cute! That was the center piece on the wall in the living room with a happy 1st birthday banner on top her monthly photos on the bottom. It looked great on the wall. I also hung up all of her firsts on a pink ribbon in the kids playroom. (extra diaper from hospital, first shirt, socks, etc). We also did a balloon arch which had it's ups and downs with the weather but it looked great and that was made with helium balloons outside in the front yard tied in between two trees. We did some minor extra accessories like the welcome table with the book that they sign, and a welcome sign on the outside of the front door. It was so cute and I am so glad and thankful with my parents help and a grouchy baby that morning that we made it all work!
Everyone enjoyed food, activities, and the reveal that we were pregnant with a girl with a lot of shock involved. I truly will never forget it (even though she won't remember--the day was solely focused on her and everyone showed her so much love my heart was full!)
Thank you again for everyone that came a little early to help set up and left a little later to clean everything up. It truly meant a lot to both Shane and I and we greatly appreciate it! :) So here are some pictures of the eventful time. Enjoy.
Our theme was pink and gold, which was not the easiest combination of colors to find with invitations, table decorations, etc but I was so happy with how it all turned out. We really started planning hard on everything about a month before the party and kind of just wrote down all of our activities, decorations, food, and about how many guests we thought were coming. Cards were given about 3 months in advance, just because I know with my jobs I need at least 2 weeks-1 month in advance to get off and I know many people would also be like that as well.
For the food we started planning just finger foods only, due to kids being kids and going to make a mess so we wanted it to be as easy as possible for everyone involved. The choices were sausage rolls, fruit platter, veggie platter, and meat and cheese platter. For the desserts there were cake pops, different colored and flavor popcorn, snocones, and Brielle's gorgeous cake. It was definitely enough for everyone that attended and I think we even had left over fruit and veggies to last us a few days later which was a great snack to bring to lunch at work! :)
For the decorations I wanted just a few pieces, and not go overboard. I got a chalkboard looking poster made digitally from etsy and bought a frame for the poster and it was all about Brielle, from her likes and dislikes to her first word and her favorite food. It was so cute! That was the center piece on the wall in the living room with a happy 1st birthday banner on top her monthly photos on the bottom. It looked great on the wall. I also hung up all of her firsts on a pink ribbon in the kids playroom. (extra diaper from hospital, first shirt, socks, etc). We also did a balloon arch which had it's ups and downs with the weather but it looked great and that was made with helium balloons outside in the front yard tied in between two trees. We did some minor extra accessories like the welcome table with the book that they sign, and a welcome sign on the outside of the front door. It was so cute and I am so glad and thankful with my parents help and a grouchy baby that morning that we made it all work!
Everyone enjoyed food, activities, and the reveal that we were pregnant with a girl with a lot of shock involved. I truly will never forget it (even though she won't remember--the day was solely focused on her and everyone showed her so much love my heart was full!)
Thank you again for everyone that came a little early to help set up and left a little later to clean everything up. It truly meant a lot to both Shane and I and we greatly appreciate it! :) So here are some pictures of the eventful time. Enjoy.
Our welcome table
one of the kids play areas
Cake balls
Her amazing birthday cake
Her monthly pictures
Colored popcorn
More decorations
Food table
Such a cute little pinata
Me and Lauren!
The kids trying to break open the pinata!
Brielle not sure about sitting on the counter top
Looking at something!
Val and Bri
My handsome hubby
More decorations :)
Annie and Bri
Opening her gifts
Ethan trying to help Brielle.
After her smash cake :)
Can't believe she is 1! Can't wait for many more birthdays to come :)
Sunday, June 29, 2014
16 week check-up (6/6/14)
Baby: 16 weeks old! Baby is the size of a avocado (4.3 to 4.7 inches)! The heartbeat is 158 bpm and sounding great! During this ultrasound Brielle was so upset when our Doctor wanted to hear the heartbeat of the baby. Shane had to take her outside once again of the appointment, I am guessing she thinks she is the only one that gets to kiss my belly and no one else can touch it, how funny.
Mommy: I have been working extra to have more savings and buy some extra stuff for my Brielle's 1st birthday party and I can't wait to have all of next week off to prepare for it!
Daddy: Has been so patient and calm with everything going on, with me working away more days this month then usual, but has been so great and helpful when I am home. Loves to spend just daddy daughter time with Brielle any time he can which makes me love him so much more!
Cravings: This month has been all of the place but I seriously have been wanting salads and a LOT of water lately which is great.
Brielle: She continues to kiss and hug the baby and loves to hear the word "baby" and see them on the TV or in person. She loves them as long as mommy isn't holding them. Mommy's girl you may ask? OH YES! I still love that she chooses me over mostly everyone. It may sound selfish but I am seriously soaking up every moment with her before she meets her baby sister!
Yes, you read that right, IT'S A GIRL!
We can't wait for our next ultrasound! Love to see this baby grow :)
Mommy: I have been working extra to have more savings and buy some extra stuff for my Brielle's 1st birthday party and I can't wait to have all of next week off to prepare for it!
Daddy: Has been so patient and calm with everything going on, with me working away more days this month then usual, but has been so great and helpful when I am home. Loves to spend just daddy daughter time with Brielle any time he can which makes me love him so much more!
Cravings: This month has been all of the place but I seriously have been wanting salads and a LOT of water lately which is great.
Brielle: She continues to kiss and hug the baby and loves to hear the word "baby" and see them on the TV or in person. She loves them as long as mommy isn't holding them. Mommy's girl you may ask? OH YES! I still love that she chooses me over mostly everyone. It may sound selfish but I am seriously soaking up every moment with her before she meets her baby sister!
Yes, you read that right, IT'S A GIRL!
We can't wait for our next ultrasound! Love to see this baby grow :)
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Second check-up (5/6/2014)
Baby: 12 weeks old! Baby is the size of a peach (3 inches long)! The heartbeat is 168 bpm and sounding great! During the ultrasound brielle wanted me to hold her and that just wouldn't work well while laying on the bed in the room so Shane had only got to see a little bit of the new baby kicking around a little bit before having to take brielle out of the room :( .But this baby was kicking a LOT and moving it was just like Brielle at the this point, so adorable!! We are in awe of the fact that God has blessed us with the chance to carry another child, and so amazed by each and every step of the baby's growth along the way!
Mommy: Oh, feeling uh-mazing!! Seriously so excited to start this second trimester and I am feeling like a new woman! It's great, all of the nausea has subsided and my energy level has come back slowly but surely. I have actually bought a planner and wrote all of my important dates down and haven't forgotten anything since then! . My workouts have been about 1-2 times a week but hoping to go 2-3 times this week!
Daddy: So great!! I have been so tired the past few weeks and on top of cooking and cleaning up after dinner he would mow the lawn/do outside work and clean the house when all I wanted to do was lay down and sleep. So patient with Brielle and all of the changes she has been going through, it's so great!
Cravings: My cravings have been a little different this pregnancy, and I have wanted a root beer float more often then not lately.. but I think that craving is almost over. We will see what it will be in a few weeks!
Brielle: Has been going through so many changes herself this past month and we have been talking to her about becoming a big sister and helping and sharing so we will keep trying to prepare her for the months coming up( only 6 1/2 more months, yay!!) She has also been kissing my belly and hugging it so we will see what she is like when the baby gets here :)
Here are a couple of pictures of our little bun in the oven!
Mommy: Oh, feeling uh-mazing!! Seriously so excited to start this second trimester and I am feeling like a new woman! It's great, all of the nausea has subsided and my energy level has come back slowly but surely. I have actually bought a planner and wrote all of my important dates down and haven't forgotten anything since then! . My workouts have been about 1-2 times a week but hoping to go 2-3 times this week!
Daddy: So great!! I have been so tired the past few weeks and on top of cooking and cleaning up after dinner he would mow the lawn/do outside work and clean the house when all I wanted to do was lay down and sleep. So patient with Brielle and all of the changes she has been going through, it's so great!
Cravings: My cravings have been a little different this pregnancy, and I have wanted a root beer float more often then not lately.. but I think that craving is almost over. We will see what it will be in a few weeks!
Brielle: Has been going through so many changes herself this past month and we have been talking to her about becoming a big sister and helping and sharing so we will keep trying to prepare her for the months coming up( only 6 1/2 more months, yay!!) She has also been kissing my belly and hugging it so we will see what she is like when the baby gets here :)
Here are a couple of pictures of our little bun in the oven!
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Alone Time
Since my work schedule has been super busy this past week, and my parents are the ones who watch Brielle, my mom just offered to keep Brielle for two days and give Shane and I some time to ourselves after work and just relax. At first, of course I was VERY hesistant, since I hate leaving her unless absolutely necessary but I knew she was going to be in great hands and that made saying yes that much easier!
It was so nice to be able to seriously deep clean my entire house and put up all of Brielle's birthday decorations and gifts/clothes. You never really have that time to really deep clean often with a baby who gets into everything and things don't stay clean long so it was SO nice to be able to do that and not worry if Brielle was going to take a shorter nap and not give me time or having to cook and prepare the next meal for her. I never really noticed how nice it was to have a day to that, but so glad I did.
What we also really enjoyed was having time to just communicate and laugh and have time to hang out just the two of us. Usually we don't like when Brielle goes anywhere when I am at my home town so Shane can spend as much time with Brielle as possible before we leave again-so it's rare that we get to have a date night and just hang out and be together. It was amazing to say the least. Usually the two hours after Brielle goes to bed is used to talk about upcoming appointments, work schedules, any family events coming up, etc. so we don't really get to talk about each other.
Shane decided that we should just go fishing (his favorite thing to do) at the river, then go to dinner before we head back home. It was so good to be able to connect and talk about our future, and what we want to do to better ourselves and set new goals to accomplish. Of course by the end of the night we had to call Brielle to say goodnight and talk to her as much as possible and she is hilarious on the phone (usually dropping it a few times) and we couldn't wait to see her again! Thanks again Mom and Mike for watching her, it was much needed and we are very thankful! :)
Here are some pictures of the river and some pictures my mom sent me when she was watching Brielle.
It was so nice to be able to seriously deep clean my entire house and put up all of Brielle's birthday decorations and gifts/clothes. You never really have that time to really deep clean often with a baby who gets into everything and things don't stay clean long so it was SO nice to be able to do that and not worry if Brielle was going to take a shorter nap and not give me time or having to cook and prepare the next meal for her. I never really noticed how nice it was to have a day to that, but so glad I did.
What we also really enjoyed was having time to just communicate and laugh and have time to hang out just the two of us. Usually we don't like when Brielle goes anywhere when I am at my home town so Shane can spend as much time with Brielle as possible before we leave again-so it's rare that we get to have a date night and just hang out and be together. It was amazing to say the least. Usually the two hours after Brielle goes to bed is used to talk about upcoming appointments, work schedules, any family events coming up, etc. so we don't really get to talk about each other.
Shane decided that we should just go fishing (his favorite thing to do) at the river, then go to dinner before we head back home. It was so good to be able to connect and talk about our future, and what we want to do to better ourselves and set new goals to accomplish. Of course by the end of the night we had to call Brielle to say goodnight and talk to her as much as possible and she is hilarious on the phone (usually dropping it a few times) and we couldn't wait to see her again! Thanks again Mom and Mike for watching her, it was much needed and we are very thankful! :)
Here are some pictures of the river and some pictures my mom sent me when she was watching Brielle.
Brielle playing peek-a-boo
River!
You can't really tell but there are a family of snakes :/
playing in her car seat, very rare!
Brielle playing with the dogs
Mike loved this straw lol!
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