13 1/2 weeks...

Well, Lyla is almost 3 months old now--it's hard to believe!  The time has flown.  She had another big doctor's appointment yesterday.  Here's the full report:  

• Lyla started out by getting an echocardiogram done to see how her heart is doing.  Dr. MacLellan, a pediatric heart specialist, read the echo and was glad to report that Lyla's heart is completely normal!  Thank you Lord.  It is pretty uncommon for a Trisomy 18 baby to have a normal heart.  That was exciting news for sure.
• Dr. MacLellan did notice, however, that Lyla's blood pressure seems to be higher than normal, so we are going to check it every week for the next few weeks to see if she needs to be put on blood pressure medication.  The docs suspect that the high BP could be related to the fact that one of Lyla's kidneys is not functioning.  The kidneys help regulate BP.
• Lyla also got labs drawn to check her kidney function.  The little peanut didn't even cry when they poked her. :)  We'll have to see how the lab work comes back, but her kidney function seems to be fine due to the fact that the one functioning kidney is compensating for the non-functional one.    
• Next, she had her appointment with her regular doctor, Dr. Jedele.  Lyla now weights 8 lbs. 14 oz.  She didn't gain as much weight this time because she has not been eating quite as much and we're not sure why.  To remedy this we are going to be making her formula a little stronger to increase her caloric intake.  The docs are going to try to find a growth chart for Trisomy 18 babies, to see where she's at.  We know that her growth will be slower than a baby without Trisomy 18, but she really seems to be doing pretty darn well! 
• I mentioned to Dr. Jedele that Lyla's eyes seem to be crossing more lately so we set up an appointment with a pediatric opthalmologist to get them checked out.  I guess if eye-crossing is not corrected early-on, it can cause permanent vision loss.  Joel's hoping that she'll have to wear an eye patch so she can look like a little Raider fan. :)
• We also discussed Lyla's gagging episodes again, and we decided to start her on Zantac which actually seems to be helping.  Yay! 
• Dr. Jedele also noticed that Lyla seems to arch her back a lot.  We thought this might be due to her gastroesophageal reflux, but it can also be caused by underlying neurological issues related to the Trisomy 18.  So we're going to try some tricks to help discourage the back arching.  

All in all, Lyla is still doing incredibly well.  She continues to amaze us and the doctors.  She just needs to work a little harder at everything, but she's used to that. :)  She's such a strong girl.  Please continue to pray for her progress and that mom & dad can be the best parents possible and make the right decisions for her.  Thanks!  We are so comforted to know that we are definitely not in this alone.  We have loved receiving so much encouragement in your prayers, cards, visits, phone calls, and just a general out-pouring of love.  We are humbled by it.  So thank you.  Lyla, Joel, and I send our love right back to you. :)  And we give the glory to Jesus--he continues to hold us in his loving hands.     

One more Papa pic  :)

I just had to get a photo of this outfit before she grows out of it!