Check out the baby pictures!

Hey...check out the pictures we had taken July 8th of the babies. Holy cow has everyone changed! Go to www.byfaithphotography.com then enter the website, click on view photos and the password is woody.

55 had a checkup today on his hernia. We are meeting with a surgeon August 20th. We will have more information at that time. We also have another appointment with his pefiatric gi tomorrow. We will be setting up another round of blood tests to determine whether or not we have to do the liver biopsy.

A bit of relief...

The doc just called and informed us of some of the tests. The Direct Bilirubin level dropped from 2.7 to 2.3. That is great news. It is still high as normal is .5 or less. The common trend with Biliary Atresia is to continue progession upwards. His total billirubin also dropped from 5.7 to 4.3. Another good thing. His ASP and ALT were still high (50's and 60's - normal is 25-50). However, they didn't change much from previous tests. Due to today's results, we are holding off on the liver biopsy for another week. This gives the levels more time to decline and gives us time to receive the test results for wilson's disease (it had to be done again yesterday due to a borderline result). So...as of now, things are looking brighter. We will see his regular doctor tomorrow to check out his hernia. Thanks for your prayers...they are working. :)

Just another day...

Yesterday we noticed a lump on 55's groin, so we took him to the ER to get it checked out. It is quite possible that it is a hernia, so we will be setting up an appointment with a pediatric surgeon on Monday. We are hoping that it isn't going to require surgery. We are anxiously awaiting the results of the blood tests tomorrow. We are hoping for negative results. If they are negative, another round of blood tests will be taken to recheck the direct bilirubin level. If those come back lower, we are on the right road. If they come back higher, a liver biopsy is scheduled for Thursday. We will keep you posted.

Another day at the Rodeghieros'!

We got word that the Alpha 1 Antitripson Deficiency test is negative. We now will hopefully have word on the other test later today. We also found out that it is not a choledochal cyst. The Wilson's Disease blood test we are waiting on will determine the next steps of elimination. :) If it comes back negative, another round of blood tests will be taken to see if numbers are still rising or hopefully, best case scenerio, they would decline. If they are rising a liver biopsy will be done next week. Please keep 55 in your prayers!

Aunt Nancy and uncle Jim are still here helping out. It is really nice having the extra hands. Gavin is such a gret big brother. He is constantly kissing on his little sister and brother. Woody slept from 11-7 last night. Now only if we could get 55 to do that good. He still averages 2-4 hours at a time. :)

Today is a new day!

We are still growing like crazy! 55 had to go to the lab for a repeat blood test yesterday, as the 1st one seperated. Unfortunately, that delays the results we are waiting for. Hopefully we will know something by Friday or Monday. We will keep you posted.

No news is good news?

I talked to Dr. Thompson this morning, but still don't know for sure what the endresults are. As of now, both the liver enzyme test and the direct billirubin test increased in number. We are still waiting for two more blood tests to arrive, one being something called Wilson's Disease and the called Alpha 1 Tripson Deficiency. They both sound worse than they are, but will they will give us the info we need to continue the narrowing process of why his numbers are high. If those tests come back postive, we can rule out Billary Atresia or a cyst of some sort on the bile duct. If they come back negative, we will have to do some more exploring of the two, both of which would need surgery. The worse one of the two would be Billary Atresia as it is a much bigger surgery with still the posibility of a liver transplant down the road. At this point, 55 is still eating and growing, both of which are positives. We appreciate your prayers and will keep you updated.

The top picture is of Woody and Uncle Jim taking a rest.

We are a month old!

We are still surviving! Royce's appointment went well. He was a trooper! He had to go 4 hours without eating...that is a record for him! He laid very still for the ultrasound and was even a bigger trooper for being held down to draw 6 cc's of blood from his arm. Aunt Nancy and Uncle Jim arrived from San Diego to help out. We are sooo happy they are here. :)

We are surviving!

Hello to all! The first picture is Grandma showing off her new grandbabies. :) The second was taken with Dr. Rutherford at their first doctor appointment they had together. They are doing well and growing fast. Life is CRAZY around our household! My mom left a little over a week ago, but we are surviving with the help of family and friends. Luckily, they are willing to take shifts. :) Little Ivy (A.K.A. Woody) now weighs 8 pounds 1 ounce and is sleeping 6-8 hour stretches at night (let's hope I am not jinxing anything). Royce (A.K.A. 55) on the other hand, thinks it is fun to see how long he can keep Mommy and Daddy up at night walking the floor. :) He now weighs 5 pounds 13 ounces. He has to get some blood work done tomorrow to check for direct billurubin levels. Before leaving NICU, his direct billurubin level was high and continues to rise. We are hoping this is a result of prematurity, not the other scary things they could be. Your prayers are aprreciated. :)