Palmer Family Blog

Best Buds

First thing I want to say is HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACEY!! He turned ONE on Thursday. It's crazy how fast that year went. But when I think about the first 4 months, it seemed really slow. So just the last half of the year I guess. We had a little birthday party for him that night with cake and ice cream and a few gifts. We had Michael & MeIinda and Mark & Emily over. We are having family parties next week, there are a few birthdays in the family on both sides this week. Jacey was so fun to watch play with his gifts and it was even more fun to watch him enjoy us singing Happy Birthday to him. He smiled at each one of us in turn, it was so cute!! Sad thing about that day was how sick he was. He had a burning fever all that night and hardly slept. We took him to the doctor on Friday for his one year checkup, and he seemed to be better. Now he just has a really runny nose and doesn't sleep. Fun!

Well, I figure I better make a quick update on the latest news in our life. Last Friday, I was going to a regular checkup of our unborn child, and was quite shocked to find out that they had been desperately trying to get ahold of us for a few weeks with some news about something they found in the ultrasound. They couldn't reach us though because I dropped my phone in apple juice and it died. Coordinated, I know. Anyway, they found that our baby's right lung is filled with cysts, both large and small. The doctor said she had never come across a case like this, however statistics show that 70% of these babies will live when they're born. So Jeffrey and I have been to the Maternal Fetal Medicine clinic to meet with more doctors and have more ultrasounds and tests. They confirmed the cysts in the lung, and found that the heart has some extra fluid around it and has been slightly tilted to the left. If the cysts grow, it could in time shift the heart more and squish the left lung, causing the only healthy lung to not work when the baby is born. That hasn't happened yet, but we will have frequent ultrasounds to make sure the heart and left lung stay okay. We have an ECHO (?) which is a detailed ultrasound of the heart to make sure there are no signs of heart failure and also we will have an MRI to get a clearer picture of the lungs. After we have all this info, we will meet with a neo-natal (spelling?) surgeon and a pediatric surgeon to come up with a birth plan for the baby and discuss all of the options for probable complications. They say that sometimes these cysts will go away on their own, either before or after birth, but if not, they will have to do surgery of some sort, I'm not sure. Of all the doctors we've talked to so far, not one has ever dealt with this condition personally, so it's new to them all. Not the most reasurring thing ever, but we know that we are blessed to live in a time when there are lots of things that the medical world can offer. We're doing pretty good now with all of this news. After the initial shock and worry, we are feeling pretty calm and good about everything. Obviously whatever happens will be what the Lord has in store. The reason I'm blogging this is to just ask that those who feel so inclined, if they might keep our little baby girl in their prayers. The power of prayer is real, and we know that miracles happen all the time, which is what we're hoping for. :) Hope everyone's having fun getting ready for Christmas and enjoying the festive spirit that is so apparant this time of year!