Home sweet home

You must be feeling better when you can act like this with your sister!

Shelby made it home yesterday. There was concern of low magnesium levels and a low white blood cell count that gave her 1 more night at club med. She took a 3-hour nap when we got home and then slept another 12 hours last night! She ate enough supper last night to satisfy us and has drank well and eaten some crackers this morning. She needs to keep up what's going in to compensate for what's still going "out," if you know what I mean, to keep herself out of the hospital. Our house has a nice bleachy-clean smell as I have been trying to kill any remaining rotavirus that might be lingering around. Thanks so much for your prayers for her!

This is how Riley kept herself busy at Grammie & Papa's house while Shelby was in the hospital. She's quite the artist. I can't wait to hang some of her paintings in the playroom!

I don't even know what to say about this picture other than it makes me smile! Take care!

Vacation @ club RMH

Yup, Miss Shelby has been in Rockford Memorial Hospital since Sunday night. She has rotavirus - yuk! Hopefully she can come home early this evening pending some more tests. Please keep her in your prayers.

Great news in Chicago!!!

Yea! Yippee! Yahooooooo! What more can I say?!?! Shelby had great visits with all her doctors in Chicago. On Monday we had labs drawn here in Rockford. That was a treat - not really. I did, for the first time, have to chase her down the hall (man can she run fast) when they called her name, and she did fight hard (through 2 pokes), but was all smiles when it was done. Her liver labs look great. For those other liver families out there her ALT and AST have risen, but her doctors don't care. Everything else looks great and she is growing, growing, growing and feeling very energetic. She has gained 6 lbs. and grown 4 in. since last June! Wow! The cardiologist didn't see any problems and said she didn't need to see her for 2 years unless her liver takes a turn for the worse and....drum roll please.....the Top Dog, Dr. Whitington, said that she didn't need to be seen for another YEAR! Did I type that right? Yes, a YEAR!!!! He projected that at the rate she is going she wouldn't need a transplant until she was 8 - 10 years old. Now, he can be wrong either way. She could need a new liver next year or when she's 20, but that was his guestimate (which they hesistate to give). He said her liver is actually the size of an average 4-year-old, but with cirrhosis. Her spleen is still huge, though. He also took her off 2 meds and, after some labs next week, she might come off 2 more. We're down to giving her meds 3 times a day instead of 6! Can you tell I'm excited? Wow!

We stayed overnight at the Kohl's House and took the girls to Oz park to play. The next morning we visited with Natalie's parents and then headed to see the urologist. After getting very, very lost despite having directions we made it to Westchester. We'll be seeing the urologist again in a few weeks, but nothing too big is going on there. They did do an abdominal x-ray and Shelby was such a big girl. She climbed up on the x-ray table all by herself and laid there very still - cool! As a treat for both girls being so good for 2 days of doctors' appointments we took them to the Brookfield Zoo. Lots of fun was had there and I'm kicking myself for leaving my camera in the van in the parking lot way, way, way from the zoo's entrance! We made it home safely around 9 or so last night.

Please continue to check on us here even though things are quiet on the medical front. Also please continue to pray for Natalie and Annika as they both have tough roads ahead of them.

Fun with Daddy

Saturday, while I napped, Scott and the girls got out the camera and hammed things up. Aren't the girls' smiles just awesome? Enjoy! I'll update more after we get back from Chicago.

School's out for summer...

Yes, the girls do like to sing Alice Cooper. You can thank their father for that! Anyway, school is out for summer here in northern Illinois. Yea! (I think.) When Shelby was sick as a baby I would pray "Dear God, please let her get better. I can't wait until they fight like sisters because then I will know Shelby is feeling well." Well, He heard my prayers and then some. One minute they'll be fighting like cats and dogs and then next minute you'll see them hugging. Gotta love 'em! I thought I would share some of their cute pictures I've taken since the last update eons ago.Here is Riley with her wonderful teacher Mrs. G on the last day of kindergarten. Riley has had Mrs. G as her teacher for the past 2 years and will now move on to a new teacher for the next 3 years at her Montessori school. She's almost a 1st grader...

We take Shelby to Chicago for 2 days next week. She'll see cardiology, hepatology, and urology. Don't worry, she's doing great - its just time for everyone to check-up on her. Watch for an update after those visits. Take care and enjoy the beautiful weather.