The Mitchells: Just an Update

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Just an Update

Well we had our second meeting with ECI (Early Childhood Intervention) today. Ella is 9 lbs, 11 oz as of today...that's 2 more ounces than she weighed on Monday at our Lactation Consultant meeting!! She is in the 10th percentile for weight/length so we are getting better. We actually don't even qualify for nutritional assistance...which is great news.

We meet with ECI again on Monday to determine if we will need help with motor skills. Please pray for that meeting.

At the lactation meeting on Monday we realized that Ella was only getting about 1 oz. with each feeding, which is why she started losing weight when she was only breastfed. She doesn't have great muscle tone in her face and I'm not producing enough milk so we are having to work on both. I'm now taking Reglan to help on my end and we are working with Ella to help her face and suck better.

Can't wait to see so many of you on Sunday at Ella's dedication to the church. Thank you for your prayers and support through this all.

Love,
The Mitchells

Naked Girl!!

Sleeping Beauty

Ella and her friend Avery Rose (who was born 2 day after Ella to Maggie and Marc Hooper)

Playing with my friends during "tummy time".

Here I am playing after church last Sunday.

I just LOVE my daddy!!

"Hello!" Calling my Grandma and Grampa in Iowa!!

3 comments:

Jodie Keeter said...: Oh my goodness! These are the BEST pictures yet! Ok, I will probably say that a lot, but they are WONDERFUL! She looks great! We'll keep that angel in our prayers... See you Sunday for the Big Day! ~Keeter's; 2:50 PM
Michael, Sara & Micah said...: Ella you are doing so good. I am so proud of you and your mommy. I love you whole bunches. Hope to see you on Sunday if I can get my act together.
Love- Your Cousin Micah; 2:54 PM
Anonymous said...: Good luck! One of my friends found out that her little girl was having some difficulty sucking, so she ended up pumping and then bottle feeding the milk. The biggest thing is for you all to find something that works!; 10:33 PM

Ella's Story

Elizabeth "Ella" Hope Mitchell was born on May 10, 2006 at 3:45pm...by 5am the following morning the whole world turned upside down. The doctors came in to inform us that while Ella had been resting in the Newborn Nursery, she began to have irregular breathing and seizures. It was touch and go for the next 3 days. We were told several times that she probably would not make it alive through the ordeal. She had contracted Group Beta Strep which had resulted in meningitis. Due to the seizures and the infection we had no idea what the long-term effects would be. After Ella spent a long and trying month in the NICU we came home to see where the effects of her illness had left us all.

A few months later, almost a year, we had an official long-term diagnosis...Ella has Cerebral Palsy. She is a happy and loving child. She struggles with physical delays, cognitive delays and all sorts of things that have come and go.

2-eye surgeries to correct lazy eye
3-EEG's to check for siezures
5-MRI/MRV/MRA to check actual brain damage
3-CT scans for brain stuff
1-G-button/feeding tube surgically put in (and then Ella removed herself)
10 (approx)-Swallow Studies
1-Scoliosis Study
2-Kidney Reflux tests
2-Upper GI tests
1-24 hr reflux test
8-hearing tests
countless UTI tests
seemingly a million developmental tests
a hand splint
bath chair
adaptive stroller/wheelchair
stander
gait trainer
AFO's

ha, not to mention all of the therapist...currently: OT 2X/week, PT 3X/week (2 land, 1 horse), ST 3X/week (2 oral motor, 1 speech), develomental 1X/week, vision 2x/month, and we are about to start ACCDAT camp.

As of 4/8/2009.