Dancing Queen!!

We now know that our little Brielle loves loud music. Papa Tim was playing his guitar and she started clapping her hands and going nuts all over the room. The louder and faster he would play the more excited she would get. It was too funny! I got her to stop long enough to snap a couple cute pics :)

Peek-a-boo...I see you!!Here is a video of our little Dancing Queen

Me And My Pumpkin

Brielle loves to be outside so one day last week we went to Soloman Farm and took some cute pictures with her pumpkin.

Eating the straw!

Testing Results

Yesterday had to be one of the hardest days of our lives as parents. To see your child so scared and in so much pain is absolutely heartbreaking. It was a very long day. It started off with Brielle getting an iv in her right arm to have it not work and have to get one in her left arm..poor girl! Then she had to have a catheter which had to be done 2-3 times before it worked. So needless to say Brielle was exhausted at this point from crying so hard she fell asleep in my arms. We then proceeded to the test which took an hour, but she did pretty good because she was tired and got to watch a movie :) Once that was over we went to meet Dr. Cain the Pediatric Urologist. We found out some very upsetting news....Brielle has to have surgery. He believes her problem is a birth defect that developed in the womb and is not hereditary. All the info he gave us is rather confusing and he said that the easiest way to describe it is her "plumbing" isn't working correctly and we need to fix it. If left untreated she will continue to have infections and eventually lose all function of that kidney. So there was no thinking about what to do...she will have surgery. It is scheduled for December 10th at noon and she will be in the hospital for 2-3 days. It is very scary and we are not looking forward to it, but we are putting it in God's hands and we know he will take care of her :) Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers and just continue to pray for her!

On our way to the hospital....doesn't have a clue what she is going to go through!!

On our way home....totally exhausted!!

More Tests....

Brielle had her tests done on Wednesday and did as well as expected of a one year old....actually she was miserable :( We found out she does not have reflux which is a good thing, BUT she has an enlarged ureter and a dilated kidney. (FYI: your ureter is what attaches your kidneys to your bladder). Since her ureter is so big it is like a pool for the fluid to sit in which is how she got her infection and because all the fluid isn't forced into the bladder some is going back into her kidney which is why it is dilated. Our next step is to see a Pediatric Urologist. We have an appointment with him on Tuesday the 21st and he has ordered another test to be done that day before our appointment. I don't know many details about this next test other than it is a lot like the one she just had done and that she will have an IV and catheter. So again we are not looking forward to putting her through this! I will update when I know more. We just ask that you please keep our little angel in your prayers.

Think Of Me

We found out 2 weeks ago that Brielle had a urinary tract infection. She was put on an antibiotic to treat it and it has cleared up. Since she is so young she has to have more testing done to determine why she got one so we can prevent her from getting them in the future. Each time you get an infection there is a risk of damage to your kidneys that can cause bigger problems later in life. One of the more common reasons children of young ages get uti's is called reflux. In this case some of their urine is backed up in the kidneys and doesn't get excreted, therefore it sits there and grows bacteria causing an infection. Most kids that have reflux outgrow it over time, but have to be on medication until then to prevent infections. Brielle is currently on this medication until we find out what is wrong. IF she has reflux she will be on it until the problem fixes itself. So, on Wednesday she will have a Renal Ultrasound done to make sure everything is functioning well with her kidneys. Along with that she will have a test done where they will insert a catheter into her bladder, inject it with contrast and x-ray it as it is voided out to see if the entire bladder is emptied or if it backs up. This will be uncomfortable for her and I'm sure she will wonder what is going on so we just ask that you keep our daughter in your prayers!

And She's Off!

Brielle is on the go, go, go! She is walking so well and hardly crawls at all anymore. She still falls down and has out of control moments, but she sure tries hard and gets right back up and at it! Life is busy at the Brower house, but so fun :) She is such a joy and blessing to our lives!

My ONE Year Photo Shoot!

Aunt Jaime took Brielle's 1 year pictures the other day and she did so good. It keeps getting easier and easier as far as smiling goes. I remember when she was 6 months old and I had to act like a complete idiot just to get one...I didn't have to do a whole lot of anything this time. She is such a happy girl. She will smile and giggle at just about anything. Here are a few of Mommy and Daddy's favorites....she is priceless! Thanks Aunt Jaime!!!!