Baumrucker Weblog

Follow the twins!
Welcome to the Baumrucker Weblog. We'll try to update this site as often as possible so that you may follow our twin saga. Be it feeding reports, doctor's visits, or just plain old cute pictures, you'll probably find it here. As you may know, Elise and Margot have Trisomy 21 or Down Syndrome. Don't know what that is? Have a notion of what Down Syndrome is? Have a look at this site: http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content4/babies.down.pn.html (thanks Iain)
Also, here are two books we recommend: "Babies With Down Syndrome: A New Parent's Guide (The Special-Needs Collection)" Karen Stray-Gundersen and "A Parent's Guide to Down Syndrome : Toward a Brighter Future, Revised Edition" Siegfried M., MD Pueschel

Get the facts!

On December 3rd, our girls were diagnosed with a congenital heart condition known as a Complete Atrio Ventricular Canal. In a normal heart, there are four chambers, but our girls lack the tissue in the center of the heart that forms the chambers. Read this for more information: http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/uvahealth/peds_cardiac/avc.cfm

They will require surgery to repair their hearts, but it is safer to wait until they are a bit older. If we can delay a couple of months, the surgery will be less risky. How long we wait depends mostly on the girls. Now, we need to feed them as much as possible to prepare for surgery and to keep them HEALTHY! A viral infection could be very dangerous for them.

Our girls are strong, have good muscle tone, are ticklish, follow you with their eyes, startle at loud noises, squawk when they're hungry (and when they're gassy), and are very alert. They have 35,000 genes just like you and me that make them unique, just like you and me.

Their Down's Syndrome is only a tiny part of who they are and who they will be. We can't wait to have you meet them!

Enough yappin'! Here they are!
<%image(20041208-image65.jpg|800|600|Elise and Margot)%>
Elise is on the left, Margot is on the right ... I think.

Updated information will appear below this message as we continually update the site. Posts are in reverse chronological order, so read up if you're here for the first time! Check back often for the latest info. Don't forget to use the Archive link to view old posts!