Ariel's Story
written by mom Tara

Ariel Christina joined our family on July 13th, 2001. She was only a week early but weighed in at a tiny 5 pounds and 7 ounces. She may have been small to start with but she grew just fine and was a normal sized baby in no time at all. Ariel's only problem was colic and colic and more colic, but a lot of babies have that. Maybe it just seems like it lasts forever to their parents.

Almost two years later Ariel was joined by Travis Junior. She was very excited to have a little brother and be a big sister. The two of them are great friends even though Ariel is a typical little girl who loves ANYTHING Dora The Explorer and Travis is all boy and loves trucks (especially 18-wheelers) and tractors. Ariel also became both a Mommy's girl and a Daddy's girl. She does not play favorites.

A year ago Ariel got sick with a bad cold that did not get better. I took her to the emergency room when she seemed to get worse and after they took x-rays, the doctor told me she had pneumonia. We got medicine for her and she got better.

Around mid-June 2006, Ariel got sick again. Once again it seemed like a bad cold. It did not get better and when it even seemed to be getting worse we took her to the doctor to be checked. Of course I was afraid that they would find pneumonia like she had the year before. It all seemed to be the same. But this time they did different tests and told us that our little girl had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Ariel went to Fairfield Hospital and Palmetto Richland Hospital (the Children's Hospital and the Cancer Center) sent a medical team up to get her on Friday morning to take her to Columbia. Once she got to the hospital in Columbia they did more blood tests and a bone marrow test and a spinal tap. Ariel's hemoglobin should have been around 13, but it was only 3. Between Friday morning and Wednesday afternoon she got 5 blood transfusions and 4 platelet infusions. She has not had a port installed so she had to be stuck and stuck again. In spite of all the "sticks" Ariel handled the hospital well. I hope before the treatment goes much farther that they can give her a port and spare Ariel all of those sticks. We'll return soon to find out what the treatment will be and more about what all of those tests showed. There are going to be lots of trips from our home in Winnsboro to Columbia and there will probably be more time spent in the hospital. And we are learning lots of words for things we have never heard of before. It is all so confusing.

Ariel's birthday is coming up and we just wish she could be a happy little girl on that day, but of course we don't know whether she will be home or in the hospital by then.

In addition, I lost my job when I called in and said I could not work and did not know how long I would be gone. Of course now someone needs to be with Ariel for her treatment and doctor appointments. There is just so much we do not know about the future and we have no control over most of what is about to happen. We will know more of what to expect after the doctor visit coming up. Right now we are just scared!!

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