Dermit...Dermie...Dermita

At first I called it Dermit. Dermit the blob, like Kermit the frog! Then I became a little attached to it and began to call it Dermie (you know, how Miss Piggy says Kermie...) But then I realized she's a girl... because she lives on an ovary... and boys don't have those...

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At our first big ultrasound, not only did we find out that our little Curley was going to be a baby girl… but we also found out that she has a little monster friend with her! Dermita – the Dermoid ovarian tumor.

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I toyed with whether or not to share this info with the world wide web… its not a great big scary deal... most of our friends and family know... and we would really like every prayer we can get since it has to be removed. I decided that Dermita is just another character in our lives, who has taken up more than her fair share of time and energy as we discussed her presence in my body and the implications she has on our lives and on my ovary. But she is a character nonetheless and therefore deserves a spot in our blog. (And hopefully a spot on a shelf in our home one day if they let me keep her when she’s removed!) We have been taking a look at it every 4 weeks to make sure it didn't grow throughout the pregnancy and it didn't! But... its pretty large and puts me at risk for further complications if left alone.

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And so, I'll be having a c-section delivery tomorrow (Monday 2/9) so they can remove the tumor through the surgical site. Leah is the star of the show of course, but Dermita is going to be very intriguing as well. Dermoid tumors (or cysts) are made up of dermal stem cells that, as they grow, can turn into all kinds of cool things like skin, teeth, hair, sweat glands etc.... Awesome and disgusting! One of my perinatologists said the way they used to diagnose this type of growth was to put an ice pack over your abdomen and if you hear chattering teeth, you know its a dermoid! :) I wanted to try this test, but I had the more sophisticated diagnostic MRI.

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I have imagined all along that Leah's little friend in there looks like this...

or maybe a little "Bubba" like this...

My sister was most concerned that Dermita might bite the baby! But she has been a rather good tenant... I mean... if you have to have a hairy, toothy tumor residing in your body.

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We appreciate your prayers so much. God has had his hand on every moment of our lives all the way through this and we know He will continue to be in control. We ask that you continue to pray that above all... Leah is born healthy!

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(I promise NOT to post a picture of Dermita if they let me take one... but will email by request only...)