Thankful!

I have a lot to be thankful for this year. I have two healthy, beautiful little girls, a great husband, a loving and supportive family, a loyal dog, a job that allows me to do what I love AND be a mom...the list goes on and on. It is so important to take a moment and acknowledge my good fortune because it is very easy to get caught up in the roller coaster of emotions that life can dole out. I try not to dwell on the negative, although I admit sometimes it's a struggle to pull myself up and put on that smile. Right now it seems like we are in the front seat of that coaster and flying through the upside down loops! While I would love to say the ride was nearing an end, I don't think we are getting off any time soon.

Hopefully Ella will be sleeping better
after adenoid surgery in a few weeks.

In the on-going saga of Ella's ear issues, the latest chapter includes a change in doctors and a new surgery next month. We decided to switch ENT's after months of feeling like we weren't getting anywhere. The "wait and see" approach of the doctor was hindering Ella's development. She is constantly battling blockages and hearing problems. This was leading to a bigger speech delay and other learning problems. The second opinion was hopefully one of the best things we have done. The new doctor feels that Ella's enlarged adenoids (which he could see on the MRI she had 2 years ago!) need to come out. He explained how adenoids can cause fluid back up in the ears as well as speech delays, snoring, sleeping issues, even difficulty swallowing and breathing. These are all issues Ella is constantly dealing with. We have heard that her adenoids looked swollen in the past, but never entertained the idea of removing them. Jason and I left the new doctors office seeing red. We are happy that it is an easy fix and a relatively routine surgery, but we also feel like one doctors lack of action has contributed to Ella's discomfort and our frustration for quite some time. How many doctors have looked at that MRI over the past two years?? As frustrating as it is, I have to be positive for Ella and hopeful that this surgery will be a game changer for her. We'll see...she is scheduled for surgery December 13th.

As if scheduling surgery for your three year old isn't enough stress for one family, we are also dealing with MRSA (again!) and some lost/stolen/missing meds. As for the MRSA, we are on a new protocol to try and "decolonize". Ella has been treated for the superbug four times this year. We finally seem to be on the right path now to stopping her infection and preventing the spread at home. We have some new meds and we are all using an antibacterial body wash.

So happy to see this
box arrive!

Our third battle of the week was waged when UPS "lost" Ella's growth hormone. Her meds are delivered every month. They are shipped overnight because they must be refrigerated. It is also very expensive medication, so when the box never arrived Tuesday, I immediately started making calls. The box is still missing and the pharmacy had to ship out a second batch. Talk about jumping through hoops! We had to have insurance re-authorization, set up Saturday delivery and even file a police report because of the missing meds. I am very thankful the new meds came and we didn't have to worry about her missing a dose. This has never happened in two years, so we weren't exactly sure how Ella's body would react. It's like insulin to a diabetic. Ella's body is dependent on the hormone shots every night. Needless to say the stress level was a little high!

Despite all the doctors appointments, phone calls and general madness of the week, I know that I am lucky to have this life and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I have become a better person. I think I appreciate the little things a little more too. It was nice to take a moment on Thanksgiving and appreciate what the day was all about.