September 22 - Happy 7th birthday Madalyn

 

 

She is 7 years old!  Time has flown.  Only yesterday she was a picture I carried everywhere, dreaming of the day she would join our family. Next she was a tiny baby I was visiting in Guatemala.  Finally, a few months later, we were flying home together.  

 

Now she is a first grader and a big sister, keeping me on my toes, but always amazing me with her beautiful smiles, and her amazing personality.  She brings excitement and optimism to ANY situation! 

 

She loves cheers, singing, pep rallies, football games, crafts, birthday parties, coloring with Grandma, playing "bear" with Pap, making Josephine giggle, potato chips and sprite, tennis lessons, swimming, Aunt NaNa, stuffed animals, making cards with fancy letters, pillow pets, country music, and eating at "Old McDonalds"....

 

 



More immunizations

We have to repeat all of Josephine's immunizations because she didn't show antibioties for at least one disease for which she received the vaccine in China. Between normal colds and viruses she keeps getting, it's hard to get caught up!

Let's hope her cold is much better and she can get them today.

Madalyn on the field pre-game

Madalyn faced her fear of the Bulldog mascots and went on the field with the other kids and cheerleaders. She loved every minute of it.

She has a love-hate relationship with mascots and characters. She is afraid of them but will seek them out to shyly wave and wait for the praise of being so brave. She's been doing this for years..it makes me laugh...

First football game

She loved cheering. She did a great job of clapping using her right fist and left hand;something she wouldn't try before CIMT camp.

Driving

Madalyn's teachers and class sent her balloons, so sweet!

Dr. Parker came by this afternoon and all the news was good.  There is much less spiking than before the medicine.  Last year, she had spiking more frequently than every 10 seconds in the  occipital, parietal, and central lobe.   Now, it is rare, and mostly from the central lobe only.  Her nighttime activity is even less, which means she is getting good sleep.

I'm thrilled with these results.  This means clearly her improved attention, focus, and behavior is because the spiking has been greatly reduced.  Yeah!  Medicine does not always make an EEG look cleaner..sometimes it controls clinical seizures without reducing the spiking.  But, in Madalyn's case, the medicine is controlling the seizures, and helping the spiking.  Yeah!!

Look what Aunt Nikki brought!

Coloring

On the way to the EEG

I finally told her this morning and she only cried for a minute. Then she was into planning what all she could get....McDonalds was her top priority.

Another good day

Cross your fingers, it's almost Friday and so far Madalyn is on track for treasure box day. It's crazy how much 5 days of smiley face stickers make me happy. Oops, they only had school 3 days this week, no wonder! But nonetheless, maybe she will get treasure box.

We had an easy going night, and even corrected her math test, and re-wrote her homework to correct the letters to match the example sheet. She sometimes makes capital letters lowercase by just making them smaller, which isn't the way it's supposed to be done. No meltdowns! Good concentration! I'm starting to think I might actually survive the next 12 years of her education career:)