March continues to be pretty MARVELOUS!!!! The crazy mixed warm/hot/cold weather is still causing some havoc on Ally’s breathing here and there (with thicker mucus plugs, then dryness… and maybe allergies), but she is a strong/brave girl and we get through those tougher episodes and celebrate each easier moment and JOY that many of our days bring us.
We have been able to go to school more and look forward to even more school time after Spring Break! Ally and her sisters will have the next week off and will return after Easter. No big plans, but hopefully we will have a good time around the Chicago area.
The most exciting news this month is that we got a NEW PUPPY!!!!! Her name is Mia and she is 3 months old. We’ve wanted a puppy for Ally and her sister for a SUPER long time and my mom (whom we share a home with and has her own dog) finally agreed. I did a little surveying of other SMA families and knew we wanted a mixture of two small breeds (possibly maltese, poodle, yorkshire, shitzu, bishon…). I looked into possibly rescuing a puppy/dog under 2 years old, but because of our unique needs and not wanting to wait too long (the older girls and Billy were super anxious), we found a great puppy store, Happiness is Pets in Lombard. Mia was an investment (using part of our tax return), but we are super, super, super excited and happy!!!!! She is kind and will lay by Ally and lick her gently and she will play around with the older girls too. Mia will even hang out and watch tv on Ally’s bed while we are doing breathing treatments with her loud respiratory machines. Puppy (and kid training) is going to be a little stressful for the next few months, but I am positive it will be worthwhile. We are ALL in love with our new family member!!!!
Click on the album cover to see ALL of our Puppy Pics….
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| 2012-03-24 Puppy Shopping & MIA |
Another FUN event this month was the Muscular Dystrophy Association Firefighter Bootcamp! Ally, nurse Paula and I attended an overnight stay at Eaglewood Resort in Itasca. We got to hang out and bowl with our MDA friends, firefighters and other families. We also attended a couple of meetings, a family Boot Drive workshop and had some GREAT food. This is in preparation for the firefighters going out with their boots on corners to raise $$$$ for MDA (working towards awareness, support, medical clinics and eventually a CURE). One of the best parts of our overnight stay was getting to sleep in bed with Ally!!!! I LOVED cuddling up to her and it is a goal to eventually expand her room (by taking down a wall) and get her a bigger bed to hang out with family members. She also needs more room for all of her things (medical, therapy, clothes, stuffed animals, computers….). Speaking of things, you should have seen HOW MUCH we needed to bring to the hotel to stay ONE night. It was only Ally, her nurse and I and the back of the van was overflowing to the middle. Another goal is to get a new, bigger handicap van in the semi near future. A Dodge Sprinter would allow us to bring all of Ally’s (and our family’s) things, Ally’s medical stroller, a powerchair and have room for our family and nurse when we do fun events or a vacation (maybe even Disney World one day). I always have BIG dreams for Ally and our family. It may sound crazy since we are a one income home and we budget our needs, but they are dreams that may be possible at some point. I need to have dreams as we will always give Ally and her sisters the best experiences and lives possible. I will keep working towards these dreams for all of us.
Check out our MDA Firefighter Bootcamp Pics (click on cover to see all)
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| 2012-03-30 MDA Firefighter Boot Camp |
I continue to add random, fun pics to our Marvelous March album too…
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| 2012-03 Marvelous March |
Thanks again to everyone for reading my updates and for all of your support and prayers!!!
Tina
Angel Ally Blog - SMA Type 1 