Analise will be 100 days old tomorrow!!!

                                           
                    Analise at the gym again. . .those arms are moving!!

From Erik:

It's hard to believe it, but Analise is 100 days old tomorrow.  She has only been here for a little time, but she has affected so many people.  She is such a special little girl and we are so glad she is in our lives!!!

 

Everytime Erik says "I love you" to Analise she gets the biggest smile!!

After weeks of going back and forth about the surgery on her hamstrings, we decided to do it.  We made all of the arrangements, flight, hotel and car reservations for next week, one of the busiest times of the year to travel.  

But we forgot to ask Analise, and so we think she got sick on purpose to give herself a break.  She got really congested, and when we took her in to the doctor, we found out she had/has bronchiolitis.  It is an inflammation or infection in her bronchioles.  She now has a machine that makes the medicine (albuterol) into a fine mist that she has to breathe in every 4 hours to open up the airways. Analise used to like the mask, but now screams every time.  She coughs and sneezes a lot due to the congestion and she hates that "nasal mucus sucker" that we have to use after her treatment.  

Due to this infection, the anesthesiologist in Philadelphia said we need to cancel the upcoming surgery and wait until her chest is clear for at least a month.  Luckily, at the last minute, we added insurance to our flight plans, so we are in the process of getting our money back for the flights.  So with all of that, we are now waiting… again.

"Getting my breathing treatment"

Analise finally got her casts off and she got fitted for her new "fancy" shoes.  Bill Kearney, of Johnson's Orthopedic, fit Analise for a new pair of shoes with a hinged bar between her feet so her knees have more mobility.  She does not like them because we have to make them very tight to stretch out her achilles tendons.  The hinged bar allows her to move her knees, but it keeps the feet out so they will not turn back in.  Club feet in arthrogrypodic children have a tendency to turn back to their original positions.  She has to wear these braces all of the time except during bath time.  She will wear them until she is walking, and once she's walking she only has to wear them at night.  

Bill Kearney, Dawn, and Analise with her new braces/shoes. . ."I'm not too sure about these!"

"Are you sure these are on the right way?!?!"

Thelma (Dawn's grandma) and her friend Debbie held an incredible fundraiser/open house (a party really).  

We had never met Debbie Freeman (the owner/manager of the Prudential California Real Estate office in Cerritos) before Saturday, but this amazing woman did so much for our little girl, whom she had never met.  

We know it takes a lot of people to put on an event like this and we would like to also extend our thanks to all those who volunteered to help, especially the local real estate community and their partners, for their unselfish support of Analise and their generosity.


It was an AMAZING success because of all their hard work and commitment to Analise.  Everything was beautifully organized and lovingly presented.  The weather was out of their control, but they improvised beautifully!!  Every detail of the event, from the silent auction to the 50/50 raffle, was not only fun but designed selflessly for the benefit of our family.

Four Generations: Annette (Dawn's Mom), Thelma (Dawn's Grandmother), Dawn, and Analise

Fundraiser at Debbie Freeman's home

Thelma, Debbie, and Annette

We continue to be astonished at everyone's generosity... 
with their time, talent, energy, gifts, love, and prayers!!  

We know Analise will succeed in life and exceed the doctors' expectations because of all this love and support!! 

 Debbie, thank you for sharing your lovely home with all of us for this event...you were a gracious hostess and we felt very welcomed in your home!!  Our "family" is definitely growing!!

So, as we wait for Analise to get better, we will actually be able to spend Thanksgiving with our families.  

We have so much to be thankful for and we are so lucky to have such great people in our lives.  
Again, thank you from the bottom of our hearts!!

No more casts. . . at least for a little while!!

 "Ready for bed . . . Good Night!!  
Thank you ALL for EVERYTHING you ALL do for me and my family!!!"