Some of you know that our Madiana Marie has had a difficult past few years. If there was an illness circulating in the Twin Cities, she got it. And she got it bad. A simple cold ALWAYS led to respiratory distress. Respiratory distress often led to ER visits and hospital visits. Hospital visits led to high doses of meds and long weeks of regaining immunity (and figuring out a way to return to school and work). More often than not, I was hanging by a thread and struggling to balance work and family.

After her 6th diagnosis of pneumonia in a year and a half, I conferred with her pediatrician to be referred to a pulmonologist. After blood draws, x-rays, ultrasounds, procedures, questions and soul searching, we’ve had some big changes in the past month. Long story, short…. Madiana has formally been diagnosed with asthma. Booooo…. But that means we treat her condition proactively instead of waiting until she gets sick and trying to reactively treat her sickness.  She has an inhaler that she uses daily, two inhalers that she uses at the first sign of cold symptoms, and she has additional medication on stand by at our house if need be. Thankfully we haven’t had to put the “if it gets bad enough” treatment plan into effect.

The biggest change for us was a daycare switch. The girls are both at a new daycare. Without going into specifics, I can confidently say that there has not been a single fever in our house since the change. WOO HOO!!!!!! I can’t even explain the relief this has brought our family…. And our Madiana’s health!

Here are a few pictures from Madiana’s procedures and tests at Children’s Hospital. Although it’s hard to watch any of our kids NEED to be at the hospital, but if they need to be at a hospital, Children’s is the most magical place on earth!