We made it to Maui safely on Monday. Maddyn did awesome on the flight. Everyone, both passengers and the flight attendants kept coming up to us telling us how awesome she was. That was a huge relief. She wouldn't nap- and so for the full 9 hours she was playing or doing something. But overall, she was happy and did great! Since 1st class was so roomy, she had much more room to play and move around and I think that helped.
We checked into our hotel room- and it is gorgeous!!! We were upgraded to an oceanview room and the view is just breathtaking! The mountains over by Ma'lea and the ocean make a beautiful view, especially at sunset. It was very windy, but warm and just wonderful!
We ate dinner at Matteo's Italian restaurant- it was delicious. Kid friendly, and reasonably priced. After dinner we walked around and got to see the sights of the hotel and Wailea. After the 9 hour flight and 5 hour time change - and no Maddyn naps- we were all beat.
We woke up today and dove right in!! We first hit up Iao State Park. It is free and has some beautiful trails. We saw the "needle" and some creaks and awesome scenery. I have plenty of photos -just gorgeous. After we hit Iao we went to the Maui Fruit Plantation. That is where they grow all kinds of fruit, from pineapple and mangoes to lichey(sp). Again, lots of trails to walk around and very pretty scenery.
We went into Kuhuli to do some quick shopping- aka, Wal-Mart for groceries and such. Grabbed a lunch and headed back to the hotel so Maddyn could nap. Mom & I walked the trails along the ocean. Wailea is neat, b/c the entire way south and north of the hotel, there is a walking trail parallel to the ocean. You can see all the resorts, beaches, and ocean views and it's great. We got a good workout in, and still felt like 'vacation'.
Our resort is in Wailea, which we found very quickly is the more "hoity-toity" part of the island. Kanapali/Lahaina get a majority of the tourists from all over the place, which makes it more family friendly. The restaurants and shopping selections are much more reasonable up on that part of the island. Wailea has quite a few 'fancy resorts' and overall the restaurants and such are less family-oriented and more expensive. So we ended up going to Lahaina for dinner, and that was a great drive. Lots of little towns on the way, and view of both the mountains and ocean- you can't beat that! We were able to walk around in Lahaina as well, which is very cute.
I have loads of photos already (big surprise, huh?), but I am so beat I won't be able to upload any yet. Maybe tomorrow. The time change is still affecting all of us. We have all been crashing early.
Tomorrow our plan is to either hit the Maui Ocean Center or do the Road to Hana (though, we only plan to do part of it- with Maddyn a full day would be too much). We figured we would see what time everyone wakes up and go from there.
I'll see if I can post photos tomorrow!!
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Sunday, July 19, 2009
18 Month "Pro" Pix & Updates
I finally got around to taking Maddyn's 18 month pro shots. A few teasers below, the rest are on Shutterfly!!
Latest in the life of the Wags'...
Maddyn has started Potty Training! She has gone a handful of times on the "big potty" at daycare and at home. This caught us by surprise, since we thought we had a little more time- but she is the one pushing it. She has much excitement towards the potty right now. Whether it will last, who knows- but we're going with it ;)
Dave and I are hoping to make a decision on the medical tests in early August. We have weighed our options and really are just taking time to watch Maddyn right now and continue to track the progress (or lack thereof) of her symptoms.
She's counting and doing the alphabet!! A kind of funny story- the other day we were walking and I asked Maddyn to count to Three. She did. After that, I said, what comes next- Dave jumps in and says 4! Maddyn goes... 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 10! We both about fell over. I had know idea daycare had taught her the numbers to 10! So much fun!! This month they are doing the alphabet. She knows A, B, C, D and W, X, Y, Z so far. LOL- she's getting there.
Lastly, our other family news is that we just booked a very last minute trip to Hawaii!! We leave in just a few days. I was able to book the entire trip - first class non-stop airfare, hotels, and rental car- ALL on miles and points. Traveling for work can really stink when you're away from home all the time. So it was nice to be able to cash those in for something nice. I'm a little nervous about the long flight, but I think once we are there, it will be worth it!! We are hitting Maui and Oahu.
I'm in NJ this week for work, and we leave shortly after I get back. I will be sure to post updates from HI if I can!!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Health update: More doc appts
Where to start….in addition to Maddyn’s 18 month appt, we had a visit with the pediatric allergist and also the pediatric neurologist. Our appt from November was pulled up!
First, the allergist. We had the basic food and outdoor allergy items tested for. Overall, Maddyn didn’t test positive for any allergies. We were thrilled at the results. The allergist seems to think her severe eczema is something she can grow out of. We are now using the Mustela Stelatopia line- and can I say, it is AMAZING. Pricey, but worth every penny. We’ve tried everything from Aveeno, California Baby, Cetaphil, etc to bathe, on top of her Aquaphor 3 times a day and Cortizone ointment, and nothing has helped. This is by far the only thing that has made a huge impact. The Milky Bath Oil seems to be the kicker, but we are also using the Cream Cleanser. If your little one has bad eczema, I’d highly recommend these.
So we left the allergist relieved we could cross something off the list, and hopeful that it means that this massive drinking is a fluke and that her purple/blue hands/feet/mouth episodes are due to an immature circulatory system like the cardiologist suggested.
We went to our 18 month appt, and filled the doctor in. She still wanted us to see the pediatric neurologist. So we kept that appt. It was pulled up from November to Monday, June 29th.
On Monday, we went and met with Dr I. He was very thorough again, and listened to Maddyn’s history, symptoms and looked through her test results. He was surprised that we hadn’t come in sooner, as thirst and nerve episodes are both usually neurological symptoms. He said that often the autonomic nervous system functions can go forgotten. He does think that both the drinking an the purple/blue episodes are related.
He was concerned about Maddyn’s hypothalamus. He said together, the purple/blue hands/feet/lips and the excessive drinking could most likely be a symptom of hypothalamus misfunction- which could cause Maddyn other problems later in life. He wanted to do a series of follow-up tests. First an MRI, second a tilt table test, third an EMG, and lastly, if those tests do not provide enough insight, he strongly suggested we consider more invasive procedures.
Of course, he went into detail, and I'm just summarizing, but I’m still digesting it all. We are making an appt with our pediatrician to also discuss this plan of action with her. Dave and I are a little torn right now, as Maddyn’s symptoms seem to have gotten much better- the frequency of the episodes is becoming less and we are really working to cut down her fluids and are at about 70 oz on avg daily- sometimes even less than the 64- we're almost there!. With this progress, it makes us both hesitate to do these invasive tests and put our poor baby through more hell, only to find out it might be ‘nothing or ok’- which is what we hope. That said, we’d both be devastated if we didn’t do these tests and she has problems later in life b/c of something we don’t treat now. B/c she is so little, even the basic MRI will require putting her to sleep and having the MRI done.
We are looking into getting a second opinion from another Pediatric Neurologist as well. I’m sure that will take another few weeks/months, but at this point, I think it’s necessary before we move forward.
We will continue to keep everyone posted! As you can imagine, we have a lot of discussing and decisions ahead.
First, the allergist. We had the basic food and outdoor allergy items tested for. Overall, Maddyn didn’t test positive for any allergies. We were thrilled at the results. The allergist seems to think her severe eczema is something she can grow out of. We are now using the Mustela Stelatopia line- and can I say, it is AMAZING. Pricey, but worth every penny. We’ve tried everything from Aveeno, California Baby, Cetaphil, etc to bathe, on top of her Aquaphor 3 times a day and Cortizone ointment, and nothing has helped. This is by far the only thing that has made a huge impact. The Milky Bath Oil seems to be the kicker, but we are also using the Cream Cleanser. If your little one has bad eczema, I’d highly recommend these.
So we left the allergist relieved we could cross something off the list, and hopeful that it means that this massive drinking is a fluke and that her purple/blue hands/feet/mouth episodes are due to an immature circulatory system like the cardiologist suggested.
We went to our 18 month appt, and filled the doctor in. She still wanted us to see the pediatric neurologist. So we kept that appt. It was pulled up from November to Monday, June 29th.
On Monday, we went and met with Dr I. He was very thorough again, and listened to Maddyn’s history, symptoms and looked through her test results. He was surprised that we hadn’t come in sooner, as thirst and nerve episodes are both usually neurological symptoms. He said that often the autonomic nervous system functions can go forgotten. He does think that both the drinking an the purple/blue episodes are related.
He was concerned about Maddyn’s hypothalamus. He said together, the purple/blue hands/feet/lips and the excessive drinking could most likely be a symptom of hypothalamus misfunction- which could cause Maddyn other problems later in life. He wanted to do a series of follow-up tests. First an MRI, second a tilt table test, third an EMG, and lastly, if those tests do not provide enough insight, he strongly suggested we consider more invasive procedures.
Of course, he went into detail, and I'm just summarizing, but I’m still digesting it all. We are making an appt with our pediatrician to also discuss this plan of action with her. Dave and I are a little torn right now, as Maddyn’s symptoms seem to have gotten much better- the frequency of the episodes is becoming less and we are really working to cut down her fluids and are at about 70 oz on avg daily- sometimes even less than the 64- we're almost there!. With this progress, it makes us both hesitate to do these invasive tests and put our poor baby through more hell, only to find out it might be ‘nothing or ok’- which is what we hope. That said, we’d both be devastated if we didn’t do these tests and she has problems later in life b/c of something we don’t treat now. B/c she is so little, even the basic MRI will require putting her to sleep and having the MRI done.
We are looking into getting a second opinion from another Pediatric Neurologist as well. I’m sure that will take another few weeks/months, but at this point, I think it’s necessary before we move forward.
We will continue to keep everyone posted! As you can imagine, we have a lot of discussing and decisions ahead.
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