This is not about work...but my friend once told me that Chicken of the Sea really tastes like tuna! hehe

Thank you all soo much. I will keep you posted with updates. And btw, it is comforting to see the old familiar faces of this site. Much love!

This is the most recent post from Lisa Kersting...Madalynne's mother-


Most recent update
Two steps forward, one step back. When I arrived at the hospital today Mady was in great spirits. She was sitting on a bouncy chair and had just awoken from a catnap. She was all smiles!! I got a chance to hold her again and I was able to get her to laugh!! It was great to see her happy and laughing again. Her eyes are doing so much better!!! Still no swallowing, and we found out why. The ENT (ear, nose, throat) doctor did a scope test down her throat and found out that her right vocal cord is paralyzed, the left one is fine. They were not suprised by the findings, due to the nature of the tumor. He was re-assuring that he thinks with time it will heal. For now, they do not want to do a swallow test until she is re-evaluated by the ENT next week. Speech therapy will continue to work with Mady in other ways to try and strengthen her speach. Unfortunately, the ENT reccommended an NJ tube with the hopes that she would stop throwing up. This tube is similar to the NG tube (feeding tube) but bypasses Mady's stomach and goes right to the small bowel (jejunum). This procedure is done using an x-ray monitor and uses local anesthesia. Due to the fact that Mady is not swallowing, the anesthesiologist was afraid to put her under and then have her aspirate. They decided to re-insert the breathing tube for the procedure, then remove it. After the NJ was placed and Mady was brought back up to the room, she was not the same happy baby that I saw only hours before. She has been creating much more secretions in her mouth and started to drool again, like she did post-op. We are really hoping that by intubating her again it did not cause any more damage to the vocal cords. Only time will tell.
We have been working with a wonderful woman named Diane. She is the coordinator for the Brain Tumor Center at Lutheran General. She is amazing. I cannot say enough good things about her. She is the one that has been organizing all the information for us, including the packet of info that will be sent to Children's Memorial. She definitely has been the go to person for everything, and I thank her immensely for that.

I want to give a big thank you to the Pivot Point Bloomingdale staff and students. They did a food drive for us today and Jennifer, Lisa and Marissa brought over 2 cars full of food!!! I could not believe all the food that was collected :) I have to go buy a deep freezer now because my refrigerator is completely full!! Thank you for all the wonderful cards and presents for Lilli too. It is so nice to work for a company that is SOOOO supportive. Thank you Pivot Point Bloomingdale!!!

I also need to thank Kathy for spoiling Lilli rotten today!! Lilli had a play date with Kathy's daughter Sierra today while I spent some time with Mady. When I went to pick Lilli up this afternoon, Kathy had taken the girls shopping and bought Lilli a Barbie Cinderella doll, a Cinderella dress-up dress and a Cinderella tiara. Guess what Lilli is going to be for Halloween!! Not to mention that Kathy also took the girls to McDonalds for lunch :) Needless to say Lilli did not want to leave when I came to pick her up, but fell asleep in the car only seconds after pulling out of the driveway. Thank you Kathy, in so many ways!!

The out pour of prayers is unfathomable. Jimi and I still cannot believe all the love and support we are receiving. Please know that we thank all of you for everything. Even if it is just a quick text message or a voicemail saying hi, it means the world to us. WE LOVE YOU ALL. Continue to Pray for Mady Mae.

Thank you fear...how you been these days?

Thank you all soo much. This is a very very hard time for us all and I am trying to reach as many people as I know.

She was diagnosed with Ependymoma. Please once again, keep Madalynne in your prayers. Whatever faith you are does not matter. If you do not believe at all...send your most positive energy their way. I love you all.

Thanks

What other thread may I ask, I am not sure?

Thank you all soo much!

Thanks Rare...I appreciate it!

Thank you soo much! Please pass the word around. I am spreading this story through each and every avenue I can get my hands on!

Here is a link...to her cause on facebook, for those of you who have it, please join.

http://media.causes.com/584424?p_id=61278201

Hello everyone...it has been quite a bit. I am an oldie from mingle, some of you might know me well, others may not. I am asking that you read this, they are the words of a mother in need. Please, pray for my family. I do not care what faith you are, pray to your God for help.

Thank you

Meghan












About Madalynne Kersting
Madalynne's Story



Madalynne Mae celebrated her 1st birthday on September 4, 2009. Unfortunately, it was not the kind of birthday we had expected. We knew she was not herself, but would never have expected the most devistating news of our lives. It all began in mid August. Mady became irritable, unconsolable, loss of appetite and was tilting her head to the right all the time. Jimi and I brushed it off as tantrums and a possible head cold. Her symptoms progressed and on September 3rd we took to the St. Alexis ER. They just said it was a virus and a strained muscle in her neck and sent us home. My mother's intuition said 'No, there has to be more, this is not my baby, not my Mady Mae.' That Sunday, September 6, 2009 we celebrated Mady's 1st birthday with a pool party in Grandma and Grandpa Rambert's back yard. We all had a blast!!! Mady was still not herself, but seemed to enjoy the day, especially her smash cake :) Baked with love by Daddy! We then enjoyed Labor Day, anticipating Mady's next appointment with her pediatrician on Tuesday, September 8. At 9am on Tuesday morning Grandma Rambert helped me to bring both Lilli and Mady to the doc office. One look by Dr. Voight and she knew something was up. She did not like the fact that Mady was so irritable and that the circumference of her head had increased from the 50% percent tile at 9 months to the 90% percent tile at 12 months. She ordered a catscan and we were back at St. Alexis by 11:45am. There we waited until 3pm when we received a call from Dr. Voight explaining that they located a 'mass' at the back of Madalynne's head. We were being relocated to Lutheren General Hospital and to meet with Dr. Ruge, neurosergeon, to further understand this 'mass.' By 5pm we were in the PICU and swarms of nurses were all over trying to explain everything that they could. It was a brain tumor, she would undergo surgery on Wednesday morning, she needed an MRI tonight. All this information was overwhelming but yet Mady's spirit was high. Laughing, talking, smiling. She was wheeled down to the MRI at 8:45pm on Tuesday night and was not brought back to the room until 1:45am Wednesday morning. Then we slept. I woke with Mady at 6am and held her until Dr. Ruge came in at 6:30am and wanted to show Jimi and I the results of the MRI. So one by one we saw the devistating damage that had run rampant in our little girls brain. All I could focus on was the images in front of me and the words: Massive brain tumor, biggest the neurosurgeon had ever seen in a child her age. The tumor itself started in the back right side of Mady's head and traveled down to the base of the spinal cord and up to the brain stem. The tumor was completely wrapped around the spinal cord causing cerebralspinal fluid to pool in her brain. This was causing immense pressure that if left untreated would rupture. Dr. Ruge was most concerned about removing that portion of the tumor, and was unsure if it would even be possible. He was also concerned about the part that was wrapped around the brain stem and one of the main arteries. He said the slightest touch of the artery could cause a massive stroke during surgery. Words could not even describe the sorrow we felt. Jimi and I were able to spend the next 30min with our darling daughter, wondering how such a sweet little girl with such high spirits could be in that much pain. They wisked her away from us at 7:30am Wednesday morning. We were told it would be at least 4 hours for the surgery. Finally, 7 hours later she was out and doing well. She had a breathing tube in, a drain tube as well as many, many more IV's all over her body. Dr. Ruge had performed a miracle!!! 90% of the tumor was completely resectioned including the portion around the spinal cord. He was able to remove two of Madalynne's vertebraes, resection the tumor and then reattach the vertebraes!!! I did not know that was even possible. God Bless him :) He was able to resection some of the tumor around the brain stem, but knew that he had to leave some behind. The next few hours were critical. They need to make sure that she was responsive, and quickly found out that she was when they woke her up and she went straight for her blanket and tried to remove the breathing tube!! What a fighter :) She slept the rest of the day and night. On Thursday, September 10, 2009 at 8:30am they took Mady for another MRI and she was back in the room by 10:30am. Not nearly as long as last time. By 2:30pm we had the results, Great news, Dr. Ruge was very pleased with the post-op images. Still some of the tumor remains, but not as much as anticipated. What a relief!! If the surgeon is happy, that makes us happy ;) The tumor was sent out for a pathology report to determine what type of cancer it is, but the preliminary report says Ependymoma. We should have the results back next week. Once we have the name of the cancer than the type of treatment; chemo, radiation or both, will be determined. Our goal for now is to let Madalynne heal from surgery and get her home!
Lillianne has been a wonderful big sister through this all. She understands that MaeMae is sick and has a booboo on her head, but probably does not understand the extent of the illness. Jimi and I are trying our best to keep her world as normal as possible.
Thank you all for your continued support and prayers for Madalynne Mae. Please keep it up as it seems to be working :) It is so nice to know that so many friends and family love Mady as much as we do. Thank you.

Tori Amos is my ultimate favorite female artist! I find her to be absolutely amazing. Between her vocals and being able to play two pianos at once, while singing her heart out! Absolutely incredible!

Alright, a lot goin on lately...message me sometime and I'll fill ya in!

Mwah

Some people excel in their English skills and others do not! Sometimes, it there is just a typographical error! hehe How are you John, I've missed you!

Heheheheheheh! You are awesome! How are you fear?

Very nice!

I've been reading up on this theory and am fascinated. Just wanted to share. Many of you might know the song, by Tool, but it goes much deeper.

Here's a link if you'd like to check it out!

http://www.pisceandelusions.org/reference/462theory.html

Using a rooted olive tree as the “cornerstone” bed post, he built his bed around the tree. The significance of a “rooted” marriage bed cannot be ignored. Like marriage itself, the bed is permanent and unshakeable.

This is part of Greek folklore, that I have grown to appreciate greatly as of late! I have won the heart of the most incredible man! Thank you to everyone for this long time of support! Love you all!

Thank you soo much John! Your words always enlighten me with a very very different view! Thank you!