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Wednesday, April 18, 2012

OUR FAMILY TREE - Transverse Myelitis Awareness

My Wonderful Niece Riding her Hand Bike and sticking her tongue out! Gotta Love that Face!
In April 2010 My beautiful niece became very ill and was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis (TM). TM is a neurologic syndrome caused by inflammation of the spinal cord. TM is uncommon but not rare. Conservative estimates of incidence per year vary from 1 to 5 per million population.The term myelitis is a nonspecific term for inflammation of the spinal cord; transverse refers to involvement across one level of the spinal cord. It occurs in both adults and children.

 For Mackenzie, within hours of pulling her little brother around the yard in a wagon, this active 7 year old girl was fighting for her life. TM symptoms develop rapidly over several hours to several weeks. Approximately 45% of patients worsen maximally within 24 hours.The spinal cord carries motor nerve fibers to the limbs and trunk and sensory fibers from the body back to the brain. Inflammation within the spinal cord interrupts these pathways and causes the common presenting symptoms of TM which include limb weakness, sensory disturbance, bowel and bladder dysfunction, back pain and radicular pain (pain in the distribution of a single spinal nerve).

Almost all patients will develop leg weakness of varying degrees of severity. The arms are involved in a minority of cases and this is dependent upon the level of spinal cord involvement. Sensation is diminished below the level of spinal cord involvement in the majority of patients. 
Transverse Myelitis may occur in isolation or in the setting of another illness. When it occurs without apparent underlying cause, it is referred to as idiopathic. Idiopathic transverse myelitis is assumed to be a result of abnormal activation of the immune system against the spinal cord.

My Darling Niece and Beautiful Sister at the celebration of Mackenzie's 1st Birthday after Diagnosis of TM.
Dear Lord, Thank you for the gift of every day and birthday since then.
As you can imagine, this child has a very special place in my heart and family. I have watched my dearest friend, my sister, work so very hard to care for her only daughter, while being a loving wife, devoted mother to her sons, and a Child of the King! As busy as Casey is, she still finds time to plan fundraising events for Mackenzie. There has been a  Movin' for Mackenzie Fun Run, complete with pony rides for the kids. Movin' 4 Mackenzie community wide yard sale. There are Movin' 4 Mackenzie Cookbooks, T-shirts, and plans for future events. All proceeds from these events help to pay for the therapy equipment and medical supplies needed for the daily care of this little princess.

As a member of The indiExhibit, I have met another family dealing with the daily effects of TM. Robert and Betty Thomson, owners of Natures-Free-Spirit  Have been dealing with TM, for more than 4 years now, when Robert was suddenly struck by paralysis from the waist down. A year later, Robert lost complete use of his entire right side during a second attack.

In thier own words from their website, here is a brief description of their art:
                                Robert and I have been doing Lapidary Arts for over 30 years.
                                We specialize in; Gem Trees, One of a Kind Jewellery PewterDesigns,                 
                                Pendulums, Sun-catchers, Book Ends and Table Knife Holders and teaching the
                                use of Lapidary Arts and the use of machines
                               
"We create one piece at a time with love.
That makes each piece special in it's own way"
Family Tree
Mother & Child Tree
If you are interested in purchasing one of these awesome trees, custom made from the gems you select, please visit Natures-Free-Spirit,They also have items dedicated to Transverse Myelitis and with the sale of each item they donate a portion of those sales to TM Research Also, please visit their SCI (Spianl Cord Injury) Page and help them raise money to support Spinal Cord Injury . If you would like to learn more about Life with TM, visit Robert's (Co-Owner of Natures-Free-Spirit) Blog:My Life Changed Overnight

Life Before TM










Life With TM

Notice how bright and beautiful her smile is. This is a true picture of God's Grace!
If you would like to help my neice, Aunt Wednesdays is donating 5.00 of every TM Awareness Bracelet sold to Movin' for Mackenzie: Buy Bracelet Here!


Buy Transverse Myelitis Awareness Bracelet Here

For more info on Transeverse Myelitis please visit: The Mayo Clinic and The Transverse Myelitis Association,

If you are looking for the latest advancements in Treatment and Therapy, please visit:The Kennedy Krieger Institute and John Hopkins Institute


Thursday, April 5, 2012

Model Life Magazine: The Daily Treasury

Our Ernest Hat is Featured in this Wonderful Treasury Created by Model Life Magazine



Model Life Magazine: The Daily Treasury: Today's treasury was curated by MLM and this is what we had to say about this collection: Our "Rubber Ducky Shower Gifts" Treasury feature...

If you are interested in purchasing this hat or one of our other hand made items please visit AUNT WEDNESDAYS!

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

My Snarling Darling

My welcome home committee consists of happy faces and one snarling darling... My Tommy. He is a little GROUCH! I dream of the days when he was little and he would let me snuggle him close, play fetch with him and dress him in cute little outfits. Unfortunately those days gave way to the cantankerous, grouchy old man/dog, he is today.Yet, I still dream of the cute little t-shirts I could buy or the sweaters I could crochet.... sweet, sweet thoughts...










These dreams led me to Deborah Mazarakes Designs and these adorable t-shirts...
Then I remembered Tommy's personality... which led me to these Designs By Hafapea


If only Tommy were still willing to get dressed up! I would definitely add all four of these to his wardrobe! There are so many more to choose from at each of the above shops.All Fantastic!

Lastly, I dream of putting him in his very own Grouchy Oscar Hat custom made by me, a.k.a. Aunt Wednesdays.

I like a bit of mongrel myself, whether it's a man or a dog; they're the best for everyday.
  ~George Bernard Shaw   

Tommy is growling, I guess it's his snack time... Happy Shopping!