BOWLING TICKETS!!!

Purchase your tickets to the 3rd Annual Team Maddie Fundraiser NOW!!! Each ticket is $20 pre-sale & $25 at the door!! They include 2 games of bowling, shoes, 2 slices of pizza, & pop! We have so many exciting baskets for the raffle and we are so excited for next Saturday!

Bowling Fundraiser on September 13th @ noon! Last Day To Buy Pre-sale TICKETS is Friday (the 12th @ midnight)!

3rd Annual Team Maddie Fundrasier!

Team Maddie Update!

Hello Family & Friends! We are so thankful for the support we have received from our family and friends!! The 2^nd Annual Team Maddie Bowling Fundraiser for 2013 was a huge success!! Your contribution was greatly appreciated! We were able to give a monetary donation to The Parker Lee Project, Annabelle’s Wish, & to buy Tubie Toppers for children at Mott’s Hospital! Nathan, our cousin and awesome DJ, made the day a ton of fun while keeping the event organized! Thank you Nathan!! Also, thank you to everyone that donated a basket, the raffle turned out great! We are blessed & so grateful to have you all in our lives! We can’t wait for this year’s event! 

Melissa, thank you for your awesome photography skills!

This fall we will be holding The 3^rd Annual Team Maddie Bowling Fundraiser on September 13, 2014 @ noon. The fundraiser will be held at Plaza Lanes in Plymouth, Michigan. Tickets will be $20 pre-sale or $25 (cash) at the door … The tickets include: 2 games of bowling, shoe rentals, 2 slices of pizza, & pop. There will be a 50/50 raffle & a basket raffle to help raise money as well! Please let me know if you are able to donate gift cards or baskets! We are so excited to have Nathan DJ our event again this year! We are also very thankful, to our cousin David, for providing us with the opportunity to have a photobooth! Be sure to purchase your tickets ahead of time this year via paypal, cash, or check (made out to Madison Bermingham). We are so excited to celebrate Maddie & raise money for her to get a wheelchair that she so desperately needs!!!! Can’t wait to see you all in a few weeks!

                                             Mommy & me time                                Little Red Riding Hood for Halloween

Maddie is doing well & has had a great year!! Last fall Maddie continued in the Early On Program through Wayne County. She made a great connection with her teacher, Kristen & physical therapist, Jeanette. They were amazing & worked so well with Maddie. They took the time to get to know her & were able to help her enjoy new sensory activities. Maddie graduated from this program & we were very sad to say good-bye! We are a bit anxious & excited to start a new program this fall.

                        AFO Fitting                                  Foot Painting at School

As you all know, this winter was very long, cold & snowy … we are proud of Maddie for staying strong & healthy!! Unfortunately, Maddie has always struggled with seizures. She takes quite a few medications to help keep seizures under control. We are constantly changing medication dosages & trying new medication combinations to help control the seizures. Maddie has struggled with seizures the most this year. We are very thankful that she has stayed healthy, but hate watching how awful the seizures are on her body. After a follow-up appointment with her neurologist this summer, we changed medications again & are seeing good results. Maddie has sensitivities to quick movements & loud noises. These types of triggers are often the cause of seizures.

Maddie's 3rd Birthday <3 Tea Party!!!

This past spring Maddie was fitted for AFO’s (Ankle Foot Orthotics) to help keep her feet in a neutral position. She is very strong & is able to break through the Velcro that keeps them on her feet. We are still working on adjusting the braces & keeping her comfortable. In the spring we also took a family vacation to Holden Beach in North Carolina. The kids enjoyed spending time together, swimming, the ocean, going for walks, & playing with their cousins. Maddie likes to have her toes in the sand!

Holden Beach, NC Family Vacation 2014!

Maddie & Ethan had a busy spring & summer filled with play dates with friends & cousins! Maddie has been healthy & therefore, able to go out more often. We had adventures at the Detroit Zoo, Maybury farm, Kensington farm, Greenfield Village, Gaylord, Traverse City, North Carolina (Holden Beach), & Grand Rapids!!

Spending Time with Uncle Paddy In Gaylord 

                                                                 Train at the Detroit Zoo                               Play date with Jojo

With the bowling fundraiser right around the corner, we are excited to see everyone in their Team Maddie attire! This year, we hope to raise enough to money to cover the cost of Maddie’s wheelchair. After an evaluation from her physical therapist and assistive technology specialist, we recognized the need to enhance Maddie’s mobility. The adaptive wheelchair will also benefit Maddie’s positioning needs. Hope to see you all at this year’s event!

Team Maddie T-Shirts

It's Team Maddie t-shirt time!!!!!! Please show your love & support by purchasing a t-shirt via paypal, cash, or check for $15 per shirt (with $3 added for shipping if necessary). Indicate in a message which size & color you prefer. The last day to purchase a shirt is on August 20, 2014! :)

Color options: lemon-lime or cobalt blue 

Sizes available: 
Adult: XS, S, M, L, XL, 2X (add $1), 3X (add $2), 4X (add $3)
Child: XS (2-4), S (6-8), M (10-12), L (14-16)
Baby: 3m, 6m, 9m, 12m

Thank you so much for your support!!

2nd Annual Team Maddie Fundraiser

Team Maddie T-Shirts

Would you like to join Team Maddie?! Show your support and purchase a NEW t-shirt via paypal for $15 ($3 extra for shipping). Please indicate whether you would like a coral or teal t-shirt and include the size as well:

Adult: XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL, XXXL
Children: XS, S, M, L
Baby: 3m, 6m, 9m, 12m, 2t, 3t, 4t

Thank You!!!!!!!!!

Team Maddie Update

HELLO!! Last fall we had a very successful fundraiser that helped Maddie receive therapy throughout the summer, fall and winter. A BIG THANK YOU to everyone that supported Maddie through buying a t-shirt and/or participating in the bowling fundraiser!! We felt incredibly blessed to have so many loved ones that helped Maddie (and her family)!!

 

Last year’s Team Maddie event helped Maddie receive the therapy that she needed and beyond! This year we plan to donate the proceeds from the bowling fundraiser to the families of children with special needs that we have grown to know and love along our journey with Maddie. We would also like to donate a portion of the proceeds to organizations that provide vital resources to special needs families that have unforeseen financial burdens. The annual Team Maddie event will be another bowl-a-thon that will take place on October 19^th @ noon (@ Plaza Lanes in Plymouth). We will also be selling NEW Team Maddie t-shirts for $15 and the profits from this will go to Maddie (for medical equipment; like a new special needs car seat, etc.).

We have taken a break from therapy as it has been too much for Maddie since this past winter.  Maddie had a rough winter beginning with a virus, followed by an ear infection. She began having more trouble eating and I was also losing my milk supply due to being pregnant. Maddie is very picky and would not drink formula. This all resulted in the inevitable placement of her g-tube. We knew she would need one eventually, as it took her an hour or more to drink 4 ounces of milk. The surgery was less than an hour long, but she had difficulty breathing after surgery. The intubation was very rough on her airway and led to her needing suctioning often and breathing treatments as well. In March, Maddie had her first bought of pneumonia and was hospitalized for IV antibiotics. She recovered quickly and her breathing has continued to improve.

 

Before Maddie’s g-tube surgery I researched the blenderized diet and found that it would be beneficial for her to have “real food” opposed to a special needs formula. This has proven to help her put and keep on weight, lessen her episodes of puking, help with her acid reflux, and make her a happier babe! Al and I cook for Maddie every Sunday and freeze a week's worth of food. She is a pretty healthy eater!! We have a medical grade blender by the Blendtec Company (this thing is crazy good at blending just about anything into a smooth puree that fits through her g-tube). Here is a picture of a week’s worth of food:

 

Maddie celebrated the “Big 2” a few weeks before her actual birthday!! We had a cow girl themed party and many close family and friends attended the celebration of our Maddie Lou. We are so blessed to have such a special little girl in our lives!  We appreciate each day we have with Maddie and she teaches us about love, joy, and patience.

 

This little lady has been teething like crazy this summer! She has cut 4 molars and 2 eye teeth among the other “small teeth” on the top and bottom. Teething is a seizure trigger for Maddie … so this is how it tends to go: teething causes lots of saliva and seizures, seizures also cause lots of extra saliva; therefore lots of suctioning is needed for the TONS of saliva she is producing. Sadly, suctioning causes seizures sometimes too … This summer we have seen a sad, seizurey, drooly, Maddie Lou. She may be on her way to needing a steroid treatment to stop all of these awful seizures.

Maddie proudly announced the birth of her baby brother Ethan the day before her 2^nd birthday (May 24^th)!! She thought he was an awesome birthday present and came to meet him on her birthday (May 25^th). The sibling bond they share is adorable and amazing!