A Little Relief

This morning Olivia had her quarterly CF doctor visit. As it has been in the past and I'm sure it always will be in the future, as the appointments become more near, my anxiety and stress level shoot right up. There are always just too many unknowns going into each appointment and you never know, despite all the hard work and effort on weight gain and treatments if it will ever be "good enough". Thankfully, today went very well for Olivia and things were "good enough".

We've been working so hard over the past 6 months on getting Olivia to gain weight and she hasn't been gaining like I'd hoped. I knew that at best she had gained only a pound over these past 3 months and I didn't know how that would be accepted by our care team. That was indeed the case today, she had gained 1 lb in the past 3 months but her care team was fine with that. She's following a curve and maintaining it and that was okay for them. She is in the 25th percentile for weight, the 50th percentile for height and her BMI is in the 11th percentile. Their goal for BMI is 50th percentile, but she may never get there and given our family history they are okay with that for now, so that was a huge relief. Of course we will continue to push and try hard to get her the added calories and fats she needs to gain weight and hope that we can keep going up and get nearer to that magical 50th percentile mark. Her lungs sounded clear and all her other vitals were good. She had a sputum culture done and she had her blood drawn which we were equally as nervous about as she hadn't had blood drawn while being awake since she was an infant but she did really, really well. They put some numbing cream on and she only cried for a few seconds and then she was off to pick out her prize from the treasure chest.

So the appointment went well and now it'll be the waiting game which is always very nerve racking to find out the culture results and blood work results. So the added stress of the unknown on those tests will be in the back of my mind until I get her report. I'll be hoping and praying that no icky bacteria's have made home in her lungs as of yet, I'm always waiting for the other boot to drop when we find out she's cultured Pseudomonas, but I pray that we will be in the clear for now, time shall tell.

2012 Great Strides

The weather sure could have been a lot better for our Great Strides walk this year as it was rainy, windy and only in the low 50's for temperatures but for all those who came out to walk with us and support us we made the most of it and I sincerely thank you. Next year Jeff, the kids and I will have to be more prepared with ponchos and big hefty umbrellas. Team Olivia Oltmans had a good turnout this year, we raised a lot of money in honor of Olivia and we couldn't be more proud.

Thanks in large part to the Dreams for Olivia event that brought in a whopping $5,770, the washcloth fundraiser sales between Enspired, Pam and myself that brought in another $907, and our loyal and generous donors who continue to support us, we by far had our biggest and best fundraising year ever! Fundraising is always hard, it's difficult to continue to ask for money in support of my daughter time after time again but we are blessed and humbled by all of you whom continue to find the means to support us, we are forever grateful and I truly believe all of our hard work and dedication in helping to find a cure for Olivia and all those with CF will be the best pay back ever. How amazing it will be to say that I and all of you who donate and support us played a part in finding it.

Since the walk was just yesterday and a few last minute donations are continuing to come in I don't have the official total but I do know the amount we raised as a team for the 2012 Great Strides is in the ballpark of $8,167.00!!! Can you believe it, that is purely awesome, and that was just for this event!

Our 2012 fundraising total for all events is at: $11,832.00!!!  

We've more than doubled the amount we have raised in years past, and this year alone we have raised more than in 2010 & 2011 combined! I am thrilled, I am speechless and I feel like we are that much closer to finding that cure. Now that all of our big fundraising has come to an end for 2012, I feel like I can take a step back and breathe. With just a few more non-fundraising CF events that we participate in for the rest of the year, it'll be nice to put away the fundraising hat until next year and enjoy the tremendous success of our fundraising efforts this year. So to all of you out there who donated and supported Team Olivia Oltmans for 2012 - THANK YOU! We couldn't do this without your continued donations and support.

Many moons ago, I began a "To-Do" list for when a cure is found, it's since been tucked away and mostly pushed to the back of my mind. It's a work in progress but a few of the items I've added to it include a huge 'Cure Found Party' and a trip to anywhere in the world that Olivia chooses. I feel these things are now in reach. 2012 has been amazing with the release of Kalydeco and the on-going trial with promising results so far for DDF508, Olivia's mutation, with Kalydeco & VX-809. I know we will get there and when we do, I will be sending out a notice to all of you, not asking for donations, but rather inviting you to the party of a lifetime, a party of hope, life and many, many tomorrows for Olivia - I can't wait!

Registering for the walk and checking in $6,272 for Team Olivia!

Team Olivia Oltmans 2012 Great Strides May 20th

Our family with the banner we received for raising over $5,000

Jeff, Landen, Olivia, Braelyn & Uncle Mike, trying to stay dry before the walk.

My sisters Darci, Amber and I keeping dry under their big umbrellas.

I used our team banner as my umbrella to stay dry during the 3 mile walk, surprisingly it did an okay job! Like I said, next year, I'll invest in a big umbrella.

Walkers coming down the home-stretch.

The Jass Family, Grandma Pam and cousin Aleah finishing the walk.