I'm Thankful for Dr. Parry and Free Samples

Okay, I recommend that everyone join me in writing down what you're grateful for each day. It's making me more aware of things I love, but for which I don't usually muster up much gratitude.

On the way to Lucy's asthma appointment this morning, I remember feeling grateful for my warm, safe-feeling car (even though the engine light came on inexplicably a few days ago...hope that doesn't bode ill). I felt awe and love for our snow-capped mountains, and the usual deep and abiding love for the white cheddar rice cakes we were all eating on the way to the appointment.

Walking into the hospital, I felt so much appreciation for my kids, who each held hands with me. It's lovely to transition to not holding a kid everywhere I go. But I love snuggling, so I still hold a kid sometimes:). Especially when it's cold. Lucy's a solid 32 pounds and Isaac is 41 pounds, so remember to think of me as Superwoman when you see me holding one of them in the future. Moving on...

And then we didn't have to wait forever to have Lucy seen, and the visit was terrific. One of the benefits of having a sick kid is that your kid becomes a pro at doing what she's asked to do in a doctor's office. I'm so proud of her (and I will deliberately block out the painful memory of her shrieking at WinCo last night because she wasn't allowed to sit in the back of the cart).

I brought Lucy in to her asthma specialist today because I wanted to see if we should change her medicine. She didn't cough--which was a complete miracle for us--from May until August. But she hasn't been able to kick her cough since the start of September, and I really don't want her to take Prednisolone every day (the steroid that makes her cheeks really puffy, makes her pee through her bedding almost every night, and--most significantly--lowers her immunities against disease.)

So Dr. Parry and I consulted, he checked Lucy's chest, back, nose, and ears (for thrush--another potential side effect of too much steroid use), and I loved hearing that Lucy sounds and looks good. I mentioned how expensive his first idea was for strengthening Lucy's defenses (doubling her Flovent dosage). He realized he had another, equally effective option and...gave me a month's worth of free samples! That means we save $40 this month on asthma medicine, and the cost will go down in the future.

I love Lucy's doctor, I feel hopeful about her new medication (I'd tell you what she'll be taking, but I can't remember the names off hand yet), and I love every day I get to hug my children and rejoice in their good health. As Lucy says every day at the dinner table, "Cheers!"