Bad Days vs. Good Days

Lately all of the posts here have been about this fundraiser or that fundraiser so I thought maybe it was time for an update on Mackenzie.  This time of year especially, Mackenzie will have good days and bad days and those can literally change in the blink of an eye.

This is what a bad day looks like.  The past weekend we had been experiencing near record cold here in Michigan so we had been keeping Mackenzie in the house over the weekend to avoid too much trauma from the cold.  Unfortunately yesterday she was still on Winter Break and I had to go to the grocery store and that meant Mackenzie and Paige were both in tow.  It was cold.  Not as cold as over the weekend, but cold none the less.  We drove to the store and both girls walked from the van in to the store.  Paige of course was ready to shop.  Mackenzie on the other hand was moving slow and it took her the better part of the time we were at the store to start feeling better.  Then it was time to leave and the girls walked from the store back out to the van.  Paige hopped right in while Mackenzie struggled to get in.  When we got home it we had lunch and then Mackenzie crawled in the chair, pulled the blanket over herself and stayed just how she is in the picture above until almost 4p when it was time to leave for gymnastics.  She got to gymnastics and was feeling a little better but I noticed as she stood in her leotard and waited to go in that her right knee was swollen.  Gymnastics seemed to help with the swelling and she seemed to perk up because of it, which we are thankful for.  After dinner it was a soak in a warm tub and off to bed for her.  It was a rather quiet night overall.

And this is what a good day looks like.  This morning Mackenzie woke up like a whole new kid.  She was feeling good, bouncing around the house full of energy and excited about getting back to preschool and going out for dinner tonight for the fundraiser.  You would never know looking at her this morning that she struggled to get out of a chair yesterday.  Arthritis is an unpredictable and uncompromising disease.  And to look at her you would never know she has or does suffer for it’s affects.  Just look at this picture of her beautiful, smiling face.  You would never know to look at her that she was in pain less then 24 hours before it was taken.  We are extremely thankful for the support, prayers, and love she receives from everyone around her and everyone that has met her.  That is what gets us all through and helps us get through the bad days so she can enjoy the good ones.