The Natalie & Alice Fish Story

We are the Fishes. In 2011 two of our five children; Natalie and Alice were diagnosed with a rare gene disfunction called Leaky SCID (Severe Combined Immune Deficiency). Their condition is so rare that only two cases are reported in the U.S. each year. Both girls have endured much, and have spent most of their young lives in and out of hospitals due to common illnesess a healthy immune system would overcome. The required treatment for our girls is a bone marrow transplant.
Although the new marrow could mean a normal life for them, it will be a long and arduous road. This blog is to share our experience as parents and the courage of our children.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

The Festival of Trees--The Stomach Bug

This past week was a roller coaster.  Each one of us at some point had the stomach bug, which is in fact what Alice had when she spent the night in the hospital.  The good news is that everyone recovered.  Natalie had a hard time getting over it, but SHE DID!!  We are so pleased and happy that both Natalie and Alice have overcome yet another illness...a good sign that their new immune systems are managing.

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We had a great time being with family and it felt good to celebrate a holiday surrounded by awesome people and to be home. 

Several months ago I had an idea to decorate a Christmas tree with all Natalie and Alice's used medical supplies.  At first it seemed like a silly idea.  One that I only imagined.  The idea wouldn't and couldn't leave my mind so I decided to do it.  Not only did I decide to do it, but to donate it to the Festival of Trees.  The tree is finished and now in Festival.  Truly such a project could not have happened without the help of my sweet family.  I had a lot of help.

We started collecting supplies from Natalie and Alice then it evolved into rallying the nurses and even pharmacists into the project.  Soon I had piles of things to sterilize making them ready to turn into a Christmas treasure.

Several nights after Tyler and I would put the kids to bed; he and I would listen to politics or watch a movie as we assembled medical ornaments.

As time approached I knew I had to recruit more help.  My Mother and Father did A LOT as well as my sisters-in-law, Jessica and Amberly, and Amy and my cousin-in-law Kevin.  It wouldn't have happened without them.

I will post some pictures tomorrow.

I heard that KSL will be doing a story on the tree on Wednesday the 28th on talk radio between 1-3 "The Browser". 

I will post the results of the tree soon...if it sells and where it may go.

If you get a chance to make it to Festival of Trees be sure to visit The Heroes' Tree.  It starts tomorrow and goes through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.

Lisy
Posted by at 11:30 PM

2 comments:

  1. JamiNovember 29, 2012 at 9:06 AM

    Lisy! This is Jami, one of your night nurses on ICS. I just had to track down your blog and let your know how much I ADORED the tree! You amazed myself and many people at the Festival by what you created with those medical supplies. You (and the whole decorative team) are so creative! I found myself taking many pictures of the details of the display. Great job!

    ReplyDelete
  2. jeriDecember 3, 2012 at 7:51 AM

    That sounds amazing, I can't wait to see pictures of it!

    ReplyDelete

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