Bella will be taking autograph's.....he he

So, having JA sucks almost all the time BUT Bella has been blessed with this amazing opportunity through the Arthritis Foundation to be the Youth Honoree for the Walk to Cure Arthritis. Which involved a lot more than we even expected. She got to be interviewed at a Senator's game, interviewed on the local news, and also got to be in a commercial with a few of her close friends. It was the coolest experience she has had to date. Does it make up for the life long disease she will have to live with, NO....but it sure did make dealing with JA a lot easier less week. So here is the video for those of you who haven't seen it on WGAL TV in our area........ Everyday I am thankful for what the Arthritis Foundation has done for Bella and our family. They have given us amazing opportunity to speak about Arthritis and help raise awareness. It has been the best distraction for Bella. I can't thank Doug and Joan at the Central PA Arthritis foundation (and their other volunteers). They have been an amazing addition to our family and Bella just loves them!! So thank you AF for all the support and encouragement! They truly have been our sanity through all of this. Bella overall is making improvements with her new injection. She is having quite a few side effects from the chemo like mouth sores, loss of eye lashes, hair thinning, and her skin is peeling off her fingers. She also is having a tough time in the sun. Most of you know how fair skinned my freckled beauty already is (I guess she didn't get enough of the Italian genes and her Irish Daddy triumphed in that area), so the sun has never been her friend. But being on chemo and Enbrel makes her burn immediately. She has to wear SPF all the time and has to really lather up the sun block when she is out in the sun. She also needs to be wearing a hat, so if you see her out and about kindly remind her to stay protected. Even 10 minutes in the sun is risky for her. She already saw what happens with sunblock on.....burnt and blistered! NOT FUN!!! As we move in to the summer months we are looking forward to a lot of pool time, family vacations, and Bella will be attending a sleep away camp for kids with Arthritis. We can't wait to have a more relaxed schedule which will allow Bella the extra time every morning to move at her own pace, allow her stiff joints gain mobility at her pace and not the alarm clocks pace. She will still continue to attend physical therapy weekly, get her monthly blood work, take her two shots weekly (and other pills), and go see the doctors bi-monthly. But it will be warm, sunny, and fun times ahead. So I hope it is the perfect distraction for her. We celebrated her birthday this weekend by going camping, we invited a few of her friends to come along. We had a blast! She even was able to use her birthday money/gift cards to purchase herself a kayak. So, she is excited that her and Dad can get out of the river this summer and enjoy the water. So, she's not letting JA hold her back, she is taking her adventurous side and not letting JA keep her down for long! The initial shock of my daughter being diagnosed with a forever disease has mostly worn off, some days I still get upset when I see her suffering. But I finally think that we have almost adjusted to our new "normal". Don't get me wrong, I know we will still have our roller coaster ride but I think we have really accepted what we have and finally realized that it won't ruin us. Will it offer many challenges, yes........but we have to stand strong and stay united in our fight for a CURE!! I always remind Bella to Fight Like A Girl...............