Ellie is 3!!!!!!!!!

 

My baby isn’t a baby anymore!  She is a lively preschooler!  She is smart, witty, and a beautiful ballerina!

 

She is quick to tell you that she is no longer 2…she is 1, 2, 3!

Gosh, I love this perfect little girl with my whole heart!

And I know she sure loves her mommy!

Happy birthday, Princess Ellie!

It’s been a while…

Wow…I can’t believe that I haven’t updated in so long.  Everything is going so well. Ellie is happy and healthy. Life is good! 

One thing that saddens me is learning so much about other families who have lived my same nightmare.  It would surprise you to find out just how prevalent false allegations of child abuse really are.  Families are destroyed.  Lives are torn apart.  People go bankrupt trying to prove their innocence.  This is all because there are over zealous doctors out there trying to protect children.  But are they really even protecting the children?  Does it protect a child to tear him away from the only people he has ever lived with?  Does it protect a child to place him in a foster home…with 10 other children who become a paycheck?  No.  The human body is so complex.  There are so many unknowns.  There may no be medical explanations for every injury.  But that doesn’t automatically mean that the caretakers hurt the child.  All it means is that the doctors haven’t done their job to find a cause.  Doctors PRACTICE medicine.  They are not Gods. They are not infallible.  They make mistakes.  It just isn’t fair when those mistakes destroy homes. 

A day at the park

Miss Ellie and I had a great day at the park. I thought I'd share a few pictures from today. It was a beautiful day. I cherish these moments with my daughter! oh, and GO BEARS!!!!!

Happy Birthday!!!

On August 31, Baby Ellie turned 2!!! Does this mean I have to quit referring to her as "baby" Ellie?? Sniff, sniff! Ellie is doing simply wonderful. We celebrated her birthday the Saturday before her actual birthday with a Minnie Mouse party at the park. She LOVES Minnie (and Mickey!).

Ellie is doing great these days. She is a very typical mischievous toddler, but that's to be expected. One of her new favorite games is to run and hide when you want her to do something. Silly kid. She seems to be picking up more words each day. She now speaks in short sentences. Her favorite songs to sing are "The Wheels on the Bus", "Happy Birthday" and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star". She loves to read books and play with her babies. I got her a toy kitchen and a table/chairs for her birthday. She has been enjoying "cooking" me dinner and having lots of tea parties. Life almost feels normal! We have definitely gotten our lives back. It's just a shame that it took so long for us to be fully reunited.

Nana and Papa are still a huge part of Ellie's life. She spends the night with them about once every 2-3 weeks. She gets so excited when she knows they are coming to see her. If anything, this tragedy gave them a much closer relationship than they ever would have had before. I am thankful for that.

Right now, life is good. Ellie is beautiful and independent and just a blessing. I <3 her more than anything.

Happy 2nd Birthday, sweet girl! Mommy loves you to the moon and back!!!


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Dr Petrak Strikes again!

So, I am clearly not the only victim in Dr Petrak's grasp. A man was acquitted of Dr Petrak's claims of shaken baby syndrome last week. This woman needs to be stopped! Read about the case Here!


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A Quest to Help Others

So, today I had the privilege to participate in a press conference highlighting the need to take a closer look at the differential diagnosis in shaken baby syndrome cases. Pam Jacobazzi has been in prison since 1999 after being wrongfully convicted of shaking a baby to death. I was delighted to join the Illinois Innocence project today as they asked the governor to grant Pam's clemency petition.
I was highlighted in a news story leading up to today's event.
Check it out here!

And a link to a story on ABC news.
I vow to speak up until policies change. Innocent people are accused far too often! Nobody should have to live this nightmare. There is a fine line between protecting children and destroying lives!

Ellie

Here are some recent pictures of my beautiful daughter, Ellie!!!