This is our beautiful little Elle today. Of course she does not need the feeders we buy anymore but she was and is the inspiration for "Elle's Smile". Elle will be four in October.
This picture was recent and was taken at Children's Hospital in Philadelphia on July 26, 2011, the day after her surgery to repair the cleft in her palate, which had opened. We're told that re-opening usually does not happen, but in her case, it did.
As she has with every other surgery, she was a total trooper and within 2 days she was back to being Elle and running around the house. Of course her diet was limited to soft foods for two weeks but yesterday she was able to have whatever she wanted. Of course it was a Happy Meal. What a surprise.
Elle has grown wonderfully. She is in speech therapy because the problem with her palate has kept her from forming words where you need to put your tongue in the roof of your mouth, mostly the letters "d" and "t".
So many little children climb mountains, sometimes even before they can walk. Cleft lip/palate is not life threatening but it is "Quality of Life" threatening. In this country, most our "seeking and fixing" is done in other countries but there IS help for these children now in the US, but you have to ask.
Feeders? Insurance companies are going to pay for as little as they can get away with and most of them do not pay for feeders. But if our little drop in the bucket at Elle's Smile helps just one Mom buy feeders, then our effort has been worth it.
Thanks again for your support.
