Alexis's Visit to Children's in Minneapolis

On Monday, my sister and I took Alexis to Children's in Minneapolis for some tests and to visit with a Pediatric Urologist.  We were referred there by her regular pediatrician at the Mankato Clinic due to the finding of an enlarged kidney, which was discovered through an ultra-sound done on December 31st.  The ultra-sound was completed because Alexis had some discomfort, she very frequently had to go to the bathroom (for more than a month), and no bladder infection was present.  So...

Alexis has been diagnosed with Stage II Vesicoureteral Reflux, which means she has urine re-entering her kidney.  There are five stages of this disease, so her case is mild in severity.  At this point, it is important that we treat her symptoms to detain the disease from getting worse.  We will return to Children's in 6 months for a follow up exam.  We were told that this condition is not something Alexis will grow out of, so we will need to monitor and treat this disease throughout her life.  Should the disease advance to stage 3, surgery would be necessary to treat the problem.  We do not wish for her to have surgery, but we are also not excited for her to be on synthetic medications for the rest of her life...nor are we excited about the test she will have to undergo with each visit.   I am still optimistic that she will grow out of it.

Other than many hours at the hospital, we did manage to have some fun too!  In celebration of Alexis's upcoming birthday, Amanda and I took Alexis out for lunch and to American Girl in the Mall of America.  She picked out several things for her birthday and made a fun pencil streamer at one of the activity booths.