you never know

Well we are 2 weeks out from surgery and overall it hasn't been bad. We are going to work on getting his legs going and pray for the seizures to stop flaring up.

We stayed at the Ronald McDonald house which has been wonderful. It's a year old and very nice. Groups come in every night and make dinner for the house. This is such a treat for the parents staying here. Most of their kids are preemie babies in the NICU, having surgeries, or sick in the hospital. There are families from all over....the Caribbean, Belize, Illinois:) The fact that you don't have to worry about eating out or getting food from the store is so nice. Each room has a daily chore, you do your own laundry, and clean your room. I've met some parents who have kids with cerebral palsy like Christian. It's been nice to talk to them. A couple of moms had multiples and lost some of the babies. You never know who has been thru what..

Ranken Jordan is an amazing facility. It is set up as a pediatric rehab hospital. There are infant-23yr olds living there. They have a 24/7 staff of nurses, doctors, aides, kitchen staff, and therapists. Not to mention tons of volunteers! During our week there, I noticed that the kids who were about 5th grade to college age were either there for reasons of medical need due to conditions like Christians (CP, neurological issues) that they were born with or some were there because of injuries due to accidents. I noticed one boy and mom that arrived about our 3rd day. He seemed to be about 12. He had been in an accident(don't' know what kind). He had a long scar on his shaved head and half his skull was missing. He had a couple of machines attached to his wheelchair which was tilted for his sitting position. His mom carried a bag with his medical necessities. He was in music therapy with us and enjoyed the piano. He would tap it with 2 fingers. I never heard him talk. His mom seemed quite and took everything in as the therapists talked and helped her son. At some point a therapist asked what he liked to do and his mom said "he used to like building things with legos...he was good at that" You could feel the sad tone of the way she knew she was talking in past tense. I thought how incredibly difficult to one day have that son and then another day be thrown in to this medical world and start rebuilding your son's new life. I imagined the other parents who had walked thru those doors..the ones whose daughter became paralyzed after a diving accident or whose 5yr old couldn't walk or talk because someone broad sided their vehicle (true stories). I also know that there are amazing things done at Rankin Jordan with kids to regain walking, sitting, talking,.....

Just remember to be thankful for everyday with your kids and not take their abilities for granted! And don't sweat (or complain about)the small stuff.

Pictures-these are from the past yr. the one with c in a yellow shirt is the first time i got them together while c is sitting by himself (huge accomplishment)