getting ready...

communication

So, Sharon's speech therapist asked me to write up a list of the words and phrases she uses regularly so that we can keep it updated and pass it on to future therapists. I thought, "okay, this will be easy to do!"...and boy, was i amazed at how much writing i did! I got to 150 words and stopped for lack of paper space. There are a handful of phrases in there as well.
This wound up being a very good exercise for me. I spend a lot of time worrying about Sharon's speech delays and wondering what the future holds for someone who is very "with it" as Great Gram would say, but can't get her point across because of her language limitations. So, writing this list and seeing how long it is and how far she has come since the summer was very nice. This list of words is of words she uses on her own (she can repeat just about anything you say, but that is VERY different than coming up with it on her own)...knowing that she has probably over 200 words that she can initiate on her own is wonderful! We are definitely seeing most of these results because of the hyperbaric treatment and will figure out ways to continue that treatment.
It's also time to register for the next school year. So, it's time to move her on. Next year she will advance with her class to the 3 year old room. She'll go three days a week instead of 2 and i know she'll love that! I'm sure she'll love the new classroom too. The teachers are very good and she'll be in good hands. We'll just take each school year as it comes...

northern travels

So, Sharon and I headed to PA last week for a little jaunt. My friend Angela had a new baby 2 weeks ago to be met, cousin Jen was in Malvern with new baby Alexandra to be met, and...here's the one that gets me...one of "my peoples" who i used to BABYSIT was having a baby shower this weekend!!!! YIKES! See the picture of the two of us pregnant together. Talk about surreal...
The second shot is with us "Pierce girls" and our kids. Sharon and I spent a day at the Line Road house and were well cared for! Sharon was having a rough day and Jen somehow managed to cook for us while taking care of a newborn and her wonderful Lydia. Of course Lorrie was a huge help and Uncle Fred and his bed are a great babysitter for a newborn! I just couldn't believe Jen's energy and capability! I hope for as much when i've got two!! We even got to see cousin Greg which was a big treat. Sharon and Lydia had a ball together. The picture of them at the computer doesn't do justice to the energy level surrounding them...just lots of fun to watch!!! That Lydia is one unique gal...she truly just brightens a room when she enters it!!!!
During the trip Sharon and i stayed with Angela so that Sharon and Molly could play. They did have fun and meeting the baby was wonderful! Angela always takes great care of us and makes us feel so welcome. (and of course i love the time we get to spend together after kids are in bed!!) Sharon did really have a rough trip overall though. Proof that traveling is no longer as easy as it was and that we're really going to have to limit what we do. It takes her awhile to adjust to new places and faces and is just very stressful for her (and me!!!) It takes some time for her to adjust to sleeping in a new place which is absolutely essential to keeping her healthy and seizure free. I'm very glad we took the trip, but that will it for awhile. And i didn't get the pictures that i wanted since i spent most of my time managing Sharon's emotions...hopefully other people took pictures and can send them to me!!! My good friend Rose met us at the Philly airport to help me get to the plane. Thank God she was willing to do that because I was wiped out by then and the extra set of hands was a huge help! Especially since we were delayed...

When we left the Pierce home Lorrie asked Fred if he had any words of wisdom for me...and he summed up the trip with his spot-on insight: "Jaye, Hang in there"!
So, now we are home...to cold and snow. but Sharon is thrilled and back to her regular happy self. Whew! She's an amazing kid...i think folks will just have to come here to really see it! I hope you all stay warm and entertained during this cold spell and HURRAH for Inauguration day!!!

Football weekend

So, it was a fun weekend even though the Panthers game was really hard to watch! The Messicks had a great tailgating party at their house before the game which was loads of fun. I'm sure their neighbors think they are crazy, but we had a ball with a fire in the front yard (Sharon is roasting a marshmallow..and some leaves that got stuck to it in the process), cornhole, lawn bowling, tons of great food, etc etc.
Today RJ was beside himself gearing up for the Steelers while Sharon enjoyed her first outside ride on her new Jeep. She's getting quite good at it! Soon she'll remember that it's important to steer at the same time that she is pushing the gas...

back home...again!

So, we're really back now. hard to believe that we had Christmas somewhere in the midst of the past 2 weeks, but that's what we knew to expect, so....
Sharon is up and walking. not quite 100% and we're still nervous about her falling (we don't want her to fall on her hips for a few weeks...easier said than done with our girl!). She loved doing the hyperbaric diving with Daddy, really handled it wonderfully and was excited each and every time (twice a day!!). her speech picked up almost instantly and we're hoping to see continued results there. She's also using her right arm a lot more, just like last time. Very neat treatment! Just wish it were closer and a little less expensive! We'll continue to get her down for treatment whenever we possibly can...not sure what that means at this point!
She'll go back to school one morning this week and i haven't decided if i'm comfortable leaving her there or not (it's hard for the teachers to constantly make sure Sharon doesn't fall, that's a lot to ask of them so i may stick around!)
In the meantime, we're all happy to be back home and to have the surgery well behind us. Whew. Oh, we've also noticed that she is showing no seizure activity at night since we started the hyperbaric treatment so that is a definite bonus! Hope that lasts and we don't have to keep increasing meds!
Thanks for keeping up with us...we hope you all had a much more relaxing holiday than we did! Here's to 2009 and a surgery free year for our girl!!!!!