Holidays

I really would like to rant on and on about how frustrating it is when people don't get why certain things are so hard to accomplish or why if they can be done how I still feel left out or misunderstood.

Something as simple as spending time with family at Christmas turns into a big emotional ordeal that no one understands. What it boils down to is that while my family is sitting around talking, laughing, playing games, and enjoying the evening, I will be packing up my kid in the car and heading home to get my daughter to bed before she melts down.

This is not about my family it just happens to be a constant frustration that I have in general. I understand that the universe does not revolve around my family but man do I feel left out a lot. There is no way around it most days, but it hurts worse on holidays and times that are about family, friends, and fellowship.

This is also not about Makenzie. I love that girl and would do anything for her... and my boys for that matter! I just have no life... well maybe I have to much life just no part that involves anything social... unless you count face book and the telephone! LOL!

sooooo now I am done! I let it out! Pity party is over and I feel better!

My mom is doing well. Still in a bit of pain but up and moving! Praise God!

I booked a week intensive session of ABM this afternoon. She will get 8 sessions in 5days the week after Christmas. We will have fun. The practitioners office is downtown so I am sure that we will find plenty of really fun things to do in between.

I did contact the main ABM office in CA and talked for a long time to a practitioner there that works directly with Anat Baniel. He had some great additional information. I would like to take Makenzie there someday to work with Anat Baniel but for now we are going to stay local. They had really great things to say about the practitioner that is here so I am really excited!!!

I did manage to finish shopping other then stocking stuffers!!! I will do that on Friday. Then it is on to wrapping! I need to do that like right now before the boys find everything but I just don't have the time! Maybe tomorrow night!

I have a VERY crazy day tomorrow and still a bunch to do tonight! Please pray for peace and healing!

"Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you!"
Hebrews 10:35, NLT)

Ouch

My mom had her surgery today and did well. I talked to my dad while she was still in recovery and the surgeon said that it went well. He took 2 lymph nodes and the biopsy results should be back on that in a couple of days! Please don't stop praying!

I haven't heard from my dad again but I am going to assume that no news is good news. I know how hard times like this are and I don't want to add one more phone call. I remember those days! I felt so loved knowing everyone was thinking, praying and wanted to know what was going on but it was also overwhelming because there was so much going on!

So thank you for praying it means a lot! I don't know what I would do with out my mom! Keep praying!

My day was very similar to yesterday! BUSY!!!

Makenzie seems to be a ton less congested which is GREAT!!! Her tube site however is really bugging her! She was up last night about midnight for almost an hour just screaming in pain until the Motrin kicked in. I have given her round the clock pain killer and that seems to help. I have also cleaned it and put cream on it many times today. Please pray that this irritation goes away quickly!

Other then that Makenzie is happy and had a great day at school and did well in therapy!

I hope to finish my Christmas shopping tomorrow as it is the last day I have to do this without kids before they are out of school for Christmas break. I highly doubt that it will happen but I will give it my best shot!

Believe...Prayer works!!!!

This CRAZY Life!!!

"But this precious treasure-this light and power that now shine within us-is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and in not our own."
(2 Corinthians 4:7, NLT)

Tomorrow is a big day! Please Pray for my mom as she goes into surgery to have her tumor removed. Pray that they do not find anything that they have not already found in previous testing specifically in the lymph nodes! Pray that the surgery goes well!

Our bodies are weak but God's power is STRONG! Pray, Pray, Pray!!! To God be the Glory!

We had a crazy day!!!

Makenzie is still very snotty and her G tube stoma is really bugging her. I took her to the doctor against my wishes. I was hoping that they could just call in some ABX but he wanted to listen to her lungs which by the way are clear! I huffed and puffed around after getting the kids to school and doing an hour of PT, thinking about all I had to do today besides taking Makenzie to the doctor for something I knew was fine.

I got in my car and started thinking about why it made me so irritated and realized that it was just one more thing on my plate in an already crazy day BUT... that her doctor was just doing what he thought was best for Makenzie. All he knew was that she had been congested for almost 2 weeks and wanted to make sure that it was not more then just a cold and blocked sinuses. I am so truly thankful for their practice and how good they have been to my family!!!!

We were in and out of the doctors in less then 30 mins with a RX for ABX in hand and off the other side of town to pick up my contacts and a stop at Toys R Making me BROKE.

Then it was back to the house to pick up Makenzie's talker and off to school. I dropped her off and headed to the mall to START my Christmas shopping. Then it was home to drop off some things and of to Target to pick up the RX and back to pick Makenzie up!

When I got home I had the boys watch Makenzie while I wrapped a few things as there is no hiding spot good enough for 3 boys who want to know NOW what they are getting for Christmas!

Now for a little snack, a quick pick up of the house,and a visit from a wonderful woman who brought us dinner that we promptly ate before getting ready to go to a basketball game. OK so I didn't get to go but the boys were super excited! I got them out the door and then made formula, dosed meds, primed the pump, administered meds, and got Makenzie off to sleep!

Up and at em at 6am and I finally sat down around 7pm for the first time all day, unless you count driving!!! LOL

It was a productive day to say the very least! LOL! Not that any of you really needed a play by play but it was such a blur that really I don't remember many details!!!

Please pray for my mom tonight! Pray that she can rest and that her surgery will go well!!! Please pray that all of the snot that is floating around here will go away so that we can have a healthy happy Christmas!!! Believe!!!

Samples

Samples are a BAD thing. SAM's club always has some kind of sample in the store. Being that it was Sunday and a bit more then a week away from Christmas there were a lot of samples.

One Word.....Fudge

Yeah, try Chocolate Cheese Cake Fudge. Mmmmm!

I am pretty sure I could eat the whole pound that we came home with in one sitting! I do have some self control so I won't but I think I could!

I have not had to take any cold medicine today which is a wonderful thing! However, now my son is all stuffy! He needs to stay well so that I can go Christmas Shopping this week!

The boys are all going to a basketball game tomorrow night and are so excited! Hopefully I can convince Justin to tote my camera along and take some pictures. I know they will have a great guys night and tons of fun!!!

Makenzie had a wonderful day today. I sit here tonight and am so thankful for the last 4 months! She has grown and healed so much and we can just see so many things coming together in her little brain! As I was putting her to bed tonight and she started to throw her nightly tantrum I just couldn't help but to just stand in awe at how far she has really come! She is a little girl who doesn't want to go to bed, who doesn't want to be put down, who wants to read books, who loves to play games, who can eat, who can walk in her gait trainer, who can prop sit for a few minutes, who loves to ride roller coasters, who is happy and sad, who is scared of dogs and babies, who has friends at school, and who has the most contagious laugh I have ever heard, among many other things!

She is a true miracle! She is still healing! God is working! I still don't know why He has lead me down the path we have been with Makenzie in the past two and a half years but he is working! I will keep walking through his open doors. I know that his plan is big. I know that God's plan for my life and that of my childrens is and has been underway since the begening of each of our lives but I am starting to really feel peace that he does know best.

I saw that today when I found my daughter on the opposite side of the room I had layed her down in and under an end table . Yes, she rolled there all by herself and yes I did ask the boys who moved her. All of them told me that she did it herself!

AMAZING!

Monday is here again! Hooray! I am nuts, I know! Monday is still my favorite day of the week! The next 2 weeks are bound to be crazy but it is all in the spirit of Christmas! Pray!

Refreshed

Family and friends make for the perfect renewal of the spirit and mind despite being sick!

We had a great breakfast with my family this morning. Lots of food and even some more tree trimming!

I left the boys with my parents and went to Makenzie's ABM eval. It went really well. I am not sure that I fully have my head wrapped around this method but Makenzie loved it! Her hips felt amazing when we left and in a minute I will get to her arms while at lunch. He worked a lot with her body awareness and spacial awareness. The ABM method works a ton around lower back and trunk strength and awareness as that is were all movement comes from.

I think that we are going to do a couple sessions next week and then go 5 days the week after Christmas and see what happens.

Here is a link to the ABM site explaining the method and the benefits for Children with brain injury and CP.
http://www.anatbanielmethod.com/cerebral-palsy-treatment.htm

Below is a VERY long video. I am posting it for those who are interested in this therapy. It is a case study done by Anat Baniel herself.



We then went over to check out a friends new place. Ok so not so new but the first time we have made it down there. We decided to go grab some lunch. We walked down to the mall in downtown and ended up at the Cheese Cake Factory. Yummy!!!!! We had a great lunch and a ton of laughs. While we were eating Makenzie sat in her chair. I looked over at her and she had her hand up on the table which was much higher then her. I asked her to put the other hand up and with a bit of prompting she got it up. So out came the iPhone and her barn yard apps. She put her hands on and off the table to play all while touching the screen several times with just her pointer finger! She even swiped the screen once! hmmmmm?



On our way back to the car we stopped at an outdoor market that was on the mall. We stopped in front of a shop that had big light up bouncy balls. Stephanie grabbed one and bounced it for Makenzie and she just started laughing! The gentleman behind the counter looked up and smiled. He then told us that she could have the ball! He said that her laugh was worth a million dollars and he wanted her to have it because she liked it so much! We stood there and played with the ball for a bit and thanked the man for such a great gift. For me the gift was more about how much Makenzie touched his heart then the ball itself! She tends to do that every where we go! Love my girl!!

Then it was back home, in the bath, and to bed! Busy day but very refreshing!!! I am going to cut this short tonight because all of the kids are now in bed and I am going to make formula and go to bed myself... way early tonight!!! I am tired! Pray for sleep!

Anat Baniel Method

Still sick and draining! Yuck!

Eventful would describe today. It has just been one thing after another! All manageable stuff, just lots of busy work!

Makenzie had a make up OT session today and she did great! She even was able to show me a hand stand! WOW!!! She is doing so great with weight bearing into her arms! All fours is looking so much better and she is still activating tall kneel by herself a good bit!

She did great in PT too. She let her PT do a ton of stretching and all fours as well! I have been noticing that she is following directions really well. For instance, the one that most amazes me is when you tell her to relax she does. Her whole body just lets go and she relaxes! Now that is good! Her PT had her in what I call the sun bathing position and I would say Makeinze... relax and then take a big exaggerated breath letting out an AHHHHH sound. She responded several times by letting her body relax and letting out a big AHHHHHH! So cute and AMAZING!!! So proud of my smart girl!!!

We have another busy day tomorrow with family.

Makenzie also has an appointment in the early afternoon tomorrow to consult with a clinic here that does the Anat Baniel Method for Children, or ABM. I have read of several people using this method with their children so I thought I should check it out. Cool thing is, the consult and evaluation is FREE. We shall see.

Again pray for rest and that this cold goes away FAST! And as always for restoration and healing!

Sick!

I feel horrible! Not sure what this is but it sucks!!!

I am tired, cranky, frustrated, tired, and oh did I mention.. tired!?

Life does not stop! I was up at 7am and I took a bit of a nap after I got home from school. (if you can really count laying in bed listening to a kid DVD, with a 4 year old laying next to you wiggling and laughing while 2 boys jump on and off of the bed a nap) Other then that it was go, go, go as usual!

Makenzie is still stuffy but she did great in therapy. I took her to the doctor this morning and she tested negative for strep which is good so I hauled her off to school!

I did some shopping and ended up with 1 gift! I guess I am just not ready to fork out the dough yet but all that means is I will have to go back to all of those same stores next week! I guess I am just a gluten for punishment!

I had a bit of a mental break down today as I am sick and tired! There are so many things in this life that take up so much time and energy! Today while I was sick and tired I tried to deal with one such thing and it didn't go well. As I drove down the road tears just fell so I called a good friend and advocate... yes even I still need one of those sometimes! She has a beautiful daughter who is older then Makenzie who has special needs and she gets it! I laid it all on her!

It is amazing what comes out when you are tired! I do believe though that it is good to let it all go sometimes! It does not mean that I love my daughter any less. In fact it makes me realize how much I do love her and how much HOPE I have for her life! When I was done talking to her I felt so much better.... other then being sick of course.

Most days I love the challenge. Most days, today it was too much! I will dig my heals back in tomorrow and get it all worked out after I get a good nights sleep.

Oh and I am pleased to announce that not only did the laundry fairy show up today but also the bathroom fairy, the bedroom fairy, and the kitchen fairy, in the form of my loving mother! See prayer works! Thank You so much mom! It made the rest of my day so much easier and bearable!

Please pray for rest! I really need it!

"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." (Isaiah 43:18-19, NIV)