Birds

So I don't often post my picture on the blog, especially a picture in my workout clothes with no makeup! But I ran some errands with my friend Jennifer the other day just so we could catch up and gab in the car. We stopped by the pet store and these two birds got friendly with me. It really made me happy!

My Bookmark

Ben made me this bookmark a few days ago. I LOVE it! It's a whale. I think it's adorable, and I'm always reading, so it was really thoughtful.

Character Kid

Sam is the "Character Kid" for his class this month. The award goes to one kid in each class each month who exemplifies the character trait of the month. Sam's trait was PERSEVERANCE. Nobody deserves this award more! Yay Sam!!

Pinewood Derby

This year was Ben's first Pinewood Derby. There were eight racers. I think he was fourth or fifth. The boys all had a blast.

Post-Surgery

Several people have asked about Sam's progress since surgery. Here are a few pictures...

Sam couldn't sit like this before surgery.

Here he is standing in PT. He has a much easier time straightening up into a good standing position. That is what will make the biggest difference in how well he stands and walks the rest of his life.

He is working hard at muscle building so he can stand and walk more correctly.

Surgery Day 11

Time to go home!! We were released on Christmas Eve around noon. YAY!! Sam's recovery was faster than expected and it was nice to come home before Christmas. I didn't take a picture of us waiting around to leave, but here's a song about poop from Day 6. Can you tell he was a little bored?

Surgery Day 10

Sam on the "swing" at Physical Therapy, Day 10. He was so funny during this session. I could tell he was ready to go home. He was racing around like a maniac and and being super silly.

Surgery Day 9

Sam switched back to his own wheelchair today because he can now sit straight up pretty comfortably. Here he is playing baseball in physical therapy and a magnet game in occupational therapy. He also worked on standing again.

Surgery Day 8

In therapy on Day 8 we worked on standing for the first time. Sam did awesome, as usual.
Sam also had "Music Therapy" while he was in the hospital. The therapist came and sang Christmas songs and played instruments with him for an hour. Pretty nice!
At dinner time, Sam and I took a field trip to the cafeteria. He had begged the night before to drive this car. He was feeling so much better today that we tried it. He was steering like a maniac and making me nervous considering he's just re-learned how to sit up a few days ago.



Bingo Night!! This was really fun. The volunteers were mostly older men and the bingo caller was really funny. Lots of cheering and applause. The prizes were really great too. There were probably 15 kids there and they all had a blast!! Sam won several games.