A kitten that thinks she is a puppy, Jude, and Emily.

Emily is finally home from vacation safe and sound. I was very happy to see her! She had such a wonderful time and is so blessed to have an amazing second family that takes her with them on vacations. She even brought Jude a bear. She is becoming more of a little grown up. She thought of her father and sent him a text asking him to take her to dinner because she missed him and she thought of getting Jude this bear on her own. I am proud of her for putting others first.

When I got home last night Paislee the little kitten came galloping to the door to meet me along with Mike's dog Spot. It was really a funny sight. I have a kitten that thinks she is a puppy. She is very curious! The other night I was in the bathtub and she just couldn't fathom why I was in water so she got so curious she fell in :/. She is still very kind to Jude and naps next to him everyday.

Jude is doing alright. He still has pain in his legs but it's manageable. We go back to see the Ortho in October and we will know more on the surgery. This weekend I am running Regal Princess. It's exciting, but I am missing someone at the same time. I look forward to a great weekend and crowning our queen of hearts and Emily's Smile Box scholarship winner.

Jude's legs.

When I got home last night Jude was pretty calm and happy to see me. My sister came by and brought my nephew and Jude always smiles at her baby.  Jude wasn't very fussy yesterday or stiff in his legs.

Mike told me after speaking with the therapist and Charlotte that he gathered Jude has probably been in a lot of pain from his legs the past two months. This would provide an answer as to why he is wanting me to hold him all the time. He probably just feels more comforted that someone is holding him and patting him. So while I was putting him to sleep last night I thought about the surgery he will have to endure. I know many CP children have this but my child hasn't. I hate the idea of him being wheeled off to an OR. I also hate the idea of him waking up in pain. The thought of them breaking his bones or slicing his tendons makes me cry. Mike said he will probably feel much better after the surgery, but it still make me sad to think of him in pain.

Hopefully the Botox injection will provide some relief. Last night Jude was whining in his sleep so I went in his room, stretched out his legs, and massaged them. It took about 5 minutes and he fell back to sleep. I guess they are probably right about the current pain.

Much better and Jude's surgery

I am in much better spirits today! I was able to sleep pretty well last night and I woke up refreshed. I also woke up very thankful for friends, family, and my husband.

Jude's therapist came out yesterday and said she believes his hip displacement just started recently. She also agreed that the Botox injections should help some. She informed us about what it will be like after his surgery. She said he could be in a double cast up to 6 months, his diapers may not fully fit, and that it's not easy. Well, we didn't think it would be. She said we would qualify for full time nursing with the surgery, but I am not sure we would want that. We can take care of Jude when we are not working. I guess I will just need to see the extent of what this will involve. I have seen several moms on my Facebook post pictures of their children after the double hip surgery. I am sure the doctor will go into depth on what to expect, she was just giving us a heads up. I am having a hard time imagining picking him up and caring for him but people do it every day.

For Emily's 16th birthday she wants to go on a trip. She keeps asking to go to Disney World, but that's hard to think about. It's hard because we feel like Jude should be able to go, but we understand he can't. So do we pick some place else because he cannot enjoy a place that's created for kids or do we take Emily anyway because it's her wish. It's an emotional decision.  Since Jude's surgery is lurking in the future I have decided to try to make this trip work for her after the first of the year.

So the other night I had the new kitten up on Jude's tummy as I was holding him. I noticed he kept darting his eyes at her and smiling. I asked "Jude is that the kitty?" and he would smile big. So this morning Charlotte tells me that the kitten and Jude nap together. When they wake up she has noticed Jude really looking at the kitten and smiling. So I think she has been a big benefit for Jude.


Make it a great day!

This is much more me

I took down my prior blog. I figured the parties that needed to see it probably already have. I decided it's just not me. It may be the way I feel, but angry and bitter aren't generally a part of my life. So I am dusting off the negative and moving forward.

I decided to just focus on what's important

 

 

and to leave you with a positive thought for the day

and to accept all things kind, loving, and good into my life.

A little rough patch or two

I have had a trying couple of days and nothing I want to elaborate on. Sometimes someone forwards you a poem that seems to fit perfectly with what you are feeling. I really liked the line I put in bold. No one is perfect and I choose to learn from the lessons given to me.

"People come into your life for a reason, a season, or
a lifetime. When you figure out which one it is, you
will know what to do for each person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON . . . It is
usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have
come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you
with guidance and support, to aid you physically,
emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a
godsend, and they are! They are there for the reason
you need them to be.

Then, without any wrong doing on your part, or at an
inconvenient time, this person will say or do something
to bring the relationship to an end.

Sometimes they die.
Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.

What we must realize is that our need has been met, our
desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you
sent up has been answered. And now it is time to move on.

When people come into your life for a SEASON . . .
Because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn.
They bring you an experience of peace, or make you laugh.
They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount
of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; things
you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional
foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the
person, and put what you have learned to use in all
other relationships and areas of your life. It is said
that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Author Unknown"

Jude is alright. He is still wanting to be held and needs Motrin at night, but overall he is a happy boy. I sat and held him for hours last night. If I sat him down for any reason he definitely let me know he was not happy about it. I have been experiencing continuous headaches so I am heading to the doctor myself on Wednesday. I am sure it's nothing serious, in fact I bet it's muscle strain because Jude is getting fairly big...but that's a good thing! He needs to grow and be a happy healthy boy. I plan to call the neurologist tomorrow to go over what the ortho doctor said and to talk about the increase in the Artane to help his tone.

Update

Jude has been pretty restless the last couple of nights, but he still smiles for me when I pick him up. I am not sure if it's because he is having pain in his legs or if he has something else going on. His color is GREAT, he is breathing wonderful, and as long as you are holding him he is very happy. So he could just be experiencing some growing pains or he may have another issue starting. I personally think he just has some growing pains. Mike has been pretty upset at the fact that Jude has to have surgery, even though this is something we knew would happen.

We are both very upset over recent postings on Facebook regarding people losing their children. Tonight Mike walked through the door bawling regarding a post my friend Gena put up. He looked at me to cry and I replied, "God has taught me that it's not the one you suspect will pass but the one you cherish that you think will be with you always that you lose. So you love each and every one for as long as they are here and you love them long after that too. You appreciate everyone you can because you just never know."

The stories I hear affect me. They make me realize that no matter where I am that I should love everyone I can for as long as I can.

Surgery

Mike took Jude to see the ortho today. As Mike put it the news was "Not something we want to hear but not something we haven't already discussed". They did an X ray of Jude's hips and one is 50% out and the other is 90% out. This is his first X ray so this is now the doctors baseline. However he said surgery is inevitable. As time progresses this will begin to cause Jude pain. Their goal is to get Jude Botox injections and increase his Artane to buy some more time for him to grow. They have set a follow up appointment in October to reevaluate the situation. Our thought process is that the surgery will be after the first of the year.

They will do double hip surgery and then look at adjusting the ligaments in his foot to keep his feet from turning.

Not the news you want to hear, but we understand why it's required. We have done the braces, standers, etc. It's just the way the body works when it doesn't get to walk around.

Still sucks even though we understand it.

a whole lot of updates!!!

My head is full of varying topics today and I am not feeling well so let's hope this blog makes sense. I will also try my best not to ramble to much. Jude has been doing very well lately. He looks healthy and he is smiling a lot. Not to mention that he is really looking at us in the eye again. Thursday afternoon he has an appointment at Cooks with an orthopedic doctor. Jude's feet are really turning in and they seem to be starting to hurt him. We put his braces on and he does use the stander, but they still hurt. We will find out more from the doctor.

So this past weekend my family came in from Springfield which was very nice. Emily loves being around my family. She also tends to be very close to my aunt Caron. She kind of adopted her as her grandmother since my mom passed away when I was 7. Emily can get very touchy when it comes to the family doing things without her so we always have to explain to her about immediate and extended family. It's sometimes hard for her to grasp the concept. Anyway, my family does an amazing job of loving and including Emily and they even asked her to join in their family pictures. This is of my aunt and her "grandkids".

 

 

 

The Emily's Smile Box day went fantastic! I cannot say enough about The Ranch At Lonesome Dove! If you need an amazing party, wedding, or charity event contact Mike over there to help you out. The day started at 9:15 when Emily and her dad were registering people for the 3k/5k race that she wanted to support Jude.

 

At the beginning of the Race we had great signs donated by Hawkeye printing. They were so cute and we had one explaining Pediatric Stroke risks and what to do in the event of a stroke.

 

 

Someone actually gave her a bull horn!!! This is Emily announcing the start of the race with Miss Tarrant Katie Sicula. Katie will compete for Miss Texas USA in August and Emily will compete for Texas Teen USA in November. They have become friends and she is a fabulous role model for Emily

 

 
                                          Nurse Allen joined in the festivities along with Jude

 

Emily's best friend, Emily, and Faith enjoy a hay ride after the race

 

 

The official sponsor of the day The Anderson Team with Coldwell Banker in Keller, TX

 

 

We made 250 boxes to benefit local hospitals that were taken and distributed by volunteers

 

So it was a great day! In addition Emily received two more great donations that will fully cover the Christmas box making party and the start of the 2nd annual Emily's Smile Box day next year. We did learn some things. We will have the run either much earlier or later in the day, we will time the racers, and we will have a few more activities on hand. All in all I think it was a success. (Oh and after the event we received two auction donations for next year and Emmitt Smith signed football and a Jim Palmer signed baseball).

Lately there has been a lot of negativity on social networking sites and in the public due to recent tragic events. I enjoy social networking.........I truly do. I love looking at people's pictures they post and staying up with friends lives. I feel it a blessing that were have been given such a remarkable tool I our lifetime. I know some people find it annoying, but I personally love it.  However I read a lot where people can get overwhelmed with the negative. I think it may be the fact that I am getting older, but lately I have just breathed easier. Try not to let life get to you to much and try to see what's important. It's easy to hide someone on a social network site or just skip right past anything you think won't improve your life.  I have decided to just love all my friends and family for each unique contribution they supply to me. Everyone is different, but I firmly believe that everyone in my life has something beautiful to offer if I allow them to. However it takes stepping back and seeing their beauty to truly appreciate them.  

Lastly, I will close with a show I highly recommend you watch. It's called "The Crash Reel". For further information on it you can click here: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/crash-reel-tv-review-article-1.1397400 By chance I stumbled across this program last night and decided to watch it. By the end of the program Mike and I were in tears.........but not bad tears appreciating tears. I became interested in this program when I saw that the parents were not only helping a son with a massive traumatic brain injury, but they were helping their son with Downs Syndrome too. I don't want to go into the whole story and ruin it for you, but it's really worth watching. It's the first time I have wanted to reach out and write a family to tell them how inspiring they are! I also wanted to say, Holy awesome house...I love it!