(written by the mom: Jenn Solomon)
Dear Friends and Family,
Those of you that are in Massachusetts we hope you are surviving the snow! I keep wishing it would be spring already. We are considering adding a luge to my back steps. The problem is it is a straight shot to the gigantic monstrous pile of frozen snow. The pile is over 5 feet tall at this point. (nope not exaggerating…not even a little bit).
Rachel is making great progress! She is getting a bit stronger and has started taking a few steps without her walker. Some of you remember that she was able to get around her classroom before the surgery without her walker…so I had hoped she would start heading in that direction. It’s been a long process and it takes time. Thankfully she is a patient that has good patience. Here is a video her walking in the hallway at home: Rachel Walking 17 weeks SDR Post Op. I have no doubt she will be doing more of this! She really is amazing.Rachel recently received the title of Team Manager/Best Fan of the Pinkerton Girls Gymnastics team. They had an event for her last Monday and all of the gymnasts at Pinkerton and the neighboring towns wore Team Rachel shirts. They also performed a little dance number together. Since “Team Rachel” night Rachel has attended their Team dinner and their state competition…which of course they won! They came in First Place…she was very excited about that. She was also invited to go with them to regionals this spring. She cannot stop talking about gymnastics as you will see in the latest episode of Bounce Babbling by Rachel.
We went bowling last night and Rachel attempted to bowl. At first she got really frustrated but then she just went with it. Its times like these that her physical challenges are post apparent. Most people in Chelmsford and Westford are used to seeing us around town so she fits in. She doesn’t get the stares and most people are really helpful. We went to another town to bowl and the stares were painful and difficult to ignore. I love the fact that most of that is lost on Rachel. (I dread the day when she notices Every. Single. Stare.) She was too busy trying to talk to Peter’s girlfriend than she way paying attention to her surroundings. It was a night where I wish I had a t-shirt that said “My Daughter has CP What’s Your Excuse”.; “Buddy, Something Wrong with Your Eyes”; “Nothing to See Here”; “There is no Cure for my Daughter’s CP or your Stupidity” I have some great t-shirt slogans for times like these. I bet I could make a fortune printing some up…All the SPEDY mom’s would totally buy them!
I finally have hired a sitter so hopefully our lives get back to order a bit. January was a very stressful month (read I just about lost my mind) trying to juggle everything. Our in-home Physical Therapist got a full time job so we are now trying to find someone to come 2 days a week. Rachel’s current schedule is: swim therapy on Monday / OT on Tuesday / Dance at DNE on Wednesday / Open Thursday / PT at Children’s in Lexington on Friday and Gymnastics most Saturdays at Brestynas. I know it sounds super busy but we still need to add 2 more PT sessions in each week on Thursdays and Sat or Sundays. I could take her to Spaulding or Children’s but I’d really like her to be able to stay home a couple of days. The kid is exhausted! (are you tired just reading that?….now imagine working a full time job and taking care of 2 other needy children…yes, ladies and gentleman it was pure hell).
I also have decided that I need to be a little more proactive in arranging play dates for her. Rachel spends a lot of time with grown ups and a lot of time running around. She has a lot of friends in school but she doesn’t have any friendships where she does things outside of school. I was talking to a friend of mine about the importance of fostering friendships at this age otherwise time is going to go by too fast and she will be too old for me to arrange a play date anymore. I also have to do a better job of helping parents understand that even though Rachel comes with a walker and braces she is a normal kid. Honestly at the end of the work week the last thing I want to do is add another thing to my to-do list but it is so important for her.
Thanks for listening and for reading!
Jenn & Rachel
