This season is known as the most wonderful time of the year and probably the busiest time of the year as well. Along with starting Christmas shopping, putting up our tree and thinking about getting our Christmas cards ready, we have taken part in some great Christmas events.
Faith checking out some of the ornaments on our Christmas tree!
Last Monday we kicked off the week with Faith's program at school called "Old Man Winter's Icicle Follies." Faith's music teacher had given us a CD with all of the music on it so Faith could learn the words better. And I must say, when Rob and I both heard the fast-moving music with all of the tongue-twisting words, we both thought the songs were a little ambitious for third graders. Wow were we surprised when they pulled it off! All of the third-graders did great!
The best part was seeing Faith in the front of the gymnasium alongside the kids in her grade looking relaxed and singing right along with the rest of them. Although, I do admit that I had a moment when one of her classmates wheeled her to to front and then didn't put her closer to the risers. I almost went up there and re-parked her chair. I just didn't want Faith to stand out anymore than she already did. But I let it go and all was well.
Centennial Elementary Third Grade Winter Performance
Our cute little reindeer!
Faith even did great during the audience clapping which she usually startles and tightens up. We were so proud of her! It was a cute program and Faith has still been listening and singing along with her CD. The music is engrained not only in her head but her mom and dad's as well!
Last Thursday I took part in Java JOY's Christmas JOY event at Boneshakers. It was a nice time of gathering together with other ladies singing Christmas carols, listening to Christmas stories and sharing, relaxing and drinking delicious hot drinks. The JOY ministry was also able to bless the girls at Teen Challenge with the book, Jesus Calling for each of them, along with some much-needed laundry items.
On Friday Faith went to the Bell Mehus for the Nutcracker Suite ballet performance. When she and her dad picked me up from work that evening, it was all she talked about. She loved seeing the dancers and hearing them sing. She told me about the stage and their costumes and all the different colors she saw throughout the performance. I am so glad she went and even happier that she enjoyed it so much. Again, she seems to be doing better with crowds, loudness, clapping and doing things as a group with her classmates.
After work on Friday we briefly stopped by our pastor's home where he and his family were hosting their Christmas Open House. This is something they do for their congregation every year but they have to break it up into two separate days so they can accommodate everyone in their home. We didn't stay long as we all had a long week and Faith was ready to go home and stay home, which we did all day Saturday.
Sunday night I went to "The Reason 2012 Concert" which was a sold-out show held at Evangel Assembly of God. The event was put on by the evangelistic outreach, PULSE - "a movement of young adults running after God's heart for this generation." It was an awesome event and it was great seeing Kutless, Moriah Peters and Fargo, North Dakota natives David Lubben and Nick Hall but the best part was seeing how many young people stood up to declare a new commitment or re-commitment to Christ!
Members of the band, Kutless, David Lubben and Moriah Peters
Next weekend we are going to try to go to New Life'sChristmas pageant, One Starry Night which will be held at 4916 N Washington St. here in Bismarck from 6:00-8:00 p.m. It is sort of a walk-through event that helps you to experience Mary and Joseph's journey to the manger.
It is definitely the most wonderful time of the year as we celebrate the birth of our Savior and although it can also be the busiest time of the year, I pray that all would remember the true meaning of Christmas!
I happened across your blog and so glad I did. Faith is beautiful! I love the pics. It broke my heart to see her set off to the side during her Winter Program, but I can understand your restraint. It angers me that her teacher was so insensitive and didn't make the appropriate adjustment and put Faith right there in the midst of the other reindeer! I also read your blog about your decision to not pursue the baclofen pump. I'm glad you chose not to go forward with it. My own daughter who was severe spastic quad CP, had the pump for 15 years and it was a miracle for us, but it does demand close follow-up and a good, experienced team. We were fortunate to have Johns Hopkins, and Kennedy Krieger Institute in our own backyard, so it was very convenient. I'm glad Faith so enjoyed the Winter Program, she's adorable with her reindeer antlers!.. I also want to tell you that if you ever want to connect with a large network of other CP families, please visit us @ the Cerebral Palsy Family Network. We're always thrilled to have guest bloggers and, would love for you and Faith to join our family! You can also find us on Facebook and on Pinterest. Hope you revisit your blog soon. I look forward to reading more about Faith and all about her holiday fun! Best wishes, Merry Christmas and God Bless!
Lee, thank you so much for your comment. About the winter program - yes, I was hoping her music teacher would have noticed and would have moved her closer but I guess her mind was on other things. I will be sure to check out the CP family network and look for you on FB. Thanks again for your comment!
Today marks Faith's 8th day of school and we are all adjusting to a new schedule. Faith has made huge strides this past summer in sleeping better and having more energy so we decided to have her go to school from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. 5 days a week. This is a change as last year she did not go Tuesday and Thursday afternoons due to how tired and worn out she would get. Faith's first day of 4th grade School starts at 8:30 a.m. but we asked if it would be okay for us to get her there at 9:00 instead. This allows us to more time to get her first feeding into her before she even gets to school. Her aides noticed last year that when we brought her to school without any food in her tummy, she was pretty sluggish and tired upon arrival. Sometimes, after getting her to school she wouldn't start getting her feeding until after 9:00 a.m. which meant, that because she gets a feeding every 3 hours, her last feeding of the day didn't end until 10:00 p.m. Another advantage to
Last Wednesday I had my yearly doctor exam and when she said I should get my tetanus shot updated, I didn't think twice about it. The nurse said my arm would be sore for a couple of days, gave me a handout and stuck the needle in my arm. The next day my arm was sore and although I found it a little harder to pick up and carry Faith, I was glad the pain wasn't going to last long. Boy was I wrong! But not only was my arm sore, my whole body was. I felt achy and extremely tired. According to a medical site on the Internet, these were mild side effects of the Tetanus shot. If these were only mild side effects, I would really hate to have them at a moderate or severe level. On Friday, two days after getting the shot I felt so tired that I took a four hour nap after getting Faith off to school. Then on Saturday I took a three hour nap up until 7 o'clock but still felt tired and was able to go back to sleep around 10. On Sunday, finally the fatigue started wearing off and I didn
Today we said goodbye to our Special Tomato adaptive car seat. And special it was. It helped Faith stay safe and secure in our Hyundai driving her back and forth to therapy appointments, shopping excursions and many other activities. It also helped us through our time of not being able to afford an accessible van. Like all adaptive equipment , the special car seat was expensive and although it is the law that a child is secured in a car seat while traveling in a vehicle, neither health insurance nor Medicaid would pay for it. Thankfully, we were able to receive funds from the fundraiser, the Great American Bike Race ( GABR ) which helps families pay for services and equipment that insurance doesn't cover for kids with cerebral palsy and related disabilities. After doing research on the Internet and talking to Faith's physical and occupational therapists, we decided to go for the Special Tomato adaptive car seat. You would think something with that name would be r
I happened across your blog and so glad I did. Faith is beautiful! I love the pics. It broke my heart to see her set off to the side during her Winter Program, but I can understand your restraint. It angers me that her teacher was so insensitive and didn't make the appropriate adjustment and put Faith right there in the midst of the other reindeer! I also read your blog about your decision to not pursue the baclofen pump. I'm glad you chose not to go forward with it. My own daughter who was severe spastic quad CP, had the pump for 15 years and it was a miracle for us, but it does demand close follow-up and a good, experienced team. We were fortunate to have Johns Hopkins, and Kennedy Krieger Institute in our own backyard, so it was very convenient. I'm glad Faith so enjoyed the Winter Program, she's adorable with her reindeer antlers!.. I also want to tell you that if you ever want to connect with a large network of other CP families, please visit us @ the Cerebral Palsy Family Network. We're always thrilled to have guest bloggers and, would love for you and Faith to join our family! You can also find us on Facebook and on Pinterest. Hope you revisit your blog soon. I look forward to reading more about Faith and all about her holiday fun! Best wishes, Merry Christmas and God Bless!
ReplyDeleteLee, thank you so much for your comment. About the winter program - yes, I was hoping her music teacher would have noticed and would have moved her closer but I guess her mind was on other things. I will be sure to check out the CP family network and look for you on FB. Thanks again for your comment!
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