Hinged and Solid Brace

Left shoe size 6 & Right shoe size 2

(WHITE/CLEAR) Solid ankle foot orthotic (AFO) 

(BLUE) Hinged orthotic brace
Blue shoelaces to help differentiate which shoes go with which brace

Foot Update

Kevin is walking independently and wearing the hinged brace. He can even walk short distances barefoot around the house. Walking barefoot was something that seemed very dangerous for him to do before the surgery. He still wears the brace all day but it is a nice option that he can walk short distances barefoot so that the shoes don't have to go on before he gets out of bed and come off once he gets back in bed. When we are out of the house we still use the stroller for longer walking distance. 

We discovered at a recent doctor visit that Kevin gained 10 pounds since January!!! We've been told that people with Cerebral Palsy use 2-3 times more energy to walk than than their peers. So while Kevin was non-weight bearing for 8 weeks after his surgery, he got to retain all the good nutrients and food that he eats every day - 78 pounds is a much healthier weight for a 12 year old. 

We had an appointment with the Physiatrist on May 5. We discussed Kevin's January, foot surgery and the upcoming hip surgery in June. I made it clear that I want good communication between our orthopedic surgeon and the therapy team during Kevin's rehabilitation. I don't want another mishap where we end up with two different braces. 

We met with the Orthopedic Surgeon on May 19. He said Kevin's foot looks good from the January surgery. He wants Kevin to wear the hinged brace at all times and not use the solid wedge brace. We met with the Physical Therapist the following week and he did his best to get Kevin's legs evened out with additional lifts in his shoes. There has been a lot of back and forth between the solid and hinged brace and lifts in the shoes with the corresponding brace. This will all change again after he recovers from the June surgery and we begin rehabilitation. 

We were also able to squeeze in a visit with Dr. Nemeh on May 15. We were on a waiting list for cancellations because we had to cancel our last appointment in December due to weather and we weren't able to reschedule with Kevin's January surgery and recovery. Dr. Nemeh was pleased with the changes in Kevin's foot from the surgery and said that the hip surgery will help improve his walking which is what we are hoping and praying for.  

Hip surgery on June 22.

After

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Grandma Day

I am so grateful for Grandma and all she does for us. Jon's mom has always helped us out when and where we have needed it. When I was pregnant and Kevin was born she washed all of the new baby clothes. In the early days of the program, she not only helped with patterning and made bit cards but she would also clean my house as quietly as possible so as not to disturb Kevin while doing his program. She has helped motivate Kevin do his laps around the house by playing hide and seek with him. And she continues to come down once a week to help with Kevin, this enables me to leave the house to attend a yoga class and run errands. Each week, Grandma brings a new bag of library books with her that pertains to any subject, people, and holidays that are being covered that week. She makes professional looking felt board stories that I will post later and she helps me stay on top of covering new material for Kevin and keep it organized. If my yoga class is canceled we take that opportunity to have a fun outing with Grandma. Sometimes we go to the National Park, a movie, out to eat, shopping, etc. And when it's a new clothes season and we notice Kevin is outgrowing his pants, she will buy him new pants which can be a difficult task finding the size and brand that will fit him best. I am especially grateful for the time that Kevin gets to spend with his Grandma each week.  

Field Trip - May 23, 2017

We went on a field trip with some local homeschoolers to City Hall to meet the Mayor and have a tour of the police station. This was our first field trip and Kevin did very well. I was glad that his Tuesday helper was there so he knew a familiar face. I was especially grateful that day because I had some back issues that day and she was able to help out with Kevin.

My favorite part of the field trip was while we were meeting with the Mayor. All the kids sat around a big conference table with swivel chairs. Kevin had his Talker on the table with him and I was sitting behind him. Kevin said HELLO after the Mayor began speaking and so I muted the Talker but could still see the screen if Kevin used it. The Mayor began talking about how the police and fire departments help our community...and Kevin said HELP on his Talker. The Mayor also mentioned how the city provides snow removal services...and Kevin said SNOW on his Talker. It made me smile that he was listening to what the Mayor was talking about and using some of his words on his Talker...but glad that I was able to mute the sound so that it didn't disturb the Mayor and group.

K-9 Officer Dan-C was a little too friendly for Kevin's comfort level

May Art

I love hanging all of Kevin's artwork on my front window and doors in the house. It makes me smile every time I see it and I was feeling especially grateful this mother's day to have homemade artwork for the first time. You may notice that some of the artwork this month doesn't have any action photos to go with it, this is because there are times when Kevin does better without me in the room during his session. Typical, I know. And very thankful that I have gotten to experience some of his very happy sessions with him. 

May 3, 2017 - Hand Flowers; Snake

Regina, are you sure you know what you're doing?

Hand tracing

Yup, I knew you were making a mess of my hands Regina

He's getting better with his cutting skills

Hand Flowers

Colorful Snake

 May 8, 2017 - Finger Goldfish in water; Mother's Day Hand Heart Surprise; Sun Part 1

We usually have to close the window curtains because Kevin gets distracted 

I still can't believe this kid and how he now loves paint on his hands 

Finger Goldfish in Water

Mother's Day Hand Heart

May 22, 2017 - Sun Part II; Pipe-cleaner and Beads Sun; Coloring

Fun and Happy Sunshine

Coloring improved

Music Therapy - Spring 2017

Kevin had initially responded really well using his favorite Disney songs during music therapy but about a month ago he started showing some signs that he was bored. I shared some of his favorite pop songs with the therapist and the new music perked Kevin up right away and got his smiles back. At one of his therapy sessions, she did the Katy Perry song Roar. As soon as the session was over and she left the house, Kevin got on the iPad and played the song...which is not easily done with so many songs on the iPad and not organized into any playlists. During another session the therapist was playing the Pharrell Williams song Happy on the piano. She wanted Kevin to sing along by using his Talker to say the word HAPPY in the song. Every time she paused playing the song to give him time to say the word HAPPY on his Talker he said GO instead...as in don't stop, go, play some more. Before this session, she had been working on him saying and carrying out the commands GO/STOP while playing. Some of his favorite pop artists are Katy Perry, Adele, Taylor Swift, Fun., Andy Grammar, Michael Franti, and Eric Church.

Q Chord

Singing the Goodbye Song with the Talker