Bicycle

Simple Life

Oh how I wish our life was simple! It seems lately that we are at the peak of chaos daily and I am started to feel like I can not keep up!  I decided several months ago that Wyatt would LOVE the zoo! So I began planning a family trip to the zoo in Memphis.  Even simple things take a lot of planning for us so after months of planning the weekend was finally here!  We left on Friday when I got off work with me, Jim, Wyatt, Bella, my sister, my mom and my dad.  We decided it would have to be a 2 day event, otherwise it would be too much on Wyatt.  I stressed a lot.  I worried he would not like it, he would get too hot or be too cranky.  It was perfect! He loved the animals and it was so fun for us to see the joy in his face.  Joy just like all the other kids!  A day where spina bifida was not in the spotlight.  A day where no one knew that spina bifida existed! It was fun for all of us.  After a long day we arrived home to Wyatt's new stander! YAH!!! I could not wait to put him in it but in my mind had told myself to not get excited, he probably would not like it and take some getting used to.  We took it under the carport and he LOVED it!  He had so much fun in it and we all hooped and hollered like crazy people! He just makes us so proud.  I will post some pictures and will try to post a video of him playing in his new "bicycle".
Jenny


The zoo was beautiful! So is Bella!




Wyatt loved the sea lion show.



Where did they go?

For some reason wanted this hat so bad!

My bicycle!

My big sister is so proud of me!

Spina Bifida Worldwide day of prayer

October is Spina Bifida Awareness Month, and we SB moms have on our minds, more than anything, the precious unborn babies who are so often terminated before they even have a chance to prove their lives have meaning and value to the world. To say that 50% of all Spina Bifida affected pregnancies are terminated is a conservative estimate. But we SB moms know there is no reason to terminate a baby because of SB. Our children are beautiful and intelligent gifts from God who have every opportunity to live full, productive, and totally normal yet extraordinary lives.

So we proclaim Wednesday, October 20 as the Spina Bifida Kids Worldwide Day of Prayer. We believe in the power of prayer, and we are excited at the prospect of many people praying at the same time for these unborn babies. We moms can make a difference individually and collectively, but that is nothing compared to the change that can come if we have God on our side.

We will begin at noon EST. Pray for as long as you feel led. Pray individually or with another person or group. On your knees, at your desk, while driving your car … the logistics do not matter.

Here are a few things you can pray about specifically:
1. There is one woman in particular who is on our hearts. God knows who she is. She is expecting a child with Spina Bifida, and she is afraid and considering termination. Today (Wednesday) is her appointment with a pediatric neurosurgeon to find out the severity of her baby’s case and to learn more about the diagnosis. Please pray that she will go to this appointment with an open heart and mind, that the doctor will give her a prognosis that is realistic and hopeful (we believe these adjectives are not mutually exclusive when talking about SB), and that most of all, God will give this woman a peace beyond understanding and a clear indication that she should keep her baby or give it up for adoption. There are many mothers willing to adopt this baby.

2. Obstetricians are usually the doctors who first diagnose Spina Bifida based on a prenatal ultrasound. Unfortunately, most know very little about SB except for what to look for on the ultrasound. Many of us were told by our OBs very scary and inaccurate information, such as “Your baby will likely not survive,” “She will be a vegetable,” “Terminating is the most loving thing you can do for this baby.” If this is the first time you’ve really even heard of SB, and a doctor you trust tells you this, you’re probably going to believe it. Please pray that these doctors will be educated about the SB prognosis so that they can give the diagnosis accurately and compassionately.

3. We SB moms will always remember the day we received the diagnosis as one of the most terrifying days of our lives. An initial grief response is denial, which often presents as “Please make this problem go away.” Termination is offered quickly. Please pray for these mothers and fathers, that they will first and foremost trust God to get them through this scary and uncertain time instead of letting fear guide their decisions. That God will draw near to them and make His presence known, as He did for so many of us. That these parents will be so filled with His peace about the future and love for their child that they will consider carrying the baby to term the easiest choice.

4. These precious babies are absolutely innocent and helpless. They are being thrown away because they are not “perfect.” Not one of us is perfect. Please pray for the lives of these babies to be spared. That each movement and kick will remind the mother that God knit that baby in her womb exactly as he or she should be. That their lives will bring glory to our Father.

5. Many of us SB parents cite the support of our family members and friends as the biggest comfort during the time right after receiving the diagnosis. But there are also families and friends who are unsupportive and even encouraging of termination. Please pray for these family members and friends, that God will use them to minister healing to the parents’ breaking hearts. That they will be wholly supportive, not hurtful, and they will lift up and help these parents as their raise their child.

Feel free to add other suggestions for what we should pray. And please pass this on to friends, family, church prayer groups, prayer warriors, pastors, and strangers.

“Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” Matthew 18:19-20 (NIV)

Last night

Ok, I have a few minutes so I will update about last night!  SO, we were at the barn for Wyatt's therapy and after we got done with him, Ms. Bonnie was going to let Bella ride since she missed so much last week.  We had Rocket at the saddle rack and in the cross ties.  Bella had put her saddle on and kept having trouble getting her bridle on. The halter had one tie down on and the halter was latched around her neck.  Rocket panicked and started sliding backwards, rared up, fell onto her back legs, flipped over and hit her head all the way down the brick wall.  I was so proud of Bella.  She did not panic, when Rocket started she just dropped back and left her alone and got out of the way.  Well, Rocket has a pretty significant head injury.  She required sutures to her head and also had a small skull fracture.  Luckily, our vet was already on his way out there and when Ms. Bonnie called him he was just a few minutes away.  We stayed with her a while last night and of course Bella did not want to leave her.  She cried at the fact the her horse could be standing in her stall alone and in pain.  She has the sweetest heart.  Ms.  Bonnie checked on her in the night and called Bella first thing this morning and told her that Rocket was sore but eating and doing good.  We are so relieved because I do not know what Bella would do without Rocket.  We think that being tied down and not being able to turn her head and see all of her surroundings is what scared her.  For a horse that is deaf, I guess it can be scary when someone limits the only sense you have left.  So we will be saddling her up in the hallway from now own once she has some time to heal.  Intense night!

New pictures!

Bubbles make me happy!



At the UMC NICU reunion, I got to bowl!



My SWEET sister, Bella!

My own personal jumpy thing just like the other kids!

Sav A Life walk a thon in honor of Wyatt

It was a lot of fun!

I LOVE this picture!

My little cowboy!

Been a few days!

So it feels like forever that I have gotten on this blog! To say last week was busy would be an understatement! My poor Bella was sick all week long.  A child that is never sick to have to go to the doctor THREE times in one week is a lot!  Happy to say she is much better now.  Wyatt got his new braces and they fit wonderful! Still slip a little but so much better than what he had before.  Of course we got horse straps on them so they are now his RU-RU boots and he even asked to put them on once! Big accomplishment!  So at Methodist Rehab they put them on him and he got in the floor.  What did this kid do? STOOD straight up!!! He was so proud of himself.  He wants to stand so bad and he finally is getting his chance.  I have to say I was fighting back tears as I watched him and even now as I type because I refuse to take even one thing for granted, even getting to stand up at a chair all by himself with his feet lined up like they should be!  Some may say that is not a big deal and maybe to them it is not.  But for ME, a mom whose child was diagnosed with spina bifida at 18 weeks and told he may die, he may be a vegetable and may never move his legs; a child that SO many babies lives are ended before they begin because the diagnosis and unknown are too much to handle, it was a HUGE deal for me and Wyatt.  I can not say enough how brave and strong he is.  Can you imagine trying to stand when you can not even feel that you have legs?  Can you imagine how scary the loss of security of knowing your legs are gonna catch you when you fall?  He looks fear in the eyes daily and I can only aspire to be as brave as he!  I LOVE my kids! We had a great weekend with a work day at the barn.  I will have to thank my parents again for helping me with Wyatt because he could not stay out there but they took him so I could.  Saturday Bella was FINALLY feeling good enough to go out there and had fun!  I will post later about what happened at the barn last night but everthing is fine now.
Jenny

Busy Weekend

So we really had a great weekend with family, Octoberfest was HOT! We did not last long!  It was fun to see Patti, Richie and Riley! She is getting so big and has the sweetest personality! Riding DID NOT go well.  Saturday, Wyatt screamed so bad when we tried to put him on.  He started crying and Ms. Bonnie just couldn't put him on.  We went back out Sunday morning and I had to start riding again but he rode 17 minutes with no crying!  HUGE accomplishment.  So looks like I am back to riding with him for a while but if that is what it takes then I would ride that horse to the end of the earth!  Oh Yeah! Looks like I have acquired another horse! Rabi! Rocket's colt that is 5 years old.  He had pretty much just been thrown away.  No one would work with him or let him out of the stall.  Until this last week, that horse had pretty much been in that stall for several years! SO of course he started tugging at my heart strings, cause I'm a sucker for the underdog!  That is just how we live! Give us the challenge, the ones that are just given up on and we will make him a champion! He is rough around the edges but we are gonna make him free one day, free from that stall, free from his fears! I already love him!
Jenny

What a day!

So besides yesterday being therapy, Wyatt's braces have still not been made.  The company is backed up so Darby asked them to put a rush order on them.  We will hopefully get them in the beginning of next week.  Also, Medicaid denied Wyatt's stander!  They said that they needed to know that he was not going to take it to SCHOOL and leave it! SERIOUSLY! He is 21 months old! The girl helping me at the DME replied quickly to the response and sent it back so hopefully they will not take the full 3 days to approve it.  So now that brings us to therapy.  We used the RU-RU stand-in Fury.  She does wonderful but Wyatt was in a terrible mood and whined almost the whole time.  We did get our 15 minutes in but it was rough.  He just seemed like he didn't feel good so now I am just keeping a check on anything funny going on! Hopefully Thursday will be much better!
Jenny

Crazy Week Last Week!

Ok, so last week was really crazy between fundraising, getting the tshirts done and therapy! So we used another horse again on Thursday and Wyatt really did not feel comfortable again.  He wanted his RU-RU! We made it through though.  So Saturday morning was the Sav-A-Life walk a thon.  We walked in honor of Wyatt and it was a great morning! I am so thankful that my family and I participated.  He is such an inspiration! Our t-shirts were awesome too!  So after walking, we went to the barn for therapy.  We used a RU-RU look-a-like! It worked like a charm! Finally Wyatt was comfortable and back in his rhythm.  We had a great day at the barn and Bella rode really well. She just loves Rocket.  We also got her sign up on Rocket's door.  It was a nice relaxing time out there.  Other highlights of the weekend were that I found Wyatt a picnic table and a play school bus at a garage sale and he was LOVING it!
Jenny