Long over due

It has been forever since I last updated. We moved into our new house at the beginning of Jan. 2008. Then, 2 days later, we took Jake to Michigan for 3 weeks of intensive suit therapy. This was a make up session for Nov. 2007 when he was suppose to do 3 weeks but ended doing none because he got very sick.

As soon as we came home from Michigan, we don’t have enough hours in a day to work, organize and buy things for the house, take Jake to school and therapy, assemble furniture, put up blinds, etc… My first priorities were to get Jake’s bedroom all cleaned up and organized, then his exercise/therapy room all set up.

Speaking of Michigan, Jake did great this time. He walked almost 40 steps without assistance which was amazing to watch. Now that we have so much more room in the house, especially since most of them are empty, I encourage Jake to walk as much as possible. Jake ‘s walking has really improved a lot. I feel him taking stronger and better controlled steps when I hold his hand. When he tries to take independent steps, he is still unsteady, but he is learning to gain better control. I bought a big balance board to work with Jake on weight shifting. (It hasn’t arrived yet). It used to be a far far away dream that Jake can walk by himself, but now I truly feel that it will become a reality. But here is the thing, it is never enough….when he takes one step, I want him to take 5, when he take 5, I want 10, when he takes 40, I want him to walk around the house…

Sometime I read from other parents with special needs children that as parents, we should enjoy our children the way God made them; we should let them enjoy their childhood and not be bombarded with therapy. It is such a fine line with how much we should push Jake and I understand we expect a lot from him. So on the weekend, we try to go out as a family, to the mall, to the aquarium, to restaurants… I hope when Jake grows up, he will understand that we are doing the best we can to not only give him a happy life now, but that we are doing everything we can to help him live an independent life in the future.

Happy Holidays

Everything year since Jake was born, I made our own Christmas cards. I use a software called Photoshop to do all the creating and editing. It is a pretty time consuming project but I really enjoy doing it. It gives a very personal touch to the occasion and gives me a reason to refresh my already limited Photoshop skills. This is our 2007 Christmas card, there is a minor little imperfection, but I won’t tell.

Here is one I made for Jake back in Feb. 2004, Jake was a little bit over a year and half years old. I still look at this one often, the words “Dream will come true” remind me to always have dreams and hopes. Whenever I feel defeated, I look at this picture and remind myself that as long as we don’t give up, and work hard with Jake, one day our dreams and hopes for Jake will come true.

Now a days, I don’t make as many of these home made cards as I use to. I used to work with a group of young web designers; it was that environment that stimulated my creativity and imagination. I actually designed and made our own wedding invitations. It was not as fancy as those you can buy commercially, but it was most definitely very personal. Yeah, those were the days…..

Anyways, I hope everyone have a very healthy and happy holiday season!