Finding Strength in Uncertainty

What a whirlwind the last couple of months have been! We have been adapting to our new normal of balancing working from home, which we are so grateful to be able to do, as well as keeping up with Ollie’s everyday routine and activities of play and therapy. There have definitely been moments of stress, exhaustion, and frustration, but as always, we continue to look for the light in the everyday mundane tasks. Although the days are filled with so much uncertainty, we choose to focus on the good things that have come during these days of working from home, staying in, and social distancing.

One of the greatest blessings is that our insurance will cover tele-therapy visits so that Ollie can continue to receive therapy from home. We have been able to do weekly sessions for physical therapy and occupational therapy and it is amazing to see Ollie’s progress over the last two months. He continues to get stronger every day and develop more skills with sitting, walking, standing, and using both of his hands together!

Here is Ollie practicing taking steps with just some support from dad!

Something that seems so little, but to us is SO exciting is that Ollie is beginning to use his hands together. These videos show his emerging ability to keep his hands open and use them together!

Another positive of slowing down over the last couple of months is being given the gift of time. We have had more time to finish little projects around the house and develop new ideas that aid in Ollie’s development. Here is Ollie enjoying a new play canopy that is wide enough to fit his gait-trainer AND will allow for his friends to play alongside him once we are able to have play-dates again. We also put up a large mirror to make some of the therapy exercises more fun. Ollie is enjoying watching himself and gaining more awareness of himself!

Of course everyday isn’t rainbows and unicorns as Ollie truly misses his “Kathie days” and “Grandma Susan days” and he gets rather tired of us. About once a day we either take a drive or go for a walk just to simply get out of the house. It’s amazing how quickly your perspective can shift and how exciting just getting outside and having a change of scenery can be. We strive to continuously look for the light in this darkness and be the light if at all possible. We hope you all are able to see a glimmer of light in the darkness you might be facing.

Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. Romans 12:12 NLT

Seeking Light in the Darkness

If we’re being honest, sometimes parenting a child with special needs can wear on us physically, mentally, & emotionally. Don’t get us wrong, Ollie is the light of our life and the joy he brings can light up a whole room. His giggle just about makes our hearts burst. But, in the everyday mundane tasks of practicing eating, sitting, crawling, walking and not to mention the weekly or even bi-weekly occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech therapy, it can be difficult to see the light in the darkness. We constantly have to look for the light, even if it means finding a tiny ray of light peeking from the crack of a doorway. We find ourselves telling each other, “Just look for the light,” because at the end of the day, there is always something to be grateful for, even if it is that we simply survived the day.

But, then there are days where the light shines so bright you could just sit and stare at it all day.

This happened over the weekend when we were surprised with a gift from our uncle and cousin. They have been working on creating Ollie his very own v-seat since the one we have is loaned from our physical therapist. However, they didn’t just make Ollie a v-seat. They made the “Cadillac” of all v-seats. They went above and beyond not leaving any detail out, including picking a color that would match the colors of our house and having Ollie’s name embroidered on it.

Amazing acts of kindness like this shed light on the darkest days and bring a sense of energy that keeps us going.

We always say that Ollie teaches us as much or maybe even more than we teach him. Here is another lesson his life has taught us. Always, always look for the light. The light shines brightest in the darkest places. And possibly, after finding that light, be the light for someone else.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness had not overcome it. John 1:5

Keeping Therapy FUN!

One of the things that has kept us very busy over the last few months is balancing the amount of therapy that Ollie does and simply being able to be a 2 ½ year old boy that can explore his world and play. The best of both worlds is when we can find a way to turn therapy into play. We have worked hard with Ollie’s therapists to develop Ollie’s environment so that it would foster fun, playful experiences that Ollie can access independently, but also target specific therapy exercises. This summer, we turned our backyard space into a “play-place” for Ollie.

Everything is set up as a station so that Ollie can move about his environment in his gait-trainer or another device and independently choose what it is he wants to play with. In addition, every play activity we set up also has a component that will aid to his continued to development. For example, Ollie can draw or paint at the chalkboards, which works on his upper body strength to work, move around to catch the bubbles, work on his purposeful grasp and release by putting the ball down the ball ramp, push a truck down the slide while working on his arm strength, as well as stand and play at the water table working on pouring and dumping. He has truly enjoyed being independent and letting us know what he wants to do!

Another area where we have been able to turn therapy into play is with switch activated toys. Ollie LOVES cause-effect toys and is highly motivated to sit or stand in order to play with them. Currently, his favorites are the train that blows bubbles everywhere (our floors are never clean anymore) and a motorcycle that crashes into everything.

Our world has also been opened to the idea that therapy can happen anywhere. We are so grateful for two very special people in our lives that gifted us a membership to The Iowa Children’s Museum.

Now, we can try out different therapy exercises in super fun areas at the museum. Oh my, has it been exciting for all of us!

Balancing therapy and play is always a work in progress and we continuously ask ourselves how else we can make therapy fun. Seeing the joy in Ollie when we accomplish this task is always exciting. As we get closer to Ollie turning three, we will be looking towards doing private therapy since his Early Access services will end. This brings about more questions with balancing therapy and just being able to be a little boy. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we navigate this “new” world of therapy and ultimately work to find the best balance we can for our sweet Ollie.

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. 1 Chronicles 16:11