Feeling Good

Just over a week ago we had a huge celebration in honor of not only Liam's birthday, but also as a thank you to all those people who have helped us out this past year post-stroke.  In lieu of gifts for himself, Liam agreed to have all gifts donated to the play center at Loyola's Children Hospital.  He truly had a good experience there just about a year ago and was more than willing to pay it forward.

The friends and family we invited to our celebration were more than generous.  Books, DVDs, video games, toys, games, puzzles, cars, and so so so much more.  Lots of good quality toys that we know will surely help put a smile on the faces of some patients.

Liam had a neurologist appointment today so we arranged for delivery.  Liam was waiting anxiously for Meghan, the child life specialist, to come down and meet us with some wagons to carry the goods up.

It actually took two wagons to carry it all.

 

After the big delivery we ate lunch in the cafeteria, which we sort of missed after having so many meals there during Liam's stay.  They have a great salad bar!

Then, finally, it was on to the neurologist appointment.  Great news on that front... we're done with that doctor unless we start to notice any unusual behavior (seizures, dizziness, etc....)! 

He did have some concerns about the speech therapy Liam has been receiving and asked me if there was something else they could do to help the aphasia.  My response was that I didn't know of anything!  He vaguely remembers another patient using something so he's going to look into that for me.  We did discuss how the strategies he's been taught in therapy have been very helpful, but still the doctor feels that there's something more they could do.  We'll see how that pans out.  (I'm to call him in about a week.)

A Year Ago.

A year ago today I was 5 months pregnant.

A year ago today Mike and I were facing the first full day post-stroke with Liam.  We were facing this day on nothing but tiny cat naps throughout the night.  I remember forcing myself to sleep in the ambulance on the way to Loyola from Rockford.  And then, curling up on the floor of the waiting room while Liam had his first MRI.  I don't think I actually slept during those moments, but I tried.  I knew what we'd be facing the next day would be difficult and require quite a bit of energy from me.

A year ago today the uncertainty of why Liam had a stroke and whether or not he'd have another was at the forefront of our thoughts. 

A year ago today Liam could barely say a few words and preferred to answer yes or no questions.  We were waiting for a speech therapist to answer our questions as to what was going on.

A year ago Liam was not yet walking and he wasn't yet allowed to eat or drink.

A year ago I couldn't imagine what our life would now be like.

Today we've got an amazingly "easy" 8 month old who has added nothing but love and laughter to our lives.

Today I'm facing a huge clean up of a mess from a celebration party we hosted yesterday.  I slept well last night and the baby graced me with ten full hours before needing to be fed in the early hours of the morning. 

Today we're confident that the vaccine Liam received two weeks prior to the stroke was the cause and find peace knowing that he will most likely never suffer another stroke.

Today Liam had a detailed conversation with me about the firefighters he was able to visit with and what he'd like to make them to thank them (fruit salad - because firefighters need to stay healthy, not fat!).  We know Liam's language difficulties and he knows how to work around it.

Today Liam is resting in the morning hours from a full day of running, playing hockey, climbing, play fighting, and just being a typical six year old boy.

Today our life seems to have just fallen in place.