Adventures with Mom

Posted on May 4, 2022 by mommabear0208

Yesterday Lily didn’t have any therapies after school and Urszula had the day off. AND the weather was nice. A rare opportunity presented itself to me: taking my girl on an outing with no real agenda.

We walked up Columbus Ave to window shop, popping in and out of stores she wanted to explore. Once we hit 72nd, we went east to Central Park—Strawberry Field to be specific—where we listened to Beatles cover bands for a while.

Right now we are all a bit Beatles crazy in the house. So I’m not surprised my subconscious brought us to Strawberry Field. While there, Lily confided to me that Paul is also her favorite. (Sorry Auntie Angela – I was with you for a long time about John but after watching the Beatles documentary, I’m all about Paul!)

From there we walked through the park down to 67th. And then stopped off at a bookstore as I’m trying to find a book or two of poetry for her as I think she’d really enjoy it. We didn’t find a book but she loved exploring all the different sections, especially the photography books.

From there, we made our way back home.

It was quite the adventure and Lily didn’t tire at all – though I did a few times and so we would sit and people watch. She was smiling and happy throughout. And so was I.

#citygirls #uws #centralpark #beatlemania #rettlife

Better and different

Posted on June 4, 2019 by mommabear0208

Last Friday was a pretty big day for us girls. You already caught a glimpse of Wonder Woman and heard that she was having a tough morning. But so many other things happened on Friday. Even though this kid was feeling like crap in the a.m., she still made it to a dentist appointment. She was brave, but man she hates going to the dentist. Who doesn’t?

Then it was to school for super hero day, then PT and afterwards, I took her for a haircut.

She’s been wanting, and needing one for some time. And a few weeks back we had an appointment, but that was the day Lily fell at school and had to get 4 staples to hold her scalp together. Oh, that was a fun day indeed. However, I digress…

As many of you may know her hair is quite a topic of interest. We have had many conversations and even more debates about what she wants to do with it. For a while we were creating a weekly hair menu where she would plot out every hairstyle for each day of the week (see below).

But the debates about her haircut were always the most interesting. She would tell me, incessantly, that she wants bangs and short hair. To which I would reply, ‘short hair in the summer isn’t a great idea’ and wax on as to why. Her response was always quite diplomatic, ‘I can see your point’ she would navigate to on her Tobii (completely independently I must add); not that she agreed with me, but that she understood my reasons why.

In the end, she won. Mainly because the person cutting her hair cut it much shorter than was discussed. But Lily has been so pleased with the result. She told her teacher yesterday that her hair is ‘better and different’. Why yes it is, smart, sweet, stylish child of mine.

Lily’s luau birthday bash

Posted on February 9, 2019 by mommabear0208

This kid turned 8 today. Can’t begin to explain how proud I am to be her mom. In anticipation of her upcoming Make-A-Wish trip to Hawaii, we celebrated with a luau!

The party was a success. It started with a ballet class taught by New York City Ballet (check out Lily independently getting her feet into 5th position in the second set of photos) and then the luau at school with pizza, cupcakes, giggles and dancing. Lots of dancing!!! After school we had a play date with her friend Xan, followed by dinner at her favorite restaurant. And then we went home, exhausted, full and happy.

Resolutions

Posted on January 9, 2019 by mommabear0208

I’m not generally a resolutions type gal, I prefer to use the word ‘guidelines’ when plotting out the year ahead. For example, some of my guidelines for this year are to practice gratitude more often, learn how to do a handstand and get more sleep.

My child, on the other hand, has created a robust list of resolutions that are truly inspiring. She’s such a funny, smart, silly kid. And I hope that 2019 continues to be a great year for her. And for you all.

Happy New Year!

Heartening news on the research front

Posted on January 25, 2018 by mommabear0208

For those of you who have donated to Rett Syndrome Research Trust and wondered where your dollars are going, read this heartening article about two pioneering scientists who have just joined our mission to obliterate Rett Syndrome – BECAUSE OF PEOPLE LIKE YOU.

And as a reminder….”Rett is not neurodegenerative and preclinical research has shown that the disorder is dramatically reversible once protein levels are restored. Thus, therapeutics … have the potential to provide profound benefit and potentially cure Rett Syndrome.”

For those who haven’t yet donated, click here to support groundbreaking scientific research so that Lily and her Rett sisters can be rid of this shitty disorder.

Thank you.

Fiercely determined, and beautiful.

An almost visit to the ER

Posted on January 9, 2018 by mommabear0208

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: Rett Syndrome is no fucking joke. Even for a relatively healthy and high-functioning girl like Lily.

Even though her team of caregivers and I actively manage her food intake and output, she still gets terribly backed up from time to time. Last night, however, was exceptional. She was in so much pain and was trying so hard. None of my standby tricks worked.

It was a tough call to make – do we spend the night in the hospital or do we ride it out at home? I’m so grateful to have a plugged in network of Rett moms to turn to in moments like these. And also so grateful to have had Shamekia the nanny (soon to be nurse) on hand with me for much of it. Stephen was on standby. And John came over to drop off supplies from the pharmacy. I felt very supported. But also very scared. And helpless. It’s in moments like these that I wish I went to medical school. I made the right decision last night to stay home. But that might not always be the case.

Thankfully Lily woke this morning with a smile (we finally had some success unclogging her late last night). She’s the most resilient person I know. She’s my hero.

Passing out on me last night after a tough few hours.

Stir crazy

Posted on December 30, 2017 by mommabear0208

Yeah… we bad. We bad.

Actually, we bored!

Lily is ready to get back to school. She’s been sobbing intermittently for the past few days. Likely because she’s been cooped up and is missing her friends. Or maybe today it’s because she’s not peed in over 18 hours. There’s a lot of calculated guessing when it comes to figuring out what’s going on with her.

Anyway, it was pretty apparent when she came home to me yesterday evening that she wanted to go outside.

This is how she tells me she wants to go out… she stares at the doorknob wishing it to open

But as it’s currently hovering around 15 degrees Fahrenheit and she has zero body fat, there was no chance that we were going to venture out in the dark last night.

So today I planned a day of activity and fun! The American Museum of Natural History followed by lunch at her favorite restaurant Playa Betty’s.

Our first 20 or so minutes at the museum were tense. She was not pleased. But we finally made our way to the Native American section which she loves; she eventually perked up – her favorite music, Snapchat filters and bead displays helped. Lily spent about an hour roaming about looking at furs and feathers while I played bodyguard, blocking her from other museum patrons.

So the museum was mostly good, though exhausting as I had to carry her for much of it. And the other half was spent chasing after her.

Next on our agenda – lunch! The restaurant was 4 short blocks from the museum so I decided that we should walk. I mean… she was busting to get outside last night, right? Well it turns out that Lily likes the cold and snow even less than me. After about a half a block of walking/carrying, she burst into tears. Thankfully a taxi driver took pity on us and took us three(!) blocks to our restaurant. He was very kind and laughed along with me at my kids over-reaction to the snow.

Thankfully she ate her lunch – in between sobs – and I got mine packed to go. We braved the short block and a half to our home – amidst the sobs – and now we are home. And it’s only 2pm. And she’s still not peed.

Wish us luck.

This is what she currently thinks of winter break.

A great day!

Posted on July 25, 2017 by mommabear0208

I just got this note from Lily’s teacher. After yesterday (we were at the hospital for a scheduled appointment for most of the afternoon – she was a champ throughout), this kid deserved to have a great day!

Lily had a great day! She was hungry at the end of the day, and was drinking more of her smoothie as she walked out of class. She may want a snack when communication camp is over. I gave her a blueberry cereal bar, which she loved (recorded it in her food diary). She squealed with delight when we brought it out. At recess, she was walking up to kids from other classes and giving big smiles. It was awesome! She was using her hands a lot today. With an elbow tap, she waved several times (at Ally and then again at the student in the attached picture, Jamie). She also gave a high five. She kept her hands in the shaving cream without support for I think 27 seconds! She also was playing with a switch operated toy in which you push a button to make a toy dog walk/bark. She was laughing and working hard. Great job sorting during math and working on letter ID activities as well.

I’m so proud of this kid!

Note from school

Posted on April 30, 2017 by mommabear0208

This note came home on picture day:

Lily had a fantastic day! She was so excited for picture day. She looked like a model in her pictures. She posed very well for the photographer. She worked so hard the rest of the day. Lots of energy today! Miss Ariel (one of Lily’s therapists) said, ‘Lily, I want to hear your voice.’ And she yelled for us! She also requested ‘clementine’ ‘smoothie’ and ‘juice’ during snack time. Then she said it was ‘yummy.’ Also, one of her teachers was talking to Lily and the teacher said, ‘I’m not sure if you heard me Lily’ and Lily replied (via the tobii, with zero assistance), ‘I understand.’ This kid!

We get the photos in a few weeks. I’ll be sure to share them.

Thank you!

Posted on February 18, 2017 by mommabear0208

The other week I launched a matching campaign to celebrate Lily’s birthday. I was overwhelmed by the donations that came pouring in. Within 24 hours, we had raised well over the $1500 target. The campaign is now at 12% of my fundraising goal for the year. Obviously we still have a ways to go but please continue to share this link with family and friends near and far. We are getting so close to a cure and holy cow do we need this now more than ever.