Will makes three...

I can't believe the time has passed by so quickly.  Mr. Will might not agree though!  He has been putting 100% into everyday since the start!  For one of his activities today he worked on controlling Alfie again.  He's getting better every day, just as predicted!  The therapy room has a strip of tile along one wall.  Will has been practicing his control on both the carpet as seen in the last two videos and the tile.  The carpet naturally gives the wheels some resistance so they don't turn as quickly, making Alfie a little easier to control.  The tile floor on the other hand, does not.  Watch how Mr. Will works Alfie just right to be able to kick those pins.  Of course he still has some room for improvement, but this is a remarkable difference from pre-therapy! After the gym I meet my college roommate, Jill for lunch.  It has been so great to catch up with so many friends and family during our time here! Not long after Will and...

Back to the gym for another hard days work!  This is day 2 for kicking the pins over.  He has already improved.  Watch this video.  I love how Ms. Tiffany is bragging about Will to Ms. Kate!  I'm so proud! Phil and the kids are coming tomorrow afternoon!  I'll try to keep up with my posts, but as you see, when we have visitors I get a little behind.  I can't wait to see Will's face when he sees the rest of the family!  It's been too long, although FaceTime on our phones has been a fun way to keep in touch!

Meme got to come to the gym with us today.  I think she was pretty impressed with Mr. Will!  One skill he is really working on is controlling Alfie.  Before our Kansas City trip he couldn't keep it going straight unless the front wheels were locked.  As a result, we kept them locked most of the time.  Watch how he purposefully turns to kick the pins over.  It is an amazing difference!

Will and I had a great visit with MeMe!  We visited the Kansas City zoo with my cousin Michelle and her adorable family.  Thanks Michelle and Bruce for including us in your outing!  We enjoyed the zoo very much.  It is really beautiful.   Will was counting the Meerkats.    I always have to take a picture if he's standing!   We also checked out the plaza while MeMe was here.  Will just loves that mermaid fountain!  We had to visit it several times during our time on the plaza.   Another standing one...by the Mermaid fountain this time! Will and MeMe at another fountain on the plaza. Then back to the Mermaid fountain for some splashin'! Thank you so much MeMe for coming to see us in Kansas City!  Will and I both enjoyed your visit very much!

Wow!  I can't believe the second week is already over.  Will has made such amazing progress that I'm kind of sad there's only one week left.  I do miss my hubby and my big kids though, so I guess it has to end sometime!  Today Will worked "super hard" which is how he would describe it.  If you haven't figured it out yet, this kid is a worker!  Today he was cruising at the windowsill, not one of his favorite activities. It's one of the more challenging activities Tiffany has him do.  Will's hips are not very strong so controlling the side step is difficult for him.  After several minutes of cruising he stepped to the side and at the same time took his hand off the ledge.  He lost his balance and fell, hitting his face (right between his upper lip and his nose) right on the edge of the ledge.  Ouch!  He cried, which means it must have hurt because Will has a pretty high tolerance for pain.  Tiffany picked him up and loved on h...

Today I thought I would share something new that Will is working on.  A couple days ago he got a new bike.  It's a pretty snazzy ride and he really likes it.  It's called a balance bike.  The primary function of the bike is to help kids learn how to balance.  As you know that is very difficult for Will, so this bike will be a work in progress.  I thought I would post a video now in the beginning stages in hopes that just like the sit-stand videos, change will occur quickly.  Time will tell!

Mr. Will was pretty tired today.  It's Wednesday of week 2.  He's been working so very hard.  He struggled with a few of the activities early on in today's session, so I never thought he would have energy left for this!  Prepare to be amazed... Unbelievable!

Today Mr. Will and I had a surprise visit from Aunt Katie!  She called me last night to let me know that she was in Kansas City and wanted to drop in on Will at the gym.  Well sure, come on in! One of the things we really want Will to master is getting in and out of Alfie (his gait trainer/walker) by himself.  Tiffany changed some things on Alfie that made this much easier, but Will still had to learn how to control his body.  I think he's doing pretty good.  Watch how he keeps looking over at Aunt Katie...just to make sure she's checking him out! Thanks for the visit Aunt Katie!    Now for the regular daily video.  Will is doing a lot more than just sitting and standing, but I wanted to pick one thing that he does daily so I could share with you the progress that I see daily.  He continues to do something new every day that leaves me speechless.  Watch what happens when Ms. Tiffany looks away... Did you notice the no hands ...

Today's video is amazing!  Will is doing so well, making marvelous progress.  Just keep an eye on his hands in this clip. I love that he's working so hard, but also having so much fun!  He loves going to "the gym" everyday!

I know you all are on the edge of your seat waiting for more video posts!  Well, my friends wait no more... Friday's "workout" (as we're calling it!) was the best yet! Check out Mr. Will... (this was all him...no special shoes, no special suit.... just pure determination and skill!)

Today's session was later in the morning, from 11:30-2:30.  Will was a little more tired at first.  He worked hard for about an hour and then looked like he was hitting the wall.  I suggested a snack to give him a little energy.  Mr. Will sat down on a bench and had 4 or 5 peanut butter crackers and a sip of water and then said..."Now I play with the animals?" He pushed a little shopping cart over to the table and did his best work yet!  The video I selected for today is unedited.  I wanted to let you see just how hard Will is working and how far he has come in such a short amount of time.  Notice how he stumbles and catches himself.  Also,it should be noted that the clip is over 1 minute long!  That is an amazing amount of time.  Just look back on that first day.  Remember how he leaned on the table... that my friends is amazing progress! Tomorrow marks day 5, one week already done.  I can't believe how fast this week h...

I have been sitting here at the computer for hours looking at all the video I took today.  It is so awesome to see Will change from day to day.  You have to appreciate every little thing when you have a child like Will.  Little things like standing up next to a table playing with a toy are taken for granted everyday by most children and their parents. At home, Will spends most of his time playing with toys on the floor.  When he does pull up to something it's usually the ottoman or the couch, something soft that he can lean up against and not have to worry about bumping with his ataxic movements.  He never stands up next to a table to play with a toy that is sitting on that table.  So you have to put yourself in my shoes to realize how unbelievably awesome it is to see Will pull himself from sitting in a chair to stand up next to a table to play with a toy.  And then to see the determination in this child's eyes to keep repeating those...

Oh my goodness, the difference a special suit can make!  Tiffany (the therapist) said yesterday that she thought the suit would be great for Will... boy was she right!  I could not believe the difference in his control and confidence. He typically has this wobbly little body that he can't quite control.  The suit went on and the wobbles all but disappeared!  You could see the confidence boost all over his face. Four days before we left for KC I bought a new video camera.  I tell you this because I was devastated tonight when I went to edit some video from yesterday that I just knew I filmed to find that I didn't film it at all...just took a picture!  Aaarrgghh!  Oh well, it's not the end of the world.  I do have some video from yesterday but not the clip that I was hoping for. Ok, well the point to that ramble was this.  Yesterday Will was standing at this little table, playing with a toy.  He was leaned against it propped up...

Hello from Kansas City!  Will and I arrived yesterday after first stopping off in Eldon to see cousin Patrick graduate from High School.  The day before cousin Kylee graduated from college!  It was a busy weekend for that family! When we checked in the hotel there was a package waiting for us.  A friend of mine from my high school days, Neeli, left a very thoughtful gift for us.  Then when Will and I went to our room we found a beautiful bouquet from Phil, Ben and Isabel.  It was hard to leave them behind in Eldon, especially on Mother's Day.  Finding this beautiful arrangement of flowers certainly helped! I have to mention that this trip would not have been possible without the amazing fundraising efforts from so many of you!  The golf tournament was unbelievable!  I should have some pictures to post very soon.  It was a very nasty rainy day, but that didn't stop the 156 golfers and loads of volunteers from coming out to raise mo...