Rambling about Ryder: A walking we will go!

Saturday, August 13, 2011

A walking we will go!

We have now raised $3460! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated! Some donation jars have been placed back home in Gibsons and I am overwhelmed with how generous people have been. Thank you so much Mom for making them, running around collecting donations and really making it all possible. I am also in awe and so thankful to a little girl I use to babysit, who I guess is not so little anymore!! Probably the last time I saw Caitlin she was maybe 6 years old! Now she has graduated from high school and is all grown up! Wow really makes me feel old!! She has been amazing with requesting donation jars, collecting donations and even convincing co workers to pitch in. Thank you Caiti your amazing! Jars have been placed at the Seasond Kitchen, Fainting Couch Spa and Weatberries bakery. Thanks so much Karla, Kim and Caiti you girls are awesome!!

Ryder FINALLY received his walker that we have been waiting for months to get. Unfortunately some of the parts were missing (including the guide bar) so we haven't been able to take him out in it much. We also need some help with the adjustments to try and get him walking rather than gliding across the floor on his toes. The Physio therapist in Fredericton has agreed to fit us in and see what she can do to help. He seemed to walk so much better in a different brand that he tried out while we were there. We are going to try that one again and decide which one is right for Ryder. Tyler and I are starting to think he may just be getting lazy!! Why walk when you can glide and roll right?? Ugh!!!!

Ryder has also been working really hard on "proper" crawling. He's been able to do the army crawl for sometime now but to actually be up on all fours and be weight baring on his arms is a BIG deal for the little guy!! It started with us just putting him on his knees then getting him to put his hands down and hold for a couple seconds. He thinks it's a game and loves it when we say "hands down". Next I had him move his arms while I moved his legs crawling towards a toy. Then last week he started making strides all on his own! He can only do about four or five motions before putting his belly to the ground but he has come SO far! Even brought tears to his P/T eyes when he showed off his new skills.

This was the best I could get tonight as we have a very over tired little boy on our hands! I'll try to get a better one tomorrow to replace this one :)

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Ryder's Story

Ryder and Wyatt are our identical twin boys that were born 12 weeks premature. They suffered from a "rare" disease called Twin to twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS). TTTS affects 10-15% of identical multiples sharing a single placenta. Basically what happens is there are crossed vessels in the placenta forcing one baby to have way too much blood, nutrients & oxygen and the other not enough. Left untreated this heartbreaking disease has a astonishing mortality rate of 90%. Unfortunately I was not diagnosed until I had already gone into labor at 24 weeks gestation so not much could be done. Thankfully the doctors were able to stop my labor and we all made it to 28 weeks. The boys entered their nicu fight together but sadly on their 24 day of life we had to say our goodbyes to sweet Wyatt. Our hearts broke in a million pieces but somehow we picked up a few and continued our fight for Ryder. Ryder stayed in the nicu for 67 long days and was finally able to come home 2 weeks before their anticipated due date. It was a bittersweet day for many. We were told by every doctor that Ryder was just a "normal" baby and not to worry. I never felt right about this and knew there was something more to come. When he was 11 months old he was diagnosed with Spastic Diplegia Cerebral Palsy. Our hearts broke once again and we were left to wonder what his future would hold. When we started this blog Ryder was 19 months old and still could not sit, crawl or walk unassisted. Since then he has made tremendous leaps but he still has a long way to go. He see's his physio therapist and occupational therapist twice a month and speech pathologist once a month. This is what our government will offer and we don't feel it's enough. He has so much determination and we know given the proper tools and therapy nothing will stop him. With your help we sent Ryder to Ability camp in January 2012 and there are many other treatments and alternative therapies we want to give him the opportunity to try. Thank you for supporting Ryder and following his journey!