Rambling about Ryder: Ryder's Ability Camp Progress

Monday, February 20, 2012

Ryder's Ability Camp Progress

Yes, for those wondering Ryder did indeed graduate from his first go at Ability Camp!! I am a bit behind but have some photo's and info to share.

Ryder received a progress report of all the things he achieved at camp:
He became more flexible, developed more trunk control, he has better coordination of his movements, he learnt how to change directions using a kaye walker, he learnt how to stand up from the floor and from a stool with his walker, his speech improved, he is more independent and will go for longer periods of time without me, his social skills improved, he eats more solid foods, he can stand with canes for a short period of time and he now uses the POTTY!!! :)

As a very proud mommy I think this is an awesome list and so worth all the hard work. We left with some great tools and have been implementing them into our daily routine. Ryder had an amazing time, met some great friends and misses them ALL dearly. He talks about them daily and when asked what he wants to do he usually replies with "I wanna play with Jordan" or "Dax" :) They also sent us home with a before and after video that I would love to share with everyone but there was a mix up and we got half of someone else's. I will share it as soon as it come in the mail!

Yay!!! We did it! :)

1 comment:

AnonymousFebruary 20, 2012 at 3:55 PM
Yeah for the Class of 2012. What an excellent photo and now I miss them all xoxoxo
ReplyDelete
Replies

Add comment

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!