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| Adria's 3rd Grade picture - Spring 2018 |
Truth is, I don't usually think of myself as a parent of a special needs child. Adria is nine years old. She is growing into a beautiful, independent young lady who is so determined and capable.
But there are times when I become keenly aware of her differences. On several occasions this year, these times are precious moments when individuals display an extra special level of care and concern for her well-being.
Let me explain.
Adria is a third grader in a typical classroom setting at our local public school and does not require any special academic assistance. WooHoo!!! She excels in her classes, getting straight A's on her report card, except for a B in Reading the second marking period.
She does receive specialized physical therapy services at school due to her orthopedic impairment (low muscle tone in her legs and need for leg braces), which is very typical in spina bifida children. Adria also goes to the nurse's office every day after lunch to care for her bathroom needs. It's incredible to see how much she's progressed over the last year or so, because now she can catheterize herself without any assistance. Again...WooHoo!!!
The point is, in most ways she functions as many other students but there are still those areas of uniqueness.
The Scooter
Early in the school year, Adria's teachers noticed that she was lagging behind on the walk from her classroom to the playground. It's a decent distance and she was getting fatigued. She has a wheelchair, but we keep that at home and want to encourage her walking as much as possible.Her gym teacher at the school came up with a great idea to help Adria. She suggested this scooter that she thought Adria might be able to use as a fun and faster way to get to the playground. Of course I was on board with trying it.
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| Adria's gym teacher got her this scooter to use getting from her classroom to the playground faster. She loves it! |
Next thing I know, they ordered the scooter and Adria was coming home from school telling us how much she loved it! Then they took it to another level, so that Adria would not be alone. They bought a second scooter that a friend can use to ride along with her to the playground. Both scooters stay in her classroom and when it's time to go to recess, Adria draws names to see who will help her and ride with her that day.
I just think that's so great and thoughtful. All this initiated by people around her who care. Thank you!
The Cheer Shoes
Outside of school, I was moved by the care of someone who had just met Adria. At the beginning of January, I decided to try something new with the girls, especially since Johanna had been asking about it for a long time, and I signed them up for Gymnastics.Honestly, I was kind of concerned about how it would go for Adria and how she'd respond. To my delight, she absolutely loved the first class and tried her best with gusto! In fact, Johanna was the one standing in the corner frustrated that she could not do a cartwheel and not even trying for a while. Oh, such different personalities those girls have!
The challenge was that Adria does not have the ankle and foot strength to run around and do activities barefoot like the other children. However, regular sneakers could damage the soft mats and gym equipment. The instructor, known as Mr. Pickle, at The Little Gym was impressed by Adria's desire to try gymnastics and took it upon himself to research and make several phone calls to determine the best option for her to be able to participate. He found that cheer shoes are a type of sneaker with rounded edges that she could where with her braces in the Gym. We went to Shoe Show and found a good pair for her!
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| Adria tries out the balance beam with assistance at The Little Gym. Her cheer shoes make this activity possible! |
For the last few months, she has been enjoying her Gymnastics class every Monday night and Johanna has come to love it too. They are still figuring out how to do a cartwheel, but they've both shown great improvement and confidence to try new things.
So Thankful
I am just so thankful for these caring individuals along with so many others who show love to our daughters and family. This past week was Teacher and Nurse Appreciation Week. Both Adria and Johanna have had wonderful teachers and nurses again this year at school.THANK YOU ALL FOR PROVIDING GREAT CARE AND LEARNING FOR OUR CHILDREN!!!
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| Johanna's Kindergarten school picture - Spring 2018 |
