Valentine's Day this year marked Abbie's 3rd birthday! She began preschool in March, and absolutely loves it! March marked my 28th birthday, and then came April. April came in quick, and is leaving me with a few scars. April 10th was far from normal. I had picked Abbie up from school and we went to a friends house for lunch. I was working avidly on finishing my Child Training Bible, which I love, and Abbie was playing with her friend Mollie. After lunch, the girls went outside, and about 30 seconds later... Abbie had 2nd degree burns on both of her feet. She had followed Mollie out barefoot, and to avoid getting her feet dirty in the mulch, she walked on the black slate pathway in the yard. It had been about 90 degrees all morning, and the stones melted the skin on her feet. It was horrific. We called 911, and rushed Abbie to the hospital for treatment. We had many trips back and forth to the ER and the burn specialist since. Having a 3 year old whom is suddenly unable to walk really changes EVERYTHING.
However, if that wasn't enough, April wasn't finished with us yet. On the way home from the ER on April 10, Derik's transmission blew in his car. The following Sat, we went car shopping and bought a new car. I never EVER thought I would be a "Minivan Mom", but I think I can officially say I have joined the club. After driving the car for 2 weeks, I love it.
Was April finished yet, Nooooooooooooo! On April 24, I took Brady to his 15 month well visit. After looking him over, the doctor voiced a few concerns. He said that Brady's gross motor skills are that of a 7 month old, and he was concerned about the increasing delay. However, Brady was leveling out in his weight, finally, and his language and fine motor skills weren't as delayed as his gross motor skills... so I chose to focus on the good news! That wasn't our only appt that day though, and we headed to the Pediatric Ophthalmologists to get a new diagnosis of Brady's vision. Brady's vision and hearing have both been a concern for a while now, and we had been told he would likely need glasses this year. The exam showed that Brady can see about 6-12" from his nose. He is SEVERELY near sighted and his left eye was far worse than his right. GLASSES WERE ORDERED IMMEDIATELY. He should have his glasses in the next day or 2, and we are very eager to see if his progress changes. The following day, we headed to the Audiologist for a routine hearing test. More defeating news. Brady had little to no response to sound, and his response was on the right side only. However, the audiologist agrees that his poor vision is playing a huge part in his hearing abilities. If you can't see where the sound is coming from, why respond?
SO... Abbie is finally returning to school tomorrow, and she is elated. Brady will get glasses soon, and we will schedule him for a sedated AbR test. He will be put to sleep and they will do an "EKG" style exam on his auditory system. In addition to all of this, we will meet Brady's new Pediatric Neurologist on June 14. We are excited to hear a 2nd opinion on Brady's condition, and pray that she is more compassionate than the last doctor. We are also moving on June 29. We are not moving far, but moving our family of 4 will be a challenge! I am eager to move and excited to be done with it!
Writing this out finally gives me a sort of closure to such a chaotic month! I feel like I can put this behind me, and move forward. Hopefully May brings us good news, happy memories, and is nothing like April!
- Jessica
