December 1998

December 25th: Things are progressing so quickly, I had to re-read the November page to see what had happened recently. Tyler STILL continues to improve daily. He is able to sit on his own!! This means we can place him in the center of the room surrounded by his favorite toys and he will play with them for quite a while... He has achieved full control over his right arm now, and is about 50% on his left. He will finally reach out for things with his left hand, but is not fully able to grasp them. If you place something in his left hand, he is able to move it up to his mouth (still his favorite place to have his toys ;-).

He continues his old ways of being the biggest flirt possible. This time however, he has developed a 'cheesy' smile. He'll tilt his head back and smile as big as he can. He even closes his eyes to get more out of it... No one can resist laughing, and he loves it. He can roll both directions now as well. This is his preferred method of locomotion. He will see a toy somewhere and begin to roll, sometimes with no method or direction! He just keeps rolling and turning until he gets there. He's started to get up on all fours and rock so we expect that he will be crawling soon!!!! That will be wonderful.

We continue to have 6 therapy sessions each week. It seems Tyler has progressed each time they see him. We are still very happy to hear their evaluations each week. They are now working on his crawling, walking, and ability to get himself to an upright position. He just thinks they are there to flirt with ;-)

It's interesting for us to treat this event as having a second child. We are certainly seeing aspects of our old Tyler, but there are new things he is doing 'this time' that are different. This time, his wave is very different. He actually waves at himself (his hand facing him). He never did that last time. We have read that it is normal for children to start waving this way, but it is different for us. He also never rocked on all fours before. He began his crawling by pushing up on his arms and moving backwards last time. This time, he is only interested in moving forward. He will get up on all fours and eventually 'dive' toward his goal.

He is beginning to get frustrated just sitting on the floor now. It seems as if his mind is thinking he should be able to move towards something, but he cannot get his body to respond properly. At least we hope this is the case. He will show the same behavior with some of his toys as well. It's nice for us to start thinking his recovery will be a complete one.

Tyler had a great Christmas Eve and Day. He was visited by both sets of Grandparents, two sets of Uncles and Aunts, and five cousins. At times it was a bit hectic, but most of the time he loved the attention. This much activity seems to help him sleep through the night (for at least 8 hours ;-). His Mommy and Daddy appreciate his efforts in this direction!!! This was demonstrated in the gifts he received!!! Grandma and Grandpa contributed greatly as well. He was properly spoiled. He would sit at the table with us (in his high chair) and visit throughout dinner. He was such a good boy. We're looking forward to a trip up to visit Grandma and Grandma in Kings Canyon National Park next week.

One gem I cannot forget to report. At Thanksgiving last month Tyler got to spend with a part of the family we don't get to see as often as we'd like. His great Uncle Gordon and family were nearby, and we were able to celebrate a Thanksgiving diner and a few birthdays. It was the kind of night you never forget - spontaneous, warm, and fun. We hope to see more of them in the near future. They have been a strong part of Tyler's support team.

We also want to wish the best of luck for some of Tyler's Hypoplastic friends. Hunter has had a difficult time during his third operation (check for details on www.storksite.com). Abigail has finally returned home after her third operation. Nathan has postponed his third operation for the third time due to illness. There are so many other people who have shown support and compassion for Tyler (and us) during the past year. We cannot thank you enough. That has been such a huge part of our strength. We look forward to sharing more milestones during the next year...

Happy New Year to everyone, we hope your's will be filled with as much joy as ours...