Another good day

     When we got to physical therapy today Amaya said she noticed a girl in pink starring at her fixator. I asked if it was a girl or a woman and she said a girl, but that she doesn't like people starring at it. I tried to explain that kids have never seen one and don't know what to think of them. I said sometimes kids are concerned and want to know that your okay.  She said, "but mom, grown ups stare at me more than kids do." I wasn't sure how to respond to that. Amaya hates being stared at, and I don't blame her. I notice when adults gawk, stare, whisper and do double takes at her. I wish they didn't, but we can't control other people.
     Once we got back with Lisa she said that we had to do some "dirty work" aka bending. She said Melissa wasn't happy with the numbers she got yesterday (97degrees). So today we had to focus on bending the knee more. Instead of holding Amaya's knee bent for a count of ten she held them for a count of forty. When she measured the knee it was at 104 degrees, yay! I love that when Lisa mentioned the tough work to Amaya, Amaya responded with an "okay." Yesterday she told Melissa "I like physical therapy because it helps me." Lisa said we needed to make sure to bend the knee later on in the day and often at home to make sure we keep the flexibility. She also suggested we make a board (like a furniture mover) for Amaya to use around the house to practice bending her knee on. It's a great way to build strength in the knee.
     After our session we went to Walmart to look for a beach chair for Amaya to use when she takes a bath. It's funny when I got the girls out and started to head into the store I realized I couldn't grab a shopping cart and put Lidie in it. I went back to the car and got a reusable shopping bag. As we shopped we put our stuff in the bag. It worked great! Amaya asked, "mom, are you sure no one is going to think we're stealing this stuff?" As we shopped we were pleasantly surprised to see Marylou in one of the isles. She was on her lunch break. I was so happy to see her. The girls and I had just been talking about her earlier and making plans to deliver a thank you card to her soon. Amaya showed her her fixator and we thanked her again for all her help in making sure Amaya gets the treatment she needs (she's the referral coordinator at the clinic where Amaya's pediatrician is). I told her that we often remind Amaya that she may be the one with the fixator but she has many people on her "team" working hard to make this all happen. Marylou is one of those key people. We are so grateful for her help and kindness. It made my day to see her and be able to hug her and thank her. Her smile and helpfulness always encourage me. After we said goodbye to her we went and "tried on" some chairs for Amaya. Amaya sat in a couple and decided which was the most comfortable one for her. Leaving the store I was holding Lidie's hand, carrying a beach chair, pushing Amaya's wheelchair and balancing my purse and our bag of purchases on the back of the wheelchair. I'm sure we looked pretty silly, at least I did.
     Later we spent some time at Tia Amanda's house. Amaya decided she wanted to use her walker there. She did great, but had a scare, when the wheels got caught on the floor and she almost fell. Thankfully, I was right behind her and caught her. Next we went to visit and play with the girls' cousins. The girls had such a good time being kids; they played Polly pockets, cars, a little on the Wii, ate a yummy snack, played London bridge and ring around the Rosie and watched the cat play with a lizard. When we first go there Lily and Bobby didn't even seem to notice Amaya's fixator, only that she was in a wheelchair. Later Amaya showed it to them and they gently touched it. It's neat to see kids instinctively know that they need to be gentle. Lily was so sweet and helpful to Amaya and helped push her around the house. At one point I overheard Lily tell Amaya "now I know that if you yell, it's serious, cause you could be really hurt, so I'll help you." It was very cute. As the kids were watching the cat play with a lizard (strange I know) the youngest cousin Daniel (who's only one and a half) bumped into Amaya's fixator. It wasn't rough, but Amaya asked him to be gentle because of the fixator. We reminded her that he's young and doesn't understand (he was napping while Lily and Bobby saw the fixator earlier). Amaya lifted her dress to show it to him and his reaction was sweet, and curious. He looked at her leg in shock and tried to get our attention to show it to us. He tried so hard in his toddler talk to explain what he felt and saw. I wished I could have read his mind at that moment, but you could almost see the thoughts in his mind "wait, what is going on, what is that?! Do you guys see that!? Is she okay?! Is that an owie?!" Amaya's tia Lore gave Amaya a big hug and let her know that she's been keeping up with the blog and is proud of  her; its always nice to hear.   I enjoyed relaxing, talking with my cousins (being able to be honest with our struggles and share laughs)  and  hearing the kids play.
     By the time we got home it was time to get ready for bed. Before I changed Amaya's gauze (we skipped the shower because she was so tired) dad talked with her and reminded her that yelling was not okay. He told her that she could express her fears, pain and dislike in words. She agreed and as I began I could tell a huge improvement from the last two days. She did yell and cry a bit, but only as the gauze pulled at her skin. For the most part she played her DS and listened to me sing "I'm almost done, here I go, almost done." She was laying on her side again and that gave me such good access to the pins and gauze. We were done so quickly she could hardly believe it.
     The day went by quickly and was full of good times. Thanks again Lore and Amanda for hanging out with us today, we had a great time.

The girls playing Polly pockets with cousin Lily.

The kids all watching the cat play with the lizard.

Outside of Walmart we got to see some race cars. The girls were impressed. Then a man in a wheelchair came up to Amaya and asked her if she wanted to race. She said no thank you. Later she asked me, "do you think if we would have raced lots of people would have come to watch?" She's a funny kid.