Father's day weekend

     I didn't get to post last night because Amaya was in a lot of pain and I was trying to comfort her as best I could. Saturday was pretty calm. We stayed home in the morning then Tia Amanda came to visit and have dinner with us. She just got hired as a full time art teacher for the Colton school district and we're so proud of her! While she was here Amaya fell in the play room. She lost her balance and tripped on some toys. No one was in there when it happened, but when dad ran in he found her on the floor on her bottom, so we don't think she hit the fixator itself. She still has poor balance and is a high risk for falls. She's fallen about once a week (thankfully only small falls). Like when she's getting in the car she loses her balance and falls on the floor of the car. Or when she was walking in the kitchen she tripped on groceries that were on the floor that she didn't see. Stuff like that. Nothing major (where we have to go to urgent care), just enough to hurt her a bit and scare us.
     Sunday we planned to take dad to a vegan restaurant in LA that he's been wanting to try for almost two years now. That morning though Amaya complained of a lot of pain and was very whiny. She insisted that we go and that she would do okay. But she cried, whined, moaned and groaned for pretty much the entire trip. It was pretty exhausting, sad and overwhelming. It's so frustrating because the pain seemed to come out of nowhere, and we don't know if it was from her fall or maybe a possible pin site infection (we checked and her pins look good). She was able to get distracted from pain for a few minutes at a time, but then it would be back. She did have a good time in LA though, and we made sure to stop by her favorite place: Hollywood. She loves seeing the characters and likes all the attention she gets.
     It's kind of ironic that she was in so much pain on Mother's day and now again on Father's day. But, thankfully Josh was able to enjoy his father's day. Which is what really matters. Of all the things I'm thankful for him is that he is such a wonderful dad. I know many people say that about many people, and I'm sure some are deserving of that. But, Josh truly is a great father. My girls have the benefit of having a loving, attentive, nurturing father. I appreciate that he helps me be a better mother by giving me breaks, encouragement, guidance, support, help and challenging me to be a better mother. The other day someone told me that they thought I was pretty mellow and easy going and I had to laugh because in our house I'm the least calm. Out of the four of us I'm the feisty one. But, thankfully Josh and I give each other some balance. I couldn't imagine being the parent I am without him. And I would hate to be going through all this alone.

Here's Amaya and Lidie doing their PT homework. Amaya is wearing the wight while she props her leg up to get a better bend. I like how Lidie is always there with her. Amaya is eating duros (a Mexican chip style snack). She always requests them when she does this PT; it's a good snack while laying there for thirty minutes. 

On Sunday Amaya took her first bath with her fixator on (we have to put water and chlorine, as if she were swimming in a chlorinated pool). She was a bit hesitant at first, but finally did it. Here she is pushing some of the scabs away from her pins. 

Here's a picture she drew Josh on his Father's day card.  It's so cute. She had thanked him for encouraging her at therapy and going to see her several times. Here she drew herself (with her fixator on) and him next to her. I thought the girl in pink was Lidie but she let me know it's actually Melissa sitting on the floor measuring her knee bend with the goniometer.  I love her attention to detail.

Here she is in Hollywood. Lidie didn't want her picture taken. Amaya got a lot of hello's and high five's from the characters dressed up there and she loved the attention. "I'm a bigger celebrity than last time!" she said.

At the Grove Amaya got a chocolate macaroon and enjoyed it on the grass. Our friend Ade drove over and met us for a bit. We loved seeing her, even if for just a bit. 

 

Here's Lidie enjoying her red velvet cupcake. 

     All in all it was a great weekend. Unfortunately we ended it with Amaya in pain again. Hopefully we can get the pain under control soon. It was so nice having her pain free all of last week. Which just shows you just how unpredictable things can be when you're living with a fixator. She had a rough night last night (up every couple hours, constant moaning throughout the night and needing three doses of Tylenol). I'm still exhausted and ready for bed.