Hula hoop

     Despite waking up feeling tired Amaya had a great day. When Lidie and I went to pick her up after school we talked to Pattie, the secretary, who told me that she saw Amaya walking around campus twice today without her wheelchair. She said that Amaya looked good. It's nice to get reports, since I have no clue what happens when I'm not around. Ms. Gillespie said that Amaya had another good day and was pain free. This is huge because the last four months of kindergarten Amaya was dealing with pain and trying to get comfortable on a daily basis. It's nice to know that when she's in class she's able to focus on being a first grader and without having to deal with pain or discomfort. Amaya said that she had fun and had a great day. Thankfully all her pain and discomfort are happening at therapy and at home (mostly at night). I'm hoping the pain subsides, but it hasn't yet. When we see Dr. Nelson next week I'm going to ask about the pain in her knee.

     I found this picture of Amaya from the PossAbilities swim party. I like this picture so much. She looks so confident, determined and it reminds me of her 'bring it on, I can handle it' attitude. I wish I had seen a picture like this before her surgery. I remember wondering what the fixator would look like. I wondered,  "how big would it be? How far does it stick out?  etc. There were so many unknowns. Now as I look at it next to her legs it seems so big.  

Lidie and I got to go for a walk around the lake today. It was calm, cool and pleasant. This is the first time we've done it since Amaya's surgery back in March. It was so nice having that one on one time with Lidie to talk, and explore.   

Here's another view. It was so nice to be out so early in the morning. 

Lidie found a hula hoop at therapy. She's never tried one before and after seeing it on Sesame Street she wanted to try. This one was a bit too big for her, but she had fun anyway.

 

While Lidie hula hooped Melissa stretched Amaya's knee. I told her about the pain she had last night so she made sure to massage it and stretch it out.

Then Melissa had her sit while her knee was bent. This sounds so easy, but it hurts Amaya a bit because she's stretching her muscles.

Amaya tried to hula hoop as well. I think she did pretty good considering. I love that she always wants to try things and doesn't let her fixator get in the way. 

Then Melissa had Amaya pull herself forward on a stool by bending her left knee. 

As Amaya worked on knee bends Lidie decided to try some circus tricks. She made us call her Maria and did spins into the ball pit. 

And she balanced on the edge of the ball pit. 

Here she is smiling because she just completed a twist successfully. Amaya asked if she could be in the circus too. She said (in an announcer voice), "I'll be the girl who bends her knee!" Melissa said, "I'd pay to see that!" 

Amaya climbed up and down the ladder five times today. Melissa commented that Amaya's knee seemed stiff today. She said that it wasn't bending as much as she'd like it to.  

Melissa had Amaya lay on her tummy while she bent her knee back. It looks like she's crying, but she wasn't. But, she was in a lot of pain, hence the face she's making. 

Melissa taped Amaya's knee before she started her bends.

     When she started bends we talked about a goal for today. Amaya decided on 96. Her starting measurement was 49, which is okay, but not good and its less than it has been. As soon as Amaya started bending she started crying and saying, "mom." I encouraged her to keep going and to try to get it over with soon. Either way she has to get to 90 and it's going to hurt, so the quicker she does it the better. About a minute and a half into her bends Melissa said, "you're doing good Amaya, you really are." Amaya was in the 80's. Melissa had her do a few more bends. Then Amaya said that she couldn't bend her knee anymore. She was at 90, but we asked her to keep going and to do five more bends. And she did. She was able to get 94 degrees in about three and a half minutes.  Since her knee was a bit stiff Melissa asked us to do some therapy homework (stretches, bends, lunges, squats, etc) over the next few days. 

     I'm so sleepy as I type this tonight, so forgive any typo's. And thank you for reading along.