Ella’s twelfth year
(also, I’m recapping backwards through this year…just because) I might call this year #thegreatawakening for Ella. She seemed to flourish in the new house. The ability to walk in her walker, crawl, scoot, be a part of everything inside and out…it’s like a light went on for her and she just thrived. I think we had no idea how much accessibility to the inside and the outside of the house would change her whole demeanor.
Highlight NUMBER ONE…a new baby cousin. We love having Drew and Jamie so close, but having Wesley around has been a HUGE highlight! We did have to do a scoliosis exam this year and it still seems we are curved (who knows if it’s genetic, since mommy has it too, or a cause of the CP) but it doesn’t seem to be enough to really do much about it. Her movements didn’t slow her from trying to get up the steps by herself and ignoring the elevator we had installed just for her.
First Christmas in the new house was beautiful and easy. Grateful for these memories. It seems that as the kids are getting older they really are loving each other more and the boys are learning to be good little brothers to Ella, and what it looks like to serve her and love her well.
We had another year of fighting for services and funding with Medicaid. Had to find a bunch of new doctors, get them to explain her condition well…and still fight hard. Learned that wheelchairs aren’t great for field sports the brothers play, but tend to generally work well at basketball gyms (sometimes, not always).
Ella lost several friends this year and I learn more and more how fragile our community can be and reality hits hard. We close on the house COMPLETELY and it’s ours (and a little bit the banks) and we are FLOORED at what God has done since it will have been almost a year at this point since Joe lost his job. God is so good to us.
The final HIGHLIGHT might be the first time we went to @lostvalleyranch and Ella earned the “Contageous Joy” award. If you ever get an itch to visit a good ranch, THIS is the place you want your kids to hang out for a week. Everything is 5 Diamond, but mostly the people. I’d say God has been good to surround us with the best of His people…and it’s never lost on us that HE gives us so much than we deserve.