Graduation Day

No cap and gown, but it's graduation day in our house...Jbird was officially released from physical therapy this morning!

For those who have no idea what I am talking about, let me give a brief history: upon his first birthday, Jbird wasn't rolling over (he had, but only a couple of times), getting himself to sitting up, pulling up, crawling or walking independently. He could sit up if we put him there. He could walk around furniture if we placed him at something, but he seemed to be missing some key gross motor skills. Our pediatrician was quite puzzled because he was skipping easy things for harder things. He suggested we get in touch with Early Childhood Intervention (ECI), a state-funded program in our state that helps those with developmental delays from birth-age 3. After talking with them and going through the evaluation process, Jbird qualified for the program and physical therapy began every other week in our home in late September. From the beginning, Jbird was comfortable with Jennifer - and he's been so excited to see her each time. We have seen DRASTIC improvement in Jbird's motor skills and confidence over these past months. We had been discussing how much longer we should continue since he had come so far; and at our last session, Jennifer, our angel of a PT, commented that she was having difficulty finding things that challenged Jbird. So today we did another evaluation, and he was deemed "typical." He is right on track for an 18-month old! We are so excited, and yet sad to not see Miss Jennifer anymore. God was good to take care of all of this before our daughter arrives, and to provide therapy at a flat monthly rate (a state-run program that is doing good work and does well by their clients!). We are so blessed!

Here is a picture of Jbird with Jennifer. After Jennifer and Angela, our case worker left, Jbird watched them chat at their cars out our front door window. He kept saying bye-bye and then tried to open the door (a new trick he has learned) to go outside to them (thank heavens for deadbolts!). Jennifer was only in our lives for about 6 months, but the impact she made will benefit us for years to come.