One Year and Abby is CLEAR! 11/16/09

Abby recently had her one-year checkup from the 3 major surgeries she had last year. As parents, we are so grateful that we have made it an entire year with no major mishaps. While Abby was in the hospital, we met another couple that had a little boy with a shunt. The mother told us that after 30 shunt replacements, she had just quit counting the surgeries. The first year after a shunt is placed is the most critical time and it is very easy for a shunt rejection to occur. If Abby had come down with something as simple as a common cold, even that is enough to cause her body to reject the shunt since it is a foreign object in her body. She has been covered in a lot of prayer and also received the best medical care we were able to procure for her. Between the two, we know how blessed we are that Abby has not had to be hospitalized at all. The CT Scan that was done on Abby's brain looked perfect and the shunt was still in place properly. Dr. Blount does not need to see Abby again for another year. WAAAA-HOOOO!!! God has been good to our family and we would like to give HIM all of the glory for the great things He has done in our lives. We are complete with our precious Abigail. She brings more joy to our lives than we had ever imagined possible.



Here we are waiting to see Dr. Blount. My Mama is smiling but inside she's really nervous about how I will react to seeing my doctor again.

It's always good to be in Daddy's arms. I feel safe here since I have the bestest Daddy in the whole wide world!

So far so good, Dr. Blount.....I haven't had a crying fit yet!

I think this man might be alright after all....maybe he'll let me play with his beard! (Just for the record, last time Abby practially ran Dr. Blount out of the room when he tried to examine her. Thankfully she was a little more cooperative this time! ha ha)

And here I am with Gigi, Dr. Blount's nurse. She also helped with my surgeries and gave my Daddy and Mama great advice on how to care for me after I went home.

I am all dressed up to go to church (except for my shoes). Red is one of my favorite colors.

Aren't I just the most photogenic? I'm smiling so pretty because Daddy is doing very silly things and I can't help but laugh at him.

Mommy thinks my lips are oh so kissable! We give each other lots of sugar every day.

Got to love those Chinese eyes...they especially sparkle when I smile!

E-Stim

We recently heard about a product for children with nerve damage from another mom of a spina-bifida baby. It's called E-Stim and works much like an EKG except the electrodes are hooked up to the legs instead of the chest. The E-Stim then sends electrical currents down the legs to stimulate damaged nerves which in turn stimulate muscles with poor tone. We can put our hands on Abby's legs and feel the muscles contracting. This week Abby was hooked up to E-Stim for the third time during her physical therapy and so far is making drastic improvements in her muscle tone as well as movement in her left leg. Abby has been walking using only the bottom part of her braces and walker and we are thrilled! But using this device can be quite tricky since the therapist has to determine the degree of current to use without causing too much discomfort. Abby does cry and fret most of her appointment and we're not sure if it's because she is in a little bit of pain or if she is just fussing about yet another new procedure. It's the most heart-wrenching part of being the parent and making the hard calls....do you let your child be uncomfortable for the present time so she has the best quality of life later, or do you give her the highest level of comfort and hope she isn't disappointed later that you didn't do more? Last week her appointment was so emotional that I felt drained for several days after it was over. Of course the instant her E-Stim was unhooked, she was all smiles like nothing had happened...the little stinker! She always manages to bounce back from whatever she faces with a smile, so we are very thankful to have a beautiful daughter with an excellent spirit. She makes it all worthwhile!



Abby was so happy her Daddy was able to come to her appointment yesterday

Here is a close-up of what her legs look like when hooked up to the E-Stim

And of course Mama was here to cheer Abby on too

Last week Abby visited her Paw-Paw and Maw-Maw and managed to wrangle a tractor ride out of her Paw-Paw. You should hear Abby's southern drawl when she says "Paw"...so cute!

Giving my "Paw" some much-deserved sugar for my tractor ride

Abby is eating up all this attention on her off day

Lookin' pretty for the camera

It's about time to go home for my nap, everybody!

New Baby Doll

Sierra, a little girl Abby met at horse therapy, was so sweet to bless her with a "special needs" Cabbage Patch Doll. She comes equipped with braces on both feet (just like Abby) and a set of walking canes. It won't be long until Abby will be using walking canes instead of a walker. Thank you, Sierra, for blessing Abby with a baby doll that she can relate to. We had never seen one quite like it before:0)



Our baby is growing up so fast. She is starting to look like a little girl.

...and she is so curious and loves to touch everything around her. She loves to stroke the baby doll's hair and take the bow out.