About Me

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I am a below knee amputee. More importantly, I am also Mommy to two boys, a very active 10 year old (Robby) and an mischievous toddler (Timmy). I have learned that being a parent with a disability can create some unusual and sometimes humorous situations. This blogger is available for hire! Let's talk and learn how a blog can expand your business.

Friday, October 28, 2016

New Leg Approved!

Yesterday morning I received an unexpected from my prosthetist Elliot. He asked me to make an appointment to come into the office to pick up my new Pro-Flex with Pivot foot.  I was flabbergasted, and assumed that he had texted the wrong patient.  After all, we had started the process for my new leg 14 months ago. I had all but given up on the hope of receiving a new leg this decade.

To my delight, he revealed that the issues with my insurance adjuster have finally been resolved. The foot had arrived in the office, and we received complete authorization to proceed. I felt like a young girl on Christmas morning; I actually squealed with delight.  Timmy, not knowing the reason but eager to join the fun, happily danced around the kitchen with me as we celebrated the new leg windfall. 

Ironically, earlier this week I wrote about my leg finally healing and feeling better. With the skin intact, this is the perfect time to begin the process for a new socket. Finally, the stars have aligned, and I am going to begin to build a new leg. I'm not looking forward to the process, but having a leg that fits perfectly will be worth the effort.

Today I am chaperoning a field trip, so I am not able to see Elliot to begin my new leg until Monday. I'm a little bummed out that I have to wait through the weekend, but after 14 months I suppose a few more days doesn't matter. If everything goes well, this will be the last weekend on my current leg.  I can't wait to put my new leg through its paces, hopefully it will provide me with the functionality I need to keep up with an ever quickening Timmy!

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Non Stop Energy

I love this weather! Timmy and I have thoroughly enjoyed spending the afternoons outside, playing in the leaves and jumping on the trampoline. (Apparently exercise and fresh air do not improve his sleep patterns. He continues to be an obscenely early riser.) I think we are both going to be sad when the weather becomes too cold to play outside without multiple layers.

My little book-licker is definitely an action seeker. He's constantly on the go and seems to have no fear. Robby was always so cautious I rarely worried about him getting hurt playing on the playground or in his tree house. Timmy climbs up the tree house without hesitation, and loves nothing more than zooming down the slide as fast as possible. He stands on swings, jumps higher than I wish he would on the trampoline, and leaps freely into piles of leaves. He is my rough and tumble kid, shaking off bumps and bruises without pause.

Sitting by and supervising Timmy's play is out of the question. When we are outside, regardless of how I am feeling, I am forced to be an active participant.  I always have to have him within arms reach so that I can pull him out of the stream, away from teetering logs and off of the ladder. At the first opportunity he will take off running after a squirrel or across the street to visit Mr. Bill. He has boundless energy. Unfortunately I do not. Keeping up with him is exhausting!

Today we are going to the Hopping Halloween Toddler party at the trampoline park where his activity will be confined to a designated space. I'm hoping that he will jump jump jump[1]  himself into exhaustion, leading to a nice long nap. Even if he doesn't nap, I know that he will have fun so at least one of us will be happy.


 [1]

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

The Book Licker

Looking back, I have come to believe that we made a mistake by not socializing Robby more when he was a toddler and preschooler.  For a variety of reasons (primarily financial) he did not regularly interact with many kids his age. He certainly wasn't unsocial, but he definitely struggled to separate and to make friends when he started school.  I want to learn from this experience by encouraging Timmy to interact with peers on a regular basis. 

From going to the toddler playgrounds to the trampoline and bounce parks, Timmy is constantly around other children his age. Children his age don't necessarily play together, but they are learning to take turns and to socialize. Timmy loves nothing more than climbing, sliding, running and jumping. He is definitely a rough and tumble kid who is in near constant motion. Figuring that we had the physical side of his socialization covered, over the weekend I began to look for opportunities for him to participate in a more structured activity.

I was delighted when I discovered a local toddler story time at our library. I knew that sitting quietly with others would be a stretch for him, but I was optimistic that the experience would be beneficial. After all, certainly the librarian was not expecting perfect behavior and attentiveness from the young toddler participants, right?

Wrong! When I arrived, I was a tad concerned that Timmy was (by far) the youngest participant.  Although it was advertised as a toddler time, all of the other kids were between four and five.  There is a difference between a two year old and a four year old. While all of the other children sat quietly on the rug waiting for class to start, mine was jumping around the "listening circle" happily entertaining the young audience. When the librarian began the session, I ushered Timmy over and tried to keep him still. I was hoping that he would follow the lead of everybody else. Again, I could not have been more wrong.

He squealed with delight at every opportunity. When the class began to clap their hands to a song, mine leaped from my arms and began to dance on the table. I can tell you that the librarian was not amused with my little table dancer. 

The librarian pulled out a Halloween book, read the first page and quietly began to circulate it among the audience. The kids were instructed to smell the scratch and sniff pumpkin sticker that was put on the first page. Every child took their turn smelling the book. When it was Timmy's turn, I first smelled the sticker myself in the hopes that he would copy my behavior.  Instead he grabbed it from my hands, licked the page and threw the book across the room. 

It was then that the librarian politely suggested that he was not ready for story time and invited us to come back another time. In other words, we were expelled from class. I picked up my little book-licker and was forced to do the walk of shame out of the the toddler time circle. Sigh. I really hope that this isn't a precursor to his academic career.

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Halloween Week Fun

Thank goodness Robby Rotten- Tween Edition took a leave of absence yesterday. The weekend definitely took a toll on me, and I was left feeling like a parental failure. I know that snarky Robby Rotten will return, but in the meantime I am going to enjoy the calm of having my sweet Koopa in the house.  After our tumultuous weekend, it was nice to have a relatively quiet and uneventful Monday.

Timmy shared his brother's good mood, filling the day with nearly nonstop giggles. Sometimes I think his cheeks must hurt from smiling so much! It is wonderful to see him feeling healthy and strong again. We are nervously optimistic that he finally kicked the pneumonia and strep. 

With Timmy healthy and Robby reengaged with the family, we are in full blown Halloween mode. This week is filled with spooktacular activities and adventures. None of our plans include anything particularly frightening  (neither boy enjoys to being scared and this Momom doesn't particularly relish getting up the middle of the night to soothe nightmares.) When it comes to celebrating Halloween, we are definitely more of a happy pumpkin and corn maze type of family. 

Hopefully the stars will continue to align throughout the week and both boys will remain happy and healthy. I'm looking forward to some quality fun time with my boys. With all of the stress and anxiety that I have been battling, I could use some fun.

Monday, October 24, 2016

Robby Rotten- Tween Version

Oh my goodness, Robby Rotten returned over the weekend with a vengeance. I thought that his toddler antics were terrible. Apparently his pint sized misbehavior was only the warm-up for the tween years.

Our typically peaceful house became a battleground, pitting team Robby Rotten against his family. His snarky attitude paired with fatigue created an absolute pre-teen monster. I really miss my sweet little Koopa. 

Somehow Scott and I manage to hold down jobs, pay the bills, and maintain the household despite the fact that we are wrong about everything. How have we survived so long without a know-it-all ten year old to point out every perceived mistake! Robby Rotten, tween version, has an opinion about everything. Here's the abridged version: He is right and apparently wise beyond his years. Everything his parents do is stupid, nonsensical and just plain wrong. In short, he is a genius and we are idiots. 

Although he has eaten the meals I prepare for over 10 years, apparently what used to be one of his favorites is now a "bowl of hot horse diarrhea." Our Halloween decorations are "lame" and he shouldn't have to put down the toilet seat because there are three males and only one female in the house. Being outnumbered, he should be able to "pee like a man in a castle."  (It is a good thing that Snarky Robby Rotten was able to enlighten me about how men in castles pee.)

Scott's beloved Ohio State Buckeyes lost on Saturday because he always picks "stupid teams." The internet is slow because our house "sucks."  Somehow his dying in a video game is the fault of a pizza roll that I managed to ruin. Who knew  I so many talents!

Over the weekend his attitude escalated to a full blown war. I understand that this is a stage, but I'm not going to be disrespected in my own home by my ten year old son. It just isn't going to be tolerated. He isn't enjoying his restrictions, but it was necessary to reassert our authority. I'm not loving this stage, and I hope that Robby Rotten- Tween Edition doesn't stay long. I really miss my sweet little Koopa, and I hate being a mean Mom. (By the way, I am apparently the meanest, most horrible Momom in the world.)