Today, I pulled into a parking lot to pick Sarah Kate up from one of her extracurricular activities. Because of the problems she’s had this week with her knee, she was using her wheelchair. When I pulled in, I saw that the one and only disability parking space, next to the ramp, was partially blocked by… Read More
Blog
When the Wheels Come Off
I’ve written before how the early years are some of the hardest when you are the parent of a child born with developmental delays. In my experience, the years up until about age four were the worst, because I was still coming to grips with the death of my dreams (foolishly trying to read the future!), and kids… Read More
Lent Practice: Giving Up, Taking Up, and I Could Never Go Vegan
We are practicing Catholics. And by practicing I mean in the way that Nathan practices T-ball: lacking in anything resembling excellence, but largely consistent and with enthusiasm. After I converted to the Catholic church, Sarah Kate and I always observed Lent, but it wasn’t something we talked about a whole lot. Mr. Andi didn’t become Catholic until… Read More
Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy: Some Thoughts After Ten Years
Ten years ago, in early January of 2006, Sarah Kate underwent selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) surgery just one week after her third birthday. If you aren’t familiar with SDR, here’s the way I summarized it previously: a neurosurgeon tests sensory nerve rootlets that control the legs to see which ones are “misfiring” and then permanently cuts… Read More
It’s Time For Me to Be Honest With You
I intended this post for Tuesday, but life happened, and life happened again on Tuesday when the schools let out early for weather. I had to vacate the room where my cloffice is so that Nathan could play Just Dance on the Wii and Sarah Kate could watch him (thank goodness she could watch him)…. Read More
Twenty
Once upon a time… …way back in 1970, “Marcus Welby, M.D.” was on television, the Jackson Five were singing “ABC,” gas was 36 cents a gallon, and a couple of crazy kids were born – Mr. Andi and me. I came first, in January, with Mr. Andi a couple of months later, in March. We were… Read More