Happy Anniversary

(I wrote most of this on Tuesday on the flight back from NY – I’m a bit dated in getting it posted, but wanted to commemorate our special anniversary with Taylor).

What a crazy few weeks we have had – and I do mean crazy. I had to fly to LA last week-end for a rare work event and then David and I spent the last 5 days in New York for a lot of fun and a bit of work. Most importantly, my mom is visiting and having such fun with the kids now! So much has happened and I’ve been craving some meaningful blog writing time, but I haven’t had many spare moments unfortunately.

Most touching anniversary – I didn’t commemorate it in writing, but it was top-of-mind for me for several days. Dear sweet Taylor’s one-year anniversary of our finding out about her condition has come and passed. Cinco de Mayo – I don’t think I’ll ever forget that day last year and it’s the one memory that can bring me to tears quickly. I was a little melancholy for a few days – it shouldn’t really matter but it became a notable day for me for some reason. A sweet friend (after I spontaneously started crying at Jacob’s soccer – this does not happen often I swear) reminded me of the progress Taylor has made and what a joy she is to so many. So, I thought I would make a little list – just like I did last year. That list was full of uncertainty and fear and not knowing what was to come. This year – one whole year later – we actually don’t know a lot more about what Taylor’s future will hold, but we know even more than ever how much we have to be thankful for.

Drum roll please……Taylor’s Year in Review
1. She is one tough cookie – she has undergone endless medical tests, doctor appointments, interrupted naps, countless ear infections and most of all – incredibly grueling therapy that would exhaust most adults. She is so tough and such a hard worker – we are so proud.
2. She has learned many important skills that we could not have anticipated how much work it would be for her, or how critical they would be for her development.
• When she first started therapy, it would take nearly an hour to stretch out the muscles in her arms – just so she could straighten her arms. This was so painful for her – we are so thankful that this can be done within seconds/minutes now – depending on the day.
• Taylor was not interested in toys – she didn’t look at toys, wouldn’t reach for toys and was simply not interested. As her vision process has improved and her arms/hands have become useful, she looks at toys, picks up toys to play with them, loves to make music and sounds and has fun! It has been such a gift to see her having fun, entertaining herself and enjoying life.
• She couldn’t bear any weight on her hands and hated to be on her stomach. This limited the development of her protective reflexes and while we’re still working hard on this, she can bear weight on her hands for a long time now and enjoys being on her tummy. It is so great that she can enjoy a different position than just lying on her back and functionally use her hands.
• She couldn’t roll or move – her exploration was limited because she couldn’t roll over. Now she can roll in all directions and is beginning to explore with moving to a toy – the freedom this will give her will be such a gift.
• Taylor couldn’t sit alone – she had to be held or laid down on her back and was very much an infant still. Now she is such a big girl – she can sit all by herself, independently, play with toys, and “belong” with the big kids and the kids in her school. I had such sadness that she couldn’t sit up alone and join the kids for circle time at school. What a great day it was when she could sit on her little map – just like a big kid.
• Sleep – oh, the sleep. She was such a restless sleeper and needed help to get her binky so many times at night. She still can’t get her binky with her hands, but she has gotten very adept at using her face to shove the binky into the bed so she can grab it with her mouth. We can’t wait for those hands to work just a bit better, but we’re thankful she is officially sleeping through the night now (and so are we).
3. Most importantly, Taylor is a lover and so happy. She laughs and smiles, loves her family, enjoys her friends (particularly special friends Alison and Julie – her nannies this year), and loves to cuddle and give sloppy kisses. As we’ve seen more kids with other challenges, the gift of emotion is so huge – we are so thankful that she has this skill in spades.
4. We’ve learned a lot about unconditional love and how much you can love your kids – really, truly to the depths of your heart. Of course we’ve always loved Lauren and Jacob too, but our experience with Taylor has really shown us how much to treasure the good days and how deeply you can pray on the not-so-good days. We are thankful for every day we have with all of our kids and our gratitude is deeper than ever.
5. We’ve learned how critical something like allergies can be, yet how inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. We’ve learned that life is definitely not fair, but sometimes your life is blessed in ways completely unexpected too. We’ve learned more from the special needs than ever expected and been inspired in ways we couldn’t have comprehended.
6. We are grateful – for family and friends that have supported us, particularly Taylor. We’ve felt your prayers, well wishes, and appreciated every phone call or note. She has touched so many lives already and her journey is just beginning. I truly believe she will have an exceptional life and we’re looking forward to seeing her amaze us all.

I can’t wait to see how much we will celebrate on her next anniversary.