Spring Break

Ahhh…spring break! This year is the first year I have children in elementary school (Hunter is in Kindergarten and Adolf in Fourth Grade) and I realize that spring break is actually a tease! I can feel the excitement and fun of summer just around the corner, but we still have two and a half months left of school. The official summer countdown has begun. I look forward to the seemingly endless days at the pool, beach, friends, and no schedule! 

Adolf continues to do very well. He has Physical Therapy three times per week and still sees Dr. Grossman on a weekly basis for follow up visits. He wears his leg splints during the night to keep his legs from contracting while he is sleeping, but during the day he is a regular active kid! It brings me such joy to see him run, ride bikes, climb trees, and participate in everyday activities that were difficult or impossible for him before his surgeries. It is truly a miracle of God that everything has been so smooth.  

Do you want to see something absolutely adorable? Look at the picture below! Yes, that is our Adolf in a tuxedo and very proud of himself too!

Adolf in a tux ready for the Children's Burn Foundation Gala

Adolf and another burn victim at the Gala

Scott, Adolf, and I at the Gala

Uncle Laine and Adolf at the gala

Each year the Children’s Burn Foundation hosts their annual Gala at the Beverly Hilton Hotel to raise money to pay for the surgeries and rehabilitation for children burn victims both domestically and internationally.  In addition, the foundation works closely with schools and other organizations on burn prevention education.  The Gala is a very important fundraising event for the foundation and we were so thrilled to attend.  Scott and I had been working with Adolf on how to greet adults, shake hands, and have good table manners and Adolf performed brilliantly. People said he was so well mannered and was a miniature James Bond.  We were very proud of him. We also meet another young boy in the United States undergoing burn surgeries. He and Adolf sat next to each other at dinner and it was wonderful to watch the two of them connect.  I would also like to extend a huge thank you to all the donors to the Children’s Burn Foundation. Without their financial support, this miracle would not have happened. 

A week after the Gala, we got to dress up again! This time it was for Uncle Laine’s LA5 Rotary Club. He was the keynote speaker and was speaking about his work in Uganda and Adolf’s story. It was at the California Club in downtown Los Angeles, so again Adolf dressed up in a suit and practiced his “grown-up” manners. Again, he did amazing. I was beaming with pride. Laine did a great job telling Adolf’s story and was even awarded the special Rotary Service Award for 2012. The Rotary motto is “Service Above Self” and he truly exhibited this with all the work he has accomplished in Uganda.  

After the Rotary luncheon, a guest at the club sat down with Adolf and gave him an impromptu piano lesson

One night when Eva was away on an overnight with one of the Uganda Mission members, the family was eating dinner and Adolf was particularly active and talkative, Hunter (my six year- old) asked him, “Why did your auntie burn you?” Scott and I were both quite shocked, and immediately focused our attention on Adolf, not sure what to do next. Adolf replied in a fairly relaxed manner, “My auntie tied my hands to my legs like this. [Gestured with his hands and legs to show them tied in front of him.] Then she put me on fire banana leaves. I scream and scream. Neighbor come and take me to hospital. Doctor could not help my legs. When I wake up, my legs don’t work. They just don’t work anymore. Then my auntie was gone and I had to ask people for food.”  Wow. To hear it from Adolf himself was very powerful. Even with the still emerging English language. I was personally amazed how he was able to describe it in such a detached manner. He seemed fairly comfortable speaking about it and my son asked a few more questions like, “Did it hurt?” and “Who took care of you?” He answered them all in the same tone, without anger, sadness, or other emotion. It almost seemed like he was talking about someone else. This horrendous thing happened to him and he was describing it like he was telling us about a trip to the zoo. He did say, “I see it in my eye sometimes. When it hurts, I see me on fire again.” It was hard not to scoop him up in my arms and tell him how much we love him. I wanted him to continue to talk with our family without me becoming an emotional bowl of mush. I am not a psychiatrist, but maybe my readers know if his ease of talking about the injury shows signs of healing and acceptance or pain that is still hidden. 

 Each day is a new adventure for us and as Forest Gump says, “Ya never know what you gonna get.”

Playing around at home with a colander and pipe cleaners

Baby Hayden with the colorful hat!

We went to the Santa Anita Race Track for a fun day at the races. It was Law Enforcement Day and Adolf got to see a Sheriff helicopter.

Adolf, Kelly, Maverick, and Hunter in the helicopter.

Adolf the cowboy!

After the day at the races, we stopped by a restaurant in Pasadena and the Hunter and Adolf had fun playing around.

Final Surgery Complete!

I feel like such a slacker! Did I really only do one blog update in February? I will place part of the blame on my six year-old son, Hunter. He finally convinced me to download Angry Birds on my iPad, and instead of being productive, I wasted too many hours trying to save the eggs from destruction! Well, I am back on the wagon, and have had my fill of angry feathery creatures so you will hopefully hear more about Adolf’s incredible story. 

On Valentine’s Day Adolf had another skin graft surgery and despite my anxiety going into another surgery, it went very well. The best part: no screaming! Yea! The previous surgeries were such difficult times for the family and Adolf, that I was really dreading going through the process again.  With Adolf’s English greatly improved I was able to communicate to him before the surgery about what to expect and some coping skills for when he wakes up: hugging his teddy bear, holding my hand, deep breathing, imagining himself playing at the beach. I think it really helped and was such a relief for all of us, when he woke up and did not scream. He was not feeling well for quite a while, but was a real trooper! I was so proud of him. This time the doctor chose to use his head as the donor sight for the skin graft. He had been asking for a haircut, so this was an unusual way to grant that request! His head is now completely healed and his legs continue to be in bandages and splints. He continues physical therapy three times a week and will probably continue the PT for quite a while. As long as the grafts continue to heal properly, it will be his last surgery. 

Adolf has been doing great in school! Last week as I was preparing dinner I made him sit at the table and read ­Go, Dog, Go and he did it! There were a few words he did not know, but almost every night since I have had him read it to me and he is really improving. In addition, to the ability to walk, I feel an education is the one thing that can help raise Adolf (and any child) out of the cycle of poverty. There is so much I want to teach him, and I feel like there will never be enough time to teach it all to him. His school has been doing an amazing job as well. I love working with them and feel like they truly care about Adolf, his education, and future. With all the negative talk about teachers and schools in the media, it is refreshing to see the positive results. 

This past weekend, we were invited to a Ugandan cultural celebration and dinner with Ugandans living in the Los Angeles area. They are all living here for various reasons and for various lengths of time, but Adolf was certainly a celebrity at the celebration. Everyone wanted to meet him and he obliged with his captivating smile and sparkling personality. For the first time, I tried Matoke (mashed bananas with a taste similar to mashed potatoes) and other Ugandan cuisine. Adolf and Eva have been very open to trying American staples such as pizza and hamburgers, and it was fun to have the roles reversed. When we first arrived, I was very nervous and felt very out of place. We were one of very few white families there and for one evening I understood what it might feel like for Adolf and Eva on a daily basis. It did not take long, however, to realize the Ugandans we met were very well spoken, educated, and pleasant to be around. My anxieties were soon put to rest as they treated us like one of their own and were very happy to meet Adolf and Eva. They thanked us for loving and caring for Adolf and I was so happy to be included in their celebration. The highlight of the evening came during the entertainment. Two professional dancers (that flew to LA from Atlanta just to preform) presented an incredible show of Uganda culture. There were also some young girls that danced on stage and were amazing. Adolf loves dancing and when the girls started their routine, he stood up by our table and started dancing. Another Ugandan saw him and escorted him up to the stage! He joined the girls and was so awesome! He has great moves and rhythm. It was hard not to be filled with incredible emotion watching him dance on stage. Three months ago, he was crawling dirt paths to get to school, and now he is on stage dancing. A true miracle! Other partygoers said it was the best part of the evening. I wish everyone could that has been a part of Adolf’s journey could have seen it. Truly inspiring.  

We have been having a lot of great fun together and trying to take advantage of every moment we have together. Below are some pictures of some fun family pictures! Enjoy. 

Adolf at the beach! This was post-surgery and he was still in his wheelchair.

Loving the warm sun and watching the ocean!

Eva writing "God is Good" in the sand

Hunter and Adolf playing around by the bocce ball court

Baby Hayden enjoying the beautiful So Cal day!

A visit to La Brea Tar Pits with Hunter pushing Adolf and Kelly following.

LACMA (next to La Brea Tar Pits) had an interesting hands on exhibit. Adolf loved it, but the strands got caught in his wheel chair and it was difficult for him to get out!

Watch out for the mammoth!

Tar seeping up through the ground

Watching the paleontologists work.