Recovery and Physical Therapy

No tears this time…I promise! Things are going very well. We have packed so much into the last two months, that I wish I had a pause button! This month was filled with school, physical therapy, doctor appointments, and lots of new experiences for Eva and Adolf. We have also been eagerly anticipating and preparing for our trip to Tahoe with a departure time in 17 hours. (But who is counting?) 

Adolf continues to see Dr. Grossman on a weekly basis to check on the healing process. At the most recent appointment, he informed us Adolf may need an additional skin graft surgery on his left leg as it is not healing as well as he had anticipated. This was disappointing news as we had hoped we were past the surgery aspect of his recovery. Adolf has not done will with his previous surgeries and suffered from a lot of pain, stress, and depression. The time at the hospital was difficult for the entire family and I pray we do not have to endure that again.

A special orthopedist created custom removable splints to fit Adolf’s legs. He is required to wear them 23 hours a day and only take them off for showering and physical therapy. As he continues aggressive physical therapy, his muscles will get stronger and he will be able to gradually use them less frequently. His physical therapy has been quite intensive as well. He goes three times a week for an hour after school. We also have additional exercises at home to do three times a day. Overall, the physical therapy part of the recovery has been going very well and we are all pleased with the progress he is making. 

Part of Adolf’s physical therapy is to ride an exercise bike as it is good practice bending and straightening his knee. I thought, "If he can do a stationary bike, I should allow him to try his bike from Santa!" Last week, we put our “Kids at Play” signs in the street and I watched for cars as he practiced riding back and forth on our street! He loved his bike and was so happy! It was such an exciting moment for all of us! For years, Adolf has watched other children run, play, ride, and climb and as much as he tried to keep up these activities were a struggle. Finally, he was able to ride a bike like other children! It was such an amazing moment for me to see him and share in his joy. It is not a moment I will soon forget. I wish everyone that has been a part of his journey could have been there with him. This is the result of an entire world community coming together to help others. He still has a long way to go in terms of recovery for full range of motion, but two months ago, I never would have guessed he would be riding a bike already. 

Adolf riding his bike for the first time! This is the result of all the hard work of many people involved!

With my husband, Scott, gone for almost the entire month of January, there was a lot of extra work around the house with all the kids, and fortunately Uncle Laine and Eva really stepped in to help. Uncle Laine and his friend came out one Saturday and watched the kids all day so I could take Kelly and Hunter to two separate birthday parties. He was a great support for me the entire month as I could not always communicate with Scott, and helped with phone calls and texts to guide me through some rough days. We also met one Sunday at the Long Beach Aquarium and had a great time with all the exhibits. Adolf was so excited to experience everything that at first he just wanted to run through the aquarium, but we managed to slow him down and point out some interesting sea creatures. They also have a new penguin exhibit, and they were so cute! We loved watching them swim, dive and play together. There is also a bird exhibit that we could walk through and feed the birds. (Not sure how that fits in with marine life, but it was still fun!) As Eva was holding baby Hayden a bird flew onto her shoulder, sat for a moment, stared at the baby and flew away. It was a very exciting moment for all of us! I was not nearly fast enough with my camera to capture the moment! After the aquarium we had lunch and took a walk up a grassy hill to a lighthouse. It had a beautiful view of the marina and Queen Mary. As Uganda is a landlocked country, Adolf and Eva have never seen such large sea-faring vessels. Eva kept asking me to take pictures for her and Adolf kept running around trying to experience everything at once. All the kids enjoyed rolling down the hill in the grass. Ahhh…to be a kid again! 

The kids posing with the shark at the Long Beach Aquarium.

Checking out the interesting sea creatures.

Its snack time!

Finally, at the end of January, my husband returned home and we were so excited to see him again! I missed him a lot and it seemed like the kids missed him whenever they were in trouble. “Go to your room” was frequently followed by “I want daddy back.”

Homecoming! Everyone wanted to hug daddy at the same time.

Lots of love!

Scott and I at the beach. I am so happy he is home. (Photo credit: Miggy Photography)

We leave for Tahoe tomorrow afternoon and I am so excited to spend a week together in the snow. I grew up in the northwest and desperately miss the cold winters. It is such a warm cozy feeling to be inside when it is snowing outside. I love sitting by the fire, doing puzzles, playing games, and reading books. I am so thankful we get to have this trip and time together, although, in reality I don’t think I will be able to spend much time curled up by the fire engrossed in a book. 

I will post more stories and pictures when we get back. In the meantime, below are some pictures of our daily life! Enjoy. 

Eva making pretzels with Hayden and Maverick. I love how Hayden is standing on the counter.

Grocery shopping. That's right. We had five carts and always get a lot of looks.

Eva and Adolf making Uganda style chicken for dinner. Adolf was so excited to share his country's recipes with us.

Unlce Laine says this is REAL Uganda style chicken! (Photo by Uncle Laine)