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Lydia continues to regain her strength and might even decide to walk
or crawl or do something mobile this year. :) In all seriousness, her
muscle development and mobility are slightly delayed after four months in a hospital room hooked-up to an IV pole, but we are told
not to worry. She has started to work with a physical therapist who
comes to the home and encourages Lydia to move independently. Lydia just prefers to be in mom's arms and who can blame her after all she has endured. We have learned that recovery is a very slow process but we are
continually encouraged by many positive signs along the way. For example, last week Lydia was taken off her nightly IV fluids. This has been quite a reprieve for mom and dad who
no longer have to go through the nightly preparation ritual. Some
medications have also been reduced and others eliminated entirely. Her twice weekly clinic visits have
been reduced to one visit per week as long she continues to intake enough fluids and stay healthy. Lydia also continues to eat well. In
fact, one night Paul mistakenly gave her an adult size portion of food which Lydia happily ate resulting
in a bloated stomach that took awhile to relieve. Although the exact
amount is still being disputed, Angela estimates that Lydia digested 2 1/2 adult size portions of Stouffer's Mac N
Cheese (750 calories and 37 grams of fat)! Paul has now learned to rely
a little more on the measuring cups. :)
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| Beep. Beep. Lydia at the wheel |
Lydia continues to be a happy child with wonderful social skills. She
enjoys playing with her siblings and is now permitted to spend more
time outside. Lydia has even adapted to staying with our babysitters enabling mom and dad to have some much needed
alone time. Lydia still cannot go out to publicly enclosed places (places with lots of people, germs, and not much air flow) but
this too might be possible before the end of the year. As for sleeping, it is a challenge to settle Lydia in
the evening and often times she ends up sleeping next to mom and dad.
However, once she is calm, Lydia usually enjoys several hours of uninterrupted sleep. In a nutshell, we still have
challenges but everything seems less severe and there is much HOPE.
As always, we continue to pray for God's peace and protection.
Lydia's situation is by no means over and she continues to require a
great deal of attention. But we remain confident that God has a wonderful plan for our family and our trust will remain in
Him. We continue to be thankful for every one's thoughts and prayers.
There are many people that have served and blessed our family in countless ways over the past months. Although
we may not have personally thanked everyone, please know that all of you
are greatly appreciated. Have a wonderful weekend!
