Born @ 27 weeks
2lbs 7oz

Monday, April 30, 2012

Mountain Harmony

Hats off to the Wilhelms for creating a timeless backdrop at a farm in Asheville, NC for their wedding. From Andrea's mother's wedding dress to horses roaming the wildflower-adorned pastures, Andrea and Jason may have created one of the more memorable and personalized ceremonies that I have ever attended.

Nash, on the otherhand, saluted the wedding party, as we lined up for the procession, with a slip if a toot....sending all of us into giggles (and me into embarrassment!) just before the ceremony began. Oh the gift of having boys....

I'm shocked to say I don't have a single photo of just Nash as the ring bearer. I was honored to be asked to read in the wedding and Michael was of course a groomsmen. Nash being decked in a white linen shirt and white saddle oxfords didn't leave a lot of down time for photo opportunities. Michael and I were more inclined to keeping him grass-stain free as he dove liberally into the mud every few seconds. (The good news is, moments after the ceremony we gave our full blessing to 'GO for it' - and he did! (thank God I grabbed him moments/seconds before he swiped the wedding cake).

Here here to the Wilhelms. A stunning wedding and fabulous time.





And a special side note to my mother, Nana, that transformed into the nanny for the weekend. She was so flexible and gracious and selfless to take such good care of the boys as our needs changed in a whim. What a blessing. She is so busy and stopped everything to help us.


Sunday, the boys and I moved from our precious cabin at the farm to Black Mountain,NC, where Shaw will receive intense Anat Baniel Therapy for the rest of the week.

John Robson, with Honest Evolution, is one of the few that specializes in the Anat Baniel Method (ABM). Anat, currently living in California, revolutionized therapy for children and adults with brain traumas (stokes, cerebral palsy, birth disorders, etc). ABM encourages communication with the brain by presenting it with information that solicited the formation of new neural patterns and pathways. ABM helps the brain 'right' itself and regain its ability to powerfully and consistently create new patterns as successful solutions. (ie - ABM is a process of creating new pathways around the dead matter to work in new ways).

Meeting John today, he asked me if we had any goals. I felt very confident telling him our goal is not a developmental milestone; rather, it is to massage Shaw's brain so that he can maximize his individual potential. (If this means we can't physically see an improvement, but Shaw is more comfortable, sleeps better, is happier and responsive to us and his surroundings, we will consider it a success). A gamble - and hard to measure - but it feels right.

Shaw is still very afraid of anyone outside of immediate family after his last hospital experience. We spent the first session this morning 'getting acquainted' John slowly approached Shaw, sitting nearby until he made his way to placing a hand on Shaw. Shaw cried the whole time.

This afternoon, Shaw went over to John and grabbed his beard and nose and smiled, having established trust from the morning session. (very different from our PT approach).

Fortunately, there is a break between sessions that allows ALL of us to get outdoors (our goal for Nash all week!!!!). A picnic by a creek, s'mores by the fire and hikes mid day... Work for one, heaven for the other.



Heaven for me was found post therapy today at an old friend's home. My heart was full as Kim met Shaw and encouraged Nash to romp with the hose.



What a ride friendships have. How lucky we are to have the friends that last and the intuition to know how special they are when you first meet them.

1 comment:

Tonya said...

This is a Beautiful blog...God Bless you and your Family!.. I am also interested in the Anat Baniel Method for my little girl that has Lissencephaly.You can see more of Kennadi at www.kisses4kennadi.com.
Thanks for sharing!