February Rewind

This month was so much of a blur, that I feel like I need to give a quick day-by-day recap. I missed a few important events, so let's rewind to around the beginning of the month and revisit:

February 2nd: Mira's vision specialist appointment, which can be recapped here.

February 3rd: Mira's IEP.

February 6th: Jonah's IEP.

February 10th: Mira seen in ophthalmology and her rough seizure day, which can be recapped here.

February 13th: Mira gets her new lightweight stroller! After my post on the 12th, our schedule became very hectic and I missed out on perhaps one of the most important days so far this year. Thanks to Variety KC (and the tireless efforts of Deborah Weibrecht) and Blue Cross Blue Shield of KC (BCBS), Mira received a brand new, lightweight stroller that can be lifted by just Sarah or myself - it was a must have for us, in the absence of having a converted van, since her other new chair (her permanent one we received through insurance at the end of 2016) is extremely heavy and nearly impossible to lift with one person. Now, we have so much more flexibility with taking Mira just about anywhere. We are so incredibly grateful to have this chair for her. On the afternoon of the 13th, Variety KC and BCBS hosted an afternoon event and formally gifted Mira her chair. Mira was in a sour mood most of the afternoon, but we managed to make it through and met some extremely generous people in the process.

February 14th: Had to travel to Halifax, Nova Scotia, then drove to Moncton, New Brunswick (2+ hours away) right after it had finished dumping over 70 cm of snow on Monday. Happy Valentine's Day too. When I arrived in Halifax, the airport was already cleared and into Moncton that evening, they were still digging out and hauling off snow. Sarah and I spent the evening texting from 1,900 miles away.

February 16th: Sarah has to take Eli to the orthodontist, to adjust, clean and/or repair his braces, for the umpteenth time. Gets hectic as his appointment is first thing in the morning. I am leaving Moncton, trying to drive back to Halifax mid-afternoon, during another impending snowstorm, that brings very high winds and of course, more snow. I get stuck, along with a few other cars and 18-wheelers, about 10 km outside of Moncton, lodged in 60 cm of snow on a highway exit ramp that the New Brunswick DOT had not plowed yet. Two hours, DOT plowing, and one good samaritan (with a huge shovel) later, I am off the exit ramp and back on the road. A normal 2+ hour drive takes over 6 hours, with a majority of my 'scenic' drive looking like something out of 'The Shining' - my knuckles frozen from digging myself out and from tense driving for hours on end:

February 17th: Goodbye Canada. Depart Halifax at 5:30am (Atlantic Time - 3:30am CST) and head home, which takes most of the day. Arrive home in Kansas City to 65 degrees and sun.

February 18th-19th: Mira and I take advantage of the weather and do a ton of walking outside, all in her new stroller, which is fantastic! It was so much lighter, easier to maneuver, and certainly takes infinitely less effort pushing up hills. We spent the entire weekend outside and in the sun. Mira is in a solid mood most of the weekend, only getting cranky when we were inside and idle.

February 20th-21st: Have to jump back on a plane and go to Virginia. Still exhausted from my Canadian trip and ready to be back home before I even get to the airport. Kids are finishing another 4 day weekend, while recovering from colds, flu-like symptoms, and fevers from weeks before. I start feeling cruddy by the time I get to Virginia on Monday afternoon. Finally arrive back home in Kansas City about midnight on Tuesday.

February 22nd: Sarah again has to take Eli to the orthodontist. More adjustments and repairs.

February 23rd: Mira has 3 intense tonic-clonics at school and is wiped out the rest of the day. I am burned out at work and absorbing all of the sickness that was passed around the office and every flight I was on.

February 24th: Feeling full-on flu symptoms and end up staying home from work and in bed all day. I feel terrible for Sarah, who just spent 6 out of the last 8 work days holding down the fort with the kids, as she is exhausted too. Spend the weekend slowly recovering.

February 27th: Having a coughing fit on the couch and end up bursting a blood vessel in my right eye. Have to go back to the airport for an global entry interview I have had on the books for months. Cannot reschedule and go in the afternoon. Still having great weather in KC though, so bonus there.

February 28th (Today): Mira has a Lupron shot in the morning in endocrinology. As she is quickly approaching 12 years old, we will ultimately start having conversations with her endocrinologist about when we should stop the injections and let puberty continue. For now, we are maintaining the course and will have the discussion at her next round, which will be in 3 months. And on this, the last day of February, I look back and can honestly say that the month has been an utter blur.

Still Spinning

February continues to spin 100 miles an hour. After all of the hectic first couple of weeks of the month, when I mentioned it couldn't get any busier, I spoke too soon. I had to go to New Brunswick for 4 days last week, getting stuck in a snowstorm outside of Moncton and didn't get back to KC until Friday. I was home for the weekend and had to turn around and go to Virginia early Monday morning and returned late last night. My sleep patterns have been screwed up for weeks now and on top of it, I've picked up the cold and sinus congestion that Sarah and the kids had last week. It was amazing returning home to 60 degree weather, after trudging through 60+ centimeters of snow on the east coast of Canada. Mira and the boys didn't have school on Friday or Monday of this week, which they didn't seem to complain about - who would, with yet another 4 day weekend. Mira and I spent a lot of time walking and enjoying the spring-like temperatures, which was warranted - she was in one of those up and down moods that required being in a constant state of motion. She managed to be in a good mood on Tuesday and today, enjoying some cafeteria foods and having some solid days in the classroom. We saw and heard a ton of dragon noises this morning and this afternoon, evidence that she continues to be in a positive mood. Since her last big episode at ophthalmology several weeks ago, it was been eerily quiet on the seizure front.

A Funeral, A Birthday, 2 IEPs, and Ophthalmology

I truly don't think the last 10 days could have possibly been any busier. My head is still spinning from the non-stop, tumultuous few weeks we have been experiencing here. Unfortunately, it all started off with the passing of Sarah's uncle Jamie, who was a huge part of Sarah's life growing up here in Kansas City. He was an incredibly thoughtful person, making you feel involved and important with every encounter you had with him. He was engaging and sincere - he will be missed dearly by everyone in our family.

With Jamie's passing and the funeral mid-week, our days and evenings were occupied, gathering pictures and exchanging stories with relatives that managed to make it in town. On Wednesday, we attended the funeral and luncheon afterward, which trickled into the late afternoon, eventually leading into Eli and I spending the evening at his 9th grade enrollment activities, at his future high school. I cannot believe I am going to have a high school age child in another 6 months. Eli had an equally busy week, with mid-week enrollment choices and then celebrating his 14th birthday tonight! He has been saving up the money to build his own computer, researching and buying the parts over the past 6 months and with the birthday presents he received tonight, his build is nearly complete.

Prior to the funeral, we had 2 IEPs, sandwiching the weekend - one on Friday for Mira and another on Monday for Jonah. Both were fairly uneventful and there weren't a whole lot of changes for either one of them from last year. However, we did discuss Mira's diet some, coming to the conclusion that she should have the opportunity to try some of the school lunch offerings. The cafeteria staff has to puree her foods, as they do with some of the other students in her class, but it would give her the chance to eat with other kids in the cafeteria. This past week they started initiating this plan and Mira has been able to sample a variety of different foods, including broccoli, mashed potatoes, and a few desserts. Her teachers and paras noted that she was very enthusiastic about it all too. We have had our reservations in the past of pureed foods, as she used to gag on some of foods we offered, so we eased up years ago and kept her primarily on a bottle diet. Speaking of which, Mira seems to be gaining some weight since we upped her calorie intake. I can't give an exact amount, but it is visible in her legs and arms - she is looking fuller and certainly feels heavier when we are transferring her. Yes, not a very clinical analysis, but I can assure you, she has put on weight, which is great.

To finish off our insanely busy week, we had an ophthalmology appointment for Mira on Friday morning. Right after getting settled into the exam room, Mira had a huge tonic-clonic seizure, knocking the bottle I was giving her clear across the room, dousing the nurse with a spray of rice milk and protein powder. Mira was post-ictal during the exam, which made it a little challenging for the ophthalmologist to get an updated script for her. It took us months for us to get an appointment on the books, thus it was all just unfortunate timing that Mira has an enormous seizure right then. By the end of the exam, Mira was still having some dystonia and odd movements, but they were able to give us an update on her vision. Basically, her astigmatism is slightly worse and her vision overall is slightly worse, but perhaps not enough to warrant getting a new pair of glasses. Based on the discussion we had the week before with the vision specialist and our most recent conversation with the ophthalmologist on Friday, the recommendation was for Mira to have an ERG done, as she has not had one for 8 or 9 years, when she was being monitored in Saint Louis for retinal toxicity while she was taking Vigabatrin. The feeling was that is would be a good idea now to monitor her retinal activity and for us to understand where she is at in terms of her overall vision picture.

Mira had a rough day after leaving ophthalmology - she continued to very lethargic and altered, having an afternoon of dystonic movements and small seizures. We ended up keeping her home the rest of the day and ultimately, we had to intervene with Diastat to try and break the cycle of seizure activity by mid-afternoon. She has had many of these episodes over the years, with a spike of activity over the past 2 years. Fortunately, the dystonia never seems to last more than 24 hours and Mira quickly rebounds. She was a little lethargic on Saturday but we had spectacular weather (60 degrees, breezy, and sunny) so Mira and I spent a lot of time outdoors going on walks. We did the same today, although it was colder and overcast. Mira didn't seem to mind. 

Jonah was battling a fever and cold most of the week, missing school Thursday and Friday, thus we ended up taking him to Mira's appointment with us. His fever broke on Saturday and today he is back to his old self. I could tell you that the next two weeks are going to be easier, but I would be lying. I have to head to New Brunswick this week and Virginia the week after, which leaves Sarah to hold down the fort while I'm gone. 

Vision Specialist

Today we met with ophthalmologist expert here in Kansas, who specializes in children with significant visual issues, particularly  Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI).  CVI is basically a disconnect between what the eye(s) see and the brain interprets - it is more of a neurological impairment than an actual visual one. Mira was diagnosed with CVI when she was very young and ended up receiving services through CCVI (Children's Center for the Visually Impaired) here in Kansas City, until she aged out of the system and entered the school district. Because of her constant neurological flux (hypsarrhythmia) it is extremely difficult for Mira to focus on much, if anything, for an extended period of time. Coupled with her extreme myopia, her actual visual processing ability is speculative at best. We do know that she can focus on her toy - the bright lights and motion are able to capture her attention, when she is in the right mood. The vision therapist she saw today was able to look at Mira's background and history to see if she could benefit from other alternative therapy approaches, so that Mira can reach her full visual potential. There wasn't any significant revelations during the appointment, however, it was great to hear someone else's expertise on how we might be able to help further her skills. Mira was able to maintain her composure throughout most of the appointment, although is slowly mastering her slouch in her new chair. An hour into the meeting, she had pretty much checked out and was ready to move on. We have an ophthalmology appointment next week, which will be interesting to find out if Mira's vision has changed at all over the last 12 months.