IPTI - Day 3 of 13

July 3, 2013

Day 3 of intensive PT has been good. No crying today! Hunter's balance is improving so fast! Today he was able to stand in the spider cage with only 4 bungees rather than the regular 8. He sat on a bench by himself without falling off and his feet were dangling. His favorite part of the day is the stander because he gets snacks and iPad time. He is looking so big to me! I am so proud of him!

Sergio working with the Neurosuit.  Hunter has finally decided that therapy isn't so bad.

  Hunter working in the squat position....and sucking on the Neurosuit ties.

The stander soon became Hunter's favorite time.  He had snack, drink and iPad time.  He is wearing a hat so that he gets used to the sensation of having something on his head.  When when Sergio uses Hunter's head to help support him while walking  Hunter gets so preoccupied by what is on his head that he forgets to focus on walking.  We hope the hat will help.....if not, at least it is cute.

Cage time again.  I think this is the hardest for Hunter.  The bungees help his muscles compensate for the opposite side of his body being pulled on. By having that force on both sides of his body he strengthens muscles and feels what proper balance should feel like. 

 We get a break tomorrow and Friday and then we will be back for day 4 on Monday!

IPTI - Day 2 of 13

July 2, 2013.

Day 2 of intensive therapy for Hunter went awesome!! He improved his static standing (standing in one spot without help) from 7 seconds on Monday to 20 seconds on Tuesday!! His balance has already improved so much. He also took 8 STEPS!! He consistently took 4-5 steps but did hit 8 one time! So proud of little Hunter.

Hunter will start to work on trunk control, responsive behavior (putting out hands to catch himself when falling), lowering his center of gravity, and narrowing his base (keeping his feet closer together instead of so spread out) to allow for weight shifting.


Here he is working with Muriel in the Neurosuit and watching his DVD.  The DVD helped him to relax and not fight the movements.

 Here he is with Sergio in the spider cage.

Here Sergio is having Hunter walk out of the spider cage.

Hunter did not like this position but it helped him feel upright while walking and help create the proper center of balance.

Here Hunter is taking steps on his VERY OWN!

So proud of the little guy!

IPTI - Day 1 of 13

July 1, 2013

Day 1 of intense therapy went well. Hunter cried pretty hard at first but the good old iPad brought him out of it. 

Here are some pictures for today!
The first thing Hunter did was some stretching and position holds and then he got fitted with the Neuro suit. This suit helps align all of his joints and muscles in the proper position. It has bungees all over it! Sergio is an amazing therapist!  (That's Reese in the background working with Muriel).

 The next thing Hunter did was stand in the stander. This allows gravity to work on his hip, knee and ankle joints all in one exercise with gravity doing its work. This is when he got a snack and a drink.

The next thing he did was get in the spider cage. This is where they put a belt on him with bungees in 4 directions. This helps him do things "on his own" without falling one way or the other. He didn't  love this activity but he warmed up to it.

 

He was one tired boy. I am learning as I go and all of this will become more comfortable for me too!

Day 2 of 13 tomorrow!!

IPTI - Intense Physical Therapy Institute

 July 1 - 19, 2013.

Hunter did some pretty intense physical therapy at Intensive Physical Therapy Institute.  This therapy was 4 hours a day, 5 days a week for 3 weeks in a row.  He did a 15 day session (he actually only did therapy for 13 days because he was off for the 4th and the 5th for our annual Ophir trip).  We went to therapy everyday to the afternoon session from 1:00 - 5:00 pm.

Prior to starting therapy, Hunter could not stand unassisted for more than 2-3 seconds and could only take 1-2 steps before collapsing to the ground.  Goal in therapy is to improve!!

Justin and Fisher were great to go to different tenders and had fun playing with cousins.  Hunter and I went to therapy everyday.  Tyler took Hunter one Friday and I took the Justin and Fisher to the movie.

This was a good experience for Hunter and for our family.  Hunter made good progress and gained a lot of strength.  We made some really good friends while at therapy.  There are only 2 kids in therapy at a time and we were lucky enough to pair up with Reese and his mom, Carla.

I will be posting pictures of each day with a little about that day.

Justin's 6 - The Friend Party

June 26, 2013.

Justin was able to celebrate his 6th birthday with his friends on his actual birthday.  Naturally, Justin wanted a water party.  So a water party we had.  The blow up water slide was the main attraction.

and of course, the tramp was a big hit.

Then there was the race across the back yard.  This was the 1st wave....

...the 2nd wave....

...now all at once!

Next, there was Red-Rover-Red-Rover.

Send Kiera right over!

Red-Rover-Red-Rover send someone right thru the sprinkler!

Then all the kids got their own water squirter.  

The pool at the water slide was so convenient to full back up.

Then we took a break for presents.

Fisher thought it was his birthday.  That's whats so awesome about having brothers.

The whole crew:  Back row: Wyatt Page, Cameron Nault, Elli Dangerfield, MacKay Meyer, Tommy Thiriot, Nate Muse, and Justin.  Front row: Estin Oswald, Kiera Saunders, Alexia Recksiek, Keegan Worthen, Tyler "T" Muse, and Jason Christiansen.  MIA is Fisher and Soren.

Treats consisted of chocolate cupcakes, ice cream cones and lemonade.

T, Nate and Cameron

Kiera and Alexia

After treats it was back to the water and the squirters. 

Kiera, Elli and MacKay

Then of course it turned into a water fight....

Boys against Girls!  I would say the girls are a little out numbered!!

It was an awesome birthday party.  There were no tears and the kids had fun!  Success!! 

 Happy 6th Birthday Justin!!

Justin's 6 - The Family Party

June 23, 2013.

This year the birthday celebrations started with the family party at Sunrise Meadows Park.  Justin was really excited and liked his birthday cakes.

Justin and his best buddy Fisher and cousin Keegan.

It was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle birthday party.  Kjell did a little reminiscing of his "Turtle es" days.  It was fun.

 Blowing out the candle.....

Hunter missed the entire thing.  He feel asleep in his high chair...sunglasses and all. 

Happy Birthday Justin!  We love you so much! 

Justin's 6 - The Birthday Cake

June 22, 2013.

Nothing's better than a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Cake for a little boy who is turning 6 years old!  Justin has been very into Leonardo lately so he was the winner and became the face of Justin's birthday cake!

First, I started with a white frosting base.  I traced the shape I wanted by using a toothpick to trace the template I got online.

Next, I started with Leonardo's blue eye mask.

Then I added his eyes and his smile.

 Lastly, I finished Leonardo off with a green face. 

I was pretty proud of myself for creating this beauty of a Turtle cake.  The boys really liked it and was impressed too.

If only making the cake really only took 4 steps I would do this kind of cake more often.  I love making fun cakes for the boys on their birthdays.  We are now ready for the party.