2 posts tagged “children”
I am very proud to say that when I finally felt it was appropriate to tell my daughter about a tragic incident which befell a friend of hers from a prior elementary school, my daughter took the initiative (I did not suggest it) to gather her friends and organize a lemonade and candy sale in our neighborhood with very little adult intervention, only minor guidance, to help out the Friends of Olivia Foundation. She and the neighborhood kids spent two days pulling together with little adult help to sell lemonade and candy (or at least solicit donations) at 50 cents each. Due to their diligence, they raised $100 and I was so proud of all of them!!! Leave it to children...
Olivia is a 9 year old girl, who until recently was healthy and athletic [Read our local news article from 10/31/07 here with pictures.]. Tragically, she one day started having trouble with her legs and fell. Her father and mother took her to urgent care, which suggested she be moved to a large regional medical facility. While there, her limbs went numb and over two days, she became paralyzed from the neck down. She has had many complications, is finally breathing on her own through a trach, but there are no answers to why this has happened. There is no spinal cord injury that anyone can detect and they have not been able to attribute it to any other known cause. She has been in the hospital since August 13th, 2007 and her parents are hoping to be able to raise the money, through the help of friends, neighbors and community and the kindness of strangers to bring her home where they will need a house equipped to deal with her special needs, plus the right wheel chair which can be mouth operated and outside care.
Spinal cord injuries, especially one of this magnitude are relatively uncommon in children. Please pray for Olivia, as this is unimaginably stressful for her, her family and those who know her. If you would like to contribute to the Olivia Beam Foundation in any amount the address to send a check of any amount is (Please note on the check you heard about it through Java Jane's Vox Blog):
Middletown, NY 10941
Friends of Oliva Foundation Website
This was in my email box this AM, and since Mother's Day is Sunday, I thought this was fitting to post:
Your Clothes:
1st baby: You begin wearing maternity
clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes
for as long as possible.
3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE
your regular clothes.
______________________________________________________
Preparing for the Birth:
1st baby: You practice your breathing
religiously.
2nd baby: You don't bother because you
remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing for you.
3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in
your eighth month.
______________________________________________________
The Layette:
1st baby: You pre-wash newborn's
clothes, colour-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's
little bureau.
2nd baby: You check to make sure that
the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't
they?
______________________________________________________
Worries:
1st baby: At the first sign of
distress-a whimper, a frown-you pick up the baby.
2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her
wails threaten to wake your firstborn.
3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old
how to rewind the mechanical swing.
____________________________________________________
Pacifier:
1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the
floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the
floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.
3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt
and pop it back in.
______________________________________________________
Diapering:
1st baby: You change your baby's diapers
every hour, whether they need it or not.
2nd baby: You change their diaper every
two to three hours, if needed.
3rd baby: You try to change their diaper
before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to
their knees.
______________________________________________________
Activities:
1st baby: You take your infant to Baby
Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.
2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby
Gymnastics.
