New Year's resolution - post more to the blog. I must say that Susan and I are extremely happy to close the book on 2011. It was certainly a rough year, though we are eternally optimistic that things will only get better for our baby boy. Reflecting back, I'm extremely proud of how we have handled everything and what we have been able to do since learning of Noah's diagnosis. We could have crawled under a rock - and we often wanted to during those early days. Susan has been amazing - she is truly tireless. Our friends and family have provided an amazing support system - we couldn't have moved forward without you.
And Noah - our beautiful son - has proved to be the strongest person I've ever met in my life and he's now just 15 months old. To think that there was a very real possibility that we would never have met him 15 months ago brings tears to my eyes. I cannot imagine my life without him - he makes me better at everything. Despite all of the crap he has to go through, he remains the happiest kid I've ever seen. He particularly loves other kids and animals. He loves to eat; he loves peek-a-boo; he loves books; he loves to be chased around the house; he's extremely ticklish.
His schedule is hectic, to say the least. He has two physical therapy visits, one occupational therapy visit and a class he goes to each week. He also goes to Children's once a month for another therapy visit and then periodic visits with the neurologists, orthopedists and other various specialists. Susan and I continue to do the constraint therapy with him each day (with one off day per week). And, somehow, he still has a big smile on his face. Also, and most importantly, he continues to make progress with the use of his right arm (which currently is his biggest developmental challenge). He's really close to being able to pull himself up to stand - he does so to his knees now. We hope he'll manage that soon and also hopefully start walking within the next few months (may need a brace as his foot is turned out). His speech seems to be developing without any delay relative to other kids as he has all sorts of noises and some words - though he doesn't seem to consistently know what he's saying yet.
Want to keep this somewhat brief - as mentioned, we'll be better on the blog. Here are a few videos from this afternoon's constraint therapy session - ignore the background music!
