First week back!

To combat the Sunday night jitters we invited a group of Ally's girl friends over from school. Ally was anxiously awaiting their arrival. I had no idea she could stand on the couch and peer out the window. Turns out she is quite accomplished at this. 

4 friends were able to join us. Ellie (in green) top left, Maya, Elsa, Daniela then Ally. The girls were making "creations" in the kitchen. In edible dough like concoctions. I didn't care, I just wanted Ally to have fun with friends. They played on the Kinect, ate snacks, did the kitchen experiments and played more Kinect. I am so grateful to guess families who made time to bring their daughters over on their busy Sunday's so that Ally could reaquaint herself with friends before her first day back on Monday. 

Kinect Dance Party was a huge hit. 

None of them girls had heard of Xbox or Kinect until then. It made me laugh, because if Ally hadn't been at the Clinic she probably would not have either. 

Later that night relaxing with some ice cream and a game with mama.

School went well this week for Ally. She got thru every day. She said she had some pain, but she climbed and played everyday at recess. In gym class they were doing sprints as part of physical fitness tests, and Ally isn't up for that yet, so she was a judge. Becky and I had a much rougher school week. 3 meetings with the principal and a parent teacher conference. Turns out it's a little difficult to get your child the services you feel she deserves after a long medical absence. In the end we feel pretty good about the plan, and expect another meeting soon to finalize things. 

In bad news, Cloey needs knee surgery. Her knee cap is not formed properly. It's common in small dogs, but she is young and in excellent health, and surgery is the best option. Above is her in the car after I took her to the animal hospital for a surgical consult. Surgery is scheduled for May 6. The hardest part will be the 6-8 week recovery period during which Cloey is not allowed on any furniture. Ugh that will be tough for our cuddle bug. 

Our movie star gymnast! It was super sunny on the way to practice so Ally wore my sunglasses. She made it thru 90 minutes of practice and for the first time in months was able to all normally after practice and didn't need any ibuprofen. It was fantastic.

Thursday night Ally had a salad for dinner. This is what she ate for lunch everyday at the clinic. (The patients went to the hospital cafeteria and ordered their own lunches everyday.) Ally had a salad of shredde carrots, chicken and cherry tomatoes. No dressing, no other vegetables or toppings. 

She was thrilled to eat a salad again!

Thursday morning, savoring time with Cloey on her head watching TV in the morning before school. 

Friday was CELEBRATION DAY!!!!

A few months ago we promised Ally a new 2 wheel scooter if she stopped wearing her ankle brace at school. We agreed that this week was it! No brace or ace bandage all week, stairs and no elevator, we walked to school and home most days! Definitely celebration time. After a trip to Target for the scooter and some other fun items and essentials, we went out for pancakes for dinner! Ally had chocolate chip pancakes and a chocolate milkshake.

Becky ordered the "The Hungry Person" special. It was a HUGE plate of food. 

We went for a walk around the block, to test out the new scooter when we got home.

Ally always puts safety first and asked for her helmet. Then we started out.

I couldn't stop taking pictures of her feet.

That right foot down on the scooter, full weight balanced on that right foot as she pushes with her left one. 

It's so incredible to see this. 

On Saturday Ally had ballet and while she was extremely worried before hand about being in class without her ace bandage or brace for the first time in 6 months, she had a fantastic class. Her teacher told us privately after class she was amazed. It was like Ally was her pre-October self. She said not just in ability but in attitude, there was laughter and silliness and focus and hard work. It really reinforced to Becky and I that Ally's time at the clinic was worth it. Really worth it.