Day Thirty-one - Thankful

There are so many things I am thankful for. But, I think I am most thankful that I have these crazy Angry Birds to share this life with me and with Evan.

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Day Thirty - Laugh

Fortunately, Evan is a happy boy who laughs a lot. Especially when he is surrounded by the people and stuffies he loves the most...

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Day Twenty-nine - Blessed

We are blessed to have met so many amazing people along our journey. One of Evan's favorite people is his fiancé, Evie, who is also a stroke survivor. He proposed marriage last summer, she accepted, and he sent her a ring. We are blessed to have Evie, her family, and our CHASA family in our lives.

 

 

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Day Twenty-eight - Community

I have always said how fortunate we are to have the constant support of our friends, family and extended family at Evan's daycare, Bright Ideas. While I usually think about my community giving me the support I need, I sometimes forgot how important Evan's community is. I love his Bright Ideas friends and the fact that they love him, challenge him, play with him, and support him in their own way!

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Day Twenty-seven - Encouragement

On Evan's first day of track, while Evan and his friends from Kinetic Kids were running as fast as they could, the University of the Incarnate Word football team stopped practice to cheer on them on. I  love that they took time out of their schedule to encourage my son and others like him. Go Cardinals!

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Day Twenty-six - Knowledge

While we have learned a ton as a stroke family, one of the things that I am most proud of is sharing our knowledge of pediatric stroke with others.

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Day Twenty-five - Wish

I love this picture of Evan. It was his fourth birthday, and he loved Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Our fabulous cake lady wanted to make the clubhouse out of Rice Krispy treats, but there was a structural problem with the ear. It didn't bother Evan one bit, and I found myself wishing he would always be as happy and easy going as he was at that party!

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Day Twenty-four - Support

We are incredibly blessed with an amazing support system of family, friends, therapists, and teachers. But, what impresses me most is the support Evan receives from HIS friends.

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Day Twenty-three - Achievement

Evan is a smart little boy and an amazing student. One of his greatest achievements this year is earning a perfect score on each of his spelling tests during Word Check Wednesday.

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Day Twenty-two - Fashion

Evan is usually a comfortably-dressed, easy going little guy, but I must admit he cleans up well. Here he is getting his Kinder graduation picture taken.

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My little fashion designer.

Day Twenty-one - Comfort

Evan is definitely completely comfortable and clearly in his happy place.

 

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Day Twenty - Old

Today I wanted to find an "old" picture of my kids. I stumbled across this Christmas card picture from the year Evan was born. Now I feel old...

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Day Nineteen - New

Evan walked around all day saying it was his special day because he had new shoes...

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Day Eighteen - Faith

When you have a child who is a stroke survivor, you have to have faith in yourself and, more importantly, in you child. Evan didn't walk until he was 25 months old, but we had faith in him.

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Olivia's tribute to her Dad.

Day Seventeen - Fun

Evan though Evan loves his Mom, he always has fun hanging out with his Dad.

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Olivia's picture is a tribute to Blake Shelton.

Day Sixteen - Beauty

No comment can describe the beauty of this photo...

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Olivia is a beauty, as you can tell by her self-portrait.

Day Fifteen - Technology

On Mother's Day, our friends at Bright Ideas assembled a beautiful gift from the kinder class to their Moms. Most kids wrote, I love my mom because she helps me read, or she snuggles me, or she puts Band-aids on my boo boos. Evan wrote, "I love my mom because she lets me play on her iPad." (Notice the correct spelling of iPad and that he is actually holding the iPad in the picture...)

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Olivia's version of Evan playing Angry Birds on the iPad...

Day Fourteen - Friends

From day one of our pediatric stroke journey, we have been blessed with very supportive friends and family. We couldn't do what we do without them. Some of our greatest friends, advocates, and supporters have been the amazing team members of Bright Ideas, who honor Evan every May with purple shirt day.

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Inspired by one of my favorite songs, "Sad" by Maroon 5...

Day Thirteen - Family

Family has always been super important to me. We've worked hard to reinforce the importance of family for our children. Nick and Olivia love their Evan had he loves them right back (most of the time...).

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Day Twelve - Lucky

On this Mother's Day, I am blessed and lucky to be Evan's mom.

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Day Eleven - Determined

Since day one, Evan has been determined to overcome his stroke. One of my favorite pictures which I really think shows determination was taken during the winter of 2011 when he was doing his second round of constraint therapy. He was using "righty" to play Connect Four!

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Day Ten - Happy

The truth is, Evan is one of the happiest kids I know. The joy he brings to people's lives and the joy he gets out of his own life is inspirational for all who know him.

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Day Nine - Adapted

When Evan was diagnosed with having had a stroke, Marvin and I decided we would help him to have the most normal life possible. So, we haven't adapted many things for him, but he has adapted to his situation better than I could have ever expected.

Evan getting ready for his two week Constraint Therapy session.

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More Harry Potter...

Day Eight - Talented

Three weeks ago, Evan competed in the Texas Regional Games track meet. Not only was he the youngest competitor, but my talented little athlete won one gold, one silver, and two bronze medals in his events.

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Olivia wanted to show off her talent as an artist with her picture today. Clearly inspired by the Power Puff Girls.

Day Seven - Excited

Nothing makes me happier than when Evan gets excited about something. For a child who has been through so much and who has to work so hard, it is a special moment when he is excited about something. This picture was taken on his first ferris wheel ride with his sister. (Yes, I was a nervous wreck.)

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In this Power Puff Girls-like self-portrait, Olivia is excited about receiving mail from Hogwarts.