Summer 2019

This summer is over and Back to School is this week. This summer has gone by incredibly fast! We have had a fun summer spending time in the pool, traveling home to OK and a week in San Diego. There have also been therapy sessions for Cydney as well as some summer school days to help keep her on track for this upcoming year.

Summer kicked off with celebrating Nathan's 7th birthday.

Cydney received her hearing aids. She has moderate hearing loss in the high frequency sounds, meaning the consonants such as s, h and f are harder for her to hear and distinguish. The hearing aids along with a microphone her teachers can wear to amplify their voice to her hearing aids will assist in the classroom environment.

The pool is a daily activity, lots of time spent in the pool over the summer.

Before leaving for OK, Cydney was scheduled for an MRI. To ensure there is no new growth and everything is as it should be. These days always bring some anxiety, until the results are in. Thankfully we are able to get results the same day.  Due to the early morning appointments we made it an overnight trip to Phoenix and stayed in the Ronald McDonald house close to the hospital. Results came back clear and doctors were pleased with Cydney's progress since her last scans. She will now be placed in the survivors clinic group for her following scans. Yay!

Fun with family in Oklahoma:
We are always happy and excited to get time with family. Giving the kids time with their extended family is something we miss living so far away.

Met with a fellow Medulloblastoma family and other Childhood Cancer families at a Family Event held by Families Fighting Childhood Cancer Organization in Tulsa. It was great to finally meet a family we met online and have been talking to and following their similar journey. 

Spa Day for Cydney

San Diego:
When we went on Cydney's Wish trip earlier this year, one additional perk we received from Give Kids the World is a Passport offering complimentary admission to attractions and parks around the country to be used in the year following our wish trip. With a TDY for Jared scheduled in San Diego mid July, we decided to tag along and take advantage of a few places there.

First up was the San Diego Zoo,

Next we went to Belmont Park to ride rides and play games.

Nathan just made the cut of in height and weight to do the Zipline.

Her "Super Lily" pose

Making our way through the Lazer Maze

Sea World was not part of the Passport, we were able to get free Military tickets.

Finally we went to the Safari Park. After several days of parks everyone was tired, we made it a quick trip to the Safari Park that day. Seeing the Cheetah Run was the favorite of the day.

We spent our final day enjoying the beach and a squadron lunch.

Now we are back home and preparing for the start of School on Aug 1st. The plan is to start Cydney on full days this year. She is excited and ready to be in school full time. We will also be working in therapy sessions after school. This summer she has gotten stronger and her balance is improving. She is able to walk with her walker for the duration of the day. She is steady enough to hold my hand and walk slowly.  She uses the wheelchair only for long days where the walking would take a toll on her energy level and ability to enjoy the activity.

Looking forward to a great school year!