Pure Joy

I have some news to share with you.

My little girl, she brushed her hair all by herself.

Why is this a big deal?

Because she has never brushed her own hair (for real) by herself!!! I am talking knots all gone and all we have to do is pull it back into a ponytail. The even bigger deal here is that a year ago, we never could have seen this happening.  Her mind had been so bogged down with her seizures, things we think to be so easy for a 9 year old girl, she was incapable of doing.

But in the past  couple weeks we have seen moment after moment. Thing after thing. Breakthrough after breakthrough. I am over the moon and am having a hard time having the right words to describe how amazing this truly is.

A year ago, before her seizures had ended, we were so unsure of anything for her future. Unsure if she would be able to complete even the simplest tasks of dressing herself, brushing her own teeth and hair, carrying any sort of conversation or chore, and so much more. And even after the seizures had gone we were worried about the fallout of so many seizures, the impact of her being so behind, and if she was even able to truly learn.

Some of the other things we have been seeing are:

1.Desires to try.
2.Desires to help.
3.Using her words to tell us what she actually wants.
4.Fighting with her brother.
5.Arguing with us.
6.Following through on tasks.
7.Engaging with people around her. e.g. cashiers, servers, and even family.
8.Taking initiative for tasks.
9.Only needing verbal cues, rather than hand over hand ever time.
10.Stretching her imagination.
11.Wants to colour and play more than tv.
12.Troting in her theyputic riding!!!
13.Following directions.
14.Able to hold more than one to-do in her mind at a time.
15.She makes joke, not good ones, but still its a milestone she has never passed before.

Okay, so 4 and 5 might sound odd. And sure, I don't like having push back from my kid. But this stage in development happens usually when our kids are 2, 3, 4 and 5. A stage of trying their limits. She has never done this. In the past she would go along with whatever her brother wanted to do or play. And generally she was very compliant with her dad and I.  

Almost a year ago, when she stopped having seizures the first thing we noticed was how easily she would melt down into tears over things that had never bothered her before. Or she would even begin crying for no apparent reason. We have watched her feel emotions she has never really been able to take hold of before. Feel the emotions and learn what they mean and what to do with them. Something that for so many is just something we naturally learn to do at a young age in our development. We are seeing fear, anger, sadness, happiness, pure joy, frustration and determination on her face these days instead of the constant absent and spacey look she would have dawned most days in the past. And my heart bursts with each new moment. Having taken on a new view of my life lately. Trying to be more purposeful. Take days slower. Planning less. Doing less and noticing more. We are seeing her little mind blossom. Something I never thought I'd see.

I have no idea what tomorrow brings. But today I choose to be so thankful. So happy. So thrilled to know she can learn. That she can progress. And hopefully one day she will have a life of her own. These moments have restored my hope tank to the full mark. And I am so thankful to God for that.