Benjamin was five years old when he got his first wheelchair. I talk about the day often -- the joy on his face when he realized he could talk AND get to where he wanted to go simultaneously changed his life. But perhaps I have failed to discuss the purchase itself.  First, I was emotional: facing the fact that Benjamin needed powered mobility had been a hard stretch for me. I had fought, denied, worked for any other solution. (I know that was silly in hindsight but I was a young mom and had no experience whatsoever with this.) Second, I was practical: we needed a chair that I coul ..read more

Benjamin is 26 years old. He got his first wheelchair at 5. So we have been rolling this road for 21 years. Hmm. (The fact that his wheelchair journey is old enough to drink is making me giggle through my stress as I type.) That first chair was an easy pick: We needed powered mobility that could ALSO fold up and go in my non-accessible mini-van. We were in residency, our financial situation was pretty much watching for the generic mac and cheese to go on sale for 4/$1 and throwing in a chicken nugget when the budget allowed. Anderson's Wheelchair was kind and understanding, and walked me thro ..read more

There are no photos but I very much wish you could see the three little girls swinging on the swing set they found behind the little shop their parents were working every single night to turn into a beauty shop. We didn't know then the enormity of our parents' undertaking. We pumped our little legs to go higher and higher but didn't understand it was our mothers taking the real risk. And we certainly didn't understand how long lasting and far reaching their business would be. 49 years. It lasted 49 years. This week, my sweet mom and her dear sister have announced that they are closing the d ..read more

We just returned from a fantastic two weeks of all six of us together for the first time in a long time. It was amazing, and hard, and fun, and stressful, and so so good. Really just so so good. In full disclosure: The airline forgot to load the wheelchair onto our return plane. And then when we finally had the manual chair brought from baggage claim and loaded with Benjamin and made it to our van, it would not start. But such are the perils of traveling. Car batteries die. And sadly, just as frequently, airlines mishandle wheelchairs. There is no excuse for the latter. But tonight I am choosi ..read more

The memories on my social media feeds remind me of summers past. Not that I could forget.  The feed of photos from the triplets' teen years could explain why my stomach knots up when I think about our time in Arizona. One surgery after another.  One hard recovery after another. One summer spent squeezing in fun around all the therapies, the casts, the incisions that needed to heal. (I would be remiss if I didn't point out that my memory feed also points to amazing friends who stood with us, prayed with us, sent movies and meals to us -- from near and far! We a ..read more

We had made it almost ten years without Benjamin needing anesthesia for anything at all. 2013 was a year that scarred us more than a little because of the multiple surgeries he required but honestly he had already had more than I can count before that year happened.  Regardless it had been ten years. Ten wonderful, glorious, no-need-to-panic-fret-and-bake-all-the-cookies years.  And really, today was not a huge deal. He needed an endoscopy and that required him to be sedated. No big deal really.  Except that in the ten years since his last surgery, Benjamin has aged ten years ..read more

The little girl was standing with her mother when the elevator doors opened. She looked at Mason with his crutches and her eyes grew round with wonder. "But, wha?" "I mean what?" "Wha...." I am not sure if her mother was tightening her grip and that is why she couldn't form the sentence entirely. Seconds passed as Mason and I made our way with our luggage off of the elevator as she stammered and tried to form what she desperately wanted to ask: "But what is wrong with him? Why does he use THOSE??" she finally got her questions out as she pointed to Mason's crutches (if you have been around h ..read more

My cutting garden looked beautiful and sad simultaneously when I returned home from a week away. My Zinnias were more bountiful and colorful than in previous years, affirming my decision to plant them in a different spot this season. But they almost looked as if something large had flattened them in areas -- oh they were still blooming, but they were laying down!  From my garden. I am a complete gardening-novice even though this is my third growing year. I tweaked my garden set-up this spring to make it manageable throughout our very busy softball summer but I still am guessin ..read more

The little statue stands sentinel over my garden.  Though not scary in the least, I trust him to keep away anything that might intend harm to my seedlings as they begin to grow, sprout, and offer the food that is their potential. Yesterday I was sorting through old photos and happened upon these that documented the bright, vibrant colors that adorned this little garden statue when my trio gifted him to me for Mother's Day one year. I see this mother holding bright and shiny Mickey and I smile. I was just a few years into my own journey of standing sentinel over the little see ..read more

Sailing into April 18 with a rapid speed feels just about right. The last few months -- ok, the last two years -- are so weird time-wise. Will we as a people struggle to assign a timeline to our memories of these days? The anchor points are lacking for me. No big travels. No fun gatherings of loved ones. It is just weird, right?  And this year, rushing toward April 18 feels as if someone pushed the 2x button and we are really going in fast forward speed. Quite the exact opposite of the April that made this date so significant. Quite different from the snail's pace in which time moved a ..read more