Settling into a routine

No news is good news on the medical front and Clay continues to do well on the current protocol.  We have been busy getting back into a school routine, after a long and wonderful summer.  Clay has his same wonderful braille teacher, his same wonderful O&M teacher, and two new wonderful classroom teachers, so I won't complain that it took three years to reach this point...

On the recreation front, Clay has started horse riding lessons horses at Sprout.  This is a therapeutic horseriding center for kids with various disabilities.  The owner / founder is a former school teacher, who was left money by her uncle (who was paralyzed by polio) to do something to empower youths with disabilities.  So, her family bought 17 acres in Aldie, Va., and here we are.   Clay has already trotted, gone outside on trail rides, and is learning to direct his horse "Pippin" to go where he needs to go.  I imagine the movement must feel wonderful to Clay as he travels on Pippin through space no longer easily accessible to him. 

 

Second class, "Look mom, no hands!"   I love watching him concentrate while he is riding Pippin, but of course, being Clay, he still manages to get in lots of talking and laughing during his lessons.

Fall is a busy fundraising season and we have various races and activities going on: A 5K race in Washington DC on October 3 to support the brain tumor trouncer team at Children's Hospital; a 5K race on October 25 in Aldie to support Sprout, and a Tae Kwan Do kick-a-thon on October 3 to support the Adaptive Tae Kwan Do class that Clay does on Saturday's.  Let me know if you would like to participate in any of these events and I can give you more information.  

And the most meaningful family event this month, our wonderful Grace turns 13 on September 25th. Hold onto your reigns Clay, a teenager is in the house!