Miracles in Motion

Hi Everyone! We have some awesome news to give you in this blog update! Liam had a swallow study completed yesterday morning. It was by no means an easy task...Liam is scarred forever after the horrible experience  he had when he was 18 months during a swallow study- I was SO nervous and SO happy my amazing husband was with me so we could fight through this together. As soon as we walked thru those big doors and Liam saw the radiology machine and the vests come out he freaked out. For the first 10 minutes he did nothing but scream which broke my heart, we all kept trying to soothe him. I eventually broke down and turned on mickey mouse and it was a miracle in itself that I was able to get any reception! After his tantrums subsided we were able to get him to drink from a cup and he actually enjoyed it! After every sip he took we all cheered like he was a celebrity and he soaked up all that attention. During the study Liam drank from a regular cup (water mixed with barium) as well as from a straw and his sippy cup. The results showed immense improvement in Liam's ability to swallow. I cannot tell you how happy, proud, and blessed we feel....the emotion is literally too great for words...I am not even quite sure if it has all processed yet! Our miracles just keep showing up in so many different places, and even in the form of foundations, therapists doctors, and technologies. We could not be more grateful to have access to a place like Good Shepard Rehab, with Vital Stim therapy which may have made this miracle possible. This milestone is huge for us and I am thanking God! As a side note, the swallow study did not come back 100 % perfect, Liam still has somewhat of a delayed swallow reflex which is minor cause for concern and we will continue with therapy to attempt to improve this, but the big news is he is no longer at very high risk for aspiration, and now we can teach our little man how to drink from a big boy cup just like all the other kids in daycare... and even better we no longer need to teach family and caregivers how to mix the dreaded thick it into our sons drinks. We are absolutely thrilled. But this isn't the only news we have to share...

Liam has made HUGE improvements with physical therapy! Before when he would jump on his trampoline, or anywhere for that matter, his legs were stiff and rigid, and looked quite awkward. Liam didn't enjoy jumping on his trampoline for too long. With some Physical therapy and core strengthening Liam now bounces all over the place, and when he jumps and hops he lands with BENT knees with great ease. To see how much fun he now is having makes this mama so incredibly happy I could never find the words to explain. We are still looking into some minor issues with Liam's feet and ankles, and getting some orthotics in his shoes is being discussed. However,  we could not be happier with all of the improvements in Liam's development and we wanted to share with you the amazing things going on with our miracle baby. He makes us smile everyday. There are moments I want to be stern with him and we end up giggling so hard we have tears. He lights up my life in a way I never could have imagined, and I can't wait for what is to come.

That is all for now, the Nagy family sincerely hopes you all are staying warm and only going out in the snow for fun! Love to all, xoxo : )

Happy Birthday, Liam David!

Hi everyone! I hope the holidays treated you well, ours were happy and healthy! So a very special boy has a birthday coming up! On Friday 1/9/2015 at 2:13 pm Liam David will be TWO years old. I cannot understand how this is possible, the time has gone by so quickly! For some parents a two year old birthday might not seem like that big of a deal.....but for our family Liam's birthday will always be something to celebrate. In the hours after Liam's birth we were faced with the possibility that our baby might not make it, and that if he did his "capacity" would be unknown until a later date. For days on end we prayed our hearts out that our little fighter would come through, and he did in BIG ways. As a parent, these hours and days following Liam's birth made me realize that that I would NEVER take a single moment for granted....and also that I never wanted to be too far away from him for too long : ) Even though it has been 729 days of sheer miracles and triumph...... I still struggle with the weeks and days leading up to my son's birthday, and I believe a part of me always will. For the most part, I have conquered my demons surrounding the scary delivery we experienced, but during this time of year my anger and guilt begin to nag at me. There are several things that should have been different about my son's delivery- but at the end of the day it happened as God intended. No matter what, this is always where I end up...if it takes an hour or a week. Overall, I am just SO relieved that I get to enjoy this little miracle man as much as I do! His laughs and smiles are the light in my darkest of days, my hope when I feel low, and my motivation when I feel weak. There is nothing I wouldn't do to hear this little boy laugh or see his face light up.  I could let hours pass kicking a ball with him or playing with trains or make believe food....nothing in my life has made me as happy as being his mommy, and I am so grateful to see him thriving and doing so well. Liam is talking up a storm, and so physically strong sometimes I worry he is stronger than me! He is starting to communicate about what he wants, what he doesn't want, and even talking in phrases. It is SO funny how the first 6 months of development seemed to take a lifetime, and since then the developmental phases keep getting faster to the point that I cannot even keep up anymore!  He can count to ten in English and Spanish, and can say his ABC's! One of the most frequent words out of his mouth is "mickey!" I am pretty sure my child loves mickey mouse more than chocolate, if this is possible : )  For now we continue with our stim and PT sessions at Good Shepard waiting for some positive results....but if nothing else my husband and I know we have a truly special child that makes this world a better place to live in! Dysphagia and some mild low tone aren't enough to get us down... if anything it has made us a stronger, happier family! We learn to laugh at the little things, not to cry over spilled milk, and keep on keeping on! So happy birthday to a little man who had a rough start, who's first breath left him forever a warrior in our eyes, who continues to show us the beauty of strong will, the strength of a fighting spirit, and remind us how a deep belly laugh can change our entire day, and of course that angels really do watch over us! Liam David you have stolen our hearts, transformed our lives for the better, and continue to make us SO proud everyday! We love you!!! <3