Summer Camp at Roundup River Ranch

We took Jake to camp on June 8th and he got back this past Monday. He was excited to go in the days leading up to camp and even took the news he couldn't have his phone to listen music pretty well (listening to Rush is what he does when he's chilling and needs to recharge).

We got to camp, got him checked in through the medical team and then headed to his cabin. When we were getting ready to leave, I think reality set in that he would be there for six days on his own and he got a little emotional. I had to leave the room because I was on the verge of losing it and didn't want to make things worse. The counselor noticed what was going on, reassured me it was normal and then got Jake engaged in a game. We said our goodbyes and left. I'm so glad Todd was able to go up with me to drop him off because I was a bit teary for the first part of the drive home. While I had complete faith and trust in the staff at the camp, it was really hard to leave Jake. I had so many thoughts going through my head....Would he have fun? Would he make some friends? Would he ask for help if he needed it? He was on his own for the first time since his stroke and didn't know a soul. We are so tuned into when he needs help with something and these people didn't know him, add to that he doesn't always ask for help when he needs it.

It was so strange not having him home, he is pretty much always here. He doesn't go to friends houses very often or to sleepovers like Luke, so his lack of presence was really noticed. Luke commented more than once how quiet it was with Jake gone. I tried to keep busy, but found myself often wondering what he might be doing at that moment or if he was making friends. I broke down emailed the camp recruiter on Friday to check in. She said he was being a little shy and quiet around the other kids but was really enjoying the activities and had just got back from archery. She also said he was drumming that night for "stage night." Nothing she said surprised me, but it was so reassuring to know he was ok rather than wonder.

Jake had decided before he left for camp that he'd ride the bus home and we picked him up from Children's Hospital. (The camp is about three hours away from where we live).  Luke and I went to pick him and I had so much nervous energy waiting for the bus to arrive. It's truly a different experience picking up a child when he's been to this type of camp. It wasn't your typical all the kids unload in a free for all and find their parents. First, there were eight wheelchairs unloaded, all the luggage, three big tubs of medication and an oxygen machine. It gave me a whole extra level of respect for what they do to make camp possible for these kids. We had to get in line, show an ID, give our PIN and sign our kids out. Then they gave back any unused medications and finally called your child to get off the bus. I was so thankful we got there early and only had to wait behind three other people, I needed to see Jake! It was so good to lay eyes on him again.

He said he had a good time and would want to go back again. Success!! He didn't really make any friends, but honestly that didn't really surprise me. It takes him a lot longer now to connect with people and with all the activities they had going on, there just wasn't enough time. He still enjoyed himself and got along just fine. He's been a little more self-sufficient since getting home which is cool to see. All in all, I am so pleased things went well and can't wait to go as a family in October.

Surgery, Bike Rides and Camp

There is nothing quite like having to tell your son he needs to have foot surgery, that was an emotionally draining conversation. We decided not to get into too many details at this point and presented the big picture, then let him ask questions. Just knowing he is having surgery this summer and will have issues walking for awhile post surgery was enough to digest. Just knowing what he did and that he'll be losing almost a month of summer left him pretty upset. It was really important to us to let him feel he had a say in this and make decisions as appropriate. He decided not to do his intensive PT in June that we had planned since we'll be doing so much therapy post surgery. We also talked with his rehab doctor on Thursday and opted not to get botox in his leg this time. He would only have the benefit of it for a month before surgery, so why put him through the shots. We really hate to have his surgery in the summer, but the alternative of waiting until August would present so many more challenges and require him to miss the first couple weeks of school. 

On a much lighter and happier note, we did our first "official" bike ride today!  It was Elephant Rock in Castle Rock will several different rides to choose from all the way up to 100 miles, we choose the 8 mile family ride. After a slightly bumpy start with a flat tire that had to be repaired not once, but twice, we had a great time! It was such a beautiful day with the route going along this really nice path. We got to ride with Adaptive Adventures which was also cool, they had about 11 people participating today. The boys did great, but Jake was pretty wiped out by the time we were done. 

Jake heads off to camp at Roundup River Ranch on Wednesday. He's getting pretty excited and we've been talking a lot about all the great stuff he'll get to do. I think it's going to be such a good experience for him. It will be a long six days here wondering how things are going but I'm sure Luke will keep me busy.