organized CHAOS

I am starting early...

I know I wasn't going to start until April 1st- but I was getting antsy and John is out of town for the next few days and I am sick in bed and getting bored- so here it goes.
This week Corynn started gymnastics and swim lessons. Corynn has Erbs Palsey in her right arm which affects the movements she can make with her elbow and shoulder. She can't reach straight up and is a little weak in the right bicep. She can't reach out to the side without twisting her arm down and pulling it back and also has a hard time making big circles with her right arm- which she really hasn't had to use until now. In fact we thought she was near 100% until last fall when the twins were trying to teach her to jump rope. She is still much better than ever expected and we are thrilled with her recovery. But being a mom- I worry about her getting frustrated or getting made fun of because of certain movements she can't do. John and I have always FYI'd her teachers and now her instructors so they know, and we have also told them not to give her special treatment- let her try and she usually finds a way to do it. With her gymnastics class- there is actually another girl with Erb's Palsey. Hers is a much more severe case of the palsey than Corynn's. Her mom and I talked through the entire class and it was interesting to talk to someone who has gone through such similar experiences. Her daughter didn't get the primary surgery until she was 2 and Corynn had hers when we she was 3 months. On the way home, I just thought about how thankful I am for the blessings and advice we got immediately after Corynn's birth. Things could have turned out so differently.
With the swimming- she lacks the movements required to do the crawl stroke and breast stroke. But on the first day she figured a way to tweak the arm movement on the crawl stroke and still accomplish the pull. It was crazy- her instructor was amazed! And she is going to work with Corynn on her arm pull for the breast stroke and see if there is a technique Corynn can use to accomplish that stroke. We are truly blessed and so is she.