Jacoby's twin brother, Kaleb and a few of his buddies...Parker Elliot and Collin Mayes made her 9th grade dance a night to be remembered! With the help of Mr. Halfaday and several other AMAZING people...she was taken out on a private yacht for dinner -and then entered the dance with a "red carpet" entry. She talked about the dance for days and I couldn't help but to praise God that He had planted so many loving people around her, to fill in the "gaps" that we couldn't fill! And so...we "closed out her freshman year with a TRULEY magical night. Thank you, Mr. Halfaday, thank you, Ballou.........for EVERYTHING!
BRING ON THE SUMMER DAYS AND NIGHTS.........
It's her 1st summer since the injury, so we are having to switch things up... Switch things out...plan ahead in ways we never had to before. We visited Ocean Shores the other day, and as soon as her wheels touched the hard sand, her wheechair began to sink. It was devastating for her already to not be able to run out into the waves with her siblings and cousins, but now, not even to be able to get out of the van.
(Since that day, a friend has shared a solution to that problem...WOOHOO...another problem solved.) Without fail, it's on her hardest days she is MENTALLY AND SPIRITUALLY strengthened the most; days that she resolves to NEVER GIVE UP.....NEVER LOSE HOPE.....ALWAYS EXPECT A MIRACLE!
Jacoby's faith continues to be her strength. She knows He has her best interest in mind; she trusts Him. One of her favorite verses continues to be....
" I can do ALL things through CHRIST, who STRENGTHENS me!" --Philipians 4:13
Jacoby is still helping at Roach Gymnastics and LOVES being back at the gym. The little "chalky" hand-prints are STILL PRICELESS!
At this very moment, our WHOLE family is heading down to San Diego for "SURF CUP 2013" to watch her younger sister (Morgan) play soccer! Nothing beats putting 8 people together in a minivan for several days together...lol... GOOD TIMES!!! We will keep u posted!:-)
As far as any changes in movement, Jacoby has started having increased sensory awareness in her bladder/bowel, but still no motor movement at this time. AND YES...,WE R THRILLED! Baby steps......
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Thank you for the update! I check on Jacoby , as I pray for her- daily.
ReplyDeleteBaby steps are great! Its progress! So happy your family got to take a road trip! You all will remember it forever! Paul's family took 2 months & went from the west coast to the east coast in a VW Bus with 9 people and camped every night at HOA campgrounds. That was 40+ yrs ago & they still talk about it today!
ReplyDeleteYou all continue to be in our prayers! :)
I just saw this article and thought of you Jacoby! Don't give up the dream to walk!
ReplyDeleteThe bride in this article received help from a therapy center in Detroit, Michigan. It didn't say the name of the facility, but this bridge had a SEVERED spinal chord!! But she WALKED down the aisle on her wedding day, 7 years after the accident!
You are young Jacoby, keep going!!!
http://shine.yahoo.com/love-sex/paralyzed-bride-walks-wedding-210209868.html
That's a great story Elizabeth!!
DeleteMaybe if Jacoby keeps making baby step progress, she will also be able to regain some of her former abilities. Miracles do happen.
As always, praying for the best Miles family.
Thanks for the update. It's inspiring to see how much Jacoby is getting out. Keep it up.
DeleteIn response to the bride story: This bride didn't "regain a former ability", she just adapted to her new situation and figured out a way to pivot and move her body in a new way. It's not always about regaining function, but learning how to work with what you still have. Sorry, I don't mean to be a bummer, I just wanted to point that out.
Continuing to pray for Jacoby! Our family thinks about Jacoby all the time. I truly believe that no physical strength God gives us will be as wonderful as the everlasting plan He has already prepared for us! I believe in Jacoby's strength, will, and faith and pray that her heart will continue to be at peace with her physical abilities and that her story continues to be shared. Thank you to all of Jacoby's family for being so open and honest about the trials and triumphs of this journey. I pray for all of you to have a wonderful end to the summer and transition smoothly into school.
ReplyDeleteNo, Mat, I got that too. Still there are all types of therapies out there, including stem cell treatments that have worked in lab rats. The best thing Jacoby can do for herself is to keep in constant therapy, to keep her joints and muscles and lithe so as to not atrophy from disuse. That way, when the right treatment comes along it will stand a better chance of working for her. Jacoby is young and her wounds are not that old, too young to give up on life, whatever that may be.
ReplyDeleteJacoby looks GREAT1
ReplyDeleteUnless I misunderstood, Jacoby's spinal cord is PINCHED, NOT SEVERED as in the case of that bride. That is why I especially say to not give up with treatments. You would think there would be surgery that could free up the cord so that it is less pinched to restore sensation?
ReplyDeletecan I ask you what the solution was about her chair on the beach? my son is in a power chair and the first time after going into his chair we went to the beach he sank into the sand. We had to push with all our might and say a few prayers to get his chair back into the van. I have been wondering how we could make it work for him.
ReplyDeleteI use a freewheel to push through sand, dirt, grass etc... However, I'm in a manual chair. If you have a manual chair, maybe you could transfer him into it and push him around with a freewheel attached. They're really easy to attach and I always keep mine in the trunk.
DeleteHere's the link: http://www.gofreewheel.com/
or the ultimate off road chairs:
Deletehttp://www.actiontrackchair.com/
Well, it's not really a solution for "her" chair on the beach... Basically, there are "beach" wheelchairs that have really wide tires. You can easily search online for them. On our recent road trip to San Diego, we found that several public beaches had them available to use free of charge. They had both manual and motorized versions.
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ReplyDeleteI just wanted to chime in a few notes here. One, I am super glad to hear the updates. Two, the big wheeled special chairs for the beach are also avaible at most Rhode Island beaches if not all state beaches. I have always seen them all over and yes they are also free for use, but they need to be requested from the lifeguard station. I don't know any of the specifics as its been ages since I had to ask for one. In those days they made a copy of a photo ID, and you were good to go. I did this for a number of group home residents that I worked with. Also another solution that may or may not work is to buy specialty wheels for the scooter or chair shes in. My aunt had some that had big wheels. Way back when she had to have them changed but in later years she had some type that sort of slipped over the existing ones and made it easier for her. Hope these words help someone out there! Keep the faith. A solution is right around the corner, no matter what it is.
ReplyDeleteSo happy to read this update! :D I actually tried 2 times previously to comment but Blogger wouldn't accept my comment, even tho I signed in via LiveJournal & tried to comment that way, as I've always done in the past. :( Maybe this time will work! I just wanted to say that I love Jacoby's positive attitude and I am still thinking very GOOD thoughts for her! I also wanted to say how happy I am to read she's regaining some ability with "bathroom" stuff. I don't want to sound like TMI; I'm only mentioning it because you mentioned it here, and I'd imagine that's probably the WORST thing (aside from not being able to walk) that happens with spinal cord injuries. So here's hoping things continue to improve in that way as well!!
ReplyDeleteHugs from Redwood City, California
Shari K.W. :)
It's superb............
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